On Saturday, March 1, Professor Silvia Stroe from the University of St. Gallen visited Franklin University Switzerland to lead a startup idea validation workshop, a completely student-developed initiative. During this workshop, students learned about identifying external assumptions, developing hypotheses, and validation methodology. Professor Stroe’s approach closely mirrored the scientific method, providing an easy-to-follow structure for students to apply to validating ANY idea they might have. There was also a competitive component to the workshop; students split into groups and were each tasked with validating a solution for a real-world problem that affects the community here in the Ticino area of Switzerland. Students were forced out of their comfort zones and embarked around the city of Lugano to hear from real people and find out if their solution is desired by the public. At the end of the day, all students returned to present their results to a panel of judges. The winning team received a cash prize of 160chf!
We would like to extend our warmest thanks to Silvia Stroe for bringing her expertise to our students, Professors David Suleiman and Charles Burke for being on the judge panel, and Peruin Al-Haiany for covering the event with photos and videos. Also special thanks to Luca Del Fabbro from Lidl Sorengo for supporting the event with snacks and refreshments. We’d like to thank the Franklin Business Club and the Division of Business and Economics for supporting the event.
- Article written by Ameen Aloulou, who organized, planned, and oversaw the event.
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