{"id":1867,"date":"2018-07-01T09:05:32","date_gmt":"2018-07-01T09:05:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jeromeadam.com\/?p=1867"},"modified":"2018-10-05T14:52:43","modified_gmt":"2018-10-05T14:52:43","slug":"the-bounce-back-pro","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jeromeadam.com\/en\/the-bounce-back-pro\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThe Bounce-Back Pro\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Reflets<\/span><\/div>
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When the person interviewing you about your life is more interested in the \u201chow\u201d than the \u201cwhy,\u201d the perception of the road traveled changes and the result is a fresh article. Thanks to Louis Armengaud Wurmser for this profile in the magazine Reflets ESSEC<\/i> and for our conversation that lasted twice the allotted time\u2026 Below is the text of his article \u201cThe Bounce-Back Pro\u201d:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Opportunities knock for some entrepreneurs. For others, it\u2019s challenges. J\u00e9r\u00f4me Adam (ESSEC00) has known both. He has had his share of setbacks, but has used them as fuel to launch new endeavors: life lessons he acknowledges nowadays in his newest enterprise and here in our pages.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy path exemplifies one powerful idea: take responsibility for your life.\u201d After getting his degree, J\u00e9r\u00f4me broke with tradition and let his parents know that he would not take over the family estate in Champagne. Instead, he decided to pursue studies in political science followed by the ESSEC business school where he is offered all the freedom he has yearned for. \u201cI was able to go to New Orleans on exchange where I met a marketing professor who greatly influenced me.\u201d He predicted J\u00e9r\u00f4me would create his own enterprise, perhaps stumble out of the gate, but would get back up and try again. \u201cIt was the first time I heard a positive spin on failure and the possibility of bouncing back. Back then, nobody spoke like that in France.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>A Dry Run<\/h2>\n

Upon graduation from ESSEC, J\u00e9r\u00f4me teamed up with Florence Bogdelin, H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Pigeon and Manuel da Silva to develop Visual Friendly, editing software which allowed Internet sites to meet accessibility and readability standards. \u201cWe made some audacious choices, but they paid off. For one, we recruited colleagues who were stronger in potential than university degrees\u2026 and they didn\u2019t disappoint. I remember one colleague who audited the accessibility of the Social Affairs Minister\u2019s websites. His work so impressed them that he was invited to present his audit to Minister Marie-Th\u00e9r\u00e8se\u2019s entire cabinet. He almost refused the invitation. Even under those conditions, he felt like an impostor\u2014like he did not have what it took to speak before such an audience. How\u2019s that for an example of the complexes we nurture simply for not having a university degree! I offered him the services of a media trainer and everything went well. We should go out of our way to support self-taught individuals, as they often suffer from self-censorship\u2026 In short, this pioneering plunge into entrepreneurship was a world-class management school.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the start-up didn\u2019t succeed as a business model. \u201cWe spent our time looking for subsidies for our R&D instead of looking for clients\u2026 After five years, we had 15 employees, but we had to sell our shares.\u201d The takeaway for J\u00e9r\u00f4me Adam was this: \u201cWe invested too much time in the conception phase, and waited too long for engineers to deliver the perfect product to enter the market, when we should have recruited a sales staff to quickly launch a first offering, and then improve the product. Among other things, this would have reduced our reliance on investors. The best money? The customer\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

Second Round<\/h2>\n

J\u00e9r\u00f4me Adam put these lessons to good use when he created Easy Life with Florence Daumas. Easy Life was an innovation consulting agency that worked: \u201cOne noteworthy development was Easymetros, an electronic device that allowed users to make sense of public transport, and which won the L\u00e9pine Contest in 2009.\u201d The problem came from elsewhere. \u201cWe posted online an article about us from the Revue des collectivit\u00e9s locales<\/i> (Journal of Regional Communities<\/i>), not knowing that we didn\u2019t have the right to share it. The result: not only were we obliged to pay damages and interest for copyright infringement, but the two-year-long saga persuaded a potential buyer to pull his offer.\u201d Another challenge, but an easier one to accept: \u201cI had been careful to invest less of myself emotionally in this project. It helped me accept the situation and not cling to it needlessly.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Tide Turns<\/h2>\n

This turn of events served as reality check for J\u00e9r\u00f4me Adam. \u201cI\u2019d been in the tech sector for ten years. I needed something with a more human touch. That\u2019s when the idea came to me to create a comedy series on the vagaries of working with others and diversity in the workplace\u2014subjects I was very familiar with from my time as an entrepreneur.\u201d He discussed it with Guillaume Buffet, someone he met during his tenure with the think tank Renaissance Num\u00e9rique (Digital Renaissance), and together they produced the show, J\u2019en Crois Pas Mes Yeux (JCPMY\u2014I Can\u2019t Believe My Eyes). \u201cWe put together a unique model in the world of French AV production. Normally, producers seek out subsidies (CNC\u2026) and\/or a commitment from a TV station. We, on the other hand, solicited businesses who we thought may be interested in using our content internally. They were offered to pre-purchase broadcast rights of our videos provided other partners matched the amount; otherwise, they could pull out. Funding was thus shared and more accessible to each company.\u201d This system afforded the series a long run. \u201cWe wanted to shoot six episodes. The show lasted six seasons.\u201d<\/p>\n

The success of this enterprise demonstrates the importance of choosing partners well. \u201cGuillaume and I complement each other nicely. And it showed in another of our adventures: the production of the documentary, Tandem, <\/i>about our climb up Mont Ventoux on a tandem bicycle\u2014a perfect illustration of the strength of our alliance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Transition and Sharing<\/h2>\n

Is it because his story is on film? Perhaps. Today, J\u00e9r\u00f4me Adam gives conferences inspired by his life journey. \u201cI am in a phase of my life where I want to reach out. I want to share what I have learned and what I have been taught.\u201d He offers his conferences to business managers based on the theme, \u201cUnlock Your Power of Decision.\u201d \u201cYou won\u2019t hear anybody else addressing the issues I do. First of all, I don\u2019t have any problem admitting my mistakes. Secondly, I am a bit of a contrarian. For example, I value doubt\u2014as long as you know how to overcome it. Where many see doubt as a weakness, I assert the opposite, that to be too sure of oneself leads straight into a wall.\u201d<\/p>\n

He will also soon be writing a second book (his first with Patrick Blanchet is entitled Entreprendre avec sa diff\u00e9rence,<\/i> The Uncommon Entrepreneur<\/i>) and is looking for a producer to shoot a film script he wrote inspired by his relationship with his brother and criticizing the banalization of drug addiction. Without a doubt, J\u00e9r\u00f4me Adam has a lot to say\u2026 and we love hearing him out!<\/p>\n

J\u00e9r\u00f4me Adam (ESSEC00)<\/p>\n

Interview and expos\u00e9 by Louis Amengaud Wurmser (ESSEC2011)<\/p>\n<\/div>

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