Accelerating Creative Ideas to Better Australia’s Health: An Interview with George Sidis
“The Building Better Futures for Health Challenge isn’t an answer to all problems, but what we hope to provide is a kickstart for startups to help overcome early hurdles along the commercialisation journey”
IDE Connect spoke to Managing Director of ide Group, George Sidis about the Building Better Futures for Health Challenge and how he hopes it can help grow more creative ideas and build new businesses that can make a difference to people’s health.
ide Connect: Where did the idea for the Building Better Futures for Health Challenge come from and what does it have to do with a creative festival like Vivid?
George Sidis: The idea for the challenge came from our desire to give back and enable more startups and entrepreneurs to develop their ideas. At ide Group we’re always using our creative intelligence and working with partners to develop intellectual property that new organisations can be built around, so partnering with a creative festival like Vivid Ideas seemed like a good fit.
IC: The healthcare industry can be a pretty tough place for creative ideas to grow and thrive. How does the Building Better Futures for Health Challenge hope to change that?
GS: I think realising creative ideas is always tough, no matter what industry you’re in. There are a lot of opportunities and a lot of need for new ideas in healthcare, but getting ideas off the ground can be difficult. The Building Better Futures for Health Challenge isn’t an answer to all problems, but what we hope to provide is a kickstart for startups to help overcome early hurdles along the commercialisation journey. Sometimes extra resources at the beginning can help startups move forward, get their business up and running and on the right track.
IC: Can you tell us a little bit about the resources and expertise the winner will have access to, to help realise their idea?
GS: The winner can look forward to gaining access to our team’s significant experience in medical technology development and commercialisation. They’ll also benefit from our understanding on how to bring entrepreneurship and creative intelligence together to design a sustainable business around their idea. We’ve got a lot of experience in engineering, manufacturing and new product implementation, but the most valuable thing for most startups is having a team who knows the right questions to ask and understands how to solve problems (in the right order) to guide them along the commercialisation path. Our team will bring all of that and more to the table.
IC: What will the judging panel look like this year?
GS: We’ve got a great panel of judges this year with a diverse set of skills ranging from government health through to investment banking, R&D and startup management and acceleration. I think each one of the judges will offer a lot of value to the competitors with their advice and feedback. Not just for the winners, but also the other startups who enter and get the opportunity to engage with the great panel that we have.
Get your tickets to the final event. The final event will take place on Thursday, 8 June 2017, as part of this year's Vivid Ideas Exchange.