In October, Hynds Foundation trustees and staff were able to participate in learning programmes created through the Hynds Entrepreneurial Fellows programme at the University of Auckland. The experiences demonstrated the high quality of education being offered, and confirmed our view of the value of Innovation & Entrepreneurship (I&E) capability for a thriving New Zealand.
First up we visited Systems Week, a time when fourth-year Engineering students immerse themselves in a wicked problem, to come up with solutions to a client brief. This year, there were 25 groups, each with 35 students, working on a problem task of plastic pollution. The clients were the Ministry for the Environment and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Over their previous three years of studies, these future engineers have been introduced to different learning that prepares them to tackle the complexity of a wicked problem. These include understanding I&E processes, and developing the communication skills that are essential for successful collaboration. For Systems Week, assessors require the groups to research and write a comprehensive business case for a proposed solution. The business cases are reviewed to determine a winning proposal to put to the client.
In observing the groups in action, we saw an impressive depth of critical thinking and technical skills being applied to the challenge.
Next up, we participated in a social impact ‘unconference’, where students and staff from across faculties were invited to pitch topics, join spontaneous sessions and contribute their experiences. The emphasis is on participation, not just listening. The event enables outcomes in understanding how to address social and environmental challenges by applying an I&E mindset.
To complete, we visited a poster presentation from an entrepreneurship course for final-year Music students. They shared practical initiatives they’d designed and tested that drew on the entrepreneurial frameworks and mindsets they’d learned about. It’s consistent with an I&E learning process that takes students from thinking to action.
“In all of these interactions, it was encouraging to see the enthusiasm of students and academic staff for the practical value of Innovation and Entrepreneurship,” says Hynds Foundation programme director, Leanne Gibson.
Darsel Keane, Director of the university’s Centre for Innovation & Entrepreneurship, believes that New Zealand faces a critical challenge in how to build an economy that is globally competitive, environmentally sustainable, and socially inclusive. A powerful part of the answer lies in entrepreneurship education. Darsel cites Denmark as a country to look to, where entrepreneurship is embedded across all levels of education. Research links its model to increased innovation, employment and high-growth firm creation.
“Too often entrepreneurship education is misunderstood as simply teaching people how to start a business – it’s really about turning ideas into action. It builds creativity, confidence, resilience and the belief that ‘I can make a difference’.” With that belief, Darsel thinks more graduating students might see meaningful futures for themselves in New Zealand.
Peter Rachor was the inaugural Hynds Entrepreneurial Fellow appointment, and over the past seven years has developed academic collaborations to first champion and now embed I&E in faculties including Engineering, Science, Medicine and Business. Two years ago, Dr Marissa Kaloga became the second Entrepreneurial Fellow appointment, and is focused on collaboration with the Arts and Humanities faculties.
Darsel says that entrepreneurship is understood and enacted differently by academic disciplines. “What it looks like in Engineering may differ significantly from its expression in Dance, Architecture or Education, but the underlying mindset and capabilities remain universally valuable.”
Since 2018, more than 15,000 students have benefited through a programme created by the Hynds Entrepreneurial Fellows, and 17 academic staff have also been trained as champions of innovation. Peter Rachor has also earned the distinctions of the People’s Choice Award for Entrepreneurial Educator of the Year (Asia Pacific), and an Educators for Impact Award – an initiative supported by the European Union’s Erasmus+ Programme.
