The entrepreneurial spirit took pride of place on the campus last week for the 4th SDE event held from 12 to 15 March. A highly ambitious edition organized by the HEC Espace Entreprise and START Lausanne Student Associations with contributions from other HEC Lausanne associations.
16 events organised over 4 days, a total of 700 enrolments for the different activities and some 50 entrepreneurs in attendance: those were the results of this 4th edition which was in full swing last week!
2018 marks a new phase in the life of the SDE (Semaine de l’Entrepreneuriat): “When our two associations HEC Espace Entreprise and START Lausanne took over the project this year, our ambition was to create an event which could appeal to everybody with themes as varied as the very notion of an entrepreneur today”, Julien Tschachli, SDE organizer and master’s degree student at HEC Lausanne, commented.
The challenge was taken up successfully with the lunches, workshops and presentations on topics that were both enthralling and inspiring, such as feminine entrepreneurship, transition from the world of multinationals to start-ups or entrepreneurship in the digital age. This event was also an opportunity to meet up with people who have taken the step of joining the entrepreneurial world and came to share their experience at the Entrepreneurs Fair on 14 March.
Attended by prominent figures from the entrepreneurship world, members of the UNIL Rectorate and the Deanship of HEC Lausanne, students and graduates of the University of Lausanne, the event brought together all these communities around a common goal: that of encouraging the entrepreneurial spirit!
What about next year?
Buoyed by this experience, the organizing committee sees the future of the SDE at UNIL in a positive light. The objectives are clear: “To anchor this dynamic with students and in the entrepreneurial eco-system of the region, while developing the event with initiatives including perhaps a Start-Up Weekend”, Clara Leonardi, event press officer and bachelor’s degree student at HEC Lausanne, commented.