Depending on its complexity, a puzzle consists of many different pieces. They fit together, are mutually dependent and build on one another. Teams are the same. If the team works together on a project and each person – just like a puzzle piece – does his or her part, the team accomplishes its common mission.
Harnessing synergies. At BSH, we've long since integrated this process. After all, when more people from different areas work together, the stronger we are. The maxim "joint knowledge is added knowledge" plays an essential role at BSH. We don't see ourselves as a company of lone fighters, but as a pool of team players. We are constantly on the lookout for opportunities to cooperate with innovative start-ups and people with new ideas. At BSH we are convinced that we can only get further with transparency, curiosity and knowledge-sharing – qualities brought about by highly diverse people with the most varied types of knowledge. This comes from new forms of cooperation – with external partners, joint ventures and in exciting, multidisciplinary workshops. We want to always stay a step ahead of (digital) challenges, not simply confront them.
The Venture Forum has been designed so that BSH can create long-lasting relationships with the newest and most exciting start-ups working within the industry and beyond. Original and innovative hardware and software – that's what can be experienced every year in Munich at the BSH Venture Forum. A wide variety of start-ups and individuals can apply to BSH to participate in this two-day event in order to present software solutions, components, services as well as business models for the next generation of home appliances. The Venture Forum is a really special event, at which ideas are exchanged and synergies can be identified. Participants share their ideas and visions during the BSH Venture Forum and have the opportunity to expand their professional network. Thanks to one-on-one exchanges, all the participating start-ups and individuals get to meet with BSH decision makers and receive valuable feedback on their corporate presentations. And all with one objective: to meet future customer demands even more effectively.
For the most recent Venture Forum, in November 2017, BSH encouraged start-ups working within the fields of sensor systems and artificial intelligence, cognitive systems, home automation, new ways of interaction, or working with services and solutions for New Food and Beverage, to apply. Find out more about the BSH Venture Forum 2017 here .
Doing it alone requires more strength and effort to achieve the end result. This also applies for developing innovations. However, when people with the most varied experiences come together and share their knowledge, innovations can be created more strategically and more effectively.
The Venture Forum is one of many initiatives designed to foster open innovation. To BSH, open innovation means working together with innovative start-ups and industry players to discover new solutions to new and old problems. This way, we innovate the ways in which we meet our consumers’ current and future needs. This is especially relevant today, as we can only stay ahead of the digital curve, through pushing ourselves to think outside the box and collaborating with new partners from outside of the company. The BSH Venture Forum therefore paves the way for new developments, business models and cooperation.
Anyone running a marathon wants to cover a distance of 42 kilometers in the shortest possible time. The classic marathon is thus not only where the Home Connect "Hackathon" gets its name from, but also its idea. Even if the participants in this case are much less out of breath afterwards.
What do you get when you give young developers from different sectors 48 hours to connect modern home appliances with smart sensors, thermostats, weather stations or app solutions? Innovative applications for the connected home! That's what the "Hack the House" Hackathon initiated by Home Connect in Stockholm is all about. The main objective of this annual event is to generate lots of ideas in the shortest possible time, try out new things and, last but not least, make interesting contacts and form new partnerships. The focus, on the one hand, is on how communication is organized between a home appliance, services or devices such as digital voice assistants. On the other, the participants are faced with the task of developing solutions that simplify everyday life of the consumers – irrespective of whether it’s about shopping, security or energy management, for example. “Hack the House" is a meeting point for the most diverse individuals from start-ups and companies, who bring the topic of Internet of Things to life in an unconventional and smart way with the infamous "outside" perspective. Over the two days, programs are written, hardware and software tasks are tackled, and tests are performed on how solutions might look in practice.
What can happen in 24 hours? Take a look at highlights from the last Hackathon!
