Elmar Mock, From the Swatch to Creaholic: Inventor, Intrapreneur and Entrepreneur
ISBN: 978-1-83797-013-1, eISBN: 978-1-83797-012-4
Publication date: 13 December 2023
Abstract
Elmar Mock's extraordinary story began in a small village in Switzerland. Born in 1954, he was the son of an Austrian immigrant and a Swiss mother. School was difficult, as he struggled with dyslexia. Nevertheless, he graduated from engineering school, obtained a job with a Swiss manufacturer, ETA. By the age of 26, he had co-invented the Swatch. Following the accidental death of his brother, Stéphane, in 1985, he decided to leave his job and launch his own creativity and innovation consulting company, Creaholic, in 1986.
In 2014, Elmar retired from Creaholic and created with his second wife Hélène Mock née Kett, a second company: ‘Mock-Kett’. He has created more than 80 families of patents in various industries and has been involved in more than 600 projects. He is also a member of the advisory boards of some of the spin-offs incubated by Creaholic. He remains active as a speaker and international consultant with ‘Mock-Kett’, which promotes the motivational side of invention. He has received numerous awards and his book ‘The Innovation Factory’ has been published in three languages.
The case depicts a one-of-a-kind creative mindset and offers in-depth reflections on the concepts of creativity, innovation and intrapreneurship and their applications in organizations. 1
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Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
This case study was written using information gathered from several sources. It began when we visited and spent time with Elmar Mock at Creaholic with groups of students, to talk about innovation. These sessions were followed by Elmar's inspiring presentations in class and at Creaholic's headquarter in Bienne (CH) in addition to the ensuing discussions with students from an MBA course in entrepreneurship at the HEG-FR (Haute École de Gestion – Fribourg School of Management – affiliated to the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland HES-SO) (2008–2020).
An eight-hour interview with Elmar Mock was later conducted in his office in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland, on 16 June 2011, by Louis Jacques Filion, Rico Baldegger and Verena Huber, who was, at the time, a student in the Master's Program in Entrepreneurship at HEG-FR. The authors extend their particular appreciation to Verena, who produced the written transcript of this eight-hour taped interview.
Additional information included a two hour PowerPoint presentation made by Elmar Mock at HEC Montreal on 3 October 2011; a one-day meeting with Elmar Mock and students from the Master's Program in Entrepreneurship at HEG-FR, held at the Creaholic offices in Biel/Bienne on 12 June 2012; speeches presented by Elmar Mock at the World Entrepreneurship Forum and elsewhere that were attended by one of the authors; several magazine articles about Elmar Mock; and lastly, a four-hour working session with Elmar Mock on 6 May 2014 and additional meetings over the following years to revise and finalize this case study. A two-hour interview was also conducted with Elmar Mock by Rico Baldegger and Louis Jacques Filion at the HEG-FR on 14 January 2020, and second one on ZOOM on 2 May 2020. The first case study was produced in 2012. It was followed by several versions over a decade.
Elmar Mock presents his creativity concepts in conferences abroad. His concepts are also described alongside those of an innovation specialist in a book they co-authored: Gilles Garel & Elmar Mock (2016) The Innovation Factory. Taking the Plunge. CRC Press (Taylor & Francis). Original French edition: La fabrique de l'innovation (Paris: Dunod; first edition, 2012, second edition, 2016).
Citation
Filion, L.J. and Baldegger, R.J. (2023), "Elmar Mock, From the Swatch to Creaholic: Inventor, Intrapreneur and Entrepreneur", Agents of Innovation, Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 143-167. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83797-012-420231005
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2024 Louis Jacques Filion and Rico J. Baldegger. Published under exclusive licence by Emerald Publishing Limited