A short interview with Annette Deichmann (GeneWerk GmbH), reminding that internationalisation should be in your mind from the first moment.
First step towards internationalisation. Young start-ups struggle in establishing an internationalisation strategy, based on the available resources. What would be your tip to them, to maximise the impact of their actions?
Internationalization should be in your mind from the first moment. Coming from the scientific field the international scientific network might give you a clue where to start with. In addition all existing contacts are very important. Attend the congresses, get in touch with the people in the field, ask for their demands and offer cooperations.
Hand-on experience. Could you please summarise the internationalisation activities of your company in few sentences?
Regarding our services in a niche field we have started our business with international clients all over the world. We had to realize that most of the requests and final contracts came from the US. That is the reason to start our fist subsidiary over the ocean. On the other side we have many clients within the European Union, contacts resulting from our former scientific research grant networks. Finally 50% of our staff comes from abroad, originate from 10 different nations. This is the most fruitful impact on tolerance and an open mind.
In summary, based on your experience what is the ‘secret sauce’ for successful internationalisation?
You are working with people. Get in touch with them, listen to them, learn more about their culture and draw your conclusions from that.