“Entrepreneurship is an activity that the younger generation is interested in today. The Faculty of Engineering (FT) is one of the motors of the science and technology center of the Universitas Indonesia (UI) in realizing technology-based entrepreneurship (technopreneurship). Therefore, we encourage and support the Faculty of Engineering to foster the birth of new start-up companies that are able to answer challenges and developments of the times,” said Prof. Ari Kuncoro, S.E., M.A., Ph.D., UI Rector said in the Entrepreneurship Seminar and Launching of the FTUI Technopreneur Club, last Friday (8/4).
This technology-based entrepreneurial activity is in line with UI’s vision, which is to become a center of science and technology to improve the welfare of the people of Indonesia and the world. In order to answer this challenge, FTUI opens the widest opportunities for industry and the general public who want to work together to build technology-based startups. The Dean of FTUI, Prof. Dr. Heri Hermansyah, S.T., M.Eng., said, “We are trying to build new entrepreneurs within the FTUI with the hope of synergizing and collaborating with each other to achieve a common goal, namely to create an FTUI that is superior and globally competitive.”
To support start-up activities in universities, the Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia (Menparekraf RI), Dr. H. Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno, B.BA, M.B.A., conveyed the need for superior human resources (HR) in building start-ups. “HR must be innovative, take risks, be adaptive, have soft skills, and be able to collaborate on every line. They must also have the principles of hard work, smart work, thorough work, and sincere work. I hope that UI students realize the importance of developing the creative economy for the progress of the nation. I invite all parties, especially UI, to play an active role in taking advantage of opportunities and improving their quality during this pandemic,” said Dr. Sandiaga in the keynote speech session.
Coordinator of Educational Substance 1, Directorate of Creative Economy Human Resources Development, Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, Kemal Akbar Khalikal Isbah Monarfa, A.Md., S.Sos., M.M. on that occasion explained the advantages of the creative economy, the potential for digitalization in Indonesia, as well as the characteristics needed for an entrepreneur to build a Go Digital business!. Kemal also explained programs and campaigns to support the development of creative economic human resources in Indonesia that UI academics could participate in.
Furthermore, the Secretary of the Entrepreneurial Innovation Unit and Head of Logistics, Dr. Imam Jauhari Maknun, S.T., M.T., M.Sc. guided the sharing session which was filled with three speakers, namely the Co-founder and CEO of Widya Robotics (Alwy Herfian Satriatama, S.Si.), the Co-founder of Javatech Automation (Titos Jartiaso, S.T.), and Founder Goorita (Yuwono Wicaksono, S.T., M.B.A.) . The speakers shared their motivations and experiences in building start-up companies, including in the engineering industry. According to them, the challenges faced in building a start-up include a product market fit, a business strategy roadmap in Indonesia, as well as limited human resources with qualified digital skills to increase competitiveness at the international level. With the development of startup companies in Indonesia, they hope that the FTUI academic community can participate in developing the start-up ecosystem in Indonesia.
FTUI’s seriousness in developing this startup is manifested by the Entrepreneurship Camp and Business Incubator. Head of Entrepreneurial Innovation Unit/Head of Reverse Engineering Center FTUI, Dr. Muhamad Sahlan, S.Si., M.Eng., said that the Entrepreneurship Camp and Business Incubator activities are not only for the FTUI academic community, but are also open to the general public who are interested in collaborating with FTUI. In order to build a supportive ecosystem for the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship in the FTUI environment, the FTUI Technopreneur Club was inaugurated at the event.
“The Technopreneur Club FTUI has the characteristics of a beehive, which is a place to place and cultivate the best potential of the FTUI academic community. This institution is a medium for the civitas to develop the potential of technology-based business. The civitas is also expected to be able to become a problem solver of every problem as a form of endeavor to advance civilization. The FTUI academic community and the general public can join the FTUI Technopreneur Club via https://bit.ly/registrasi_TCFTUI. Registration is open until April 29, 2022. Every member of the FTUI Technopreneur Club has the opportunity to participate in programs and activities related to start-up development, “said Dr. Sahlan closed the session.
The seminar with the theme “Becoming Outstanding and Impactful FTUI Personnel through Entrepreneurial Spirit” is the result of a collaboration between the FTUI Entrepreneurial and Innovation Unit and the FTUI Alumni Association (ILUNI). This activity, which was attended by more than 300 participants, is expected to be able to generate interest and involvement from the civitas and the community towards entrepreneurial activities organized by the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Unit of FTUI in order to realize the vision of FTUI’s Excellent Entrepreneur with Impact in the future.
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Public Communication Bureau
Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Indonesia