Dr Anna Nikina has built her career in Finland and Europe and moved to Russia in the beginning of 2012 to work for Skolkovo as Head of Development, International Programmes, Technopark Skolkovo.
Why did you move back to Russia and start to work in Skolkovo?
I was born in Moscow, but have lived in Europe almost all my life, working for international organisations such as Trainers’ House, Nokia and the Finnish-Russian Chamber of Commerce. When the opportunity to work for Skolkovo presented itself, on a personal level I felt that the move would turn a new page in my life and be an exciting opportunity. On a professional level, the move to Moscow was a natural continuation of my international career, providing the possibility to realise myself in a new setting while having the chance to draw on the experience that I already had.
Moreover, the topics of entrepreneurship and innovations – both being closely linked to Skolkovo – are well-developed within my personal story. I have spent a couple of years as an entrepreneur, have defended a doctoral dissertation on the topic of female entrepreneurship, am currently an Affiliated Professor of innovation management and internationalisation at Grenoble Ecole de Management in France. I have also coauthored a paper honoured in the USA in for its ‘practical contributions to entrepreneurship’, and several books on entrepreneurship, including the most recent one published by Pearson Education. Overall, it seems that my previous experience in life and work have been preparing me for the move to Russia and Skolkovo.
Why should a western start-up set up its’ operations in Skolkovo?
In addition to access to the Russian market and the opportunities existing here, today there are already over 700 innovative projects that have been accepted into Skolkovo, and that in itself provides the most interesting network of scientists and entrepreneurs. Every start-up entering the project receives tangible benefits in terms of taxation incentives, migration and customs easing, along with the possibility to apply for a grant to develop their innovation – and up to now about 150 companies have received grants totaling over $260 million. Additionally, Skolkovo, and Technopark Skolkovo in particular, offer a range of services that are also in line with foreign companies’ needs, and in Technopark Skolkovo companies can find a reliable partner in establishing and developing their business operations in the Russian market.
Only recently we had a visit from a group of young American entrepreneurs, who commented that now that they have seen Skolkovo, talked with people who are involved with the project, and got to know the plans for existing and future infrastructure, their way of thinking about doing business in Russia has been reshaped, and potentially they too could see their start-ups as part of the Skolkovo story.
When it comes to foreign innovators and entrepreneurs making a decision about setting the operations in Russia, my belief is that the first step should be to visit Russia and Skolkovo to see for themselves what it is all about and envision establishing and running a business in this part of the world. Other people’s opinions and experiences are certainly valuable as well, but you need to combine knowledge with mileage and personal experience of Russia, Moscow and Skolkovo to be able to make up your own mind.
Please sum up the process of establishing operations in Skolkovo?
In the application process, there is a consulting centre in Skolkovo that provides advice for applicants on free-of-charge basis. You can apply online to participate in Skolkovo. Your innovative project will be evaluated within one month by a panel of experts – some of the key criteria include the technical feasibility, potential for commercialisation, competitive advantage, aspects of internationalisation and team composition. If the project is accepted, you must establish a Russian legal entity and then you may enter Skolkovo.
What kind of personal motives do you have for developing Skolkovo?
Knowledge, skills and the right contacts are, in my mind, the most liquid capital there is. Therefore, in my work with start-ups I aim to offer the most interesting and valuable educational training with concrete results, meetings with investors that are likely to translate into effective outcomes, and contact trips and business incubation opportunities internationally in Europe, Asia, USA.
Part of the aim of Skolkovo is to integrate Russian innovators and start-ups into the international entrepreneurship community. This idea is close to my heart because, in addition to working with entrepreneurs from all over the world, I can also show that Skolkovo could be their bridge to the Russian market and that opportunities exist here.
How will Russia be different in five years’ time?
Russia is already in the process of finding its way as an innovationfocused economy. Some further work needs to be done in terms of learning to utilise the great potential of intellectual work that exists here – for example, last year a total of about 1,000 international patents were applied for by Russia’s leading innovative companies, while the annual amount of international patents from Microsoft alone is over 2,000.
Skolkovo has existed for two years now and some of the results that we see today show that the project is moving in the right direction under the leadership of Mr Vekselberg, President of the Skolkovo Foundation and one of the most successful entrepreneurs in Russia. I hope that in five years we will see some major international success stories being born among Russian start-ups, making an impact as large as Google’s or Apple’s, and therefore the attention of the global innovative community will turn towards Europe and Russia in particular.
Konsu Magazine (.pdf file)