Building Innovation Capacity through Regional Business Incubation Systems Dr Takis Damaskopoulos Executive Director European Institute of Interdisciplinary Research (EIIR) Paris, France

Alter-Globalization: Global Industrial Topology of the ICT Industry

Alter-Globalization: Global Topology of the ICT Industry – US

Alter-Globalization: Industrial Topology of the ICT Industry - (former) EU

INNOVATION THROUGH BUSINESS INCUBATION What do incubators do? …provide entrepreneurs, start-up companies and / or established companies with a supportive environment to help establish and develop their business projects. By providing services on a ‘one-stop’ basis, and allowing for overhead costs to be reduced by sharing facilities, business incubators and accelerators can significantly improve the survival and growth prospects of start-ups and small firms at an early stage of their development. Beyond their beneficial effects for individual businesses business incubators have an important impact on regional economic development by supporting industrial innovation and the commercialization of new technology. They tend to support industrial diversification through the development of creative industries with high growth potential and competition but also employment and entrepreneurship.

What do incubators do? Business incubation requires the successful combination of ‘hard’ technological, ‘soft’ organisational and social and what is often called ‘ambient’ or ‘smart’ infrastructures. Ambient infrastructure refers to the intangible or non-quantifiable inputs into business development and tends to evolve around business, market and technical networks. This non- quantifiable asset forms part of an organisation’s or a region’s intellectual capital. Business incubation and acceleration draws together fundamental elements for new business success: · Access to relevant business experience, skills and knowledge and expertise · Access to networks, particularly in business management, marketing, technical and financial areas · Networking and systematic contact with other entrepreneurs · Assistance in sourcing affordable, well located office space and basic logistical services.

BUSINESS INCUBATION MODELLING

WHICH APPROACH TO BUSINESS INCUBATION? Approach: A global ‘economic’ approach to business that covers every aspect of a firm Focus: May be high-tech, mid-tech, or low-tech or may even involve innovations of a non- technological ‘environmental’ nature such as the development of ‘ambient’ technology Key: Identify different enterprises and systems of knowledge and technology at different parts of the value chain and create an environment that maximises synergies which contribute not only to economic growth of the companies themselves but also to the economic growth of the region PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS OF BUSINESS INCUBATION: 1.Governance and management of incubation 2.Enterprise development program of incubation 3.Marketing strategy of incubation 4.Physical facility and general business services 5.Financial model of business incubation 6.Technology transfer

Anatomy of La Salle’s Business Services Platform

Thank You Dr Takis Damaskopoulos Executive Director European Institute of Interdisciplinary Research (EIIR) Paris, France