What inspired the establishment of Findest?

The spark that ignited Findest’s engine in 2017 was a simple yet powerful realization: the way companies are innovating is still the same as 20 years ago and could be drastically improved. Initially, we noticed a widespread trend of “reinventing the wheel” in R&D departments across various industries.

This observation inspired our vision to leverage smart “functional thinking” AI to enable R&D professionals to achieve large-scale innovations.

Has your vision for the company evolved over time?

Yes. As we’ve grown, the vision has only expanded. We now have an ambition to catalyze 10,000 innovations in 10 years, combining our service with powerful software, and focusing on making a positive impact and promoting sustainability.

Can you share a significant challenge Findest has faced?

Navigating through challenges is part of our adventure. A significant hurdle we faced was perfecting the balance between our AI-driven technology and the personalized service our experts provide. In the tech world, it’s easy to lean heavily on software, but we realized early on that the human touch was invaluable.

So how did you tackle that?

We overcame it by shaping our offering into an ideal mix of service and software, ensuring our experts use the software to amplify their effectiveness. This challenge taught us the importance of blending the best of both worlds, leveraging technology to enhance human expertise rather than replace it.

In what ways is Findest unique compared to its industry rivals?

For us, it’s about achieving the sweet spot between advanced AI and expert human insight, plus a relentless focus on innovation’s granularity via techniques like Innovation Structure Trees. These help corporations translate their CTO-level R&D strategy into individual innovation projects that can be executed by the whole R&D team on our software. No other player in the industry offers this unique blend of technology scouting with such precision and personalization.

What future milestones are you working towards?

As for the future, envision Findest as a rocket aimed not just at the stars, but at a Universe filled with endless technological knowledge. Our primary goals include scaling our impact across more industries, continuously improving our AI to offer even deeper insights, and fostering global usage where innovation is accelerated and accessible to all. Part of this strategy is to leverage our Findest Universe R&D Productivity Platform.

The goal is to construct a Universe of Technology Knowledge where R&D teams can cooperate and conserve their ‘knowledge’ for themselves and their (future) colleagues, ensuring not reinventing the wheel within their ranks. We’re not just about growing bigger; we’re about multiplying the positive impact we can have on the world through this one innovation. One innovation that enables thousands.

What core values influence your decision-making and company culture?

Guiding us through this journey, we implement the principles in the book ‘Scaling Up’ by Verne Harnish to scale the business. Following this method, some of our core values are doing-it-by-the-book, aiming for sustainable impact, trying small (unscalable) things before scaling it up, focusing on 10,000 innovations, and celebrating wins.

These principles aren’t just fancy words on our intranet pages; they’re the essence of every decision we make and what makes our company culture more vibrant than a Dutch tulip field in spring. Whether exploring uncharted tech territories or making the bold decision to prioritize a new, even bigger opportunity, these values drive our decision-making.

Why did you decide to join Techleap for Scaleups’ Rise programme?

Joining the Techleap Rise programme was a no-brainer for us. Participating in this programme aligns beautifully with our growth, impact, and innovation aspirations. It offers a unique platform to connect with like-minded entrepreneurs, gain invaluable insights, and propel Findest closer to achieving our ambitious goals.

So, there you have it, a little peek into the world of Findest. We’re on a mission, fueled by curiosity, driven by innovation, and always ready for the next challenge. Onward and upward!