Growing New Ventures, Creating New Jobs

Book excerpt: Well managed business incubators with programs and services that help their client companies grow are important mechanisms for economic development in America. Although the number of business incubators in the United States has grown from 10 to 500 in the last 15 years, the success of these incubators has been mixed. Many incubator directors are so busy with public relations, fund raising and administrative duties that they spend very little time working with client companies. Mark Rice and Jana Matthews, incubator experts, have identified three key principles and 10 best practices of successful incubators - those that help entrepreneurs grow their companies. This book provides a litmus test for determining an incubator's feasibility, suggests ways to attract high-quality entrepreneurs, and includes many hands-on examples from some of the country's best business incubators. The authors have developed alternative financial models for incubators, clearly delineated board and staff responsibilities, and outlined many different ways to help entrepreneurs grow their companies, depending on their stage of development.