Ones to watch: Forbes 30 under 30 Europe
For Amy Locks (MSc Chemistry with Industrial Experience, 2021), a desire to avoid feeling ‘like a cog in a chain’ was behind the creation of Anzen Industries. Amy is CEO and co-founder of the biotech firm, employing new methods of using enzymes to produce chemicals for use in everyday products.
Dr Aaron Lin (MBChB Clinical Sciences, 2022) was still studying at Birmingham Medical School when he co-founded Mindstep, a mental health front door platform that leverages AI to screen, provide support, and navigate patients to the best point of care. He was inspired by seeing the struggles of patients at GP clinics to access mental health services during the COVID pandemic.
Benjamin Richardson (MEng Mechanical Engineering, 2020) says his passion for the environment ‘runs in my bones’. He co-founded Zevero, which helps organisations measure and act on their environmental impact, as he ‘knew at university that the most important issue my generation was facing was climate change and I wanted to focus my time and energy on it.’
Old Joe (OJ): How did the University help you get your career started?
Aaron: One of the greatest challenges with starting a business is understanding all the different things that go into its operation. One of the reasons that programmes like UoB Elevate (the University’s business support programme) are really incredible is they offer you that insight to allow you to focus on what really matters, which is the idea that you came up with. I really encourage students to reach out and seek advice from those programmes.
Amy: It wasn’t until midway through my PhD in London that I realised becoming a founder was the best and fastest way to have impact and change entire industries with innovation, which inspired me to learn more about entrepreneurship.
OJ: What did your degree teach you that you are now using in your working life?
Ben: You have the ability to work through complex problems, it just takes patience. I have the confidence to know that I can logically work through problems thanks to my degree.
Amy: Resilience and time management are some fundamental concepts from my course I still draw on. Personal growth is just as important as the actual content in the courses you learn.
Aaron: How to think critically and look at the healthcare system from a new perspective.
OJ: AI is dominating the news agenda. How do you view it/use it in your work?
Aaron: I think there’s incredible value in AI in supporting clinicians and supporting patients on their health journeys, whether it’s in mental health or beyond. We’ve been looking at how we can use AI to support patients to access the help they need earlier and deliver better patient-centred care.
Ben: I think AI is now the biggest urgent problem facing humanity. I think it has the power to do good, bad and ugly all simultaneously, unpredictably and (here is the kicker) with near unlimited potential. For my company,we have put in significant work into how we use it as sustainably as possible, meaning caring about energy, emissions and water use,but also really putting in policy on the social and governance side of appropriate use.
OJ: What advice would you give to current students preparing for the world of work?
Ben: Find the things you are passionate about (this is sometimes the hardest bit and takes time). The service-based market is tough at the moment, but don’t listen too much to any noise that puts you off anything. Try to get your foot in the door however you can and if you are passionate, it will come across. Know there are loads of things to do in the world and that life is long, so you can change your career or your job at any point.
Amy: Work on your personal development just as much as your grades on your course. As long as you aim for a 2:1 or 1st, your energy is much better spent building skills such as your agency, communication and proactivity. These skills unlock faster job promotions and opportunities.
Don’t rush into a career that sounds like the easiest route after graduating- you will be spending most likely 80,000 hours of your life working and deserve to feel a sense of joy, purpose and fulfilment in whatever you do. If that changes when you start, you have so much time to change path and it’s far better than staying in a position that you don’t enjoy.