Visionary Entrepreneurship

Felix Tschopp is interviewed by Selina Hare in the Hamburg 1 expert podcast. As a passionate entrepreneur and investor, he talks about successful entrepreneurship and what a good entrepreneur should learn from a successful entrepreneur.

In this interview, Felix Tschopp answers questions such as: What distinguishes a good entrepreneur from a successful one? How do entrepreneurs achieve financial freedom? How does a company ensure a successful generational handover?

Hamburg 1: Felix, you are an entrepreneur, an investor and a business mentor. What are the most important topics for you to discuss with your clients?

Felix Tschopp: At the moment, many companies are dealing with the question of ‘what next?’ The pandemic in particular has presented many with major challenges. Digitalisation is forcing entrepreneurs to rethink their companies after many years of building them up. These are also challenges that many are no longer willing or able to take on. And then the question arises as to whether a company is ready to be led into the next generation. Has the entrepreneur worked with foresight? Or was he just the boss who made sure that he was the most important person in the company? My main concern is to support this generational change, to motivate and inspire entrepreneurs to build a new, visionary business. It is important to remember that two-thirds of all medium-sized companies cannot find a successor. Often, it is not only the entrepreneurial life's work that is lost – traditional companies can no longer be continued and many jobs are lost.

‘... but it really is about the inner mindset, accepting that life is change and building something that you want to pass on when the time is right.’

And how would you assess that? Is it mostly due to the leaders who hold the reins and don't want to give up control, or is it the lack of young talent?

I think in owner-managed companies it's mainly the owner themselves. You have to be willing to let go – it's a bold word, everyone talks about it. But it really is about the inner mindset, accepting that life is change and that you are building something that you should pass on when the time comes. And a good succession is possible. Good succession requires preparation and takes a certain amount of time. That's why you have to incorporate it into your mindset at an early stage. I always say that you should always run a company in such a way that you could sell it at any time. Then nothing can go wrong.

‘...the external view focuses on the long-term perspective, the right strategy, and on ensuring that the company can survive even in difficult times.’

You also often talk about visionary entrepreneurship. I think that describes it quite well.

Yes, I think an entrepreneur has a great responsibility. They often start out with very idealistic ideas. Many of the things around us came about because a single person had an idea, a vision. And that became a company – sometimes a large one, sometimes a smaller one. But they are always companies with ideas, with a culture that connects people. And he also has a long-term responsibility for that. You can't just keep talking about product development, innovation, services and products. You also have to see the company as a whole with foresight. And I often add the outside view to the companies because the view from the inside is very focused on customer satisfaction, good products, a lot of sales, profit. But the view from the outside is directed towards the long-term perspective, the right strategy, and ensuring that the company can survive even in difficult times. We know that there are good times, bad times, and if things are going well in good times, they will also go better in bad times. I bring such thoughts into the company, because the operational day-to-day is often too absorbing for them. The entrepreneurs and managers do say that we should do it again and that we have to... But then often you just don't get around to it.

‘...the successful entrepreneur ensures that his company is not dependent on him.’

You said very absorbed. Entrepreneurs who work in their own company as if they were their own employees, so to speak. Should they detach themselves from that?

Exactly. I always ask: what is a good company and what is a successful company? There are many good companies. They make good sales, have good products, make a profit. But the entrepreneur is in the company every day. He talks to the employees, knows the customers personally, is closely involved. But the successful entrepreneur, let me put it bluntly, can be found on the golf course, posting photos from the beach. He tends to only come to the company when there are board meetings. The successful entrepreneur ensures that his company does not depend on him, that it can successfully market its services or products even without him being there every day. That's what I call far-sighted, visionary entrepreneurship: making yourself redundant. Then the company can flourish.

And also enjoy their financial freedom. That's something you try to achieve to some extent in the companies, too.

Yes, of course. Entrepreneurs often invest their entire lives in their companies. A lot of energy, passion, but also fears, sleepless nights when things aren't going so well. And with a successful succession plan, with a successful generational change, they can then also transfer their own prosperity into a good retirement. And enjoy it.

If you have that in mind, you are more willing to let go to a certain extent, aren't you? Or is it still difficult for companies to give up the reins, even though they can see the prospect of a prosperous retirement?

Yes, that's actually the case. Of course, many dream of that enjoyable retirement with a house in Tuscany, where they drive to dinner in a cabriolet. But I think it remains a mindset to let go and accept it. When you are a little older, it is easier to accept that there is your own mortality, that a period of time is running out and then the next period is coming. But looking at these transitions is something people often shy away from.

Is it in the DNA of an entrepreneur to have this urge to keep going and keep working?

Yes, I think as an entrepreneur you are never retired, you never stop. The question is rather what you occupy yourself with. That's also nice: you can consider other activities after the handover. There are so many ways to pass on your knowledge in a supportive way. Successful entrepreneurs often help start-ups and thus come full circle to where they started. There are many possibilities.

You also show one. You are an entrepreneur and investor, but also a business mentor. In doing so, you have stepped out of the hamster wheel in which you felt trapped. Maybe you can take us a little bit into your personal story. What about you? How did you make it out?

Yes, I was a ‘good’ entrepreneur myself. I worked a lot, day in and day out. The company was doing well. But one day it started to ferment. And one day I came home and told my wife, ‘I'm quitting now.’ It can't go on like this anymore. We do a lot of training in the area of personal development, we also deal with the spiritual aspects of life, and so you just ask yourself, what am I doing all this for? And at another point in time, I was at a training session and the speaker asked us: ‘What did you start in life for?’ That was a shocking question for me. I have worked successfully for many years! But it didn't leave me alone, and I went within: What am I doing here, and what do I really want to do? And so, in a sense, I changed sides. From being an entrepreneur who is in the company every day to being an entrepreneur who accompanies the company from the outside. Today I see myself more as a business developer who can inspire others to get off this hamster wheel. In my story, there was also a period of time out due to burnout. That's not nice.

So you know the lows and the consequences that a hamster wheel like this brings with it.

Oh yes!

You said: you have to know when it's time. How do entrepreneurs recognise that it's time to pass the baton on?

I think there are two categories. Some are forced by life, I call it a wake-up call: a burnout, a family event. It could be a divorce, an illness, a crisis like Covid, or entire lines of business are disappearing due to digitalisation. They are forced to. And then there are the farsighted people who have this in them. They know that they want to build up the company over a certain period of time and then pass it on. I think they are also the curious people who don't want to stick with the status quo, but enjoy building something and then building something else and continuing in this way.

Felix, how can we get in touch with you? Do you have a website or a social media presence? How can we get in touch with Felix Tschopp, for example to get some advice?

Yes, the most direct way is always via my homepage, where you will find all the contact details and also some initial information about how I work, how I think and how you can work with me.

That sounds very, very good! Felix Tschopp says that financial freedom should be the ultimate goal of every entrepreneur. And anyone who needs support can easily turn to him. Thank you, Felix, for being my guest today.

Thank you, Selina.

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