Empowering Innovators

enihilo  derives its name from a quote of the first book of De Rerum Natura (On the Nature of Things) written by the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius. It means that nothing is made from nothing.

This concept is a fundamental principle that binds together Research and Entrepreneurship: in Science, ideas, theories and discoveries are based on the work of many researchers; they are the result of a process of creative destruction. The same process is at the centre of entrepreneurship, and “revolutionises the economic structure from within, incessantly destroying the old one, incessantly creating a new one”, according to the economist Joseph Schumpeter.

With our services, we teach the fundamental principles of entrepreneurship and innovation to help researchers develop an entrepreneurial mind set and to acquire the competences to act upon opportunities and ideas, and transform them into value for others by mobilising resources.

To achieve this result, we base our approach on the the Entrepreneurship Competence Framework laid out by the JRC in 2016. In particular, we support researchers to develop competencies in three areas that constitute the foundations of entrepreneurship: “Ideas and Opportunities”, “Resources”, and “Action”. They will learn how to leverage these competencies together to drive Value creation in any domain and possible value chain.

Our method is focused on active problem-solving, which is known to be the most beneficial for students to gain knowledge and skill. In fact, figuring it out in small groups requires more cognitive effort, which leads to deeper understanding.

enihilo is run by Dr. Marco Masia, who has many years of experience in research, innovation and management. With a MSc in Chemistry and a PhD in Physics, he has worked as a Professor of Theoretical Chemistry for ten years at the University of Sassari. He has published several high impact papers (in Science, and other highly ranked journals), participated in European projects, and collaborated with diverse research teams across the world. With a master’s degree in Business Administration from the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, he has founded and managed a start-up, has managed a large non-profit organization, and advises start-ups and SMEs. The training syllabus and methods draw from his unique experience in research, business and entrepreneurship, and management, and are tailored specifically to researchers and University students.