Using the design thinking methodTarget not accessible, everyone at the camp closely examined the cases of NZZ, Alpiq and, as far as we were concerned, Swiss Post. We were supported by our camp leader and several CEOs during the process, who shared their first-hand experience with us. Léa Miggiano, co-founder of Carvolution AG, provided some valuable input: starting a business isn’t something you can force. Quite the contrary: “Preparation meets Chance”.

We began with the Empathize Phase, during which we defined our target group and used questionnaires and interviews to obtain an initial overview of their needs. We also set out an IST customer journey that described the current customer experience of our target group.

Next, the Ideate Phase was all about being creative. This is where we could really let our imagination run wild by thinking outside the box and coming up with all sorts of different ideas, including some pretty crazy ones! We tried various types of brainstorming during this phase. Our tip: give your brainstorming session a time limit and make a note of every idea – regardless of how reasonable or unreasonable it sounds. Don’t discuss each individual idea until the end. This ensures that you stay efficient during this phase and don’t waste any time.

After this burst of creativity, we moved on to the Prototyping Phase. Our goal here was to make our ideas tangible. Using various different modelling tools, we transformed our ideas into a testable prototype.

Last by not least came User Testing, at which point we received some initial feedback on the prototype we had created.

Throughout the week we were given lots of useful input and were treated to a series of presentations and discussions with entrepreneurs and other specialists that we could incorporate directly into our work. Did you know that starting a business isn’t something you can force? A brief summary from Léa Miggiano: “Preparation meets Chance.”

Before we knew it, it was Friday, the big day: pitching day! This is when we were able to present our finished work to the case givers at Swiss Post. After the pitch, we had the opportunity to have a discussion with them and hear some feedback.

This marked the end of a very intense and informative week that went by in a flash.

We got to meet lots of like-minded, inspiring people, and we cemented new friendships. It’s hard to put into words what the week was like: it was an unforgettable experience that we are really grateful for, and one we will remember for a long time to come! 

Lastly, a few words from Alessandro Semeraro, co-founder and Managing Director of H.AKADEMIE AG, to all those courageous, curious and innovative young entrepreneurs out there: “If you want to inspire passion in other people, that passion has to be inside you.”

We would like to thank the whole leadership team from the Swiss Economic Forum (SEF) for their dedicated support and Swiss Post as the main sponsor for this unique opportunity.

Are you open, curious, courageous, unconventional and aged between 18 and 24? In which case, what are you waiting for? Apply now for SEF.NextGen spring campTarget not accessible!