BCG: Corporate Ventures in Sweden

Check out a real BCG presentation on Corporate Ventures in Sweden.

BCG Presentation: Corporate Ventures in Sweden

Key Learnings from the Presentation

The BCG report, “Corporate Ventures in Sweden,” provides an insightful analysis of the relationship between Swedish start-ups and corporations, highlighting the potential for improved synergy and innovation through corporate ventures. Here’s a structured summary of the key findings, insights, and actionable recommendations:

Sweden’s Innovation Landscape

• Global Recognition: Sweden is acknowledged globally for its innovation, consistently ranking in the top 3 since 2012 and hosting a vibrant tech hub in Stockholm, the 2nd fastest-growing VC tech market globally with over $1B raised in 2015.
• Growth Challenge: Despite this, Sweden faces challenges in scaling start-ups to larger enterprises, with only 9% of incubator alumni companies achieving turnovers greater than 5MSEK in 2014.

Corporate Venturing as an Innovation Strategy

• Underutilized Strategy: While corporate venturing is recognized as a valuable innovation and value creation strategy, particularly in R&D-intensive industries like pharmaceuticals and technology, only about 20% of Sweden’s largest companies have their corporate venture setups, compared to a higher global average.
• Corporate Venture Vehicles: The main vehicles include Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) with minority equity investments in start-ups, accelerators, and incubators for rapid idea evaluation, and innovation labs for internal innovation outside traditional R&D.

Opportunities for Growth

• Enhancing Corporate Engagement: There’s significant room for Swedish corporations to increase their involvement in local start-ups, with most acquisitions of Swedish start-ups currently made by foreign companies.
• Learning from Global Best Practices: Insights from successful global innovation hubs suggest Sweden could strengthen its corporate venture ecosystem by fostering a more entrepreneurial culture, matching private funding with policy support, and integrating private sector efforts with academia.

Strategic Recommendations

• Promote Entrepreneurial Culture: Emulate Silicon Valley’s success by enhancing the status of entrepreneurship and focusing on market needs and innovation.
• Policy Support for Innovation: Inspired by Israel’s success, Swedish policy-making could aim to match private investments and proactively attract foreign investment and talent.
• Incubator Organizations’ Role: Drawing from Munich’s Unternehmertum model, effective incubator organizations could play a pivotal role in integrating the private sector with academia, with government actions facilitating rather than directing these collaborations.

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