IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - December 2016 - 16

Entrepreneur Viewpoint

by Deepak Divan

Slow and Steady Wins the Race:
Other Models for Entrepreneurship

have been writing consistently
about entrepreneurs who target
disruption and force change in
markets, change that existing market leaders often will not initiate.
This can lead to spectacular success
or spectacular failure. Remember,
every major transformative change
typically occurs on the backs of
three rounds of dead investors.
Global communications operating at
ultralow costs exist today because
companies such as Lucent put fiber
across the globe but could not
recover their investments. The dark
fiber, written down to pennies on the
dollar, allowed low-cost communications to thrive and the Internet to
become the global phenomenon it is.
Similarly, photovoltaics (PVs) have
decreased gradually from over US$5/
watt to US$0.50/watt, today. In the
process, many companies and their
investors have had to shut their doors,
but the PV revolution has begun in
earnest with grid parity having been
achieved in many markets. In some
way, when such investments are made
or subsidized by the state (as in China
for PVs), one sees that a more efficient

In subsequent columns, the columnist will share learning and experiences as well as discuss the challenges
of obtaining venture capital funds.

Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MPEL.2016.2614909
Date of publication: 20 December 2016

IEEE POWER ELECTRONICS MAGAZINE

which is sometimes based on deep
process for a large-scale transformadomain expertise from within his or
tion can occur. In any case, it is the
her industr y sector, and a high
allure and magic of outsize change
degree of perseverance, grit, and
and success (such as Tesla is aiming
resilience under very challenging
for) coupled with the possibility of
conditions. The company's small
outsized financial gain that drives
size, expertise, and understanding of
many entrepreneurs. These stories
its market segment makes it nimble
certainly generate more sizzle, and
and able to respond to needs as these
they are the ones we hear about more.
become visible.
As I have frequently discussed in
These companies frequently funcprevious "Entrepreneur Viewpoint"
tion in limited geographic regions, or
columns, this is not the only path to
they serve as captive suppliers to
becoming a n entrepreneur. The
larger entities with
traditional model,
a broader market
particularly in the
reach that provides
United States, of the
Remember, every
them with machine
entrepreneur startmajor transformative
tools, specialized
ing a small business
equipment, and serchange typically
using his or her pervices or components
sonal resources or
occurs on the backs of
such as power suploans to serve a local
three rounds of
plies that fill customor regional need,
dead investors.
ized needs. An entrethen slowly growing
preneur of such a
the business through
company may often
personal grit and
manage to grow his or her business to
sacrifice, has contributed more to job
a size that allows him/her to meet
creation and economic growth than
personal expectations and financial
"unicorns" or newer success stories
needs, and then the entrepreneur
such as Tesla and Google have. In
may comfortably survive until he or
Germany, the mittelstand companies
she wishes to retire, in which case a
(i.e., midsize companies with a high
transition plan is needed. If the suclevel of technical expertise) represent
cess of the company is based on
the backbone of the German econounique skills that the entrepreneur
my. The same is becoming increashas (as is often the case), then this
ingly true in Taiwan and China and in
transition to the next generation
emergent countries such as India.
within the family, or through a sale
In many cases, these companies
of business or assets, can be very
thrive because of the entrepreneur's
challenging. A strategy that is often
unique skills and experience base,

z December 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - December 2016