The purpose of this paper is to evaluate effectiveness of business incubator process models employed in government-funded incubators operating in the emerging markets countries, using South Africa as an example. This research paper aims to add to literature on the incubator process evaluation stream of studies. Furthermore, it proposes a process effectiveness model based on the integration of organizational diagnosis theory on organizational effectiveness as well the real options theory of the incubator process. This study employs a qualitative study method based on interviews with 10 business incubator managers of the only government sanctioned Small Enterprise Development Agency in South Africa. Data was collected and analysed qualitatively. The researcher proposes an incubator process effectiveness evaluation framework with dimensions that are suitable for an emerging market context.</p / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Over the past two decades, the South African economy has witnessed a decrease in its capacity to recruit new entrants into the formal labour market. South Africa’s economy is not producing enough employment opportunities to accommodate the influx of annual new entrants into the labour market, such as school leavers. As a result of the inadequate ability of South Africa’s formal labour market to absorb new entrants, coupled with the rising youth unemployment, the South African government has prioritised the development of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and entrepreneurship as a means to combat these challenges. Entrepreneurship, as a recognised intervention for the development and growth of an economy through the creation of jobs and poverty alleviation, is an important topic in business literature. Many countries around the world are increasingly recognising the significant contributions that SMMEs make to the employment and income generation aspects of the economy. Despite the contributions that SMMEs and small organisations (SOs), including small service organisations (SSOs), make to the economy, they have multiple difficulties to overcome. While SOs are viewed as powerful mechanisms that contribute to economic development and growth through increasing employment opportunities and wealth, they face certain obstacles that impede their growth potential and, sometimes, even lead to failure. Business incubators are organisations established to support SOs and SMMEs and are recognised as making a significant contribution to reducing business failure. South Africa and countries all over the world are beginning to appreciate the value of incubators as salient institutions that support small organisations. Various forms of business incubators have been developed, including university business incubators (UBIs) which provide support for potential entrepreneurs through ensuring that mentoring, financing, networks and business training is available. Business incubators offer incubation programmes, which include a variety of services and networking resources, to incubates. Whilst numerous studies have been done on the services that incubators offer incubates in the international context, limited research has been conducted on the services that entrepreneurs require from a UBI in the South African context. The primary objective of this study was to determine the essential incubator services that small service organisations require from UBIs within the South African context in order to guide the formation of policy objectives, marketing strategies and marketing procedures. The target population relevant to this study was defined as owners/managers of small service organisations situated in the Vaal Triangle region of South Africa. The sampling frame for the study comprised a list of small service organisations situated in the Vaal Triangle region, as obtained from the Vaal Triangle Info Business Directory. From this sampling frame, a non-probability judgement sample of 125 owners/managers of SSOs in the auto, estate agents and property management, health care and beauty, hospitality and accommodation, and professional service industry sectors was drawn. An unsolicited calling approach was followed, whereby the researcher personally visited each small service organisation individually to request permission to partake in the study. Thereafter, self-administered questionnaires were delivered for completion by the relevant owners/managers of each participating SSO, which were collected thereafter. In order to measure their perceptions of essential UBI services, participants were requested to indicate on a six-point Likert scale the level of unimportance or importance of 41 services. The owners/managers‟ perceptions of the importance of the six UBI service constructs over the business life-cycle phases were measured using multiple-choice questions, whereby the participants were asked to choose one of the five alternatives provided. The owners/managers‟ perceived value of UBI services was measured using dichotomous questions. In addition, certain demographical data were requested from the participants. The findings of this study indicate that the owners/managers of SSOs perceive UBI services as being important. They indicated networking and professional services as the most important UBI services, followed by management services, general business services, physical facilities and financial consulting services, of which university services were perceived as being the least important. The findings suggest that the UBI services were mostly required in the pre-start-up, start-up and growth phases of the SSO‟s business life-cycle phases. While UBI services were deemed important by both young and mature organisations, the owners/managers of young organisations perceived management services as more important than those of more mature organisations. In terms of the perceived value of UBI services, the findings reveal that although owners/managers perceived the UBI services to be important, they expressed minimal interest in utilising those services. Based on the participants‟ level of agreement concerning the perceived importance of UBI services, cluster analysis revealed two clusters, namely Cluster 1 and Cluster 2. The participants in Cluster 1, comprising more female participants and young organisations, perceived the UBI services as more important than those participants in Cluster 2. Since the idea of UBIs is relatively new in South African, and given that they have yet to prove their value to industry, getting stakeholders to buy into the concept remains a daunting task. Insights gained from this study will help business incubators, universities, government and other stakeholders understand current entrepreneurs‟ perceptions towards the important UBI services required by SSOs. This, in turn, will help guide UBIs in the formation of their policy objectives, marketing strategies and marketing procedures. / PhD (Marketing Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

Over the past two decades, the South African economy has witnessed a decrease in its capacity to recruit new entrants into the formal labour market. South Africa’s economy is not producing enough employment opportunities to accommodate the influx of annual new entrants into the labour market, such as school leavers. As a result of the inadequate ability of South Africa’s formal labour market to absorb new entrants, coupled with the rising youth unemployment, the South African government has prioritised the development of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and entrepreneurship as a means to combat these challenges. Entrepreneurship, as a recognised intervention for the development and growth of an economy through the creation of jobs and poverty alleviation, is an important topic in business literature. Many countries around the world are increasingly recognising the significant contributions that SMMEs make to the employment and income generation aspects of the economy. Despite the contributions that SMMEs and small organisations (SOs), including small service organisations (SSOs), make to the economy, they have multiple difficulties to overcome. While SOs are viewed as powerful mechanisms that contribute to economic development and growth through increasing employment opportunities and wealth, they face certain obstacles that impede their growth potential and, sometimes, even lead to failure. Business incubators are organisations established to support SOs and SMMEs and are recognised as making a significant contribution to reducing business failure. South Africa and countries all over the world are beginning to appreciate the value of incubators as salient institutions that support small organisations. Various forms of business incubators have been developed, including university business incubators (UBIs) which provide support for potential entrepreneurs through ensuring that mentoring, financing, networks and business training is available. Business incubators offer incubation programmes, which include a variety of services and networking resources, to incubates. Whilst numerous studies have been done on the services that incubators offer incubates in the international context, limited research has been conducted on the services that entrepreneurs require from a UBI in the South African context. The primary objective of this study was to determine the essential incubator services that small service organisations require from UBIs within the South African context in order to guide the formation of policy objectives, marketing strategies and marketing procedures. The target population relevant to this study was defined as owners/managers of small service organisations situated in the Vaal Triangle region of South Africa. The sampling frame for the study comprised a list of small service organisations situated in the Vaal Triangle region, as obtained from the Vaal Triangle Info Business Directory. From this sampling frame, a non-probability judgement sample of 125 owners/managers of SSOs in the auto, estate agents and property management, health care and beauty, hospitality and accommodation, and professional service industry sectors was drawn. An unsolicited calling approach was followed, whereby the researcher personally visited each small service organisation individually to request permission to partake in the study. Thereafter, self-administered questionnaires were delivered for completion by the relevant owners/managers of each participating SSO, which were collected thereafter. In order to measure their perceptions of essential UBI services, participants were requested to indicate on a six-point Likert scale the level of unimportance or importance of 41 services. The owners/managers‟ perceptions of the importance of the six UBI service constructs over the business life-cycle phases were measured using multiple-choice questions, whereby the participants were asked to choose one of the five alternatives provided. The owners/managers‟ perceived value of UBI services was measured using dichotomous questions. In addition, certain demographical data were requested from the participants. The findings of this study indicate that the owners/managers of SSOs perceive UBI services as being important. They indicated networking and professional services as the most important UBI services, followed by management services, general business services, physical facilities and financial consulting services, of which university services were perceived as being the least important. The findings suggest that the UBI services were mostly required in the pre-start-up, start-up and growth phases of the SSO‟s business life-cycle phases. While UBI services were deemed important by both young and mature organisations, the owners/managers of young organisations perceived management services as more important than those of more mature organisations. In terms of the perceived value of UBI services, the findings reveal that although owners/managers perceived the UBI services to be important, they expressed minimal interest in utilising those services. Based on the participants‟ level of agreement concerning the perceived importance of UBI services, cluster analysis revealed two clusters, namely Cluster 1 and Cluster 2. The participants in Cluster 1, comprising more female participants and young organisations, perceived the UBI services as more important than those participants in Cluster 2. Since the idea of UBIs is relatively new in South African, and given that they have yet to prove their value to industry, getting stakeholders to buy into the concept remains a daunting task. Insights gained from this study will help business incubators, universities, government and other stakeholders understand current entrepreneurs‟ perceptions towards the important UBI services required by SSOs. This, in turn, will help guide UBIs in the formation of their policy objectives, marketing strategies and marketing procedures. / PhD (Marketing Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

The aim of this study is to examine incubators which were formed by Innovation Center Iceland right after the financial crisis hit in 2008. The question is whether a new concept can be defined, or a new phenomenon, called “crisis incubation”. This is a concept that has not been studied before. This research is carried out by comparing the incubators formed in Iceland with incubators in six other European countries before the crisis hit, and see if there are any differences between the entrepreneurial processes. According to the study, the main differences between traditional incubators and crisis incubators are the following: Access to crisis incubators is much easier, incubatees within crisis incubators are much less likely to experience problems after they have entered the incubators, and they are much more likely to solve problems they experience. The only problem that incubatees in a crisis incubator are more likely to experience is obtaining finance. The study also finds some similarities between traditional incubators and crisis incubators. Overall, the main results strongly indicate that the differences between the two concepts are so great, that a new phenomenon can be defined, although further research is needed.

This paper focuses on identifying factors influencing the financing decisions of growth-oriented start-ups. A sample of 8 business incubator start-ups has been studied within a qualitative research so as to reach that goal. Their fundraising choices are analyzed using supporting financial and psychological theories. Also, the thesis examines the start-ups’ interaction with a business incubator and investors.It is found that growth oriented start-ups use internal funds in the first instance, the lack of financial capital representing the main reason behind this decision. Moreover, it is clear that bank loans are not a viable alternative for start-ups mainly because of the collaterals required. However, debt financing, coming from more accessible sources, is used despite the higher costs, this if it helps in achieving growth. Lastly, equity capital is regarded positively by growth oriented start-ups although it dilutes the control. The reasoning is that control is traded-off with the skills and experience the external investors bring in once with their investments.

Background Exploring the literature stream of the knowledge perspective as well as that of start-ups andincubation, and subsequently bringing the two together. Aim To construct propositions regarding the process of developing managerial capability in incubatedstart-ups. Methodology The study entails 3 start-ups that provide a high technology product. The development ofmanagerial capability was explored through a comparative case study in which founders, businesscoaches and externally recruited employees where interviewed. Findings The process of managerial capability development in incubated start-ups can be deconstructedinto two processes, knowledge acquisition and knowledge integration, where each process presentdistinct attributes in different stages of development of the start-up. This managerial capabilityformation is an incremental process that drives growth.

Purpose The purpose of this thesis is to identify performance outcome criteria for accelerator programs with university links. Hereby, the study aims to extend the knowledge about important evaluation criteria and influencing factors on performance outcome and to close the gap between incubator and accelerator literature. The objective of the study was to investigate, (1) how participating persons evaluate the performance outcome of the accelerator program, (2) how the evaluation between accelerator and incubator differs and (3) why the evaluation differs. Frame of references Literature about science and technology parks, incubators, accelerators and performance evaluation was used to create the theoretical foundation for this thesis. A research gap about the performance outcome evaluation of accelerators was found, due to the newness of the model. Method The study followed an inductive approach and was of exploratory nature. A qualitative case study was chosen to investigate an accelerator within a science and technology park environment. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect the primary data and the methods of coding and categorizing were used to structure and analyse the data. Due to the inductive approach, literature was used to discuss the findings in the end.  Findings Proposition 1: Accelerator performance outcome is mainly evaluated by subjective criteria: “goal realization”, “entrepreneurial motivation” and “entrepreneurial education”. Proposition 2: The performance outcome gets influenced by micro level criteria like “practical experience”, “network support”, “personal development”, “program structure” and “individualization”.

The focus of this study was to examine the past educational experiences women entrepreneurs had that related to the operation of their businesses in an incubator setting. The study also examined educational needs not adequately addressed for women entrepreneurs in this setting. Data were gathered by participant interview methods using a qualitative research approach. Twenty subjects were selected for individual interviews. They were located through personal contact upon recommendation of the managers or executive directors of business incubator facilities. Interview questions addressed business, computer, oral and written communication, and general educational experiences related to their businesses as well as perceived educational needs. In addition, eight incubator managers where the subjects' businesses were located were also interviewed to determine their perceptions of the entrepreneurs' educational needs. Demographic information was obtained from the subjects as to age, previous business experience, educational experiences, degrees earned, professional certification, and other education. Their previous occupations as related to their present business enterprises were also obtained. Taped responses to the interview questions were transcribed, verified, and examined for similarities and differences. A profile of the 20 female entrepreneurs who had their businesses located in a business incubator facility emerged. They had a mean age of 43 years, had worked for a number of years before making the decision to go into their own businesses, and had diverse educational backgrounds ranging from high school graduation through the Ph.D. degree. Their business experiences varied widely. A common concern of the 20 subjects interviewed was lack of computer knowledge and experience. This concern surfaced regardless of prior course work completed. Also, development of additional accounting, communication, and marketing skills emerged as educational needs. Course structure of available courses was a concern. Courses offered on an intensive basis were needed. Further, the interviewees felt that considerable time could be saved by having course work and seminars taught on-site at the incubator facility. Coursework geared to small businesses so that the material and information obtained would have a direct application to their endeavors was desired. In addition, having a computer center within the incubator facility was identified as needed by the female entrepreneurs. / Ed. D.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:16:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 3745.pdf: 1636523 bytes, checksum: ff291395015622539adb5578d94e1b7b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-02-24 / The Business Startup Incubator took a role in promoting interaction between the Public and Private Entities, with the aim to accelerate the cooperation between Universities, Research Centers, the Public and Private Companies. This cooperation is essential for the generation of more research, development and innovation in Brazilian companies. The growing number of Business Startup Incubators was stimulated by agents that are betting that these units can contribute to generating new business enterprise competitive and innovative. Companies participating in the hatching process (pass a certain period in the incubators) receive support in the areas of management, with courses, training and consulting for management training and actions in the area of marketing and sales that give subsidies to compete in the business highly competitive market. In this context, descriptive and exploratory, using a case study on the Business Development Center Business Incubator Jau / SP, aims to understand the process of locating the incubators, in particular the Business Incubator Jau, the interaction between public and private entities involved in the project business incubator, and finally its potential. Data collection was conducted through interviews with a sample of entrepreneurs who participated in the process of incubation in the Business Incubator Jau, using an instrument developed for this purpose, which allowed these companies to characterize and identify their perception regarding the benefits and difficulties of the Business Incubator program in Jau. Through the data obtained, it was observed that the interviewed companies consider important training in business management, stock sales and marketing, research and development, and have adequate infrastructure. These entrepreneurs in the data presented realize tangible benefits in the incubation period, though, demonstrate several difficulties, most pronounced in the case of the infrastructure program in Jau. From the work experience and support of many incubators in Brazil may point to this program as a generator of competitive initiatives, but to do so, it should be a strengthened network of public and private entities with specific purpose in generating ventures competitive and innovative. / As Incubadoras de Empresas assumiram um papel relevante na promoção da interação entre as Entidades Públicas e Privadas, com o propósito de acelerar a cooperação entre Universidades, Centros de Pesquisa, o Poder Público e as Empresas Privadas. Esta cooperação é fundamental para a geração de mais pesquisa, desenvolvimento e inovação nas empresas brasileiras. O crescimento do número de Incubadoras de Empresas foi estimulado por atores que apostam que essas unidades podem contribuir para a geração de novos negócios empresariais competitivos e inovadores. As empresas que participam do processo de incubação (passam um determinado período nas incubadoras) recebem apoio nas áreas de gestão, com cursos, treinamentos e consultorias, para capacitação gerencial e com ações na área de marketing e vendas que dão subsídios para o empresário competir no mercado altamente concorrido. Esta pesquisa tem como objetivo entender o processo de implantação das Incubadoras, em especial da Incubadora de Empresas de Jaú; a interação entre as entidades públicas e privadas envolvidas no projeto incubadora de empresas, e por fim suas potencialidades. Nesse contexto foi realizado um estudo de caso sobre o Núcleo de Desenvolvimento Empresarial Incubadora de Empresas de Jaú/SP. A coleta de dados foi realizada através de entrevistas com uma amostra de empresários, que participaram do processo de incubação na Incubadora de Empresas de Jaú, utilizando instrumento elaborado para esse fim, que permitiu caracterizar essas empresas e identificar a percepção destes com relação aos benefícios e dificuldades do programa Incubadora de Empresas em Jaú. Através dos dados obtidos, foi possível observar que as empresas entrevistadas consideram importante a capacitação em gestão empresarial, de ações em marketing e vendas, pesquisa e desenvolvimento, e ter infra-estrutura adequada. Estes empresários percebem benefícios concretos no período de incubação, embora, demonstrem várias dificuldades, mais acentuadas, no caso da infra-estrutura do programa em Jaú. A partir da pesquisa realizada e apoio na experiência das inúmeras incubadoras existentes pelo Brasil pode-se apontar este programa como gerador de iniciativas competitivas, mas para tanto, deve-se existir uma rede fortalecida de entidades públicas e privadas com finalidade especifica na geração de empreendimentos competitivos e inovadores.

The idea of rhythm as applied to interior space is the basis for this thesis. The site is an old warehouse with a structure that contains a repetitive rhythm in the form of a columnar grid and a corresponding fenestration pattern, yet the building also has an atypical wedge shape. The program is a design business incubator, a place where design business startups, recent graduates of Virginia design programs, can begin their design careers and find their rhythm in a cooperative and supportive environment, a collage of design businesses, if you will. Rhythm is essential in our lives, from the beating of our hearts to the rising and setting of the sun. Rhythm is also essential to spatial design. Our built environments require some form of pattern in order to help create a sense of stability and familiarity with our surroundings. Whether in music or painting, poetry or design, rhythm starts with simple repetition. But rhythm moves beyond mere repetition to include a diverse assortment of elements. The more complex a rhythm, the more we can become involved with that rhythm and consequently with the object that provides the rhythm. How does rhythm translate into space and time? How is it possible to develop a more complex and expressive rhythm in a particular space? What might be considered more expressive? How can this old warehouse function as a design business incubator while new rhythms are introduced into the mix of old rhythms through the fulfillment of this program and thereby create a collage of space?