Interview with Vicente Diaz and Jordi Vallejo, president and vice president of GCM Communications Technology
GCM Communications Technology, developer of a proprietary technology – OTDM – that improves communication systems by eliminating noise, was chosen from nearly 40 companies that entered the Madrid Network Challenge. The award, in addition to a trip to Silicon Valley to present their business model before innovation and development experts, included a month of incubation in San Francisco, 3,000 euros and the publication of an article in Technology Review.
Welcome back, how was your stay in Silicon Valley, businesswise? We are very pleased with the experience. We’ve far exceeded the goals we set, as we wanted a first approach to key companies in the PLC (Power Line Communications) industry, where our technology can add great value, and we managed to contact the largest company in this field in the United States. We’re in negotiations with them now. Everything is great, it’s all happened so fast and we’ve proposed some primary tests of our technology for use in their equipment.
Why did you enter Madrid Network Challenge? For recognition, so we had a springboard to reach potential customers. Large companies receive thousands of requests from entrepreneurs and this award puts us in a category apart.
What has the competition brought you, apart from the prize? As I said, the main thing is recognition. Something very important was the jury of prestigious, international experts, whose interest has increased our value. Apart from that, in these contests you meet other innovators you share ideas with and make important relationships for the future. Even if we hadn’t won, that contact with the jury and the other entrants would have made it worthwhile.
Do you think there should be more activities of this kind? Yes, it’s clearly very beneficial to entrepreneurs, as they get the chance to have experts of enormous international prestige to assess their projects. In Spain we underestimate ourselves and these competitions put us in in our place, they show there is a lot of value in an entrepreneur's effort, which is not always recognized here. We are in a country where there is very little money for good new ideas, so every opportunity is welcome. Also, initiatives like Madrid Network Challenge add value and wealth to the country, as they allow us to go abroad to create jobs back here at home.
Would you say it’s necessary to go abroad if you want recognition in your own country? As the saying goes, Spain is different, and so is its business side. Large Spanish companies are slow because you have to go through too many levels till you get to whoever has the power to make decisions. There’s too much bureaucracy. In the U.S., things are easier. Approaching large companies does require a good level of English and contacts, especially investors.
What would you recommend entrepreneurs do if they want to break into the American market? If they don’t know anyone there, entering competitions like this one helps get them contacts and it opens doors. Madrid Network is working with a company, Opinno, located in Silicon Valley. On the other hand, a major handicap is the English language. It’s a basic – the most basic – tool. Americans are very demanding when it comes to communication, so entrepreneurs will have to master the language, because otherwise they just won’t be able to get their idea across. We live in a globalized world, but in the end it’s all down to person-to-person communication, so language is vital. It’s what is going to open doors, there’s no other way to sell all the great things Spain has to offer.
Returning to your stay in Silicon Valley, how are things there, in the cradle of world innovation? In the month we were there we lived side by side with other entrepreneurs, which gives you a good insight into what is happening. In Silicon Valley there’s more venture capital now, they take more risks. You could say in America the shoots aren’t just green, they’re ripe.
Is it very different from Europe in general, not just Spain? Sure, in Europe there are still too many limitations to the way you can work, we’re not as fast as the Americans and Asians. There’s no way to mesh it all together: large companies, SMEs, investors ... But in the U.S. they are constantly concerned with improving what they have and less with results, so companies allocate part of their profits to venture capital to do research and provide capital to universities. You could say that they play in a league of their own, much faster and more innovative.
So now where, Asia? We already have an agreement with a major manufacturer in Asia that needs this technology. The Asian market is very important today, not just for Spain but for the rest of the world, too. We’re working with the U.S. and the Orient.
To finish up, can you give some advice to those who have a good idea but haven’t dared put it into practice yet? They should do it as soon as possible, not abandon it because of educational limits or fear of failure. It’s failure that leads to progress. Making mistakes is normal, that’s how you learn best. People who slip up have usually already come a long way and they’ll know how not to slip again. In the States they value that, not like here.