The students' mission: Developing a city
Develop ideas for the future Skellefteå! This assignment was given to students at the Bachelor Programme in Business and Economics. The students have now presented their proposals, ranging from a new traffic app to an event calendar and recruitment solutions.
– Our aim is that the students use everything they have learned so far to develop business ideas and business plans based on a specific case, says Ida Lindh, course teacher at the integral course in business administration.
The case this year was to bring new ideas to develop Skellefteå, with the ongoing digitalization in mind.
The students have worked in groups with developing business ideas, conducting market research and developing a business plan. The sharp ideas were then presented to a jury consisting of teachers at Luleå University of Technology and Martin Bröms, Innovation Adviser at Almi.
Wide range of proposals
Among the proposals is an medical app, a digital platform to systematically facilitate the integration of newly arrived people and a local challenger to the low-cost store Gekås.
– It's been interesting and hard to, in just two months, find a new idea and develop it. It has given us opportunities to find new ways of thinking and an insight into what it's like to be an entrepreneur, says student Jens Åsblom, who, together with five peers, presented his proposal for a low-cost department store in Skellefteå for the jury.
Ida Lindh emphasizes that the integral course in business administration is important because it provides an opportunity for the students to use their skills.
– Previous studies show that many students in Sweden are interested of starting their own business, but lack the knowledge of how to do and where to turn for help. With this course, our students get that knowledge, she says.