ALPHACRUCIS LAUNCHES NEW ENTREPRENEUR PROGRAM

The world is changing. If you want to thrive, then you need to change too. Q & A with AC’s Marketing/Future Students Director, MICHAEL LU.

Q: Why do you personally endorse the new Entrepreneur program?

Michael: When I look back on my 25 year career in business in Australia, China and the UK, I can see how my undergraduate commerce degree didn’t quite prepare me for the practical realities of work. I learnt mostly through mistakes and the blessings God has afforded me. Most university graduates today are still in the same position when it comes to being job-ready and employable. Experts go as far as estimating that 80% of jobs in 2030 don’t exist today. Since the future of work is going to look very different than today, what university students need is to be able to thrive and continually develop in an uncertain environment. I am really excited we are equipping the next generation of Christian leaders to impact the world through this program.

Q: Is this for me if I don’t want to start a business?

Michael: Even if you don’t have a startup idea, you need to train to be entrepreneurial. Australia is catching up in how we use technology and innovative thinking to solve real-world problems in sectors as diverse as medicine, agriculture and design. In NSW alone from 181 startups recently analysed, 2,668 jobs were created between 2018 and the beginning of 2021 (14.7 jobs per startup). This means for every successful entrepreneur we have in the program we will need ~15 startup ready employees. The OECD estimates that half of all new jobs come from startups (OECD, 2020). Even big companies are looking for people to prepare their businesses for disruption and change.

The world is changing. If you want to thrive, then you need to change too. Q & A with AC’s Marketing/Future Students Director, MICHAEL LU.

Q: What are some of the objectives of the program?

Michael: Entrepreneurship is about exploring the unknown, identifying opportunities and creating valuable solutions that create real-world impact. This is the mindset and skillset the future workforce needs and our new program trains them in this.

Also, we will also work with each student to help them explore who they are and what they have been created for. In these times of uncertainty, it is even more important to know what you can be certain about and how you fit into this world. Our ultimate goal is to foster and grow the community of ambitious Jesus-focused founders and their high impact, highvalue startups.

Q: How will AC run the program?

Michael: We learn best when we are practising actions in their context – “Learning by doing”. This is the heart of our entrepreneurship program, every person in the program will be working in or on startups. Students will also be mentored throughout the course by experienced Christian entrepreneurs, and embedded within the wider entrepreneurship community. Lastly, we will have a venture capital fund and incubator to fund and commercialise the best ideas. So we are serious about backing the next generation of leaders and ideas - more will be revealed next year. Stay tuned!