Innovation begins with a simple ‘yes’
That first client doesn’t just buy your solution; they buy into your vision.
When I look back at my early days as a founder, I don’t think of the first keynote, the first headliner or prototype, but of the first person who said ‘yes’. That first client doesn’t just buy your solution; they buy into your vision.
Why the first customer changes everything
For a startup, the first customer is never ‘just a sale’. It’s a proof and a signal to the market: this idea matters. A first real-world use case builds credibility and if everything goes well, that leap is contagious and other will follow.
The first customer is also often the first mirror. They challenge your assumptions, sharpen your focus, and help turn abstract ideas into tangible value. Or as Steve Blank famously put it: “No business plan survives first contact with customers.” Getting out to the market helps to refine the features, pricing, and positioning.
Building trust takes work
Over the past year at FTI, securing that crucial first deal was a significant focus. Especially when you’re building something new – and doing so across sectors and stakeholders – trust becomes the real currency.
That's why I’m proud we’re now taking a visible step forward – after a deep co-creation process in the field – with two real-world use cases that demonstrate what’s possible when ambition meets commitment. One in health. One in mobility. Both build with partners who said, very meaningfully, ‘yes’.
From a use case to a full product
Our first use case, Elli, has grown into much more than a proof of concept. Over the past months, it evolved into a full-fledged product, developed in close co-creation with partners from the FTI Community.
Elli combines physical and mental well-being data into dual dashboards – one for employees, one for employers – offering clear, data-driven insights to improve workplace well-being.
Engie was the first organization to say ‘yes’ to Elli – and I’m genuinly proud of the momentum that followed. Golazo Energy, Vitamins@Work and IntelliProve are all contributing to the solution, helping us move from idea to impact. With growing interest from the market, we’ve now officially launched Elli as a product. There’s more to find out on Elli.be.
Using data to drive passenger growth
Our second use case takes a completely different route, quite literally. Together with Brussels Airport Company and Proximus, we launched the Passenger Leakage Project: an initiative that uses aggregated and anonymized mobility data to understand why Belgian travelers sometimes choose foreign airports over Brussels.
The results offer strategic insights: mapping travel routes, quantifying missed long-haul opportunities, and supporting Brussels Airport in building stronger, evidence-based cases to attract airlines. FTI coordinated the project setup and data governance, while Proximus enabled the data flows.
From one ‘yes’ to many
These first use cases show what’s possible when early trust meets practical collaboration. But the potential goes far beyond this. Every organization – public or private – has the power to be a first mover. If you’ve ever been that person who took a bet on something new, you know what a difference it can make. Let’s keep saying yes to what comes next.
