Startup Focus With Game-changers, Presented By Sap

The buzz: “AI is not a synthetic brain floating in a case of blue liquid…” -Jeff Goodell. Artificial intelligence -AI- has evolved from the days of early interactive voice response systems. Could “Press 1 for English” soon be gone? AI applications, Augmented and Virtual Reality are shifting how enterprises and consumers manage their business and personal lives, with proactive device assistants on smartphones, wearables, and more. What role do tech startups play? The experts speak. Richard Smullen, Pypestream: “One has to passionately believe it is possible to change the industry, to turn it on its head, to make sure that it will never be the same again” -Richard Branson. Shaun Stüger, BoodsKapper: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do” -H. Jackson Brown’s mother. Mark Noronha, SAP Startup Focus: “The dream is finally arriving” -Bill Gates. Join us for The Startup Mindset: Enterprise AI Hype vs Reality.

The buzz: “It’s all good” -Bob Dylan. These are exciting times for tech startups working on breakthrough innovations in the Internet of Things -IoT- space, including the Industrial IoT -IIoT-, IoT for Healthcare, IoT for Manufacturing, and other business-critical areas. Why? Big enterprises are poised to take advantage of your innovations using the real time processing power of the IoT platform and IoT analytics to uncover value in their network of sensors and devices, and improve their top and bottom line results. The experts speak. Christopher Bouveret, iTiZZiMO: “If you went to bed last night as an industrial company, you're going to wake up today as a software and analytics company” -Jeff Immelt. Pieter van Schalkwyk, XMPro: “The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do” -Michael Porter. Mayank Mathur, SAP Startup Focus: “Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master” -Christian Lous Lange. Join us for The Startup Mindset: IoT Scenarios Adding Enterprise Value.

The buzz: “I prefer being a small fish in a big pond” -Stacey Keibler. When it comes to dealing with Big Data and its challenges, big enterprise organizations may lack the agility to understand and prepare. Where to turn for help? Lean, mean, agile startups to the rescue. Why? Technology startups offer fresh energy and new innovations not only to tech giants like Google or SAP, but can also help big companies across all industries remain viable in the connected economy. And this type of successful collaboration can lead to startups being acquired by Big Data companies. Yes, it can be a win-win for all. The experts speak. Christopher Carter, Approyo: “War is 90 percent information” -Napoleon Bonaparte. Surendra Reddy, Quantiply: “In God we trust: all others bring data” -W. Edwards Deming. Mark Noronha, SAP Startup Focus: “The most valuable commodity I know of is information” -Gordon Gekko, Wall Street, 1987 film. Join us for The Startup Mindset: Reality of Big Data in the Enterprise.

The buzz: At the hop. With the right music, startups and large enterprises can enjoy a mutually beneficial dance – even as industries are being disrupted. How? Enterprises can gain innovation faster from startups rather than on their own: identify and invest early in the right startups on reasonable terms and help them grow: collaborate with startups to redefine mature and slow-to-adapt industries. Music, please! The experts speak. Frantisek Vrabel, Semantic Visions: “Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them” -Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Bastian Nominacher, Celonis: “People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do” -Steve Jobs. Maria Luisa Silva, SAP: “It is not the strongest of the species or the most intelligent who will survive but the one most responsive to change” -Darwin, Megginson. Join us for The Startup Mindset: Mice Dancing with the Elephants.

The buzz: Congratulations! How do you know when your tech startup is a success? A big enterprise answers your call. What’s in it for them? Your disruptive products and solutions deliver the innovation they cannot develop on their own due to cost, change-resistant culture, lack of agility, and sluggish internal creativity. Our panel of startups and advisors will share insights on the entrepreneur’s journey from vision to getting the big players to say “Yes!” The experts speak. Ian Nazzari, Huru Systems: “For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled” -Richard Feynman. Simon Bain, SearchYourCloud: “And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly: what is essential is invisible to the eye” -Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Dave Katona, SAP: “Anyone can cook, but only the fearless can be great” -Chef Gusteau, Ratatoulle. Join us for The Startup Mindset: Innovation for Sale.

Today’s buzz: Enterprises. Some startups simply refuse to start small, preferring to approach the enterprise market in hopes of landing a big customer from the get-go. Success may come to the startup who understands the enterprise audience, is savvy about positioning their products, and knows their own strengths and weaknesses. If this is a lot to get your arms around, or you’re still trying to get it right, we’ve got first-hand insights from in-the-trenches startup veterans who figured it out. Christopher Carter, CEO, Approyo: “Do not be afraid to fail. Go In prepared and ready to lay it all on the line. If you lose, lose with style and grace. You never know when or what the end really is.” Vish Canaran, President, CEO and Chief Data Scientist, Liquid Analytics: “Software = Team. The best teams build the best software. Join them and Deepak Aher, SAP Startup Focus for SAP HANA, for much more on Startups Selling to the Enterprise: Dare to Dream Big – Part 2.

Today’s buzz: Handheld Future Enterprise mobility is moving at triple-Internet speed in our Mobile 2.0 world. Adoption of BYOD and enterprise-wide B2E, B2B and C2B is disrupting traditional computing. Startups have the agility, flexibility and entrepreneurial spirit to be on the cutting edge of it all. How does your startup embrace the mindset of mobility – which is dramatically changing our digital dynamic – personally, professionally, and commercially? Sanjay Shirole, SAP, offers this insight from Sergei Brin, Google co-founder: “Google Glass will help fight the antisocial and ‘emasculating’ habit of compulsive smartphone checking.” Join Sanjay, Jon Siegal of Fan Appz, and Craig Bassin of EasyAsk for an insider look at Startups and Mobility: The Handheld Future.

Today’s buzz: Startups in Telco. The globally booming telecommunications industry faces the herculean task of offering superb, multi-channel user experiences while maintaining the integrity of their global service and infrastructure. Telco’s need help! But can smart tech startups poised to enhance the mobile platform have a significant impact if carrier and government policies continue to vary dramatically country-to-country? And how closely should these startups align with Telco industry giants? The experts speak. Wendy Chen, SILK: “The future of how we work and communicate will be defined by the emerging world.” Yaniv Mor, Xplenty: “Big Data is the new lifeline for Telecommunications giants – a goldmine waiting to be explored!” Gowri Shankar, Naya Ventures: “Facebook purchase of Whatsapp is actually a steal. The mobile operators probably lost twice that number in revenues in the last four years.” Join us for Startups and Telcos: Let’s Talk!

Today’s buzz: High-Tech. Today’s lean-and-mean startups have the advantage of being well-positioned to adopt and scale high-tech innovations. But they have to carefully choose which innovations to adopt and which to offer. The experts speak. Ron Wessels, SAP: “Entrepreneurs need to live their passion yet maintain their balance. Beware that entrepreneurs tend to worship their work, work at their play, and play at their worship. This approach is out of balance and will not lead to fulfillment” (R. Wessels with Chuck Swindoll). Dan Somers, Warwick Analytics: “The philosophical problem with ‘big data’ is that it flies in the face of everything we’re told about the environment and recycling… In other words, we need to pinpoint Grandma’s engagement ring rapidly amongst the other junk and recycle the other electrons.” Balaji TT, Saggezza: “It is not the size of data that matters, it is what you do with it!” Join us for Startups and High-Tech: A Distinct Advantage – Part 2.

Today’s buzz: Consumer products. When deciding which products are worthy of their purchasing dollars, more shoppers than ever before are looking beyond price point and features to find trustworthy companies with a social and environmental conscience. What does this mean for technology-savvy startups eager to break into the consumer products market? It opens the door to exciting opportunities to offer buyers new, better choices and great experiences that turn them into loyal fans. The experts speak. Kay Jeschke, Greennaturelab Gmbh, myspotworld: “Humankind will only survive in the future if it acts sustainably. Only companies who act sustainably will be accepted by their customers.” Mike Bott, The Brandery: “There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.” (Nelson Mandela) Dr. Ivan Markovic, HealthGames, Movimento: “Health is a game.” Join us for Startups and Consumer Products: Fresh Technology, Better Solutions

Today’s buzz: High-Tech. With technology innovations transforming nearly every facet of business, companies must assimilate quickly or be left behind. Startups, as streamlined organizations, have the advantage of being well-positioned to adopt and scale high-tech. But they must carefully choose which innovations to adopt and then which to supply. What impact is high-tech having on the startup community and which proficiencies should investors expect before funding them? The experts speak. Lamar Williams, Precogs: “Hold fast to your dreams, for without them life is a broken bird that cannot fly” (Langston Hughes). Arun Prasad, 1-Enterprise: “Data is not information, information is not knowledge, knowledge is not understanding, understanding is not wisdom” (Clifford Stoll). Faraz Hoodbhoy, AT&T: “Innovating at scale is lot harder than it looks. At our scale, we need to build a new Fortune 500 company or two every year.” Join us for Startups and High-Tech: A Distinct Advantage.

Today’s buzz: Health Care. The impact of technology innovation on health care has put us light years ahead of what was available a few years ago. But the advances are still more device-centric than patient-centric, more one-size-fits-all than patient-personalized. Can tech startups help move us in the right direction? The experts speak. James R. Griffin, Datric, Inc.: “The mHealth market is a $20B/year market that has failed to impact health care costs and live up to expectations. Of the Apple apps store’s 43,700 health-related apps, only 159 capture user-entered health data and fewer than 50 are related to medical condition management. The market is driven by consumer demand for apps and sensors with little regard for true risks, benefits, and health management capabilities.” Chris Carter, Approyo: “Big Data in the medical world can make us all healthier, and make it easier to analyze issues and provide cost savings.” Join us for Startups in Health Care: Taking the Pulse

Today’s buzz: Utilities. Beyond their original mandate to deliver water and power, utilities today are awash in waves of big data, go-green, and get-smart. What if a tech startup could help them swim to safety? The experts speak. Brian Weakliam, Bankhawk Analytics: “Information is the oxygen of the modern age. It seeps through the walls topped by barbed wire, it wafts across the electrified borders.” (Ronald Reagan) Derick Jose, Flutura: “The Utility sector is ripe for unlocking energy efficiencies by reducing technical and commercial losses along the complete grid value chain. It also offers to understand energy consumption patterns at a level of granularity previously not possible.” Luisa Silva, SAP: “It followed from the special theory of relativity that mass and energy are both but different manifestations of the same thing—a somewhat unfamiliar conception for the average mind.” (Albert Einstein) Join us for their insights on Startups and Utilities: Powering Up.

Today’s buzz: Doing the legwork. You have a brilliant idea for a well-researched, marketplace-needed service or product. You’ve recruited, inspired and engaged a savvy core team. You’ve raised a healthy stream of startup funding. What does it all add up to? Not much until you work the room at events and conferences, and get the attention of the right people at the right companies at the right time. Ready to learn how today’s successful startups do it? Live from TechEd, we’ll bring you words of wisdom from Kence Anderson, Apptimyze founder and CEO, United Software Associates founder Sam Bhat, and SAP Startup Focus Head of Global Market Enablement Robert Kapanen. Join us for Pounding the Pavement from Pitch to Positioning, and Tweet your questions and comments to #SAPRadio.

Today’s buzz: Retail. Today’s smart, digitally-empowered shoppers expect a seamless omni-channel retail experience that lets them combine online and brick-and-mortar browsing, shopping, ordering, and returning at their whim. Are you ready for them? The experts speak. Michael Harris, Optimus Advantage: “Imagine how delighted retail customers would be to negotiate their own price to buy the right product at the right time. And how delighted retailers would be to recover lost sales associated with sticker shock. Futuristic? Not!” Sam Bhat, United Software Associates: “People in the retail industry are better off knowing that if their cash registers are not ringing, it is because their competitors are doing a much better job at influencing customers.” Sanjay Shirole, SAP: “Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.” (Richard Branson, Virgin Enterprises).” Join us for their insights and first-hand experiences on Startups in Retail: State of the Union.

You’ve developed a great solution, hit the ground running, and signed your first customer. Bravo! What’s next? Get the second customer, of course. But is it that simple? Ready to learn how today’s successful startups do it? The experts speak. Sanjiv Gupta, VSSOD Corporation: “You can't just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they'll want something new.” (Steve Jobs, Apple) Dr. Anthony Borquez, Grab Analytics: “A bad customer early on can lead to a bad product later.” Ted Sapountzis, NextPrinciples: If you want to increase your success rate, double your failure rate. (Thomas J. Watson, IBM) Sanjay Shirole, SAP Startup Focus, “Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.” (Richard Branson, Virgin Enterprises) Join us for Getting Your First Customer, Then Your Second, and Tweet your questions and comments to #SAPRadio.

Today’s buzz: Government. If you’re a startup seeking capital, resources, research grants, education, mentoring, and more, you may have turned to various levels of government for support. Which governments are helping and which are hindering entrepreneurial communities today? The experts speak. Greg Trahan, Louisiana Economic Development: “Government and communities can help build the architecture, provide support and resources, and shape policy and climate, but they can’t create startups unless they start acting like one.” Tom Suder, MobileGov: “The Pentagon, the world's largest office building of its time, was built in 18 months from conception to implementation. Now it takes the Department of Defense an average of 18 months to develop a policy memo. That has to change.” Aiaz Kazi, SAP: “After all, innovation is what America has always been about. Most new jobs are created in startups and small businesses.” (President Barack Obama) Join us for an eye-opening discussion on Startups to Governments: What H

According to Dan Senor and Saul Singer’s book, Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle, Israel has the world's most start-ups per capita and the world's highest concentration of spending on research and development. Equally impressive, Israel attracted as much venture capital as Germany and France combined in 2008—nearly $2 billion. And Israel has more Nasdaq-listed companies than all of Europe and any country besides the U.S. How can this country of just seven million, and under continual military threat, be so fertile for innovation? The experts speak. Yaron Eppel, Mobideo Technologies Ltd.: “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new. (Albert Einstein) Saritha Sundaresan, SAP Startup Focus, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” (Margaret Mead, U.S. anthropologist) Join us for Startup Nation: Israel.

Today’s buzz: Tech startups. Certain entrepreneurs soar to success from the get-go. Others, not so fast – or at all. According to a July 2013 survey at www.statisticbrain.com, just 37% of information industry startups are still operating four years after launch (Entrepreneur Weekly, Small Business Development Center, Bradley Univ., Univ. of Tennessee Research). To kick-off our new SAP Startup Focus with Game-Changers Radio series, we’ll explore the critical factors that make a startup truly unique and primed for stardom in the highly competitive startup world. The experts speak. Frantisek Vrabel, Semantic Visions: “True happiness comes from the joy of deeds well done, the zest of creating things new. (Antoine de Saint-Exupery) Marty Pejko, Centerity: “The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” (Albert Einstein) Manju Bansal, SAP: “When all is said and done, there is more said than done.” (Aesop) Join us for Why This Start-Up Now?

Today’s buzz: First things first. You’re a startup with a game-changing idea. How do you proceed: design and build before you sell it, or sell the vision before spending resources to design and build? Quoting the Bard, “Aye, there’s the rub.” Perhaps you simply need the agility to switch between both development modes, depending on each real-life scenario. The experts speak. James Sinclair, EnterpriseJungle: “’Sell-Design-Build’ is an invaluable model allowing a startup valuable time to validate their business case prior to engineering. Sell-Design-Build vs. failing by building a product no one wants.” Jan-Kees Buenen, SynerScope: “The more your product will create a paradigm shift, the more you may have to design and build some of it up front to create sufficient trust for your vision.” Kaustav Mitra, SAP: “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work” (Thomas A. Edison). Join us for the Path to Success: Sell-Design-Build vs. Design-Build-Sell?