Almost one third of the most innovative and promising young companies in Switzerland have benefited from the support and expertise of IMD EMBA and MBA participants, according to the latest annual ranking of the country’s Top 100 startups.
The 12th edition of the influential ranking celebrates the strength of the Swiss startup ecosystem and highlights companies that are five years old or less, with many breaking new ground in industries, ranging from biotech and software to engineering and financial technology.
Twenty-eight of the top 100 Swiss startups were IMD Startup Competition winners, with 18 having worked with EMBAs and 10 with MBAs. Two companies, Creal and Bloom Biorenewables, featured in the top 10 have collaborated with IMD participants.
“Working with some of Switzerland’s best entrepreneurs is always a rewarding experience for IMD’s MBAs and EMBAs. Seeing these ventures being recognized for their success is especially gratifying,” said Jim Pulcrano, Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship and Management at IMD.
Each year since 1999, participants in IMD’s MBA and EMBA programs have provided input and support to Swiss entrepreneurs with early-stage companies to improve their chances of funding and success. The IMD EMBA classes are currently in Silicon Valley, helping Swiss start-ups pitch their business plans to leading investors in the region, including four of this year’s top 100.
Since the ranking’s creation in 2011, it has featured 512 Swiss startups. Together, they have created 16,149 jobs and raised CHF 11 billion. Seventy-one exits and three IPOs top off their achievements.
Among the top 100 was Alpian (50), a digital private bank co-founded by Schuyler Weiss (MBA 2017) and Marion Fogli (EMBA 2017), while Cysec (62), which previously worked with IMD’s EMBAs, took part this year in the new scale-up program with Innovaud.
Largo (85), which leverages technology to improve the movie industry, previously worked with the EMBAs and was the subject of a case study on how its CEO Sami Arpa focused the business’ strategy and positioned itself in different geographical markets.
Among the other categories celebrated were the best 100 scale-ups. These are fast-growing companies that must have been operating for more than five years to qualify. Six of those chosen had worked with IMD’s MBAs or EMBAs.
The top 100 list is available online here.
