Microsoft for Startups✨ x HK Startup Community Leaders 👑 Series
Episode 4: Alice Schütt of Mettā
Hi guys, as some of you might heard, we’ve now moved on from BizSpark to our new program, Microsoft for Startups. This is a very exciting program for us to engage more establish startups in Hong Kong, and hopefully we can have your support in this journey!
For this episode, we are talking to 🎈Alice Schütt of Mettā. This community (as Alice pointed out, is not a co-working space) is definitely a place you want to be in if you’re interested in entrepreneurship. Mettā has been contributing non-stop since it has been founded by a passionate team (incl. Alice). They have staggering amount of events, and continued to partner with strong institutions to build Hong Kong’s ecosystem. In just 2 years, Metta has expanded to Nairobi and partnered with Nest to collaborate with the brightest minds in the industry.
Tell us a bit about yourself
I’m a general manager here at Mettā. I’ve worked here from the very beginning, when it was more of an idea than a thing. I went from membership manager (building the community), to now managing it.
What is Mettā?
Through time, which is now 2 years, we’ve become more of a community-focused organisation, so it’s all about supporting each other. It’s about being able to ask for help when you need it. It’s about trust, and getting the right people together in order to establish that trust.
Anything you would like Hong Kong to explore?
We should focus on greentech — environmentally sustainable companies, renewable energies, and going for less plastic replacements. I think there’s a lot of space to make Hong Kong the greenest city in Asia. It’s a possible project, we just need everybody onboard.
Some things founders/ startups tend to overlook 👀?
I think they sometimes overlook the why, and the fact that they’re not an island. There’s probably something similar being built somewhere. Go pitch your idea, go talk about your project. Go get a marketing team to shout it on the rooftops. And people are a lot strong through collaboration than by themselves.
The secret to a great team?
Lots and lots of communication.
🎞Movie recommendations.
Hitchhiker’s Guide (based on the Douglas Adams’ classic)
😺 or 🐶?
Definitely dog. I have two dogs at home rescued from Lamma Island.
Pet peeves?
People bumping into me on the sidewalk while playing Candy Crush (while they’re watching TV on their phones).
Best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten from someone?
Don’t burn your bridges. When you quit your job, stay friends. When you fall out with someone, don’t make a big noise.
Microsoft for Startups is our new program for B2B startups with fundings under seed or above. If you would like to consult us about your fit in the program, please do not hesitate to contact us at hkbizs@microsoft.com.
