Different perspectives are the secret to success
Dagmar Möbius
Mandy Schipke does not want to be the focus of a classic alumni portrait. However, the Managing Director of the multiple award-winning Dresden-based NOVUM engineering GmbH and Chairwoman of the Energy Saxony network has a lot to say about transfer.
Mandy Schipke is the graduate of the month for April 2024.
Mandy Schipke has always been interested in how and why people behave. “It's all about communication,” she says. She studied Sociology at TU Dresden from 2005 to 2012. But she was drawn to entrepreneurship early on. During her studies, she participated in a 5-euro business competition where she met the team that would later found her company. “The team I was on won. The team of one of our co-founders came second,” she recalls. But after graduating, the two went their separate ways for professional reasons. They were delighted when they met again, and the former competitors became colleagues, and old business ideas were brought up. One of them was about how to build and use batteries in a more sustainable and ecological way. “Nobody understood that back then,” says the sociology graduate.
Diagnostics for batteries
However, she and her team could not stop thinking about their innovative idea. To focus on this 100%, she discontinued her doctoral studies and became the full-time Managing Director of Novum engineering GmbH, which was founded in 2014. “I’m happy with my decision.” This becomes clear when she explains what the Dresden-based company does. “Battery technology contains toxic chemicals. Many batteries are thrown away even though they could last another ten years. With the help of artificial intelligence, we are able to determine their state of health – from the smallest to the largest batteries.” In this way, it can be determined whether forklift batteries, power plant batteries or solar storage batteries can be reused. Some batteries send their data to a server and the AI then does the math. If no data is available, such as for car batteries, they are sent to a recycling center for testing. This used to take up to ten hours, and now it takes 90 seconds. The system was developed with JT Energy Systems, a joint venture between the Triathlon Group and Jungheinrich AG. “We perform the diagnosis and say: good - fair - bad. Owners decide on further use. However, over 80% of batteries tested are generally reusable. They would otherwise have ended up in landfills.”
Bringing good teams together is also a transfer for Mandy Schipke.
“Putting together good teams is also a form of transfer”
This climate-friendly technology was not developed at TU Dresden, but it was where the team of founders studied and met. “Putting together good teams is also a form of transfer,” Mandy Schipke is convinced. She sees her university as the meeting place that laid the foundation for her career – and really, just the foundation, because after founding the company comes the hard work. “I would like to see a slightly different image of transfer,” says the entrepreneur. “The secret to success is having different perspectives. Today, you can't get where you want to go with just one idea. You have to be an interdisciplinary thinker. There should be a funding bonus for that.”
Two full-time jobs, one on voluntary basis
In December 2016, Mandy Schipke was elected Chairwoman of the board of Energy Saxony. Saxony's largest energy network currently comprises 93 member companies. This is volunteer position. 100 percent of the time. “In addition to a lot of political lobbying, the most important thing is to be able to connect innovators with the right companies,” she explains. Founders are enthusiastic, but often do not know whether and how to commercialize their ideas. Many innovations cross Mandy Schipke's desk. This inspires her. She is also thrilled to have been given responsibility for Saxony's energy sector as a young woman. For her, this is a sign of progressive thinking. “Sometimes I feel like I have two full-time jobs. Fortunately, at least one of them is paid,” she laughs. She no longer answers the occasional question about how she got the position as a woman. “I got it because I can think,” she says, and wishes “that at some point, it won’t matter that you’re a woman.”
What the start-up marathon entails
“Starting a business is a marathon,” says Mandy Schipke, explaining the path to successful entrepreneurship. “We don't need more companies, we need good companies. To do that, we have to make them good, and this is where the human factor plays a critical role.” People who want to start a company should look at the less obvious things that come after starting a business. By this she means being down-to-earth, grateful and modest. Also, humility before the task. “You have a long way to go, and need to constantly question everything. It's good to leave the bubble of illusion.”
Mandy Schipke is the only one from her year group to found a company. “You get used to being the odd one out,” she says with a smile. A graduate in the humanities, she is recognized as the CEO of a technology company. NOVUM engineering GmbH has won several awards, including Best High-Tech Start-Up Europe in 2017, the Digital Energy Award in 2018, and most recently the 2023 Saxon Innovation Award.
“Physics, which now is a crucial aspect of my job, was actually my worst subject in school,” she admits. Only to state immediately afterwards: “I'm pretty happy with my basic knowledge of physics right now, but I'm still learning new things every day and pushing my limits. I wouldn't have this opportunity if I hadn't started my own business. I am very grateful for this.”
Contact:
Mandy Schipke
CEO, NOVUM engineering GmbH