University business incubators (UBIs) are organizations that provide new startup companies with a support environment. However, there are split opinions on the UBIs’ contributions to the startups and the regional economy and, consequently, there are also split opinions on  how to assess UBI performance. According to the resource-based view (RBV), a company’s competitive advantage results from the various resources the company has access to. The biotechnology industry is characterized by high research intensity, weak entrepreneurial and managerial skills of the entrepreneur, huge capital requirements, and long product  evelopment approval processes. Previous research has showed that these characteristics imply certain challenges for new biotech ventures. In this study, these industry specific characteristic and challenges were believed to affect what constitutes successful bioincubation and how bio-incubators’ performance should be assessed. The purpose of this report is, thus, to examine how bio-incubator performance can, and should be, assessed. An existing framework for assessing UBI performance is used as a basis for performing  emistructured interviews with 18 incubator managers in order to examine what performance indicators are perceived as robust for assessing bio-incubator performance. The findings show that the value contributions of bio-incubators mainly include space and network provision, support services, and coaching. The perceived value contributions, in combination with the perceived challenges, imply that it is particularly appropriate to assess bio-incubators performance in terms of Job Creation, Economy Enhancement, Access to Funds, and the Incubator Offer and Internal Environment. However, Job Creation and Economy Enhancement are closely related and are therefore suggested to be merged into a single performance indicator. Hardware and Services, on the other hand, seems to be less relevant for assessing bio-incubator performance as it depends on the incubator’s strategy. The study concludes that there are additional ways of assessing bio-incubator performance, such as shortened time to graduation, links with universities, and the flexibility of the incubator. Further research may include the entrepreneurs’ point of view or use the approach of this study to examine incubator performance in other high-technology industries.

Storföretag står inför en ständig utmaning att utöka sina innovationsutvecklingsmöjligheter. På grund av detta är det en ökande trend hos storföretag idag att implementera interna inkubatorer. I interna inkubatorer är samarbeten med externa parter vanligt förekommande, vilket leder till vikten av kunskapsöverföring som en förutsättning för kunskapsintegration. Det är därför av intresse att undersöka de faktorer som påverkar kunskapsöverföring i interna inkubatorer, samt vilken roll kunskapsöverföring har i interna inkubatorers arbete att skapa innovation samt hur kunskapsöverföring skiljer sig mellan interna medarbetare och storföretaget samt externa parter och storföretaget. Syftet med denna studie är att redogöra för hur storföretags interna inkubatorer arbetar med kunskapsöverföring med intern och extern kunskap samt hur det bidrar till att skapa innovation. Denna fallstudie har genomförts med en kvalitativ forskningsstrategi och ett hermeneutistiskt hermeneutiskt perspektiv. Empiri har samlats in med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer med fem respondenter som arbetar på fallföretaget som har god kunskap om, och insikt i, fallföretagets interna inkubators verksamhet. I fallet har inre motivation, tillit samt tid och stress framkommit vara påverkande faktorer för kunskapsöverföring i fallföretagets lokala inkubator (den interna inkubatorns förstadie) och i sin tur skapandet av innovation. En modell har framställts som visar faktorer som påverkar kunskapsöverföring och illustrerar kunskapsöverföringens roll i fallföretagets lokala inkubator. Vi ser även absorptionsförmåga som en förutsättning hos den mottagande enheten för att kunskapsöverföring ska kunna genomföras. En grundläggande faktor är även typ av kunskap det som ska överföras, det vill säga tacit eller explicit. I dagsläget framgår ingen tydlig process för kunskapsöverföring i fallföretagets lokala inkubator vilket indikerar att fallföretaget inte tar hänsyn till om kunskapsöverföringen avser intern eller extern kunskap. / Large corporations face a constant challenge to expand their innovation development opportunities. Due to this, there is an increasing trend among large corporations today to implement corporate incubators. In corporate incubators, collaborations with external parties are common, which leads to the importance of knowledge transfer as a prerequisite for knowledge integration. It is therefore of interest to investigate the factors that affect knowledge transfer in corporate incubators, the role of knowledge transfer in corporate incubators' work to create innovation and how knowledge transfer differs between internal employees and the large corporation as well as external parties and the large corporation. The purpose of this study is to account for how large corporations' corporate incubators work with knowledge transfer with internal and external knowledge and how it contributes to creating innovation. This case study has been conducted with a qualitative research strategy and a hermeneutic perspective. Empirical data has been collected with the help of semi-structured interviews with five people working at the case corporation who possesses good knowledge of, and insight into, the case corporation's corporate incubator operation. In this case, internal motivation, trust, time and stress have emerged as influencing factors for knowledge transfer in the case corporation's local incubator (the corporate incubator's pre-stage) and in turn the creation of innovation. A model has been constructed that shows factors that affect knowledge transfer and illustrates the role of knowledge transfer in the case corporation's local incubator. We also see absorptive capacity as a prerequisite for the receiving unit in order for knowledge transfer to be carried out. A fundamental factor is also the type of knowledge that is to be transferred, i.e. tacit or explicit. At present, there is no clear process for knowledge transfer in the case corporation's local incubator, which indicates that the case corporation does not take into account whether the knowledge transfer refers to internal or external knowledge.

The entrepreneurial team plays a crucial part in the new venture’s growth and success. This notion is present among many investors as they often choose to bet on the “jockey” (i.e. the team) instead of on the “horse” (i.e. the idea). Previous research has pointed to how diverse teams are better equipped to handle the complex practices a new venture is faced with, compared to homogeneous teams. The entrepreneurial environment has a prevalent gender inequality that hinders many women from entering and contributing to the industry. The purpose of this research was therefore to investigate what hinders and supports the formation and upholding of gender diverse teams. The study was written on commission for a Swedish incubator which led to an approach exploring how an incubator can influence and contribute to establishing these teams. Based on a literature review, the study chose an explorative and qualitative approach to answer the research questions as it was found that this area was relatively unexplored and contained little research on how to form and uphold gender diverse teams, especially in the Swedish incubator context. Data was collected through conducting semi-structured interviews with three different types of samples. These were the commissioner (i.e. the incubator team), incubatees (i.e. new venture teams of different compositions), and a few external actors within the Swedish incubator environment.  The findings pointed to that there are several more obstacles towards forming and upholding gender diverse teams than factors supporting it. More obstacles were found in terms of forming these teams and they related to entrepreneurs experiencing a lack of knowledge on how to find the right members with complementary skills. Contextual factors also affect the possibility to adopt an appropriate strategy to find team members. An inherent fear of bringing in someone new was also present among entrepreneurs. There is an absence of female role models which increases the difficulty and gap between men and women as the step becomes even larger for women to enter and succeed in the entrepreneurial environment. In terms of upholding gender diverse teams, conflict due to experienced personal differences and more challenging communication is common and can negatively affect the venture if not managed properly. Gender roles and stereotypes also have a negative impact. On the other hand, some supportive measures were also identified. In regards to team formation, resource seeking was a better option than interpersonal relationships when it came to forming a gender diverse team. Additionally, the increased demand for diversity among several actors like state agencies, incubators, and investors further pushes new ventures to form gender diverse teams. Among the incubatees, a shared outlook of wanting greater diversity and recognizing what it contributes with, shared motives, values, and expectations further supported the upholding of gender diverse teams. Other supportive measures were creating ownership directives and shareholder agreements as well as having complementary competencies, good communication, cohesion, and cognition. Further supportive measures an incubator can adopt related to strategy, networks, and placing initial demands on new ventures.

The decreasing numbers of investments in early-stage start-ups indicate that fewer start-ups might become scale-ups and later sustainable business, affecting the eco- nomical development. Early-stage investment actors such as venture capital firms (VCs), incubators and business angels select and support investment in different ways. The VC and investment research mostly regards later-stage team and idea focused strategies. The thesis investigates what characterises and what is important for the early-stage process and selection of tenants pursued, through the investment process at the VC start-up Hidden Dreams, who combines incubator support with early stage investments. Organisational documents and previous research, presented in the frame of reference, lay the foundation for the analysis of the thesis. Research about VC selection strategies, investments, incubators, and more, paves the way of modeling a market need focused strategy combined with support. HD’s past pre-transaction processes and its current portfolio companies are analysed by the frame of reference. A model depicting the early-stage investment and support process is presented as a result, together with other findings in the analysis. The depiction explains the selection and support strategy and process by nine modules, each playing a role in the journeys of the VC and start-up. Insights about how the idea, team and market need affect the outcome of choice from the process are presented. The process becomes iteratively more characterised based on historical lessons. Since early-stage investments are considered risky, a way of minimising that risk can be seen through the combination of VC, incubator and business angel functions. The team and idea play a vital role in the process, especially the entrepreneur or advisor who contribute with market knowledge in the evaluation of market need. If the market inhibits competition the opportunity needs a hook, otherwise the initia- tors need to know why there is no competition. The team and idea plays important parts in the evaluation of market need. The idea works as initiator of the scope and to define value creation capabilities, whilst the entrepreneurial team, through the potential problem-owner, give each case market anchoring through experience and knowledge. / <p>Digital presentation</p>

Small to medium enterprises (SMEs) in the food industry contend with a variety of corporate sustainability and social responsibility (CSSR) issues, ranging from the environmental impact of food waste to human health concerns about specific ingredients and production methods. In this qualitative multicase study, based on the conceptual frameworks of strategic development, stakeholder management, and institutional theory, I explored barriers and enablers for Washington, DC-based food SMEs as they proactively addressed CSSR issues. I interviewed five SME owner-managers. The transcripts were then coded and analyzed. Three themes emerged. Strategic development tended to be ad hoc and experimental, but with equal focus on establishing and growing a market for the product and achieving the central CSSR mission. The most important stakeholder was the customer because they are essential to the survival of the company, but also because owner-managers seek to change customers' awareness and behaviors as they relate to CSSR issues. Institutional constructs such as kitchen incubators enable entrepreneurs to start up but, along with limited local supply chains and costly and confusing regulations, they represent significant barriers to scale. The implication for social change within the local community is startup food incubators can use the findings to design models more conducive to scaling food SMEs that support local food production. This could benefit both local economic development and health outcomes.

ABSTRACT Background: ‘One way you might be able to take your idea and make it a business' Business incubator originated in the United States, with aim to provide supportive environment for new ventures, provide incubatees' with affordable office spaces and a variety of support services and its considered as a tool for promoting innovation, economic growth and employment.  Purpose: Investigation on what should be considered most important when planning to start a BI. Should there be synergies through collaborations or reduced cost through shared meeting spaces and technical equipment. Delimitation: I acknowledged the fact that when practitioners share co- working spaces in the Business Incubation, there could be both advantages and disadvantages. This study was focus on the benefits. Method: The research had a deductive qualitative approach. The data was collect through a global survey sent out by email and six firms participated. Conclusions: Overall conclusion for this study is that, cohabitation in the BI promotes networking between entrepreneurs, both new and mature firms. Entrepreneurs’ benefits from share co-working space through collaboration, relationships between incubated firms. Thus, internal networking. However, networking should be considered a deliberate strategy of a business Incubator and synergies should be considered based on that. Language: UK English Keywords: Business incubator, Co-working spaces, Incubation management, Sustainability, Networking. / <p>-</p>

The entrepreneurial learning process within business incubators, particularly among novice entrepreneurs in Sweden's entrepreneurial landscape, still needs to be explored. The present study, centered around the question, "Through a social constructivist perspective, how do novice entrepreneurs learn within business incubators in Sweden?", adopts a social constructivist perspective to fill this knowledge gap. Using a qualitative, inductive approach and the Critical Incident Technique (CIT), the study focuses on novice entrepreneurs at the Uppsala Innovation Centre (UIC), Sweden. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews and a two-step sampling method, while data analysis was grounded in Vygotsky’s Social Development Theory. This methodology aimed to unravel the intricacies of the entrepreneurial learning process within the UIC. These findings offer valuable insights to novice entrepreneurs and a particular business incubator, suggesting how they might structure more conducive incubator environments for effective entrepreneurial learning. It also underscores the importance of networking within the incubator's environment. However, these findings have certain limitations. They are based on data from a single Swedish incubator and may not be generalized across diverse entrepreneurial ecosystems. Moreover, the reliance on self-reported experiences introduces potential biases. Future research should address these limitations by incorporating multiple incubators across different countries and by introducing diverse perspectives and external assessments for more comprehensive and objective findings. The study concludes that providing a conducive social constructivist environment in business incubators is essential for fostering effective entrepreneurial learning, with emphasis on learning from networking with the more knowledgeable others (MKOs). These conclusions offer valuable directions for policy-makers, incubator managers, and novice entrepreneurs, aiming to enhance the sustainability and success of startups in dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystems.

The proposal is a Creative incubator, a key building of creative center, which offers space for talented people, graduates and entrepreneurs operating in the creative industries. The idea is to keep these people and bring others to enable them to implement and improve on the professional level. Creative incubator allows linking agents various creative professions such as architecture, design, photography, painting, music, clothing design, advertising, etc.)

The diploma thesis deals strategy for reconversion of the former spa by Bohuslav Fuchs in the Uherské Hradiště. Phase strategy: 0. PR spa, 1. Temporary galleries, 2. Clean and conservation , 3. New layer-creative incubator.

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