THE ROLE OF BUSINESS INCUBATORS IN

DEVELOPING ENTREPRENEURSHIP

P Meckel

PhD 2014

THE ROLE OF BUSINESS INCUBATORS IN

DEVELOPING ENTREPRENEURSHIP

PINGPING MECKEL

A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the

Manchester Metropolitan University for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Centre for Enterprise Manchester Metropolitan University

Business School

January 2014

Acknowledgements

Iwouldliketoacknowledgemysupervisoryteamfortheinvaluablesupporttheyhave

providedforthestudy.

MybiggestgratitudegoestoDr.ValerieAntcliff,forhercontinuousencouragementand

dedicated academic and pastoral support that helped me to face the challenges I

encountered.

IwouldliketothankProf.LynnMartinwhogavemeguidanceandhelpforthethesis.

Ialsoowemygratitudetothefollowing,whohavehelpedmewiththePhD:

Prof.OssieJonesoftheLiverpoolManagementSchool,whoinspiredmeandhelpedme

withtheearlydevelopmentofthePhD;

TheparticipantswhoweretheincubateesofBIC.Theygaveuptheirprecioustimeand

sharedtheirinvaluableexperiencewithme;

ThemanagementofBIC,whosupportedmethroughoutthedatacollectionprocess;

MyhusbandMatthiasMeckel�myparentsJiangYongHongandHongYuanXing,andmy

familywhoofferedmesupportandencouragementduringtheresearch.

Abstract

Extantliteratureinbusinessincubationhasbeencriticisedforfocusingonquantitative

measures of success while failing to offer a comprehensive, process-focused

understandingofthephenomenon.Thisstudyaddressesthatgapbylinkingestablished

theoretical frameworks from both entrepreneurship and learning to theorise the

businessincubationprocessandtoofferanewconceptualframeworkthatcapturesthe

processofopportunityidentificationanddevelopmentwithinabusinessincubator.This

contributes to knowledge by offering a fresh perspective on how the entrepreneurial

processmightbestudiedwithinabusinessincubatorenvironment.

The study draws on qualitative data and documentary evidence from a range of

stakeholders associatedwith auniversityBusiness IncubationCentre (BIC), including

in-depthinterviewswithtwentyincubatees.Throughaseriesofnarrativesdetailingthe

livedexperienceofincubateesthestudyidentifiessixdistinctivepathwaysthroughthe

incubation process, which allow the process to be conceptualised as a process of

opportunityidentificationanddevelopment.

The process of opportunity development within the business incubator is explored

furtherusingexperientialandsociallearningtheoriesasheuristictools.Thisleadstoa

more nuanced conceptualisation of business incubation as a learning process that

begins with prior knowledge at the opportunity identification phase, progresses

through the acquisition of new skills and knowledge necessary to develop an

opportunity and concludes with a transformation phase where new knowledge

(businessideasandopportunities)isactedupon.Alongsidethis,thestudyfindsthatthe

incubation process can transform identities as individuals undertake a journey to

‘becomeanentrepreneur’.

The findings indicate that knowledge alonemaynot fully explain the entrepreneurial

process. It is the dynamics of learning that offers a greater understanding of how

information, experience, skills and identity can be transformed into new knowledge,

which in turn leads toopportunity identificationanddevelopment.This suggests that

although a high stock of knowledge may be important prior to entering a business

incubator, it is learningthat iscrucial to theopportunitydevelopmentprocess,where

new knowledge is created by combining prior knowledgewith new information and

experience. Crucial to this process is a supportive learning community where

incubateesreceiverelevantinformationinanatmosphereoftrust.

The studyhasanumberof implications for incubatormanagers.Firstlyattentionand

scarceresourcesshouldbefocusedonprovidingrelevantinformationandencouraging

anatmosphereoflearningandmutualsupport.Secondlymanagersshouldadoptaless

‘managerial’ approach and be prepared to act as mentors to support and encourage

incubatees.Thirdly recruitmentpracticesshouldberevised to includeamoreholistic

appreciationofpotentialincubateescontributiontothelearningcommunityaswellas

anassessmentoftheirbusinessplans.

For policy makers the study suggests that a successful business incubator does not

necessarily require a large financial investment in state-of-the-art premises and

technology. Appropriate management training together with carefully selected

incubatees can create an effective learning community where opportunities are

developedandtransformedintoenterprisesandindividualsintoentrepreneurs.

TableofContents

ChapterOne.....................................................................................................................................................1

Introduction:AnOverviewoftheStudy...................................................................................................................1

ChapterTwo....................................................................................................................................................4

BusinessIncubation...........................................................................................................................................................4

2.1Introductionandbackground..........................................................................................................................4

2.2Definitionofbusinessincubators...................................................................................................................7

2.3BIC-TheBusinessIncubationCentre...........................................................................................................9

2.4Keyliteratureinbusinessincubation........................................................................................................11

2.5Summaryanddiscussion.................................................................................................................................15

ChapterThree..............................................................................................................................................19

TheProcessofEntrepreneurialOpportunityDevelopment.........................................................................19

3.1Introduction..........................................................................................................................................................19

3.2Definitionofentrepreneurship.....................................................................................................................19

3.2.1Earlydevelopmentofthedomain......................................................................................................19

3.2.2Definingopportunity................................................................................................................................21

3.2.3Priorknowledge.........................................................................................................................................22

3.3Entrepreneurship:aprocessofidentifyinganddevelopingopportunities..............................24

3.4Alearningperspectiveofentrepreneurship...........................................................................................25

3.4.1Entrepreneuriallearning........................................................................................................................25

3.4.2Experientiallearningtheory.................................................................................................................27

3.5EntrepreneurshipandlearninginthecontextofBI:becominganentrepreneur..................30

3.6Discussion..............................................................................................................................................................33

3.7Summary.................................................................................................................................................................35

ChapterFour................................................................................................................................................38

ResearchMethodology..................................................................................................................................................38

4.1Introduction..........................................................................................................................................................38

4.2Researchaimsandobjectives........................................................................................................................38

4.3Methodologicalissues.......................................................................................................................................41

4.4Positivistapproach.............................................................................................................................................43

4.5Interpretivistapproach....................................................................................................................................45

4.6Socialconstructionism......................................................................................................................................46

4.7Methodology.........................................................................................................................................................47

ChapterFive.................................................................................................................................................49

DataCollectionandAnalysis.......................................................................................................................................49

5.1Introduction..........................................................................................................................................................49

5.2DocumentaryandparticipantobservationdatafromBIC................................................................49

5.2.1Limitationsofthedocumentaryandparticipantobservationdata.....................................51

5.2.2Informedconsent.......................................................................................................................................52

5.2.3Thedemographicdatacollectiontemplate....................................................................................52

5.3PilotstudywithindividualBICincubatees..............................................................................................53

5.4Contactingrespondents...................................................................................................................................54

5.5InterviewswithBICincubatees....................................................................................................................55

5.6Stakeholderinterviews....................................................................................................................................56

5.7Dataexcludedfromtheanalysis..................................................................................................................57

5.8Approachestodataanalysis...........................................................................................................................58

5.8.1Analyticinduction......................................................................................................................................59

5.8.2Groundedtheory........................................................................................................................................60

5.8.3Templateanalysis......................................................................................................................................62

5.9Datamanagementandanalysis....................................................................................................................63

5.9.1Developingcodes.......................................................................................................................................64

5.10Summary..............................................................................................................................................................65

ChapterSix....................................................................................................................................................66

TheBICExperience.........................................................................................................................................................66

6.1Introduction..........................................................................................................................................................66

6.2Stage1:theincubationprocess....................................................................................................................66

6.3Stage2:individualpathways.........................................................................................................................67

6.3.1Andy’sexperience:BICasatransitionalphase............................................................................70

6.3.2Jane’sexperience:BICasawaytoseparateworkandhome.................................................74

6.3.3Ian’sexperience:BICasaphysicalandsocialspace..................................................................80

6.3.4Tony’sexperience:BICasatalentpool............................................................................................85

6.3.5Paul’sexperience:BICasarepositoryofresources...................................................................89

6.3.6Kath’sexperience:BICasadriverofentrepreneurialspirit...................................................96

6.4Discussion...........................................................................................................................................................102

6.4.1PathwaysthroughBIC..........................................................................................................................103

6.4.2ThephysicalfacilityofBIC..................................................................................................................106

6.4.3Theshiftfromaphysicalspacetoasocialone..........................................................................106

6.4.4Instrumentalforbusinessideas.......................................................................................................107

6.4.5SocialactivitiesinBIC...........................................................................................................................107

6.4.6Businesssupport.....................................................................................................................................108

6.4.7ResourcesassociatedwithBIC.........................................................................................................109

6.4.8Collaborationbetweentenants.........................................................................................................110

ChapterSeven............................................................................................................................................112

TheRoleofPriorKnowledgeinOpportunityIdentification......................................................................112

7.1Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................112

7.2Definitionandselectionofentrepreneurialopportunities...........................................................113

7.3Priorknowledge...............................................................................................................................................114

7.4Priorknowledge...............................................................................................................................................116

7.4.1Priorknowledgeofmarkets...............................................................................................................117

7.4.2Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblems.......................................................................................122

7.4.3Personalinterests...................................................................................................................................123

7.4.4Priorknowledgeofmarketsandcustomerproblems............................................................125

7.4.5Priorknowledgeofmarketsandmeanstoservemarkets...................................................126

7.4.6Priorknowledgeofmarketsandpersonalinterests...............................................................127

7.4.8Priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandmeanstoservemarkets.........129

7.4.9Priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandpersonalinterests....................130

7.5Emergingthemes.............................................................................................................................................131

7.5.1Stream1-Changeandinnovation..................................................................................................133

7.5.2Stream2-Knowledgetransfer.........................................................................................................135

7.5.3Stream3-Knowledgereplication...................................................................................................136

7.6Discussion...........................................................................................................................................................137

ChapterEight..............................................................................................................................................142

TheProcessofOpportunityDevelopmentinBIC...........................................................................................142

8.1Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................142

8.2OpportunitydevelopmentinBIC..............................................................................................................144

8.2.1Andy..............................................................................................................................................................144

8.2.2Jane................................................................................................................................................................146

8.2.3Ian..................................................................................................................................................................148

8.2.4Tony..............................................................................................................................................................150

8.2.5Paul................................................................................................................................................................153

8.2.6Kath...............................................................................................................................................................157

8.3Discussion:theroleofBICindevelopingentrepreneurship........................................................161

8.3.1Acquiredinformationandskills.......................................................................................................162

8.3.2LearninginBIC:aprocessofexperiencetransformation.....................................................166

8.3.3Beingpartoftheentrepreneurialcommunity...........................................................................169

8.3.4TheroleofBICindevelopingentrepreneurship.......................................................................170

ChapterNine...............................................................................................................................................175

Conclusions:Contribution,ImplicationsandFutureResearch................................................................175

9.1Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................175

9.2Thecontributionofthestudy.....................................................................................................................177

9.3Criticalreflectionsandfutureresearch.................................................................................................182

9.4Implicationsofresearch...............................................................................................................................184

9.4.1ImplicationsforBIpractitioners......................................................................................................184

9.4.2Implicationsforprospectiveandexistingincubatees............................................................186

9.4.3Implicationsforpolicymakers.........................................................................................................188

Bibliography...............................................................................................................................................190

Appendices.................................................................................................................................................218

AppendixI–SuccessindicatorsandtheroleofBI...................................................................................219

AppendixII–Datacollectiontemplate..........................................................................................................224

AppendixIII–Interviewscheduleforpilotstudy....................................................................................226

AppendixIV–InterviewscheduleforBICincubatees............................................................................228

AppendixV–InvitationletterfromdirectorofERC................................................................................230

AppendixVI–Invitationtointerviews..........................................................................................................231

AppendixVII-Outlineofthepotentialinterviewees..............................................................................232

AppendixVIII–InterviewscheduleforthefirstmanagerofBIC.......................................................233

AppendixIX–InterviewscheduleforamemberofthesteeringgroupofBIC............................236

AppendixX–Firsttemplateofcoding...........................................................................................................239

AppendixXI–Finaltemplateofcoding.........................................................................................................241

AppendixXII-Theprocessofincubation.....................................................................................................244

AppendixXIII-Narrativesofcasestudies....................................................................................................249

AppendixXIV–DistributionofallregularusersofBIC.........................................................................264

AppendixXV–Dimensionsofpriorknowledgeandpersonalinterests.........................................265

ListofTables

Table1-Thebusinessincubatorcontinuum:facilityobjectives...................................................................8

Table2-Sourcesofinformationonparticipants..............................................................................................51

Table3-Profileofparticipants.................................................................................................................................52

Table4-Listofinterviews..........................................................................................................................................56

Table5-TheBICprocessintermsofideadevelopment............................................................................104

Table6-SourcesofinformationandskillsacquiredinBIC......................................................................163

ListofFigures

Figure1-Theexperientiallearningcycle.............................................................................................................29

Figure2–Theoreticalframework............................................................................................................................34

Figure3–Theprocessofbusienssincubation...................................................................................................68

Figure4-Andy'sBICexperience..............................................................................................................................71

Figure5-Jane'sBICexperience................................................................................................................................77

Figure6-Ian'sBICexperience..................................................................................................................................81

Figure7-Tony'sBICexperience..............................................................................................................................87

Figure8-Paul'sBICexperience................................................................................................................................91

Figure9-Kath'sBICexperience...............................................................................................................................97

Figure10-Distributionofpriorknowledgeandpersonalinterests.....................................................117

Figure11-Theroleofpriorknowledgeinopportunityidentification................................................132

Figure12-KnowledgedevelopmentinBIC.....................................................................................................167

Figure13-TheroleofBIsintheopportunityidentificationanddevelopmentprocess..............172

Figure14–Howtheresearchquestionsareaddressed..............................................................................176

ListofBoxes

Box1-Priorknowledgeofmarkets.....................................................................................................................118

Box2-Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblems..............................................................................................122

Box3-Personalinterests.........................................................................................................................................123

Box4-Priorknowledgeofmarketsandcustomerproblems...................................................................125

Box5-Priorknowledgeofmarketsandmeanstoservemarkets..........................................................126

Box6-Priorknowledgeofmarketsandpersonalinterests.....................................................................127

Box7-Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblemsandmeanstoservemarkets..................................128

Box8-Priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandmeanstoservemarkets...............129

Box9-Priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandpersonalinterests...........................130

ListofAbbreviations

BI Businessincubation/businessincubator

BIC TheBusinessIncubationCentre

ELT Experientiallearningtheories

ERC TheEntrepreneurshipResearchCentre

NES NewEntrepreneurshipScholarshipsprogramme

UK UnitedKingdom

UKU UnitedKingdomUniversity

UKUBS UnitedKingdomUniversityBusinessSchool

ListOfParticipantsAndTheirBusinessOpportunities

Participant’s

name

Abbreviation Businessopportunity

Helen ESM EnvironmentalSustainabilityManagement

Tim AG ArtGallery

Andy WG WebDevelopment

Jane SM SportsManagement

Ian SNE/Ian1 SocialNetworkingEvents

HW/Ian2 HypnotherapyAndWellbeing

Tony LCBA LifeCoachingAndBusinessAdvice

Nick WDD WebDesignAndDevelopment

Neil CDTC CultureDevelopmentTrainingAndConsultancy

Phil OJSM OnlineJobSearchingAndManagement

Jeff ITS ITSupport

DP/Jeff-Paul DigitalPublishing

Paul OFS OnlineFoodSpecialist

DP/Jeff-Paul DigitalPublishing

Peter MPPB MobilePhoneProviderForBusinesses

Emma AAPD ApprovedAeroplanePartsDatabase

James OLEA OnlineLettingAndEstateAgent

Kath CVM ChildcareVouchersManagement

Laura TSRA TrainingServicesForRecruitmentAgencies

Alex OSM/Alex1 OnlineSocialMaps

NS/Alex2 NightclubSnapshots

Kelly MPRGD Marketing,PRAndGraphicDesign

Mark CWC CorporateWellbeingConsultancy

Karen RDP RadioDocumentaryProductions

1

ChapterOne

Introduction:AnOverviewoftheStudy

Business incubators are being used by policy makers around the world as a tool to

encourage early entrepreneurial activities and to promote business start-ups and

regionaleconomicdevelopment. In theUnitedKingdom(UK) thereareapproximately

300 business incubators (UKBI 2012). Indicators of success are often based on

agreements with funders and typically require quantitative data recording start-up

survivalandsuccessrates,turnoverandjobscreated.

However,conceptualisingsuccessintermsofconventional,quantifiableoutcomesfails

tocapturesoftermeasuresofsuccesssuchaslearning,knowledgeandexperiencethat

are arguably equally important in building and sustaining entrepreneurship.

Importantly it says little about the complex and nuanced journey that entrepreneurs

undertakeduringtheincubationprocess.Toredressthisimbalance,extantresearchin

business incubationhascalled formoreprocessorientatedstudies thatexploresofter

measuresofsuccess, suchas learningwithinabusiness incubator (hereafterBI).This

thesis aims to address this gap in knowledge by exploring the incubation experience

from the perspective of the incubatees, drawing on theories from both the

entrepreneurshipandlearningframeworks.

The overall aim of the research is to explore the role of business incubators in

developing entrepreneurship. In order to do this, it draws on rich qualitative data

collected from theBusiness IncubationCentre (BIC), abusiness incubatorestablished

byaUKuniversitybusinessschool.

Thethesisisorganisedasfollows,Chapter2setsthecontextforthestudybycharting

thedevelopmentofbusinessincubationthroughextantliterature.Itisevidentthatthe

definition of BI evolves with the development of this literature. However, a general

consensus emerges which suggests that the study of BI should shift its focus from

outputdriven toprocess focused. Inorder toachieve this, it isproposed thatviewing

2

business incubation through the lens of entrepreneurship can help to build a more

robustunderstandingofthebusinessincubationprocess.

Chapter 3 builds on this proposition by reviewing literature in the field of

entrepreneurship. The chapter begins byhighlighting the importance of the interplay

between the entrepreneur and the opportunity with a contemporary definition of

entrepreneurship.Itthenlooksatrecentdevelopmentsinentrepreneurshipliterature,

whichshiftviews fromthenotionthat ‘opportunitiesarediscovered’ to the idea that

‘opportunities are created’. The idea that opportunities can be created opens up the

possibilityofexploringtheinterplaybetweentheentrepreneurandtheopportunityas

a learning process. The chapter builds on this approach by drawing on literature in

entrepreneurship, learning andbusiness incubation topropose a holistic approach to

studythebusinessincubationprocess.

Chapter 4 draws on the literature to outline the principal aimof the research and to

formulatefourresearchquestions.Thechaptercontinuesbysettingoutanappropriate

philosophical stanceandmethodology toaddress theaimsof the thesis.Theresearch

methods are presented and discussed in the fifth chapter. Chapter 5 also details the

processofdatacollection,management,andanalysis.

Chapter6beginstoexploretheprocessofbusinessincubationbypresentingin-depth

livedexperiencesoftheparticipants.Usingnarrativesasatool,thechapterpresentssix

detailed and distinctive pathways of business incubation. These pathways provide a

context for thestudyandallowadeeperunderstandingof theprocess throughwhich

individuals start up and nurture their businesses in BIC, as well as the role the BIC

playedinsuchaprocess.

Chapter7returnstotheinteractionbetweentheentrepreneurandtheopportunity,and

focuses on the role of prior knowledge in opportunity identification. It identifies 23

opportunities among the 20 participants and explores the relationship between each

opportunityandtheincubatee’spriorknowledge.ThechapterbuildsonShane’s(2000)

three types of prior knowledge and proposes the inclusion of a fourth (personal

interests), basedon theworkofArdichvili et al. (2003). The chapter extends current

3

understanding of the role of prior knowledge by detailing the impact of each

combination of these forms of prior knowledge and identifying three outcomes that

prior knowledge can have on opportunity identification. By detailing the prior

knowledge the participants had, the chapter builds a foundation for further data

analysisinChapter8.

Chapter8buildsontheworkpresentedinChapter6and7.Itinvestigatestheprocessof

opportunityidentificationanddevelopmentinmoredetail.Usingexperientiallearning

theoryasaheuristictool,itexploreshowthenecessarynewinformationandskillsare

acquired throughBIC,which led to opportunitydevelopment. In addition the chapter

investigates the transformationprocess of individuals, specifically in relation to them

‘becominganentrepreneur’andfeelingbeingpartoftheBICcommunity.

By using experiential learning theory as a heuristic tool to study business incubation

andentrepreneurship,thechapterdemonstratesthatitisnotonlyinformationthatcan

be acquired but skills, too. Both of these are crucial for incubatees to develop their

business ideas.BIC, in thiscontext,provideda fast track for the incubateestoacquire

skills by creating a friendly, supportive and informal learning community in which

participants acquired the skills quickly through collaboration, forging alliances and

buildingupnewpartnershipswithotherincubatees.

Chapter 9 draws thework together by setting out how the thesis has addressed the

researchquestionsdescribedinChapter4,andassessingthecontributiontoknowledge.

Critical reflections on the study, together with suggestions for future research are

presented.Thethesisconcludesbypresentingimplicationsforincubatorpractitioners,

prospectiveandcurrentincubatees,andpolicymakers.

4

ChapterTwo

BusinessIncubation

2.1Introductionandbackground

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2011 Global Report interviewed over 140,000

adultsin54economiesandfoundthat388millionentrepreneurswereactivelyengaged

in starting and running new businesses in 2011 (Kelley et al. 2012). Undoubtedly,

entrepreneurship continues to be a global phenomenon in the context of economic

growth,socialdevelopment,innovation,andlabourforcedynamics.Asaresultofthese

positive impacts, ‘there continues to be an ongoing policy commitment within the

EuropeanUnion(EU)towardsthecreationofanenterprisingculture’(Gibb2005citedin

Packhametal.2010).

In the UK, according to the latest Statistical Press Release from the Department for

Business Innovation and Skills, at the start of 2012, 99.9% of enterprises in the UK

private sector were micro- and small-sized businesses, employing 0 – 49 employees

(BIS 2012). These micro- and small-sized enterprises accounted for 59.1% of the

privatesectoremploymentand48.8%oftheprivatesectorturnover(BIS2012).Micro

and small businesses are vital therefore, to the UK’s economy. Moreover, in most

developed nations, ‘between one-quarter and two-thirds of the variation in economic

growthisattributabletothecreation,bynascententrepreneurs,ofnewandindependent

businesses’ (Matlay 2005, p.673). This suggests that new business start-ups are

important to both the UK’s employment and economic growth. The importance of

entrepreneurship in stimulating economic growth and employment means that it

continuestoattractincreasedinterestandinvestmentfromthegovernment(Jonesetal.

2008).

However, Costa-David (2004) argues that the SME sector in theUK is less developed

thaninotherEUmemberstates,despiteastronglatentpotentialforentrepreneurship.

Hannon (2005a) points out that, the UK government is committed to encouraging

5

graduatestobecomeentrepreneursandtobuildnewbusinessstart-ups,however,these

very small businesses need access to finance and business support if they are to be

encouraged to transform from solo self-employed and micro-enterprises into larger

companies (Costa-David 2004). More recently, according to Peckernell et al. (2011,

p.183-184), ‘the CIHE/NCGE/NESTA (2008) Report indicates that governments are

seeking to develop entrepreneurial economies involving competitiveness, growth,

innovationandcreativitybyencouragingentrepreneurialgraduates’.

In many countries, business incubators have become an increasingly popular policy

instrumenttoencourageeconomicgrowthandemployment,andtohelpentrepreneurs

succeed (OECD 1999). In the UK, there are approximately 300 business incubators,

directlysupportingover12,000businesses(UKBI2012).AseriesofOECD(1999)case

studies claim that ‘businessand technology incubatorshavegenerally shownapositive

impactintermsofimprovingfirmsurvival’. Similarly theUKBI (seeMBS2006) reports

that ‘UKincubatorshaveanaveragesuccessrateof84.4%comparedtoanormalrateof

50%’.

Since 2000, UK Business Incubation have also measured the impact of business

incubation on the local economy and workforce. They suggest that on average each

business incubator's client businesses provide 167 full time equivalents jobs. It is

claimed that business incubators have an average success rate of 98% for business

whilst in the business incubator, with 87% surviving after 5 years, compared to a

national average of less than 30% for all SMEs registered (UKBI 2012). Indeed the

successofbusinessincubatorsastoolstosustainanddevelopentrepreneurshipandto

facilitatelocaleconomicgrowthbyencouragingentrepreneurshipisastrandthatruns

through both policy documents and academic literature (see Al-Mubaraki and Busler

2010;TodorovicandMoenter2010;Brooks1986;Cooper1985).

IntheUK,accordingtotheOfficeforNationalStatistics(ONS)LabourMarketStatistics

for the period between September 2011 and February 2012, the number of self-

employed has increased to 413,200. This is a 7.8% increase compared to the 2011

figure (ONS 2012). Moreover between 2011 and 2012, there were 450,000 newly

registeredcompaniesinGreatBritain,whichisthehighestincreasesincebeforethelast

6

recession(LordYoung2012).Withincreasingnumbersinself-employmentandnewly

establishedfirms,thegovernmentrecognisestheimportanceofsupportingstart-upsin

terms of office spaces and business incubators. According to Lord Young (2012, p.7),

‘the government has agreed to open up vacant or under-used spaces in its estates to

business start-ups’. Launched and supported by the current Prime Minister, David

Cameron, StartUp Britain offers an online search tool for entrepreneurs to locate

incubationspaceandfacilities(Number10DowningStreet,2012).

This business incubation phenomenon has attracted the attention of policy makers,

practitioners and academics across the globe (Wynarczyk and Raine 2005; Lee and

Osteryoung2004;Peña2004;Petersetal.2004;ThiersteinandWilhelm2001;Lalkaka

and Abetti 1999; OECD 1999; Autio and Klofsten 1998; Allen and McCluskey 1990;

Merrifield 1987). However, because of the rapid development of incubators, much

researchinthisfieldis‘atheoretical’(HackettandDilts2004).Hencestudiesattemptto

describewhatincubatorsareandtoidentifyimportantfactorsintheirsuccess,butfail

to develop an understanding of the role the incubators play in developing

entrepreneurship.

Recent developments in BIs have heightened the need to develop a deeper

understandingoftheroleofincubators.Inordertodothis,itisimportanttounderstand

the process of business incubation, how BIs work, how incubators and incubatees

interactwitheachotherandconsequentlyhelpeachothertosucceed.Thisisespecially

importantforthoseBIsthataresupportedbypublicfunds(GrimaldiandGrandi2005)

and ‘shouldbeheldaccountablefortheoutcomesassociatedwiththeuseofthosefunds’

(HackettandDilts2004).

This chapter critically examines literature on business incubators. It begins with the

definitionofbusinessincubatorsandsetsupboundariesoftheresearchfield.Ageneral

backgroundofBIC(theBusinessIncubationCentre)isthenpresentedtosetacontextof

thestudy.Thechaptercontinuesbylookingatthedevelopmentofbusinessincubation

literature in order to identify the key issues, challenges, and problems facing the

incubators.Inthefinalsectionofthechapter,adiscussiononhowBIsshouldbestudied

7

and considerations on how to further develop a more coherent BI literature are

presented.

2.2Definitionofbusinessincubators

Business incubators emerged in 1959, due to a major shift in regional economic

development strategy (Wagner 2006) and the dynamic changes in the social

environment (Bøllingtoft and Ulhøi 2005). However, major development of BIs has

takenplace in twowaves.The firstperiod tookplace in the1980sand the90s,when

incubators were recognised as local economic development tools. The second wave

followed in 2000 until present, and is mainly concerned with the growth and

diversificationoftheincubators.

Despitethefirstbusinessincubatorbeingestablishedin1959,accordingtoHackettand

Dilts(2004),itwasnotuntil1984,withthepublicationofTemaliandCampbell’sstudy

(Business Incubator Profiles: A National Survey) that they came to the attention of

academics.Brooks(1986,p.24)proposesanearlydefinitionofanincubatoras:

‘a multi-tenant facility which provides entrepreneurs with: (1) flexible leases on

smallamountsofinexpensivespace;(2)apoolofsharedsupportservicestoreduce

overheadcosts;(3)someformofprofessionalandmanagerialassistance;and(4)

accesstoorassistanceinacquiringseedcapital.’

Brooks(1986,p.28)identifiesthreemajorelementsofasuccessful incubator:support

network,pooledsupportservices,andalinktoauniversity.Heassertsthat‘thereneeds

tobeaverystrongandformalizedrelationshipbetweentheuniversityandtheincubator

forthistoprovidevalue.’

Writing slightly later,AllenandMcCluskey (1990)describean incubatoras a tool for

enterprisedevelopment:

8

‘[it]isafacilitythatprovidesaffordablespace,sharedofficeservices,andbusiness

development assistance in an environment conducive to new venture creation,

survival,andearly-stagegrowth.’.

Adapted from Brooks’ (1986) framework, Allen andMcCluskey (1990) develop their

business incubator continuum,which categorisesBIs by their primary and secondary

objectives (see Table 1). In developing their continuum of types of BI, Allen and

McCluskey(1990)drawondatafromasurveyconductedwith127incubatorsin1987

in theUnitedStates,whichstudies incubators’structure,policy,andservice.Theyuse

thecontinuumtocategoriseincubatorsintofourtypes:for-profitpropertydevelopment

incubators, non-profit development corporation incubators, academic incubators, and

for-profit seed capital incubators.The incubators’ role can range fromoneendof the

spectrum,realisingrealestatevalue, totheotherendasabusinessdevelopmenttool.

While in reality, there can be differentmixtures of objectives and tenants, and hence

hybrid types of incubator, nevertheless the framework provides a useful tool for

conceptualisingtypesofincubator.

Table1-Thebusinessincubatorcontinuum:facilityobjectives

RealEstate-

Valueaddedthrough

BusinessDevelopment

For-Profit

Property

Development

Incubators

Non-Profit

Development

Corporation

Incubators

Academic

Incubators

For-Profit

Seed

Capital

Incubators

Primary

Objective

Secondary

Objective

Realestate

appreciation

Sellproprietary

servicesto

tenant

Create

opportunity

fortechnology

transfer

Createinvestment

opportunity

Jobcreation

Positivestatement

ofentrepreneurial

potential

Generatesustainable

incomefor

organization

Diversifyeconomic

base

Bolstertaxbase

Complementexisting

programs'

Utilizevacantfacilities

Faculty-Industry

collaboration

Commercializeuniversity

research

Strengthenservice&

instructionalmission

Capitalizeinvestment

opportunity

Creategoodwillbetween

institution&

community

Capitalize

investment

opportunity

Product

development

(adaptedfromAllenandMcCluskey1990,p.65)

9

Today,thedefinitionofaBIhasnotchangedmuch,however,ittendstobedescribedas

aprocessratherthanaphysicalfacility.TheUKBI(2004),forinstance,definesitas:‘a

uniqueandhighlyflexiblecombinationofbusinessdevelopmentprocesses, infrastructure

andpeople,designedtonurtureandgrownewandsmallbusinessesbysupportingthem

through the early stages of development and change’. Hannon and Chapman (see

Wynarczyk and Raine 2005, p.207) believe that ‘incubators provide several main

ingredients for growing successful businesses, such as accommodation, entrepreneurial

and learning environment, ready access to business experts, mentors and investors,

increasedvisibilityinthemarketplace,andnetworking/clusteringopportunities.’

IngeneralmanyBIshavemorethanoneaim,andtheobjectiveshavebeenwidened,to

include objectives such as: promoting or increasing regional development; helping to

contributetostructuralchangeofthelocalorregionaleconomy;increasingtherateof

start-up companies with above average innovation potential; contributing to general

labourmarketgoalsbycreatingnewjobs(ThiersteinandWilhelm2001);andactingas

‘a problem-solving agency not only in the areas of technology but also in other related

areasofbusinessdevelopment’(Dubeyetal.2005,p.5).However,asTreanorandHenry

(2010) point out in their recent study of female entrepreneurship and university

incubators, themajority of extant BI studies are conducted in the USA and academic

incubatorsarestillunder-researched.ThisstudyaddressesthatgapbyfocusingonaUK

university-basedincubator,theBusinessIncubationCentre(BIC).

2.3BIC-TheBusinessIncubationCentre

BIC, the BI that provides the case study for this thesis falls between a non-profit

incubator and an academic incubator on the continuum developed by Allen and

McCluskey(1990).ThemainaimofBICistohelpuniversitystudentsandgraduatesto

startupabusiness,withaviewtocreatingjobsandenhancingthelocaleconomy.The

setup funding forBICwasprovidedby theEuropeanRegionalDevelopmentFund,UK

UniversityBusinessSchool(UKUBS),andtheEntrepreneurshipResearchCentre(ERC),

aresearchcentrewhichisbasedintheUKUBS.

10

From a non-profit incubator point of view, the large office space provided byUKUBS

wasnotwellusedbeforeBICwasestablished.BygivingthespacetoBIC,thebusiness

schoolhelpedtore-vitaliseunder-usedofficefacilities.Duringthefirstoperationalyear

ofBIC, themanagement charged incubateesa rentwellbelow themarketprice.Even

beforetheERDFfundingwasduetorunout,themanagementwerethinkingofwaysof

sustaining BIC financially. After the first year’s funding, the university agreed to

continue toprovide theoffice facilities,butBIChad tosupport themanagement team

independently through rent income. The management then introduced a tiered rent

systembasedonthefacilitiesincubateeswanted(orcouldafford)toaccess.Therental

packages ranged frompostal addressonlywithnoother administrative support, hot-

desking only, a dedicated desk, and a dedicated office at a different floor (rent

dependingonsizeofoffice).Becauseofthebenefitsprovidedtotheincubateesandthe

increasingnumberofclients,BICwasabletoincreasetheoverallrentsubstantiallyand

becamefinanciallypartiallyindependentfromtheUKUBSandERC.

BIC also fits with Todorovic and Moenter’s (2010, p.28) definition of university

incubator:

‘auniversity incubator isaprogrammesponsoredbyauniversity tonurturenewand small businesses by providing support throughout the early stages ofdevelopment. Most university incubators provide specialized resources, such astechnicalorotherresearchcapabilitiesthatarenototherwiseavailabletothefirm.’

BICoftenhadstudentvisitorswhohadstudiedorwerestudyingentrepreneurshipand

SMEsandstudentsfromthebusinessschoolandtheuniversityasawholefromawide

rangeofdisciplines.SomeincubateesinBICofferedworkexperiencetothestudents.In

a sense, BIC complemented existing educational programmes. From an academic

incubator’s point of view, the university and ERC promoted BIC to students and

encouragedthemtoturnbusinessideasintorealbusinesses.Thisofferedthestudents

theopportunityofrealisingtheirideasbeforeoraftertheirgraduation.Whensettingup

andrunningBIC,academicsandmanagersfromvariousfaculties,whowereinterested

inentrepreneurship,wereinvolvedinthedecisionmakingprocessforBIC.Thismainly

tooktheformofasteeringgroup.OntheotherhandtheadvisorsfromBICoftengave

talksto incubatees,studentsandentrepreneursoutsideofBIC,whichhelpedtospeed

uptheknowledgetransferprocessandtomatchupresources.

11

2.4Keyliteratureinbusinessincubation

Whenlookingattheliteratureofbusinessincubation,acentralstrandrunningthrough

the literature is what roles the BIs play in developing entrepreneurship and how

success in this respect can be operationalised and measured. A summary of the BI

literature is presented in Appendix I – Success indicators and the role of BI. It

summariestheliteratureofBIbyyearofpublication,hardfactors,softfactors,typeof

incubatorstudied,andfutureresearchdirection.

TheliteratureinBIsdevelopedthroughincubator-centredstudies(AllenandMcCluskey

1990;Campbell1989;LumpkinandIreland1988;Fry1987;Brooks1986;Cooper1985)

toincubateedevelopmentstudies(ZhangandSonobe2011;Schwartz2009;Voiseyetal.

2006;HackettandDilts2004;AllenandWeinber1988;AutioandKlofsten1998),then

toincubator-incubationimpactcentredstudies(McAdamandMcAdam2006;Voiseyet

al.2006;BøllingtoftandUlhøi2005;Hannon2005b;CSES2002,Peña2002).

In the two later stagesofBI literaturedevelopment, discussion frequently focuseson

howtomeasurebusinessincubators’performance.Thisisoftenexpressedintermsof

hardandsoftindicatorsofsuccess.Thehardindicators,orhardmeasures(Voiseyetal.

2006) refer to statistical outcomes and tangible figures, such as ‘the number of

incubating businesses, value of sales’ (Voisey et al. 2006, p.465). In contrast, soft

indicators,orsoftmeasures,are‘benefitssuchasincreasedbusinessknowledgeandskills,

morebusinessawarenessandincreasedclientnetworking’(Voiseyetal.2006,p.465).

GrimaldiandGrandi(2005)suggestthat,ratherthandevelopingastandardisedsetof

indicators, context specific hard measures should be used when looking at BI

performance.Theysuggestthatdifferenttypesofincubatorsshouldbemeasuredwith

varying criteria. According to them, the publicBIs should help to reduce the start-up

costsforsmallbusinessesandstrengthenlocalnetworksandeconomy.Onthecontrary,

the private incubators should bemeasured by their ability to accelerate the start-up

processofhighlypromisingenterprises.Asfortheuniversityincubators,Grimaldiand

Grandi(2005)believethatitliesbetweenthepublicandtheprivateincubators.These

12

incubatorsshouldbemeasuredbytheircapacityinreducingstart-upcosts,strengthen

thelocalandnationaleconomyandknowledgetransferbetweentheuniversityandthe

incubationcentres.

Writing five years later, Vanderstraeten and Matthyssens (2010) point out that the

literatureinevaluatingBIsisdivergent.Theybelievethatusingonlyafewindicatorsfor

successlimitstheunderstandingofBIs.UnlikeGrimaldiandGrandi’s(2005)suggestion,

whichfocusesondifferenttypesofBIs,theyproposetouseamulti-criteriaevaluation

method to understand business incubators and their performance. This includes:

“averageincubationtime,shareofstart-ups,shareofhigh-techfirms,clientsatisfaction,

overall survival and employment growth after graduation” (Vanderstraeten and

Matthyssens,2010,p.15).

Also using hardmeasures forBI performance, Al-Mubaraki andWong (2011) believe

that different types of BIs (e.g. technology based and agricultural based) should be

takenintoaccount.HoweverthisisdifferenttoGrimaldiandGrandi’s(2005)proposal,

whichcategorisesBIsbypublic,privateanduniversityfunded.Importantly,theypoint

outthatreasonswhysomeBIsperformbetterthanothersarenotunderstoodandthat

further research is needed in this area. It is evident that literature in using hard

measurestounderstandBI’sroleremainsdivergent.

Similarly to BIC, many business incubators have developed into communities that

facilitateentrepreneurshipbyprovidingvarietiesofservice,e.g.knowledgetransferand

skills development. This is particularly the case with academic, or campus-based

incubators(TreanorandHenry2010).Whilethesuccessoffor-profitincubatorsmight

arguablybe judgedbystraightforwardbalancesheetfigures,evaluatingthesuccessof

not-for-profit incubators requires a more nuanced approach. Current literature in

businessincubationcallsforaframeworkthatusesaholisticapproachtoevaluatethe

successofnon-profitandacademicincubators,thattakesaccountof‘softfactors’,such

asentrepreneurs’learningoutcomes.Thisliteratureisdiscussedbelow.

Campbell(1989)seesBIsaschangeagentsandbelievesthatincubatorsarelong-term

investments in job creation. He suggests that in order to create the most benefit in

13

terms of job creation and economic development, ‘incubators should offer quality

management,professionalbusinessassistance,lowrentsandflexibility’ (Campbell 1989,

p.58).

Writinginthemid1980s,Cooper(1985)selectedasampleof161new,growth-oriented

firms to examine the relationships of the new companies to their incubators. He

recommendedthatfutureBIstudieswouldneedtoassesstheeffectivenessofuniversity

incubators and the relationships between ‘incubators,spinningoffstudentsandfaculty

whostartgrowth-orientedfirms’ (Cooper 1985, p.85). However, university incubators

attracted little attention from academics at this time and attention turned instead to

incubatees.

Voisey et al. (2006, p.459) argue that little research has been undertaken on ‘the

experienceoftheincubatees’.Unlikecountingnumbersofexistingandgraduated firms

(AllenandWeinberg1988),Voiseyetal. (2006)advocate the inclusionof incubatees’

performanceinmeasuresofincubatorsuccess.

Howevertheinclusionofsubjective,or‘soft’measuressuchas‘individualperformance’

ispotentiallyproblematic.TheOECD(1999,p.11)pointoutthat ‘thelackofsystematic

evaluationofbusiness incubators isaproblemsharedalltoooftenwithsmallenterprise

supportprogramsgenerally’. Autio andKlofsten (1998) also argue that incubators are

often evaluated by the incubators’ managers or by bodies close to them, and the

outcomesofevaluationsareoftenpartlyinfluencedbytheneedtoenhancetheimageof

thegeneralviabilityofaparticulararrangement:

‘such a motivation is betrayed by, for example, vague or missing definitions of

success, by implying that the prosperous economic development of the region is

exclusivelyduetothesupportarrangement,andbytheoftenmissingconsideration

ofpotentialalternativestothearrangement’(AutioandKlofsten1998,p.33).

Similarly, Hackett and Dilts (2004) question the transparency of incubator data as

politics are involved and decisions for further funding to non-profit and university

incubators depend on incubators’ performance. ‘The level, scope and quality of

incubation-related data management varies widely among incubators and access to

14

information regarding politically sensitive incubation failures will continue to remain

problematic’(HackettandDilts2004,p.73).

Writingfiveyearslater,Schwartz(2009)pointsoutthatevaluatingBIperformancestill

remainsproblematic.HebelievesthattheroleofaBIshouldnotonlybeexaminedusing

the survival rate of the incubatees during their incubation period, but also using the

survival rate after they have graduated from their incubators. After studying 352

graduatedfirmsfromfivetechnologyorientedincubatorsinGermany,hefoundthatBIs

have ‘life-prolonging effects [on the start-ups] rather than enhancing the firms’

survivability’ (Schwartz 2009, p.416). In other words, BIs defer failures of start-ups

while theyare incubating;howeverwhen leavingBIs, theyarenotable tocompete in

themarkets.ItisrecommendedthatBImanagersshoulddevelopaprocesstoprepare

forthefirmstograduate,forexampleusingfollow-upmentoring.

Using samples of science and technology business incubators in China, Zhang and

Sonobe (2011, p.22) specifically examined the variables that are associated with

incubatees’ success. They found that ‘human resources, infrastructure, and financial

resourcesoftheincubator’arelinkedtothesuccessoftheincubatees.Itisalsopointed

outthat ‘thelocationoftheincubator,suchastheinflowofFDIs,proximitytouniversities,

andthediversityandscaleofindustrialactivitiesinthelocality’ arenot associatedwith

theincubatees’performance(ZhangandSonobe2011,p.22).

Bøllingtoft and Ulhøi (2005) argue thatmost research on BI adopt a traditional top-

down planning approach and does not put much emphasis on the role of social

interactions.Theyalsopointout that theextant research ‘underestimatestheextentto

whichsuchcrucialskills[forsuccess]canbeacquiredbylearning’ (Bøllingtoft andUlhøi

2005, p.266).Theyutilise social capital theory to stress the importanceof facilitating

relationshipswithinincubateestobuildupaninternalnetwork,associalnetworksarea

source of learning. These arguments are further supported by a study conducted by

McAdamandMcAdam(2006),whostresstheimportanceofnetworkinginauniversity

incubator. Likewise, Peña (2002, p.195) contends that ‘thedevelopmentofproductive

business networks and immediate access to critical economic agents facilitates the

culminationofthegestationperiod’.

15

Voisey et al. (2006) conducted a case study on university incubators in Wales, and

conclude that improved incubatee’s business skills, increased and productive

networkingwith peers, and other soft factors have an impact on incubator’s success.

Hannon(2005b)believesthatalearner-centredapproachisneededtoofferaneffective

value-adding learning opportunity. Similarly, Peña (2002, p.194) points out that

‘entrepreneurs’humancapitalelementssuchaseducation,businessexperienceand level

of motivation are important intangible assets, which seem to be related positively to

ventureperformance’.

Likewise,astudycarriedoutbyHackettandDilts(2008)highlightedtheimportanceof

learning in BIs. They surveyed 53 US business incubators and the aims of the study

were to unravel the inner workings of business incubation, and to examine the

incubation process. One of the key contributions of their study was to reveal the

resource munificence available in a BI. Differently to their hypothesis, which listed

availabilityofresource,qualityofresourceandresourceutilisation, incubateelearning

wasfoundastheonlysignificantresourcemunificenceinaBI.Althoughthesurveywas

filledinbyincubatormanagers,itstressestheimportanceoflearningintheincubation

process.

2.5Summaryanddiscussion

It is apparent that as a relatively young subject, the literature in business incubation

lacks theoretical coherence and thatmuchwork is needed to theorise the incubation

process,ratherthanoutputs.Theindicatorsformeasuringincubatorsuccesssuggested

intheexistingliteraturearesummarisedinAppendixI.

The literature inBImoved fromdefiningBIs, todevelopinghardmeasuresof success

(Cooper 1985; Lumpkin and Ireland 1988; Allen and McCluskey 1990; Grimaldi and

Grandi2005;WynarczykandRaine2005;VanderstraetenandMatthyssens2010).This

was followedbya focusonsoftmeasures (Fry1987;Peña2004;Hannon2005a)and

morerecentlytoaconcernwithusingvaryingevaluationsaccordingtothecontextofBI

(Voisey et al. 2005;McAdam andMcAdam2006;McAdam andMarlow 2007; Bergek

16

and Norrman 2008; Todorovic and Moenter 2010; Arlotto et al. 2011; Zhang and

Sonobe2011).

While all these developments attempt to provide a better understanding of the role

business incubators play in developing entrepreneurship, stimulating local economy,

enhancing knowledge transfer and facilitating employability, two central themes

emerge:whatarebusinessincubators?AndhowtomeasureBIperformance?Thefirst

themetendstobedescriptive,indefiningandcategorisingBIs.Thesecondthemeofthe

BI literature tends to be fragmented. As Allen and McCluskey’s (1990) business

incubator continuum describes, the aims of the BIs can be different from one to the

other.

However it isparamount tounderstand the roleofbusiness incubators,because they

have become an increasingly important tool for universities and governments, as a

driveforknowledgetransfer,innovation,entrepreneurshipandeconomy.Categorising

BIsbyaims,sectorsandhowtheyarefundedhaveallcontributedtothedevelopmentof

theBI literature.Thehardmeasuresareusefultoprovideasnapshotofhoweffective

the funding has been used in a BI. They also make it easy to compare performance

acrosssimilartypesofBIs.Howeverthehardmeasuresarenotsufficienttotheorisethe

BIphenomenontoprovideanin-depthunderstandingintermsofwhathappensinside

of the aBI,what lasting effect aBI has on fledging companies, andwhat interactions

takeplacebetweentheincubatees,theincubatorandthemanagement.

It is evident that literature inunderstanding the roleof incubators is fragmentedand

thatmanystudiesinBIstendtobedescriptiveandoutputcentred.AsHackettandDilts

(2008, p.440) point out, ‘fewstudieshaveexamined the incubationprocess itself’. Two

yearslater,thisisagainconfirmedbyTodorovicandMoenter(2010,p.28),whoargue

that ‘studiesontheincubationprocessaresparse’.Anumberofstudiesarebeginningto

focusonthe incubateesandthe interactionbetweenthe incubatorandthe incubatees

(Treanor and Henry 2010). However, existing research points to a gap in research

seeking to measure and theorise the role of the BI in developing entrepreneurship

amongincubatees.

17

Outside of incubators, the outcomes of entrepreneurial learning are argued to

determinethesuccessofstart-upfirms(DeakinsandFreel1998).Yetentrepreneurial

learning is largely absent from debates about the impacts of BIs in developing

entrepreneurship.Exploringtheroleofentrepreneuriallearningwithintheincubation

processwill enable thebusiness incubationprocess tobebetter theorised, and allow

moreholisticmeasuresofincubatorsuccesstobedeveloped.

There is a need to examinehow incubators facilitate sustainable entrepreneurship in

termsofexpandinglearningcapacity,acquiringknowledge,andnetworkinginsidethe

incubators.Thiswillallowabetterunderstandingoftheroleincubatorsplayinhelping

incubateestodeveloptheirbusinessesduringtheincubationperiod.

Prior to joining an incubator, incubatees will have identified a business opportunity.

Theymaydevelop thatbusiness idea,andsetup thebusinessduring their incubation

period. The business incubation processmay also lead incubatees to identify further

opportunities,andtodevelopnewideasasaresultoftheincubationprocess.Thusthe

process of incubation can be viewed as an enactment of entrepreneurship whereby

incubatees identify, develop, and exploit opportunities. Indeed the notion of

entrepreneurshipandopportunityidentificationandexploitationareembeddedinthe

incubation process. As the study will catch the lived experience, rather than

entrepreneurs’ retrospective memory of identifying and developing entrepreneurial

opportunities, studying the process of business incubation will help to enrich the

theoreticalandempiricalunderstandingofentrepreneurship.

From this perspective entrepreneurship can be interpreted from the economic,

psychological and social behavioural point of view (Deakins and Freel 2012). As

Davisson(2004,p.21)pointsout:

‘…..thedomainofentrepreneurshipresearchencompassesthestudyofprocessesof

(realorinduced,andcompletedaswellasterminated)emergenceofnewbusiness

ventures, across organizational contexts. This entails the study of the origin and

characteristicsofventureideasaswellastheircontextualfit;ofbehavioursinthe

interrelatedprocessesofdiscoveryandexploitationof such ideas,andofhowthe

18

ideasandbehaviourslinktodifferenttypesofdirectandindirectantecedentsand

outcomesondifferentlevelsofanalysis.’

Whenstudying thephenomenonofbusiness incubation, itwouldbeuseful toborrow

more developed theories in entrepreneurship to interpret and explain the process of

business incubation, and the role of BI. In particular, looking closer at the process of

how(prospective)entrepreneursdevelopopportunitieswillhelp to theorisebusiness

incubationandprovideamorein-depthunderstandingofthephenomenon.

The different streams of studies in business incubation point to common future

directionsinresearchingBI,namelythestudyoftheentrepreneurialprocessthattakes

placeinaBIenvironment.

Theaimofthisstudyistotheorisethebusinessincubationprocessbybringingtogether

literaturefromthefieldsofBI,entrepreneurship,andopportunitydevelopmenttogain

aninsight intothatprocess.Thestudywillbenefitbothfieldsbyprovidingamorein-

depth understanding of both phenomena. This will respond to calls for improved

theoretical frameworks to conceptualise and go some way to producing a more

convergentliteratureonunderstandingtheroleofBIindevelopingentrepreneurship.

Contrarytoanincubationcentredapproach,thisstudyseekstofilltheknowledgegap

in BI studies by adopting an incubatee-centred approach and by focusing on the

entrepreneurialprocess.ItwillhelptoadvanceourunderstandingofhowaBIoperates,

andwhatfactorscontributetothedevelopmentofentrepreneursand,so,toasuccessful

BI. The following chapter looks at the concept of opportunity identification &

developmentandexaminesthepossibilityandappropriatenessofusingthenotionsof

entrepreneurshiptobridgethegapinbusinessincubationresearch.

19

ChapterThree

TheProcessofEntrepreneurialOpportunityDevelopment

3.1Introduction

ThereviewofliteratureinthefieldofBIpresentedinChapter2pointstoanimportant

gap in knowledge, namely an understanding of the incubation process. How

entrepreneurship develops within BIs is fundamental to advancing understanding of

this process. Therefore, as a first step in exploring the interaction between the

incubationprocessandentrepreneurshipthischapterpresentsareviewofliteraturein

thefieldofentrepreneurship.

Specificallythechapterlooksathowrecententrepreneurshipliteraturehasdeveloped,

andhowtheconceptofentrepreneurshiphasevolvedasaresearchdomain.Itreviews

how research in entrepreneurship has been extended anddeveloped froma process-

orientated to a development-oriented perspective, then to a learning-oriented

perspectiveofentrepreneurship.

These perspectives are assessed in the context of business incubation. Using

experientiallearningtheoryastheheuristictool,arelativelynovelapproachofstudying

theroleofbusinessincubatorsindevelopingentrepreneurshipisthenproposed.

3.2Definitionofentrepreneurship

3.2.1Earlydevelopmentofthedomain

Entrepreneurship itself is complex. It involves theentrepreneur, theopportunity, and

interactionbetweenthetwo.Whenlookingatresearchinthefieldofentrepreneurship

Grégoireetal.(2006)arguethatwhilethefieldhassomelowlevelsofconvergenceit

20

remains fragmented. The definition of entrepreneurship and indeed the domain of

entrepreneurship,thereforearedivergent,andasMatlay(2005,p.670)pointsout‘asa

genericterm,entrepreneurshiphasbeenusedinavarietyofcontextsanditcoversabroad

rangeofinterchangeablemeaningsandsituations’.

Sarasonetal.(2006)pointoutthatamajorproblemintheentrepreneurshipdomainis

that much research is either entrepreneur-focused or opportunity-centred. Early

literatureinentrepreneurshipisskewedtowardstheentrepreneur.IndeedNeoclassical

economists such as Khilstom and Laffont (1979) believed that opportunities were

equally distributed in themarket and that everyone could recognise them. The only

characteristicthatdistinguishedentrepreneurswastheabilitytocopewithuncertainty

andrisksandthereforetoactupontheopportunitiestheyidentified.Similarly,studies

focussing on the psychological characteristics of entrepreneurs argue that they have

personality traits that predispose them to strive for high achievements (McClelland

1961),orthattheypossesssuperiorabilitiesinprocessinginformationthatisrelevant

toanopportunity(ShaverandScott1991).

This approachwas questioned by TheAustrian School of thought,which argued that

information isnotequallydistributedand thatdifferences in thestockof information

meanthatsomearebetterabletospotanopportunity(Kirzner1997).

InspiredbytheAustriantheory,ShaneandVenkataraman(2000)takeadisequilibrium

view of entrepreneurship (Mole and Mole 2010). They question a definition of

entrepreneurship focusedon thestudyofentrepreneursaloneandsetamilestoneby

linkingtheconceptsofentrepreneurandopportunityaswellasadvocatingtheconcept

ofentrepreneurialprocess,which isembeddedwithopportunities.Thus,according to

ShaneandVenkataraman(2000,p.218),entrepreneurshipisaprocessthatincludes:

‘[the] sources of opportunities; the processes of discovery, evaluation, and

exploitationofopportunities;andthesetofindividualswhodiscover,evaluate,and

exploitthem.’

Thisdefinitionadvancestheunderstandingofentrepreneurshipbyprovidingadynamic

andholistic viewof the entrepreneur, theopportunity, and theprocess of identifying

21

and developing the opportunity. Adopting this definition, entrepreneurship can be

viewed as a process, within which, the interplay between the entrepreneur and the

opportunityishighlighted.

3.2.2Definingopportunity

Asentrepreneurshipcanbecontextualisedastheprocessofopportunityidentification

and exploitation, it is important to take a closer look at the term and clarify what

opportunitymeans in this context. Shane (2000,p.451) suggests that ‘entrepreneurial

opportunitiesareopportunitiestobringintoexistencenewgoods,services,rawmaterials

and organizing methods that allow outputs to be sold at more than their cost of

production’. Drawing on thework of Schumpeter (1934), Kirzner (1973) and Casson

(1982), Ardichvili et al. (2003, p.108) define an opportunity as ‘thechancetomeeta

marketneed(orinterestorwant)throughacreativecombinationofresourcestodeliver

superiorvalue’.

Similarly,basedon theworkofCasson (1982), ShaneandVenkataraman (2000), and

Eckhardt and Shane (2003), Vaghely and Julien (2010, p.75) define opportunities as

‘situationsinwhichnewgoods,services,rawmaterials,marketsandorganizingmethods

canbeintroducedthroughtheformationofnewmeans,endsorends-meansrelationships’.

It shouldbenoted that in thecontextofentrepreneurship, the terms ‘entrepreneurial

opportunity’and‘opportunity’areinterchangeable.

Shane and Venkataraman (2000, p.219) point out that ‘entrepreneurship does not

require,butcaninclude,thecreationofneworganizations’.Thissuggeststhattheideaof

providingnewproductsandservices,organisingnewmethodstoservethemarketsand

tomeet newmeans-ends relationships is at the core of the process, rather than the

physicalentityofaneworganisation.Inasimilarvein,Dimov(2007a,p.718)suggests

that ‘opportunities are nested within the realm of ideas’. He goes on to argue that

regardlessofwhereandhowanopportunityends,itispragmatictodefineanideaasan

opportunity. As such, he describes an opportunity as ‘a creative product in

entrepreneurship, [that] is theprogress(idea+action)alongacontinuumrangingfrom

22

an initial insight toa fully shaped ideaabout staringandoperatingabusiness’ (Dimov

2007a,p.720).

3.2.3Priorknowledge

Following this new conceptualisation of entrepreneurship for the new millennium

(ShaneandVenkataraman2000),recentstudiesattempttotheoriseentrepreneurship

in terms of whether opportunities are created or discovered. Ardichvili et al. (2003,

p.106) for example, suggest that ‘opportunitiesaremade,notfound’.According to this

view rudimentary opportunities are not sufficient to form viable businesses. Prior

knowledgeofmarkets,thewaystoservemarkets,customerproblems,andelaboration

ofdevelopingopportunities are also important elements to the formationofbusiness

ventures(Sanz-Velasco2006;Shane2000).

So, how is prior knowledge defined? Earlierwork emphasises knowledge asymmetry

and its impacton thebusiness.Thesestudies (Ucbasaranetal.2009;Ucbasaranetal.

2008;Ucbasaranetal.2006;DavidssonandHonig2003;Dahlqvistetal.2000;Basuand

Goswami1999;Deakins1999;Cooperetal.1994;Brüderletal.1992) lookathuman

capital and its relation tobusiness survival andgrowth.There is a general consensus

that the higher stock of human capital an entrepreneurpossesses, such as education,

skills,andgeneralandspecificbusinessexperience,themorelikelyhe/shewillstartup

andsustainthebusiness.

Therefore prior knowledge or in other words, existing knowledge, is the knowledge

developed before an opportunity is identified. Shane (2000) explicitly links prior

knowledge to opportunity identification. He explains that prior knowledge, ‘whether

developedfromworkexperience,education,orothermeans,influencestheentrepreneur’s

ability to comprehend, extrapolate, interpret, and apply new information in ways that

those lacking thatprior informationcannot replicate’ (Shane 2000, p.452). He further

explains that prior knowledge is not only important at the identification stage, but it

alsomoderatestheprocessofopportunityidentificationandexploitation,aswithinthis

entrepreneurial process, combined with new information, prior knowledge can be

turned into new knowledge. This statement puts prior knowledge in a prominent

23

positioninrelationtoopportunityidentification.Itsuggeststhatinordertounderstand

how an opportunity is identified and developed it is important to explore the prior

knowledgeanindividualhas.

Whenexplainingpriorknowledgeinthecontextofhigh-techfirms,Shane(2000,p.452)

writes that prior knowledge of markets ‘might include information about supplier

relationships, sales techniques, or capital equipment requirements that differ across

markets’. Again, in the context of technology firms, prior knowledge ofways to serve

markets is ‘howthenewtechnologycouldbeusedtocreateaproductorservice’ (Shane

2000,p.452).Finally,priorknowledgeofcustomerproblemsmeans‘informationabout

customerneeds’(Shane2000,p.452).

Similarly, writing in the context of prior knowledge, opportunity development and

innovation, Sanz-Velasco (2006, p.255-256) offers amore detailed explanation of the

threetypesofpriorknowledge:

‘Markets: such as information about supplier relationships, sales techniques, orcapitalequipmentrequirementsthatdifferacrossmarkets.Waystoservemarkets:suchasanewtechnologythatmightchangeaproductionprocess,allowthecreationofanewproduct,provideanewmethodofdistribution,permitanewmaterialtobeused,generatenewsourcesofsupply,ormakepossiblenewwaysoforganising.Customer problems: the solving of which enables customers to gain optimalbenefitsfromtheinnovation.’

However,bothdefinitionsof the three typesofpriorknowledgeare focusedonhigh-

techandinnovativefirms,ratherthanstart-upsingeneral.Tobeabletorespondtothe

researchaiminthisthesis(seeSection4.2),amoregeneraldefinitionthatcanbeused

foralltypesofstart-upsisneeded.BasedonShane’s(2000)andSanz-Velasco’s(2006)

workandtoputideaatthecentreofopportunity,thefollowingdefinitionsareusedfor

priorknowledgediscussedinthestudy:

• Markets: suchas informationabout supplier relationships, sales techniques, or

capitalequipmentrequirementsthatdifferacrossmarkets.

24

• Ways to serve markets: such as a new idea that might change a production

process, allow the creation of a new product, provide a new method of

distribution,permitanewmaterialtobeused,generatenewsourcesofsupply,

ormakepossiblenewwaysoforganising.

• Customerproblems:knowledgeaboutcustomerneeds,whichenablescustomers

togainoptimalbenefitsfromthenewidea.

3.3 Entrepreneurship: a process of identifying and developing

opportunities

Despite recent developments in the field of entrepreneurship, commentators such as

Ardichvilietal.(2003)arguethattheprocessofopportunityidentificationhasstillnot

been theorised and operationalised by researchers and that to date, little empirical

researchhasbeencarriedouttostudytheprocessofhowopportunitiesaredeveloped

(Fiet and Patel 2008; Sanz-Velasco 2006; Gaglio and Katz 2001). To understand

opportunity identification and development remains a core question for

entrepreneurshipresearchers(Ucbasaranetal.2008).

Afterreviewingliteratureinopportunityidentification,Ardichvilietal.(2003)conclude

that there are three principal dimensions in this process: opportunity recognition,

opportunityevaluationandopportunitydevelopment.However,itisalsoacceptedthat

‘theseprocessesoftenoverlapandinteractwitheachother’(Ardichvilietal.2003,p.108).

Indeed,itisoftenaniterativeandcreativeprocess,inwhichopportunityneedstobere-

evaluated and developed. As Dimov (2007b, p.561) puts it, ‘entrepreneurial

opportunities do not simply “jump out” in a final, ready-made form but emerge in an

iterativeprocessofshapinganddevelopment’.

Likewise, adopting a development perspective of entrepreneurship, Gabrielsson and

Politis(2012,p.51)pointoutthatanopportunitystartswith‘oneormorediffusedideas

ofhowtomeetcustomersneeds’.Theyexplain theopportunitydevelopmentprocessas

25

an idea emerging process, where ‘the ideacanbeelaboratedandsubsequentlyrefined

during its path of development’. Sanz-Velasco (2006) emphasises the creation and

elaborationofanopportunity. It is suggested that ‘theterm“opportunitydevelopment”

incorporates the identification, the development, and the evaluation of an opportunity’

(Sanz-Velasco2006,p.252).

Hencethisstudyadoptsthisdevelopmentviewofentrepreneurship.Anentrepreneur’s

activeanddeliberaterole indevelopingabusiness idea isacknowledgedbyusing the

term ‘opportunitydevelopment’. Itrecognisesthatanentrepreneur’s initialresources,

including knowledge, finance, social networks as well as strategies adopted, are

important for the formation of a venture. In this study, the phrase ‘opportunity

identificationanddevelopment’ isused todescribe theprocess,where the incubatees

identifyanddeliberatelydeveloptheopportunitiesduringtheirincubationperiod.

3.4Alearningperspectiveofentrepreneurship

Totacklethedivergenceinentrepreneurshipliterature(Grégoireetal.2006),Schildtet

al. (2006, p.411) call for entrepreneurship researchers to ‘connect their ideas and

findingstomainstreamdisciplines.Openingthisdialogcanenrichfutureentrepreneurship

researchandincreaseitsacceptanceandacademiclegitimacy’. This points theway for

researchers in the entrepreneurship field to borrow from other more established

conceptual frameworksand theories toexplain theentrepreneurialprocess.Onesuch

frameworkislearning.

3.4.1Entrepreneuriallearning

Anumberofcommentatorsadvocate thatmoreresearchshouldbeundertaken in the

fieldofentrepreneuriallearning.Forexample,MinnitiandBygave(2001,p.7)stressthe

importance of linking learning theories with studies in entrepreneurship because,

‘entrepreneurship is a process of learning, and a theory of entrepreneurship requires a

26

theoryoflearning’.Reynolds (1997, cited inHonig2001,p.22)specificallyemphasises

theneedtoconductresearchinlearningwithintheentrepreneurshipdomainbecause,

‘weknow little of the learning styles, needs, andapproaches for nascent activity. Fewer

than five percent of individuals undertake nascent activities, with an even smaller

proportiongoingontoactuallystartbusinesses’.

Recentstudies(Ucbasaranetal.2008;OzgenandBaron2007;Cope2005;Minnitiand

Bygave2001)haveoftenpointedoutthatthereisa lackofunderstandingofwhyand

how some entrepreneurs can identify and pursue more opportunities than other

entrepreneurs. To respond to this knowledge gap, there have been some recent

attemptstouselearningtheoriestoexplainthedevelopmentofbusinessopportunities

andhowideasdevelopduringbusinessventuring.

DonohoeandWyer(2005),forinstance,utilisethepersonalconstructtheorytodevelop

amodeltoexamineandexplaingrowthinentrepreneurialsmallbusinesses.Theyfind

out that entrepreneurial learning plays an important role in entrepreneurs’ growth

fromthemicrostart-upstagetothematuritystage.

Similarly, focusing on the individuals, Ucbasaran et al. (2008) put emphasis on the

natureof entrepreneurs.Theyutilisehuman capital theory to illustratewhich factors

haveanimpactonanentrepreneur’sabilitytoidentifyandpursueanopportunity.Both

entrepreneurs’priorknowledgeandcurrentinformationwereexaminedinrelationto

opportunity. It was found that entrepreneurship-specific human capital, such as

ownership experience, managerial capability and entrepreneurial capability

significantlyrelatetoahigherprobabilityofidentifyingandpursuingopportunities.

OzgenandBaron(2007)studytheopportunityrecognitionprocess inasocialsetting.

The benefits of the information an entrepreneur can gain from social networkswere

examined. Itwas foundthat informal industrynetworks,mentorsandparticipation in

professional forums have a positive impact on an entrepreneur’s alertness to new

opportunities. The findings also suggest that entrepreneurs who have the ability to

perceive the dynamics and connections between technology, markets, demographics

andgovernmentpoliciesaremorelikelytorecogniseopportunity.Theseareconsistent

27

withtheelementsArdichvilietal.(2003)proposewhicharevitalforanopportunityto

develop.

Nevertheless, previous studies often focus on one aspect of the opportunity

development process and fail to offer a comprehensive understanding of the entire

process(Ardichvilietal.2003).Byadoptingacreativeperspectiveofentrepreneurship,

andrelatingittolearning,Dimov(2007a,p.714)suggestthat:

‘rather than being the deed of a single person, entrepreneurial opportunities

encompass a social, learning process whereby new knowledge continuously

emerges to resolve the uncertainty inherent to each stage of opportunity

development … opportunities can be represented as a stream of continuously

developed ideas, driven and shaped by one’s social interaction, creative insights,

andactionateachstage.’

This perspective represents a novel way of researching entrepreneurship, by linking

opportunity identificationanddevelopmentprocesswithmoreestablishedtheoretical

frameworks,suchaslearningtheories.Usingthisapproach,thefocusofthestudyisnot

onlyontheindividualortheopportunity,buttheinterplay,betweentheindividualand

theideadevelopment,andinthiscontext,theopportunity.

InDimov’s(2007a)view,learningisembeddedintheentrepreneurialprocess.Similarly,

drawingon the influentialworkofKolb’s (1984)experiential learning theory,Corbett

(2005, p.482) claims that, in order to achieve success, entrepreneurs ‘must learn

throughtheirexperiencesandseekoutnewopportunities’.Moreover,PittawayandCope

(2007, p.212) maintain that entrepreneurial learning occurs through experience and

discovery and through doing and reflection. All of these scholars’ work looks at

entrepreneurshipthroughthelensoflearning.

3.4.2Experientiallearningtheory

So, what is learning in this context and how is it linked to entrepreneurship?

Experiential learning theory (hereafter ELT), is based on the cognitive and situative

28

conceptsof thinking, feeling,doing, andwatching.ELT is a cyclicalmodelof learning,

where‘knowledgeiscreatedthroughthetransformationofexperience’(Kolb1984,p.38).

Kolb(1984)stressestheimportanceoftheprocessoflearning,hefurtherpointsoutthat

alearningprocessshouldbeviewedfromtheperspectiveofexperiencetransformation,

rather than just the outcomes of learning. He distinguishes the difference between

learningandknowledgeandtheinterplaybetweenthetwo:‘tounderstandlearning,we

mustunderstandthenatureofknowledge,andviceversa’(Kolb1984,p.38).

Corbett (2005, p.482) proposes that the opportunity development process should be

studied as a learning process: ‘ELT focuseson theprocess.By transformingexperience

intonewknowledge,ELTallowsindividualstodiscovernewoutcomesfromtheirlearning,

whichisjustwhatentrepreneursdowhentheyareattemptingtouncovernewmeans-ends

relationships’.Corbett(2005,p.474)pointstothepotentialofutilisinglearningtheories

when researching entrepreneurship. He states that: ‘a search of the primary

management and entrepreneurship journals shows no work that directly addresses the

rolethattheprocessoflearningplaysinopportunityidentificationandexploitation’.This

suggestsanewapproachofstudyingentrepreneurshipbyadoptinglearningtheories.

Fromthisperspective,theexperiential learningtheoryprovidesausefulheuristictool

tostudyentrepreneurship.Thereasonisthreefold.First,opportunityidentificationand

development can be viewed as a process where, based on prior knowledge, new

knowledge(inthiscontext,anidea)iscreatedthroughtheexperienceofparticipatingin

suchadevelopmentprocess.

Second, it takes into account both the prior knowledge and the newly acquired

information,whereknowledge(orbusinessideas)canbecreatedandre-created.Inthis

sense, it highlights the dynamic interactions and iterative process between an

individual’s knowledge and newly acquired information, which can lead to the

identification and development of an opportunity. In such a process, the framework

connects thepersonwith theopportunity (knowledge, information and experienceof

transformation)andemphasisestheinterplaybetweenthetwo.

29

Third, ELT stresses the importance of the process of transformation, rather than the

content or the outcomes. Using it as a heuristic tool, it will help to extend

entrepreneurshipliteraturebyrespondingcallsformoreprocess-orientatedstudies.

Itisworthnotingthat,asexplainedinSection3.3,theentrepreneurialprocessdoesnot

have to be linear, but can be conceptualised as an iterative process. Although, as

demonstrated in Figure 1, the ELT is a cyclicalmodel, the entrepreneurial process is

more‘messy’.AccordingtoPolitis(2005,p.407),theprocessofentrepreneuriallearning:

‘doesnotnecessarilyfollowapredeterminedsequenceofstepsaccordingtoKolb’s

(1984)four-stagelearningcycle,butrathercanbeconceivedasacomplexprocess

whereentrepreneurstransformexperienceintoknowledgeindisparateways.Here,

alternative modes of transforming entrepreneurs’ experiences into knowledge

becomeanessentialpartoftheprocessofentrepreneuriallearning’.

Based on this perspective, he goes on to point out that, ‘whenstudyingtheprocessof

entrepreneuriallearning,itisimportanttorecognizethatKolb’scyclicalmodelisnotfully

adequatetounderstandthecomplexuncertaintiesthatentrepreneurshavetodealwith’

(Politis2005,p.408).

Figure1-Theexperientiallearningcycle

Kolb(1984),adoptedfromSmith(2007)

Hence,duetodifferencesintypesoflearning,andspecificallylearninginthecontextof

acomplexanditerativeprocessofopportunityidentificationanddevelopment,theETL

cannotbefollowedrigorouslyintermsofthefourstagesofthelearningmodes.Rather,

30

itshouldbeadoptedasaheuristictooltostudyentrepreneurship.Ithelpstolookatthe

prior knowledge an individual has before identifying an opportunity, the newly

acquiredinformation,andtheprocesswhichtransformspriorknowledge, information

andexperience.

3.5 Entrepreneurship and learning in the context of BI: becoming an

entrepreneur

Itisevidentthattounderstandhowindividualslearnanddevelopopportunitiesduring

theirincubationiscrucialforthedevelopmentofbusinessincubationresearch,andina

widercontext,importantforentrepreneurshipresearch.Aquestionthatshouldbeput

forwardishowentrepreneurslearntodevelopopportunitiesinaBIenvironment.

Minniti and Bygrave (2001, p.5) describe entrepreneurial learning as a ‘calibrated

algorithm of an iterated choice problem’. This suggests an approach that is person-

centred and based on a belief that ‘knowledge isacquiredthrough learning-by-doing’

(MinnitiandBygrave2001,p.5).Entrepreneurs,inthiscontext,areisolatedfromtheir

environmentandmaketheirdecisionsonlyaccordingtotheiraccumulatedexperience

fromtheirpastsuccessesandfailures.

Larty (2005) questions this approach and argues that existing experiential literature,

that focuses entirely on the individual doesnot take the learner’s social environment

intoaccount.Larty(2005,p.1)stressestheimportanceofentrepreneurialidentityand

seesentrepreneuriallearningas‘theprocessofbecominganentrepreneur’.

Calling formore research in entrepreneurial learning in a social context, Cope (2004

citedinLarty2005,p.4)pointsout,‘thereisaneedtoextendthebehaviouralperspective

ofentrepreneurial learningbeyondnewventurecreationtohow“entrepreneurslearnto

adapt their roleanddevelopnewbehaviour inorder tonegotiate themanagementand

growthoftheirbusinesses”’.

31

Thorpeetal.(2006)suggestthatthetrendinlearningresearchistofocusonlearning

communities.Inthecontextofthisthesis,businessincubatorscanbeconceptualisedas

learning communities. Thorpe et al.’s (2006) claim supports Fry’s (1987) view that

incubators do not only provide shared administrative services and management

assistance,butalsotheopportunitytonetworkamongtenants.LikewiseSeidel(2002)

believes that a business incubator represents a social network and exhibits

characteristicsofacommunityofpracticeforthedevelopmentoftheincubatees.

McAdamandMcAdam(2006,p.92)conductedexploratorymultiplecasestudiesovera

three-yearperiodinauniversityincubatorinIrelandandconcludedthat‘theroleofthe

incubator in the development of customer networks and relationships appeared

significant’.Theseearlierstudiesattempttoexploretheimpactofsocialinteractionson

the development of the incubatees. Although they are predominately looking at the

networkingeffectsof theBI, theyestablisheda linkbetween incubatees’development

withinthesocialcontextofaBI.

Bringing these ideas together, how should we study entrepreneurial learning? Cope

(2003) argues that entrepreneurs learn fromdiscontinuous (non-routine) events and

inwardcriticalself-reflection.However,healsopointsoutthat‘moreresearchisneeded

to explore the social dimensions of the learning process associated with discontinuous

events’.

Looking at the individual as well as the social level, Rae (2005, p.324) suggests that

‘learningisafundamentalandintegralpartoftheentrepreneurialprocess, inwhichthe

human,socialandbehaviouralactivitiesareofasmuchconcernastheeconomicaspects’.

Thus entrepreneurial learning does not only require an entrepreneur’s ability to

recognise and act on opportunities, but suggests that interacting socially to initiate,

organiseandmanageventuresisalsoimportant.

WhenreviewinghisELT(Kolb1984),KolbandKolb(2005)addtheconceptoflearning

space and highlight its importance in enhancing experiential learning. They draw the

social concept of learning from the ecology of humandevelopment (Bronfrenbrenner

1979;1977), the situated learning theory (Lave andWenger1991) and the theoryof

32

knowledgecreation(NonakaandKonno1998).Itisemphasisedthat‘learningisnotone

universal process but a map of learning territories, a frame of reference within which

manydifferentwaysoflearningcanflourishandinterrelate’(KolbandKolb2005,p.200).

Thissuggests that individualscanchange theirstylesof learning inorder toadapt. In

the context of nascent entrepreneurship, when individuals interact with a dynamic

environment, theyneed to learn toadapt to itand to transformfromindividualswho

havebusinessideastoentrepreneurswithviableventures.Thistransformationprocess

istheprocessoflearningandbecomingentrepreneurs.

Developedfromthetheoryofsituatedlearning(LaveandWenger1991),Wenger(1998)

sees learning as social participation. He identifies four elements of learning: identity

(learningasbecoming),meaning(learningasexperience),practice(learningasdoing),

and community (learning as belonging). These elements suggest that individuals not

only learnfromselfcriticalreflection,butalsoby interactingwiththeirenvironments

throughrelationshipsinthecommunity.

A number of commentatorsmaintain that entrepreneurship and learning do not take

placeinisolation,rathertheyarepartofthesocialprocessandaresociallyconstructed

(Pittaway and Cope 2007; Cope 2005; Rae 2005; Rae 2004; Cope 2003; Rae and

Carswell2001;CopeandWatts2000;Wenger1998;GibbDyer1994).Usinganarrative

approach,Rae(2005)developsaconceptualmodelofentrepreneurial learning,which

consists of three main components and eleven sub-components. Personal and social

emergence, negotiated enterprise, and contextual learning are the three main

components. Thismodel suggests that entrepreneurs can learn at an individual level

andthroughsocialinteractions.

Likewise, Pittaway and Cope (2007, p.213) describe entrepreneurial learning as

‘reflecting, theorizing, experiencing, and action’. Entrepreneurs are viewed as

‘practitionerswhooperate insocialcommunitiesofpractice’ (Pittaway and Cope 2007,

p.213). In thecontextofopportunitydevelopment, thispropositionacknowledges the

activeroleentrepreneurstake intheprocess inwhichthey identify,evaluate,develop

andexploitopportunitiesthroughself-reflectionsaswellassocialinteractions.

33

3.6Discussion

Fromthereviewpresentedabove it isapparent thatrecentresearchhaspointed toa

directionforfutureresearchinthisarea,namelytostudyhowincubateesparticipatein

asociallearningcommunityduringtheincubationperiod.Inthecontextofincubators,

more research isneeded togainabetterunderstandingofhowBIs facilitate learning

throughsocialinteractions.

Drawingontheoriesofentrepreneurship,experientiallearningandlearninginasocial

contextwillallowmetoadoptaholisticapproachto thebusiness incubationprocess.

Tounderstandtheroleofabusinessincubatorandtheprocessofbusinessincubation,

weneedtolookathowindividualsdeveloptheirideaswithintheBIenvironment,and

at the same time, how they interact in a BI community and develop their ideas. This

holistic approach can help to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the

business incubation,by taking intoaccount thedevelopmentof theopportunities, the

development of the individuals, the interactions between the opportunities and the

individuals,andtheinteractionsbetweentheindividualsandtheBIcommunity.

ThestudywilluseELTasaheuristictooltoexploretheprocessofbusinessincubation.

Thiswillenablethestudytotakeaccountofthepriorknowledgeofincubatees,newly

acquiredinformationasaresultofbeingpartofaBI,andtheknowledgetransformation

process that takes place within a BI, which leads to new opportunities and/or

developmentoftheopportunities.ItisanticipatedthatELTwillalsohelptoshedlight

on how an individual’s identity is transformed during the BI process through the

interactionswithotherincubatees.

Figure2demonstrateshow the thesiswillbring together theoriesofexperiential and

sociallearninginordertoaddressagapinextantBIresearch,whichcallsformorein-

depth understanding of the incubation process. In doing so it acknowledges the

importantroleoftheBIasasocialspacethatnotonlyfacilitates,butshapeslearning.

34

Figure2–Theoreticalframework

InFigure2, the lefthandcolumn focusesondevelopmentof the individual.The right

hand column in the diagram focuses on opportunity identification and development.

Using the theory of community of practice, the four labels on the left side (identity,

meaning, practice, and community) and themiddle axis (learning) demonstrate how

using learning theories can help to draw out the interaction between the individual

entrepreneur and the opportunity. Thismiddle column is alsowhere the individual’s

andtheopportunity’sidentity‘blend’intoeachother.Itisbecausewhenthebusinessis

at a very young stage, especially inmany cases, at the pre-existence stagewhere the

prospective entrepreneurs have a business idea, very often the individual shares the

sameidentityasthebusinessitisbeingsettingup,InChurchillandLewis’s(1983,p.33)

words:‘theowneristhebusiness’.

Thecirclearoundthecolumnsdrawstheboundaryofthestudy,whichislearningina

BIcommunity.UsingtheELTasaheuristtool,itdemonstrateshowlearning,intheform

Learningas becoming

as experienceas doing

as belongingInterplay betweenentrepreneurand opportunity

Individuals with ideasbecoming entrepreneurs Ideas becomingbusiness opportunitiesExperience of beingan entrepreneur Making new meaning from experience and new info. Prior knowledge transformed to opportunity

Acting as an entrepreneurMember of BI,social interactions in BI

Elaboration on opp.: from opp. identi!ication to opp. developmentExchange ideas and information in BI,leading to new opp. ident. & dev.

Development of individuals Development of opportunities

IdentityMeaningPractice

Community

Learning takes place in a BI community

Learning as individual and part of a BI

Learning as transformation of experience

35

of experience transformation, can takeplacewithin the individuals andwithin theBI

community.Thearrowsaroundthecircle illustratehowindividualsandopportunities

evolveintheexperiencetransformationprocess.

3.7Summary

WhenreviewingliteratureinbusinessincubationinChapter2,itbecameapparentthat

to advance our understanding in BI, it is paramount to explore the learning process

during incubatees’ incubation period. In order to understand the process and

incubation experience, it is important to look at the incubation process in an

entrepreneurialcontext.Asdiscussedintheearliersectionsofthischapter,adoptinga

learningperspectivecanenrichourunderstandingintheopportunityidentificationand

development process. Therefore both the business incubation and entrepreneurship

researchdomainscanbeenrichedbyastudythatadoptsaprocess-orientatedapproach

combinedwithalearningperspective.

Despite some recent work that aims to build a better understanding of the

entrepreneurialprocess in thecontextofopportunity identificationanddevelopment,

little empirical work has been devoted specifically to the relationship between

opportunityidentificationandlearning,especiallyinthecontextofbusinessincubation.

Entrepreneurs learn through experience and events (Cope 2003). As a knowledge,

informationandnetworkhub,an incubatoroffers learningexperienceandexperience

of social interactionswith other incubatees. Thismay have an impact on individuals’

development,especiallyforthenascentstart-ups.

Taken together, the impact of a BI on individuals’ opportunity development can be

studied by incorporating the experiential and social elements of learning. Thewhole

process of business incubation canbe viewed throughKolb’s (1984)model, in away

thatpriorknowledge,newlyacquired informationandexperienceofbeing inaBIare

transformed, and where new knowledge is created. On an individual level, the

36

entrepreneurialprocesscanbestudiedbyexploringthepriorknowledgeanindividual

haswhen identifyinganopportunity, the informationacquired throughaBI (which is

crucialforthedevelopmentprocess),andtheprocessofhownewknowledge(business

ideas or opportunities) is generated anddeveloped.At a social level, again, using the

experiential learning theory as a heuristic tool can help to explore the experience of

becominganentrepreneurinaBIenvironment.UsingKolb’s(1984)frameworkinthis

way can offer a holistic approach to study the role of a BI in developing

entrepreneurship,bylookingatentrepreneurshipthroughthelensoflearning.

The thesiswill enrich the BI literature by exploring the entrepreneurial process that

takes place in a BI environment. This process is embedded in the opportunity

identification and development process, or in other words, how a prospective

entrepreneur turns a business idea to a business opportunity, and actualises it as a

businessventure.

Usinglearningtheories,thestudyalsofurthersourunderstandingofentrepreneurship

by exploring the interplay between the individual entrepreneur and the opportunity.

UsingtheELTasaheuristictool,thestudylooksathowindividualsandopportunities

develop inaBIsetting,which in turn,highlights the impactofbusiness incubationon

entrepreneurship.

Thechapters reportingon thecollecteddata fromBIC (Chapter6-8)areorganised to

reflect the conceptual framework. In other words, the entrepreneurs and the

opportunitiesinBIC,andtheinteractionsbetweenthethree.Thethreadof learningis

runningthroughthethemes,tohighlighttheimportanceoflearningthattakesplaceina

BI setting and the effectiveness of using learning theories to study entrepreneurship

andtheBIphenomenon.

Using Figure 2 as the conceptual framework to guide data analysis and reporting,

Chapter 6manly explores the left half of the diagram, in otherwords, the individual

entrepreneur’s experience in a BI. It presents the pathways through a business

incubation journey. Using six case studies, the study exemplifies the experience and

37

processthattakesplaceinaBI.ItalsolooksattheimpactofaBIonthedevelopmentof

theentrepreneurs.

Chapter7 focuseson the entrepreneurs’ priorknowledge.This ismainly reflectedon

the right half of the conceptual framework. It is where the interplay between the

entrepreneurandtheopportunitybegins.Itisalsothestartofabusinessopportunity.

UsingtheELTasaheuristictool,thechapterexplorestheeffectofpriorknowledgeon

theentrepreneurialprocess.

Chapter 8 shifts the focus onto the process of opportunity development. The chapter

brings together the different elements of the conceptual framework. Again, using the

samesixchosencasestudiesfromChapter6,thischaptercontinuestotellthestoriesof

how entrepreneurs develop the opportunities they identified. The outcomes of the

opportunity development reflects each individual’s learning journey within the BI,

whichisaprocessoftransformingpriorknowledgeandnewlyacquiredinformationto

new business ideas and opportunities. For the entrepreneurs, it is also a process of

becoming, experiencing, practicing as an entrepreneur andaspart of a communityof

newentrepreneurs.FortheBI,itisaplace,whereindividuals,knowledge,information,

skills,experienceandopportunities interact.Throughthe lensof learning, thechapter

looksatthetransformationexperiencethattakesplaceinaBIenvironment.Thisinturn,

brings out the role of BI in developing entrepreneurship, which is embedded at an

individuallevelaswellasinacommunityofBI.

Thefollowingchapterlooksatthephilosophicalstanceandthemethodologythisstudy

willusetodevelopabetterunderstandingofBI’sroleindevelopingentrepreneurship.

38

ChapterFour

ResearchMethodology

4.1Introduction

Researchisbothasystematicandmethodicalprocessofenquiryandinvestigation,and

is a process of gaining and increasing knowledge. Jones and Somekh (2005, p.141)

suggest that ‘how the researcher understands “being in the world” (ontology) and the

nature of knowledge (epistemology) will fundamentally shape both the observation

processandanalysisofthedatacollected’.However, it isworthmentioning, that ‘good-

quality research does not depend on the adoption of a particular philosophical or

theoreticalposition’(Seale2004,p.417).

Theobjectiveof this chapter is to review theaimsandobjectivesof the studyand to

explain philosophical and methodological issues. The chapter therefore begins by

stating the principal aims and objectives. It then presents definitions of the principal

philosophicalconceptsunderpinningresearchdesign,followedbyacriticalappraisalof

the positivist, social constructionist and interpretivist paradigms in relation to the

research topic. Limitations of my chosen approach are considered and the chapter

concludeswithadiscussionofmymethodologicalapproach.

4.2Researchaimsandobjectives

Extantliteraturesuggeststhatbusinessincubators(BIs)aresuccessfulinstrumentsfor

developing nascent entrepreneurship and regional development (Al-Mubaraki and

Busler 2010; Todorovic and Moenter 2010; MBS 2006; Wynarczyk and Raine 2005;

RobertsonandCollins2003;Adegbite2001;LalkakaandAbetti1999;Campbell1989;

Allen and Weinberg 1988; Brooks 1986; Cooper 1985). The European Commission

(2006) lists criteria tomeasure incubators’ performance, such as: admission and exit

39

rules, incubator space and services, and start-up and survival rates. Hence BIs’

performance is very often assessed using hard measures and quantitative methods,

resultinginevaluationsthataresatisfactoryonmostoccasions.

Nevertheless BI studies are criticised as ‘atheoretical’ (Hackett and Dilts 2004). For

example, the OECD (1999, p.11) points out that ‘the lack of systematic evaluation of

business incubators is a problem shared all too often with small enterprise support

programs generally’, while Autio and Klofsten (1998) maintain that definitions of

incubator ‘success’ are often missing and consideration is needed for potential

alternativestomeasurement.

TheCSES(2002)advisethatincubatorperformanceshouldbeevaluatedinalong-term

context ‘rather than short-termmeasures suchasoccupancy rateor failure rates.’ Also

importantly,aholisticmeasurementframeworkisneededincludingsoftaswellashard

measures,especiallyinthenon-profitsector,suchasuniversityincubators(Bøllingtoft

and Ulhøi 2005; Voisey et al. 2005; CSES 2002). It is important then to study the

environmentinwhichtheincubatoroperatesandtheinfluenceithasontheknowledge

andskillsincubateesacquire.Theincubator,inthiscontext,playsaroleastheharbour

ofa learningcommunity, inotherwords,a ‘communityofpractice’ (Benzieetal.2005;

Wenger1998).

TheoverallaimofthestudyistoexploretheroleofBIsindevelopingentrepreneurship

usinganalternative frameworkgrounded insoftermeasuresofoutcomeandsuccess.

This aim can be broken down into two principal areas of research: entrepreneurial

learning and opportunity development. Prospective entrepreneurs may have pre-

existing business ideas that they bring to the BI. The study aims to gain an in-depth

understandingof theprocessofentrepreneurial learning,ofhowtheseentrepreneurs

acquire and transfer knowledge to start and nurture their businesses during the

incubation period. It will build on this understanding to explore how individual’s

entrepreneuriallearninginteractswithopportunitydevelopmentduringtheincubation

process.Bybringingthesetwostrandsofresearchtogetherthestudywillprovidenew

insightsintotheroleofBIsindevelopingentrepreneurship.

40

The conceptual framework developed in Chapter 3 (see Figure 2) illustrates the key

elementsofthisstudy.Theyare:thedevelopmentfromindividualswithbusinessideas

toentrepreneurs;thedevelopmentfromexistingknowledgetobusinessopportunities;

theinterplaybetweentheindividualsandtheopportunities,andtheimpactofBIonthe

developmentoftheseindividualsandopportunities.Allthesedevelopmentsareviewed

throughthelensoflearning,tobringoutthedynamicsofthekeyelementsandhighlight

the importance of a BI community in nurturing business opportunities and

entrepreneurs.

Objectives:

Thestudywilladdressfourprincipalresearchquestions:

1. HowdoincubateesexperiencetheprocessofstartingupabusinessinaBI?

2. Inwhatways do incubatees use their existing knowledge and newly acquired

information, to develop and nurture their businesses during the incubation

period?

3. Howdoestheopportunitydevelopmentprocesstakeplaceduringincubation?

4. Whatistheroleofabusinessincubatorinthisopportunitydevelopmentprocess?

Atthefirststageoftheresearch,question1setsouttoexploreandidentifytheprocess

ofbusinessincubationfromtheperspectiveoftheindividualentrepreneurs.

The principal objective of question 2 is to gain an understanding of the process of

entrepreneurial learning from the perspective of the individual incubatees. It will

provideinsightintotheprocessofbusinessdevelopmentduringtheincubationprocess.

Because the outcomes of entrepreneurial learning determine the success of start-up

firms (DeakinsandFreel1998)which in returnshouldhaveagreat influenceonBIs’

performance,itiscrucialtoexaminehowincubatorsharbouralearningcommunityand

facilitateentrepreneuriallearningwithinthiscommunity.Toexplorethisquestion,the

priorknowledgetheparticipantshadwhenidentifyinganopportunitywillbeexamined

atthesecondstageoftheresearch.Buildingonthis,thenewlyacquiredinformationand

theprocessoftransformingtheinformationtonewknowledgewillbeexploredatthe

thirdstageoftheresearch.

41

Question 3 will explore how incubatees’ learning interacts with the process of

opportunity recognition during the incubation process, in order to provide a deeper

understandingofopportunitydevelopment.RaeandCarswell(2001,p.150)believethat

‘entrepreneurial learning is concerned with how people construct new meaning in the

process of recognising and acting on opportunities, and of organising and managing

ventures’. Examining opportunity development through the lens of entrepreneurial

learning will offer new insights into how the BI can act to sustain entrepreneurial

activity.

Finallyquestion4willseektogainaholisticviewoftheroleoftheBIintheprocessof

opportunitydevelopmentbyexploringtheattitudesandexperiencesofbothincubatees

andBImanagementinrelationtotheroleoftheBI.Thiswillallowaholisticviewofthe

BIprocesstobedeveloped,whichconceptualisestheentrepreneurialprocessasa ‘co-

participation, where learning is dependent on social, historical and cultural factors’

(TaylorandThorpe2004,p.204).Knowledgeforthisstageofresearchwillbeusedto

develop a model, which explains the role of a business incubator in developing

entrepreneurship.

4.3Methodologicalissues

Fletcher(2006,p.423)stressesthefundamentalvaluesofunderstandingphilosophical

issues when conducting studies in the field of entrepreneurship: ‘knowledge of

philosophical issues is needed for the accomplishment of competent entrepreneurship

research’. When looking at methodological issues, it is important to understand

paradigms, which have a key influence on understanding the ontological and

epistemological foundations of entrepreneurship and social research. A paradigm

encompassesfourelements:ontology,epistemology,humannature,andmethodology.

Definitions

Ontologyreferstothestudyofthenatureofbeingandexistence,inotherwords,it is

about ‘raising questionswith regard to the nature of reality’ (Maykut and Morehouse

42

1994,p.4).Thisincludesthedefinitionandclassificationofentities,physicalormental,

the nature of their properties and the nature of change. Social ontology is concerned

withthenatureofsocialentities(Bryman2008).Thecentralquestioniswhetherthey

shouldbe consideredasobjectiveentities thathavea reality external to social actors

(DenzinandLincoln2000).

Epistemologyreferstothestudyofthenatureofknowledgeandbelief,itsboundaries,

itsfoundationsandvalidity.Itisinterestedin‘theoriginsandnatureofknowingandthe

constructionofknowledge’(MaykutandMorehouse1994,p.4).Epistemologyaddresses

theprimaryquestionoftheveryunderstandingofwhatknowledgeis,howitisacquired,

what people know, and how they come to know it. It attempts to distinguish true

knowledgefromfalseandprovidesasetofcriteriaforevaluatingknowledgeclaimsand

establishingwhethersuchclaimsarewarranted(Krauss2005).

Methodology refers to a procedure by which knowledge is generated. While

epistemology addresses how we come to know reality, methodology identifies the

practicalmeansofattainingtheknowledge(Krauss2005),inotherwords,itguidesthe

research design and data collection (Denzin and Lincoln 2000). Easterby-Smith et al.

(2002) mention that understanding philosophical issues is fundamental for our

researchdesignbecauseitdoesnotonlyhelpresearcherstochoosethemoresuitable

researchmethodologybutalsohelpsresearchers tocreatedesigns thatareoutsideof

theirexperience.Thus,differentmethodologiescanbeused foragivenontologicalor

epistemologicalperspective.

Within the epistemological, ontological andmethodological perspectives, a variety of

paradigms can be identified. These paradigms provide more meaningful ways of

addressingaresearchproblemandwillgivemoredirectionandclaritytotheresearch

process.Thetermparadigmhasbeendefinedasthe‘progressofscientificpracticebased

onpeople’sphilosophiesandassumptionsabout theworldandthenatureofknowledge’

(HusseyandHussey1997,p.47).Similarly,DenzinandLincoln(1998,p.185)definea

paradigmas‘abasicsetofbeliefsthatguideaction’.

43

Kuhn(1962)suggestsfourfundamentalelementsofaparadigm:

1. Whatistobeobservedandscrutinised

2. Thekindofquestionsthataresupposedtobeaskedinrelationtothissubject

3. Howthesequestionsaretobeasked

4. Howtheresultsofscientificinvestigationsshouldbeinterpreted

Entrepreneurshipresearchtodayreflectstheparadigmdiversityof thesocialsciences

ingeneral(BuchananandBryman2009).Onereasonforthisparadigmaticdiversityis

thatthisfieldisameetingpointfornumerousdisciplinessuchaspsychology,sociology,

history,economicsandbusiness.Pittaway (2005,p.202)pointsout the importanceof

understanding paradigms for researchers in the field of entrepreneurship: ‘thereare

potentiallymany gains for the study of entrepreneurship if researchers are prepared to

learnfromtheexperienceofdebates’. Each of these disciplines brings its own distinct

perspectives and traditions. From among these three distinct paradigms, positivism,

interpretivism and social constructionism are critically assessed to determine their

appropriatenessforthisstudy.

4.4Positivistapproach

Positivist researchers generally assume that reality is objectively given and can be

describedbymeasurablepropertiesthatareindependentoftheobserverorresearcher

and his or her instruments (Myers 2004). Moreover, Maykut and Morehouse (1994,

p.12)state that thepositivistapproachbelieves that there isonlyonerealityand ‘the

knowercanstandoutsideofwhatistobeknown’.Positiviststudiesgenerallyattempt

totestratherthandeveloptheory.Therefore,apositivistparadigmismoreappropriate

iftherearetestablehypotheses,quantifiedvariablesandtheabilitytodrawinferences

aboutapopulationfromasampleofthatpopulation.Characteristicsassociatedwitha

positivistparadigm,measurement,objectivityandtheabilitytogeneraliseresultstoa

widerpopulationdevelopedinthefieldofthenaturalsciences(OrlikowskiandBaroudi

1991).Socialscientistsattemptedtoapplymethodologiesfromthenaturalsciencesto

44

the social world to establish ‘facts’ and so increase the credibility of social research

(Hussey and Hussey 1997). Generally positivists use experimental and quantitative

methodstogainknowledge(DenzinandLincoln2000).

To summarise a positivist epistemology seeks to ‘explainandpredictwhathappensin

the social world by searching for regularities and causal relationships between its

constituent elements’ (Burrell and Morgan 1979, p.5). The approach is grounded in

independence, value-freedom, causality, hypothesis anddeduction, operationalisation,

reductionism,generalisation,andcross-sectionalanalysis(Easterby-Smithetal.,2002).

Extant BI research tends to be positivist and reductivist. Measurement of BI’s

performanceemphasises‘facts’,suchastenantcompanies’turnoverandoccupancyrate

of the incubators. Soft factors that cannot be quantified are often ignored under this

approach.Thesesoftfactorscanincludeaccesstousefulinformationandresourcesand

thehelptosetupandsustaintheopportunitiestheentrepreneurshaveidentified.Kirk

(1995)arguesthatpositivistapproachesdonottakepeopleintoaccountandsoignores

entrepreneursasanessentialcomponentofbusinessincubationactivities.Furthermore

Hannon (2005b, p.73) points out that ‘incubation is a people business and its future

successwillheavilydependonbuildingtheircapability,bothasusersandasprovidersand

asindustryleaders’.

Moreover Bygrave (1989, p.20) believes, ‘in entrepreneurship research, it is nearly

impossibletoreduceproblemstoneatconstituentsthatcanbeexaminedinisolation.We

should avoid, whenever possible, reductionism in our entrepreneurship research’. The

problemwithtakingupareductiviststanceforthisresearchisthatthelearningprocess

of entrepreneurs contains farmore complex issues than simple ‘facts’.Theprocessof

learningcannotbereducedtonumbersandthesenumberscannothelpresearchersto

understand how these entrepreneurs learn in incubators and how they interactwith

eachother. In an incubator,where entrepreneurial learning takesplace, activities are

contextualandcontingent,andhavetobesituation-specific.

From the discussion above it is clear that a positivist paradigm is not appropriate to

addresstheresearchquestionssetoutinSection4.2.Areductivistapproachwouldfail

45

to captureeither individualor sharedmeaningsand interpretationsof the incubation

process.

4.5Interpretivistapproach

Interpretivistresearchersstartoutwiththeassumptionthataccesstoreality(givenor

socially constructed) is only achieved through social constructions such as language,

consciousness and shared meanings. The main distinction between positivist and

interpretivist paradigms is the presumption of social constructionism held by the

interpretivists (Orlikowski and Baroudi 1991). Interpretivism assumes a relativistic,

often shared, understanding of phenomena, and so rejects the notion that a truly

objectiveaccountofeventsandsituationsexists.Fromanepistemologicalpointofview,

ittakestheviewthatknowledgeistheresultofsocialproductsandsoit is inherently

boundtothesocialcontextinwhichitwasformed(OrlikowskiandBaroudi1991).

An interpretivist paradigm recognises that actions and events come from ‘within’

human life inwayshow theyareexperienced.Winch (cited inBaert1998,p.180), an

interpretivist, explains that ‘people differ from innate objects in that they attribute

meaning to the world which surrounds them and then act in accordance with the

meaning’. Knowledge of the way phenomena are experienced and interpreted by

individualscanthereforeonlybegainedthroughaninterpretiveapproach(Hughesand

Sharrock1990).

Interpretive studies attempt to understand phenomena through the meanings that

people assign to them. Interpretive research does not predefine dependent and

independentvariables,butfocusesonthefullcomplexityofhumansense-makingasthe

situationemerges(Myers2004;KaplanandMaxwell1994).Indoingsoitproposesthat

therearemultiplerealitiesratherthanasingleobjectivereality,andthattheserealities

maydifferacrosstimeandplace.

46

TheresearchquestionsoutlinedinSection4.2relatetoaprocessthatcanvaryacross

timeandplace,andthatcanbeexplainedfromvariousindividualviewpoints.However,

taking account only of individual viewpoints would fail to address the objectives in

Questions 2, 3 and 4 relating to the collective elements of the BI as a community of

learning and co-participation. Therefore the research will not adopt a purely

interpretivistapproach.

4.6Socialconstructionism

Socialconstructionism,bycontrast,doesnotfocusupon‘themeaning-makingactivityof

the individual mind but on the collective generation of meaning as shaped by the

conventionsoflanguageandothersocialprocesses’(Crotty1998,p.58).Burr(2003,p.20)

suggeststwoessentialdifferencesbetweenconstructivismandsocialconstructionism:

‘theextenttowhichtheindividualisseenasanagentwhoisincontrolofthisconstruction

process, and in the extent to which our constructions are the product of social forces,

eitherstructuralorinteraction’.

A focus on language has led some researchers to label social constructionism as

‘linguisticreductionism’ (Fletcher2006), forexampleTaljaetal.(2004,p.90)pointout

that ‘thestrongfocusofconstructionismonlanguageuseanddiscursivepracticesentails

anassumptionthatrealworldproblemsaretoalargeextentdefined,producedandsolved

in institutionalised discourses’. An example from the field of information science has

shownthedangerofsuchemphasis: ‘constructioniststudiesinIShavemainlyremained

onametatheoreticalandphilosophicallevelandhavenotgeneratedsustainedempirical

researchprogrammesandmethodologies’(Taljaetal.2004,p.90).Asaresultofthis,the

practicalpotentialofsocialconstructionismwasnotrealised.

Thispoint isechoedbyFletcher(2006)inherpaperaboutentrepreneurialprocesses.

Fletcherarguesthatthatsocialconstructionistworkshouldnotbeconcernedonlywith

linguistic representations, but should include meaning-making and sense-making

processesattheindividualorinter-personallevel.

47

Anumberofcommentatorsmaintainthatentrepreneurshipandlearningaresubjective,

andthattheyarepartofthesocialprocessandaresociallyconstructed(Rae2005;Rae

2004; Cope 2003; Rae and Carswell 2001; Cope and Watts 2000; Gibb Dyer 1994).

Winch(citedinBaert1998,p.180)believesthatmeaningis ‘embeddedinimplicitrules

sharedbymembersofthesamecommunity’. Likewise,Wenger (1998) sees learning as

socialparticipation.

Social constructionism offers a novel and appropriate paradigm to develop new

understandings of the interaction between individual entrepreneurial learning in the

contextof theBIcommunity.HeedingthewarningsofTaljaetal. (2004)andFletcher

(2006)whileadoptingasocialconstructionistapproachIwillavoidthedangerofover-

emphasisingtheimportanceofoneelement,suchasdiscourse,andfocusontherange

ofsocialelements,forexample,theway‘meaningsarenegotiated/sharedthroughsocial

processescontributingtothesocialconstructionofreality’(Fletcher2006,p.426).

4.7Methodology

A research strategy, or methodology guides the research design and data collection.

Different methodologies are generally associated with given ontological and

epistemological perspectives. Qualitative and quantitativemethodologies are the two

maincategories(CollisandHussey2003;Crotty1998;HusseyandHussey1997).The

qualitative approach is generally associated with social constructionism, while the

quantitativeapproachowesmoretopositivism.

Qualitative approaches are defined as ‘anarrayofinterpretativetechniqueswhichseek

to describe, decode, translate and otherwise come to terms with the meaning, not the

frequency,ofcertainmoreorlessnaturallyoccurringphenomenainthesocialworld’(Van

Maanen 1983 cited in Easterby-Smith et al. 2002, p.85). This approach is often

associatedwith inductive,grounded,emergent, contextual theory,discovery,patterns,

etc.

48

Aqualitativeapproachischosenforthisresearchbecauseitfitswiththephilosophical

stance of the study. As explained in the previous sections, a social constructionist

approachcanhelptoprovideamoreholisticandcontextualviewof thephenomenon

and help to explain the interactions between the incubatees and opportunities and

betweenthe incubatorandthe incubatees.This in turnwillhelp tobetterexplorethe

researchquestions.

Thenextchapterreportsthedatacollectedforthestudyanddescribeshowthedatais

analysed.Italsopresentsthesourceofthedataindetailandreflectsonthepilotstudy

conducted.Detailedconsiderationsarepresented intermsofdataanalysisstrategy. It

alsoreportshowdatawasstored.

49

ChapterFive

DataCollectionandAnalysis

5.1Introduction

This chapter describes the range of qualitative data collected from the Business

Incubation Centre (BIC) and discusses the rationale underpinning methods of data

collectionandanalysis.Foursetsofdataareintroduced:twentyinterviewsconducted

with the BIC incubatees, five interviews with the BIC stakeholders, notes from

participantobservationwhenIwasamemberoftheBICsteeringgroup,anddocuments

collectedbytheBICmanagementoffice.

The chapter is organised as follows: I beginwith a discussion of data collected from

documentsheldbyBIC.Thesedataprovideusefulcontextualbackgroundthatenriches

understanding of the incubation process by shedding light on the initial selection

process, incubatee performance review procedures and second year entry selection

process;Icontinuewithadiscussionofdatacollectedusingsemi-structuredinterviews

withincubatees.

This is followedbyconsiderationsondataanalysis. I reviewmethods indataanalysis

suchasgroundedtheory,analyticinductionandtemplateanalysis.Finallyhowdatawas

codedandanalysedusingthetemplateanalysisapproachispresented.

5.2DocumentaryandparticipantobservationdatafromBIC

BIC was supported initially by the European Regional Development Fund, the UK

UniversityBusinessSchool(UKUBS)andtheEntrepreneurshipResearchCentre(ERC)

50

withintheUKUBS.Asaresult,atthetimewhenthedatawascollected,theincubatees

paid a rent that was much lower than the market price. To qualify prospective

incubateeshad to apply for a space inBIC. Selection interviewswere conductedby a

panelofBICsteeringgroupmembers.Prospectiveincubateeswererequiredtopresent

theirbusinesses(iftheywerealreadytrading)ortheirbusinessideas(iftheywerenot

trading). The posters or presentation files submitted at the entry interviews were

retainedbytheBICoffice.Theseprovidedausefulsourceofinformationabouttheage

of thebusinesswhere italreadyexisted,or theageof theopportunitieswhereonlya

businessideawaspresentedtothepanel.Therewasconsiderablevariationacrossthe

incubatees. Some had only a rough idea for their business, while others had been in

businessforseveralyearsandhadspottednewopportunities,whichthey intendedto

developinBIC.

Successfulapplicantsthensignedacontractandbecametenants.Theyagreedastarting

datewith themanagementandwhen theycame topay therentandcollectkeys they

wereaskedtocompleteaBICCompanySupportMonitoringForm.Aftersixmonthsof

incubation, incubatees met the management for a review meeting, where a BIC

CompanySupportOutputMonitoringFormandaBICReviewFormwerecompleted.

After 12 months, incubatees could apply for a second year incubation at BIC. An

interview then took placewith a panel of steering groupmembers. Inmost of these

second year interviews, the applicants submitted electronic PowerPoint slides to

illustratetheirbusiness ideasandsomesubmittedpaperworksuchasabusinessplan

orbackgroundtothebusinessideas.

To complement the documentary data, and enable me to gain an in-depth

understanding of the context of the business incubation process, I undertook

participant observation by acting as a member of the steering group of BIC. I

participatedasapanelmemberin32firstyearandsecondyearBICentryinterviews.

Some of these applicants subsequently became participants in this study because of

51

theirregularuseofBIC.Participantobservationhelpedtovalidatemy‘insider’identity

andsofurtherhelpedmetogaininformationaboutimportantdevelopmentsatBICand

access to potential participants. Table 2 lists the source of data collected about each

participant.

Table2-Sourcesofinformationonparticipants

Case

No.

Entry

interview

form/notes

Company

support

monitoring

form

Company

supportoutput

monitoring

form

BIC

Reviewform

Secondyear

interview

form/notes

Other

information

submittedby

participants

1 ü ü ü ü

2 ü ü Businessplan

3

4 ü* ü ü ü*

5 ü* ü ü ü Businessplan

6 ü ü ü ü* Businessplan

7 ü ü ü ü ü

8 ü* ü ü ü Background

9

10

11 ü* ü ü ü

12 ü ü ü ü

13 ü*

14 ü ü ü ü

15 ü ü ü ü Businessplan

16

17 ü ü

18 ü ü

19 ü ü ü ü

20 ü ü ü ü

ü*indicatesthatIwaspartoftheinterviewpanel

5.2.1Limitationsofthedocumentaryandparticipantobservationdata

Due to the nature of the forms, not all datawas available for each case. There are a

numberofreasonsforthis.Firstly,notallparticipantshaddecidedtostayinBICfora

secondyear.Asaresultnodatawerecollectedfromtheseparticipantsforthesecond

year interviews. Secondly, someentrepreneurshad leftorwere leavingBICwhenmy

interviewswereconductedandBICdidnotkeeptheirrecords.Thereforetherewereno

filesoncaseno.3and9.BIC’sofficehadsomefilesmissing,includingparticipantno.10

and13.Finally,onecase(No.16)didnotgiveherconsenttoaccessingherfilesstoredin

theBICoffice.

52

5.2.2Informedconsent

ParticipantobservationdataanddocumentsfromtheBICofficeprovidedarichsource

of information about the background of individual incubatees. However, in providing

thisinformationincubateeshadnotgivenpermissionforthisinformationtobeusedfor

researchpurposes.Thereforeattheendofeachinterview,Iaskedtheparticipantsfor

theirverbalconsent toaccess informationand formsretainedbyBICmanagement. In

themajorityofcasesconsentwasgivenandIwasabletocollectadditionalcontextual

dataforeachincubateeusingdocumentsandinformationfromtheBICoffice.

5.2.3Thedemographicdatacollectiontemplate

Documentary evidence fromBIC enabledme to design a demographic data collection

template(seeAppendixII),toconsolidatedetailsofthebackgroundoftheparticipants.

Table3summarisesdatafromthedemographicdatacollectiontemplateanddatafrom

BIC’srecords.OnaverageparticipantshadbeeninBICfor13monthswhentheywere

interviewed.Therearethreeparticipants(No.6,17&18)whoparticipatedintheNES

(NewEntrepreneurScholarships)programme,andwentontoapplytoBICasaresult.

Table3-Profileofparticipants

Case

No.

Name Gen-

der

Age

(yrs)

Ethnicity Education Incubation

length when

interviewed

(months)

1 Helen F 35 Non-minority Postgraduate 6

2 Tim M 30 Non-minority Postgraduate 9

3 Andy M 27 Non-minority Undergraduate 8

4 Jane F 32 Non-minority Undergraduate 15

5 Ian M 27 Non-minority Undergraduate 16

6 Tony M 32 Minority Undergraduate&NES 17

7 Nick M 28 Non-minority Undergraduate 15

8 Neil M 48 Non-minority Postgraduate 18

9 Phil M * Non-minority Undergraduate 12

10 Jeff M 24 Minority Postgraduate 17

*indicatestheageismissingfromthefile

53

Table3(cont.)–Profileofparticipants

Case

No.

Name Gen-

der

Age

(yrs)

Ethnicity Education Incubation

length when

interviewed

(months)

11 Paul M 25 Non-minority Postgraduate 15

12 Peter M 24 Minority Postgraduate 13

13 Emma F 40 Non-minority Undergraduate 20

14 James M 33 Non-minority Postgraduate 12

15 Kath F 45 Non-minority Postgraduate 14

16 Laura F * Non-minority Nohighereducation 18

17 Alex M 37 Minority Undergraduate&NES 13

18 Kelly F 40 Minority Postgraduate&NES 8

19 Mark M 32 Non-minority Nohighereducation 9

20 Karen F 33 Non-minority Postgraduate 11

*indicatestheageismissingfromthefile

5.3PilotstudywithindividualBICincubatees

The first three interviewswith the incubateeswereusedasapilot study.Conducting

pilot interviews was valuable because it enabledme to design an initial draft of the

interview schedule (see Appendix III) and to reflect on how interviews could be

improved after the pilot. For instance, I noted at this stage that I should offer

intervieweesanopportunitytomentionanynegativeimpactsofBIC.

Thepilotinterviewsprovidedvaluableinsightsintoanentrepreneur’slearningprocess

andshowedthat therewasarealopportunity toextendthecurrentunderstandingof

the opportunity development process by adopting and possibly refining the current

opportunity identification and development frameworks through qualitative

investigation.

Thepilotstudy’sinterviewschedulewasusefulincapturingtherichdataneededforthe

study. However, I felt that the interviews needed to bemore structured, in order to

ensure that I captured rich data about how an opportunity was identified and

54

consequently developed by the participants. Therefore I developed the interview

schedule (see Appendix III), to reflect experience gained from the pilot study in the

followingways:

1. Alongwiththeparticipantinformationleafletpresentedatthebeginningofeach

interview,Iaddedanintroductionandemphasisedatthebeginningofeachnew

themewith a heading, such as ‘so now I would like tomove on to talk about

coming intoBIC’.Thishelped the respondents to focusonaparticular stageof

thebusinessdevelopment,inrelationtoBIC.

2. ThebiggestchangeImadetothepilotinterviewschedule(seeAppendixIV)was

toremovethethirdquestion:‘whydidyouapplytocometoBIC?’.Onreflecting

ontheoutcomesofthepilot,IfoundthatthereasonsparticipantsappliedtoBIC

could be quite different to the direct impact BIC had on their development.

Instead,aquestionwasaddedattheendoftheinterviewschedule,askingforthe

reasonswhy the participants had decided to leave or stay in BIC, after the 12

monthsincubationtime.

3. Towardstheendoftheinterview,inadditiontoquestionsaboutfuturebusiness

strategy,Iaddedthequestions:‘whatareyourplansaboutstayingoninBICor

leaving?Canyoutalkmethroughwhyyouhavedecidedtostayon/leave?’These

finalquestionshelpedtoexplorefurthertheroleBICplayedintheopportunity

identificationanddevelopmentprocess.

5.4Contactingrespondents

Before the remaining interviewswere conducted, official letterheads, an introduction

letter see (Appendix V) from the director of the Entrepreneurship Research Centre

(whichwas one of the funding bodies for BIC), and a respondent information leaflet

wereallusedwhenIwrote invitationletterstopotential interviewees.Confidentiality

wasguaranteedpriortotheinterviewprocess(seeAppendixVIfortheinvitationletter).

55

Atthepilotstageonepotential intervieweeexpressedapreferenceofbeingcontacted

by theadministration teamofBIC, rather thandirectlyby theresearcher. Incase this

viewwasmorewidely held among incubatees I decided to co-ordinate the interview

processwiththeadministratorofBIC(Jenny)tomaximisetheresponserate.Ididthis

by sendinga listofpotential intervieweesonamonthlybasis to Jennyandorganised

interviewswiththeparticipantsthroughher(seeAppendixVII,toprotecttheidentity

oftheparticipants,allnamesarepseudonyms).Accordingtothelist,Jennysentemails

topotentialparticipantsonemonthpriortotheplannedtimeofinterviews.Thishelped

to smooth the invitation process and increased the likelihood that regular tenants

wouldaccepttheinvitations.

5.5InterviewswithBICincubatees

Table4presents a shortdescriptionof the20participants togetherwith information

about the interviews. Interviewswere conducted at a place thatwas convenient and

comfortablefortheparticipants.MostofthemtookplaceinthemeetingroomsofBIC,

somewereinthemeetingroomoftheEntrepreneurshipResearchCentre(ERC),which

wasbehindBIC.One interviewwasconducted intheparticipant’sownoffice,because

hehadmovedoutofBIC.Theinterviews’durationsrangedfrom35to84minutes,with

anaverageof58minutes.Eachinterviewwasrecordedandtranscribed.Wherefurther

informationorclarificationwasrequired,severalinterviewees(Andy,TonyandJames)

werecontactedagain.

The interviews were organised around the key questions outlined in the revised

interviewschedule(seeAppendixV).Questionsweredesignedtoexplorethebiography

of the incubatees’ business ideas over time, startingwith questions aboutwhere the

ideas originated and ending with plans for the future. The aim was to capture, as

directly as possible, the experience of incubatees during a critical learning period by

exploring–throughthelensofbusinessideadevelopment-howtheincubatorhelped

themtolearnbothindividually,andthroughanycommunityofpracticeinvolvingfellow

incubatees,academics,businessadvisorsandmoreexperiencedentrepreneurs.

56

Table4-Listofinterviews

CaseNo. Name Place Duration(minutes)

1 Helen GBSmeetingroom 52

2 Tim GBSmeetingroom 43

3 Andy TheBayliss,BIC 53

4 Jane One-to-oneroom,BIC 52

5 Ian One-to-oneroom,BIC 52+32

6 Tony One-to-oneroom,BIC 55

7 Nick One-to-oneroom,BIC 69

8 Neil One-to-oneroom,BIC 70

9 Phil Phil’soffice,citycentre 54

10 Jeff Cornermeetingroom,ERC 48

11 Paul One-to-oneroom,BIC 72

12 Peter One-to-oneroom,BIC 63

13 Emma One-to-oneroom,BIC 50

14 James Cornermeetingroom,ERC 58

15 Kath Cornermeetingroom,ERC 67

16 Laura Cornermeetingroom,ERC 47

17 Alex Cornermeetingroom,ERC 73

18 Kelly Cornermeetingroom,ERC 48

19 Mark Cornermeetingroom,ERC 62

20 Karen One-to-oneroom,BIC 35

5.6Stakeholderinterviews

Waysinwhichincubateesthoughtaboutthesupportofthemanagementteam,aswell

asotherstakeholders,inrelationtotheirlearningprocessduringthefirst12monthsof

the incubationperiodwere frequentlybroughttomyattention. Thispromptedmeto

investigate further the role of BIC in developing entrepreneurship, by inviting six

stakeholders to an interview.Five agreed to attend face-to-face individual interviews.

Theywere:

1. themanagement team (consisting of a manager who had just left BIC and an

administratorofBIC),

2. theformerandcurrentdirectorsofERCwhichestablishedBIC,

3. amemberofthesteeringgroupofBICwhowasalsoanacademicstaffmember

teachingentrepreneurshipintheUKUBusinessSchool.

57

Theinterviewswereconductedimmediatelyfollowinginterviewswiththeincubatees.

Stakeholderinterviewswerenotplannedatthebeginningofthedatacollectionprocess.

However I recognised the importance of carrying them out in order to have amore

nuancedunderstandingoftheinteractionsbetweenBICandtheentrepreneurs.

Onaverage, eachstakeholder interview lasted87minutes.Allof themwere recorded

andtranscribed.Althougheachinterviewschedulewasindividuallydesignedtofitthe

role of the participant (see Appendix VIII and IX for two examples of the interview

schedules),thecentralthemesoftheinterviewsweresimilar,essentiallytoinvestigate

theroletheparticipantsplayedindevelopingBICandenhancingentrepreneurship.

5.7Dataexcludedfromtheanalysis

ThefivestakeholderinterviewsandtheBICmeetingsandeventsgavemethefirsthand

insightsintothechallengesfacingauniversitybusinessincubator,suchasfundingand

sustainingtheBI,settingup,runningandobtainingresourcesfortheBI,andrecruiting

incubatees.Theyhelpedtoprovidethecontextualunderstandingneededforthestudy.

The stakeholder interviews would be particularly useful in exploring issues such as

university support for a BI, sustainability of a university BI, and opportunities and

challengesofknowledgetransferinauniversityBI.

AsexplainedinSection5.2,IwasamemberofthesteeringgroupforBIC.Thisdidnot

onlyhelpmetobecomean‘insider’ofBIC,makingiteasiertogainaccesstodocuments

andpotential participants, but enabledme to attendvarious events that enrichedmy

understandingofthebusinessincubationprocess,fromtheincubatees’pointofviewas

wellasfromthemanagement’sperspective.Itwasarareopportunitytoobservehowa

universityBIcanbeestablishedandmanaged.TheeventsIattendedincludedsteering

group management meetings, tenant association meetings, and marketing and PR

events forBIC.Thedata collectedat theseevents includemeetingnotes (forexample

steeringgroupmeetingsandtenantassociationmeetings)inadditiontotheinterviews

withthestakeholders.

58

Thisdataallowedmetoobtainanin-depthandmeaningfulunderstandingofhowaBI

canbesetupandoperatedandtoobservehowentrepreneursandopportunitiesgrow

in a BI environment However using learning theories as the key element of the

conceptual framework (demonstrated in Figure 2), this study mainly focuses on the

developmentofentrepreneursandtheopportunitiesthattakeplaceinaBIsetting.The

richdatacollectedfromthe20in-depthinterviewswiththeincubatees,thedocuments

fromthe incubateeselection interviewsandtheBICoffice incubatee fileswererobust

andpertinenttoaddresstheresearchquestions(seeSection4.2).Whilethecontextual

dataprovidedimportantinsightsandunderstanding,itwasnotsystematicallyanalysed.

This enabled me to focus on how learning took place and explore the incubatees’

entrepreneurial process inBIC. The results presentedbelowdrawonly, therefore, on

datafrominterviewswiththeincubatees.

5.8Approachestodataanalysis

Three decades ago, methods for analysing qualitative data were criticised for being

underdeveloped.ForexampleMiles (1979)refers toqualitativedataas ‘anattractive

nuisance’becausetheyare‘rich,full,earthy,holistic,[and]‘real’’,butcollectingsuchdata

ishighlylabourintensive,andmoreover‘themostseriousandcentraldifficultyintheuse

of qualitative data is that methods of analysis are not well formulated’ (Miles 1979,

p.590).

Twodecadeslater,BrymanandBell(2003,p.425)pointoutthatoneofthedrawbacks

to qualitative data is that ‘unlike the analysis of quantitative data, there are fewwell-

establishedandwidelyacceptedrulesfortheanalysisofqualitativedata’. It is the jobof

thequalitativeresearcher,therefore,tochoosecarefullywhichmethodofdataanalysis

best reflects their philosophical approach and allows them to address their research

questions.

As stated in Chapter 4, this study adopts a social constructionist approach. Easterby-

Smithetal.(2002,p.117)pointoutthatunlikepositivistresearchers,who‘seeasharper

59

distinctionbetweendataandtheprocessofanalysis’; researcherswho take up a social

constructionistposition ‘attemptasfaraspossiblenottodrawadistinctionbetweenthe

collectionofdataanditsanalysisandinterpretation’.Thediscussionisorganisedaround

the three iterative approaches, analytical induction, grounded theory and template

analysis.Animportantelementofaniterativeapproachiscriticalreflection,thereforeit

provides a framework in which the distinction between data collection, analysis and

interpretationareminimised.

5.8.1Analyticinduction

Analyticinductionisgroundedinthetraditionofiterativeinquiry:‘iterativeapproaches

involve seekingmeaning and developing interpretive explanations through processes of

feedback’ (Grbich2007, p.20). This requires researchers to collect data from the field

whilegoingthroughacriticalreflexiveprocessto interpret theemergentmeaningsof

thedataandgobacktothefieldtocollectmoredataifnecessary.Thisprocessisthen

‘repeateduntiltheresearchquestionisansweredandnonewdataareapparent’ (Grbich

2007,p.21).

Researchersbegintheirdatacollectionwithahypothesis.Iftheresultsareinconsistent

with the original research hypothesis after analysing the preliminary data, then ‘the

analyst either redefines the hypothesis so as to exclude the deviant or negative case or

reformulatesthehypothesisandproceedswithfurtherdatacollection’ (BrymanandBell

2007, p.583). Data collection is complete when there are either no deviant cases or

whenthehypotheticalexplanation isredefinedtoexcludedeviantcases. ‘Thetwokeys

totheentireprocedure(…)arethedefinitionofthephenomenonunderinvestigationand

theformulationofthetentativehypothesis’(VidichandLyman2000,p.57).

VidichandLyman(2000,p.57)suggestthatanalyticinductionis:

‘Distinguishable from deductive, historical-documentary, and statistical approaches,

analyticinductionisanon-experimentalqualitativesociologicalmethodthatemploys

anexhaustiveexaminationofcasesinordertoproveuniversal,causalgeneralization’.

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Thereareanumberofdrawbackstousinganalyticinductioninthefield.Forexample

Ryan and Bernard (2000, p.787) point out that ‘explainingcasesbydeclaringthemall

unique isa temptingbut illegitimateoption’. Bryman and Bell (2007, p.584) highlight

twofurtherlimitations:

‘First,thefinalexplanationsthatanalyticinductionarrivesatspecifyconditionsthat

are sufficient for the phenomenon occurring but rarely specify the necessary

conditions…Secondly,itdoesnotprovideusefulguidelines(unlikegroundedtheory)

astohowmanycasesneedtobeinvestigatedbeforetheabsenceofnegativecasesand

the validity of the hypothetical explanation (whether reformulated or not) can be

confirmed.’

This approach then, does not provide the researcherwith detailed guidelines, and so

can cause difficulties for researchers at the early stages of their careers who lack

experience in conducting qualitative research. Moreover, Ryan and Bernard (2000,

p.787)pointouttheobjectiveofanalyticinductionis:

‘nottoshowtherelationshipsamongallcodes,buttofindtheminimalsetof logical

relationshipsamongtheconceptsthataccountsforasingledependentvariable.With

morethanthreevariables,theanalysisbecomesmuchmoredifficult’.

Theobjectivesof thisstudyareto lookatthe interplaybetweenabusiness incubator,

incubatees and business opportunities, using the experiential and social learning

theoriesratherthantolookatrelationshipsthataccountforasingledependentvariable.

GiventhelimitationsoutlinedaboveIrejectedthismethodofanalysisbecauseitwould

notallowmetoaddressmyresearchquestionsandmoreover,isunsuitableforanearly

stageresearcher.

5.8.2Groundedtheory

Grounded theory is amethodological approach first introducedbyGlaserandStrauss

(1967). This approach has frequently been referred to ‘but infrequently applied in

business research’ (Douglas 2003, p.47). Grounded theory is ‘derived from data,

systematicallygatheredandanalyzedthroughtheresearchprocess.Inthismethod,data

collection, analysis, and eventual theory stand in close relationship to one another’

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(Strauss and Corbin 1998, p.12). The rational underpinning grounded theory is that

theory is developed that is ‘grounded’ in data, which has itself been systematically

collected and analysed (Strauss and Corbin 1998). Theory emerges through the

interactionbetweendatacollectionandanalysisphasesoftheresearch.

Bryman and Bell (2007, p.579) believe that grounded theory is ‘probably the most

prominentofthegeneralapproachestoqualitativedataanalysis’. Grounded theory and

analyticinductionsharesomesimilarities.Forexample,theprocessofanalysingdatais

iterativeforbothmethods.AccordingtoRyanandBernard(2000,p.782)bothofthese

data analysis approaches includemodel-building phases. In otherwords, researchers

lookfornegativecasesthatdonotfitthehypothesis.

Grounded theorydiffers fromanalytic induction in that it assumesapurely inductive

approachthatmeanstheresearcherhasnoaprioritheoriesthatguidetheearlystages

oftheresearch.Rather,theresearcherbecomesmoreandmore‘grounded’inthedata

developing increasingly rich concepts and models to reflect the complexity of the

phenomenonbeinginvestigated(Hunteretal.2005,p.57).

Grounded theory iswidely adopted in the qualitative field ‘acrossarangeofdifferent

disciplines’ (Hunteretal.2005,p.57)andhasagreat influencebothonthetheoretical

framework and practical implications in qualitative data collection and analysis

procedures. However, it has attracted a number of critiques. Silverman (2006, p.96)

criticises grounded theory for its failure to ‘acknowledgeimplicittheorieswhichguide

work at an early stage’. Silverman also believes that ‘used unintelligently, it can

degenerateintoafairlyemptybuildingofcategories…orintoameresmokescreenusedto

legitimizepurelyempiricistresearch’.InasimilarveinMiles(1979,p.591)suggeststhat:

‘research projects that pretend to come to the study with no assumptions usually

encounter much difficulty’. Morse (1999, p.292) points out that inexperienced

researchers ‘maynotknowalotaboutresearchmethods’. Pidgeon (1996, p.83) points

outapracticalweakness: ‘someresearchers(particularlythosewhoarefairlynewtothe

technique) find themselves unable to theorize beyond the everyday phenomenal worlds

andlocalinteractionalcontextsoftheirbasicdataanddomainofinquiry’.

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Other critiques point out the inconsistency of using key terms such as ‘concept’ and

‘category’(BrymanandBell2007),whichmakeitmoredifficultforotherresearchersto

understand the overall process. It is also worth mentioning that often the term

grounded theory is used ‘to denote an approach to data analysis inwhich theory has

emergedfromthedata.Rarelyisagenuineinterweavingofdatacollectionandtheorizing

ofthekindadvocatedbyGlaserandStrauss’(BrymanandBurgess1994,p.6).

Whilegroundedtheoryhaspotentialtodevelopnewconceptualinsightsintoprocesses

and interactionswithinBIC, the study is guided by theories from an early stage. The

researchdoesn’tthereforeadoptapurelygroundedtheoryapproach.

5.8.3Templateanalysis

When discussing the epistemological issues of template analysis, King (2004, p.256)

points out that rather than a distinct methodology, thematic analysis is a set of

techniques,which ‘maybeusedwithinarangeofepistemologicalpositions’. He believes

thatwhenusingthematicanalysistoorganiseandanalysedata,theresearcher‘assumes

that there are always multiple interpretations to be made of any phenomenon, which

depend upon the position of the researcher and the context of the research’. Therefore

similarly to analytic induction and grounded theory, this approach is in linewithmy

methodologicalposition.

However, compared toanalytic inductionandgrounded theory, templateanalysis isa

more flexible and pragmaticway of analysing data: ‘analysisoften,thoughnotalways,

startswithsomeaprioricodes,whichidentifythemesstronglyexpectedtoberelevantto

theanalysis.However,thesecodesmaybemodifiedordispensedwithaltogetheriftheydo

not prove to be useful or appropriate to the actual data examined’ (Clarke and Gibbs

2008).King(2004)alsomentionsthatthestartingpointofconstructingatemplateisto

usetheinterviewguide,inotherwords,themainthemesoftheinterview.

As formy study, a literature reviewhasbeen conductedand inChapter3 theoretical

frameworks have been proposed to study the impact of business incubation. Also, as

presented in this chapter, a semi-structured interview schedule was used for

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interviewing the participants. Furthermore, when discussing the suitability and

advantagesofadopting templateanalysis,King (2004,p.268)pointsout that it ‘works

verywell instudieswhichseektoexaminetheperspectivesofdifferentgroupswithinan

organizationalcontext’.Mystudy investigates learning,notonlyat an individual level,

but also at a social level. In other words, I research how learning took place in BIC

throughinteractionsbetweendifferentplayersintheincubationcentre.

To sum up template analysis is appropriate for this study for a number of reasons.

Firstly it is consistent with my philosophical position. Secondly unlike following

grounded theory firmly, I had developed some frameworks before collecting data.

Thirdly I am not an experienced researcher, using template analysis would provide

some structure and clearer guidance when analysing data. Finally this approach is

suitableforthecontextofmystudy.

5.9Datamanagementandanalysis

All interviews were transcribed and stored in Word format and exported to NVivo.

Transcribing and coding were carried out soon after each interview was conducted.

This meant that thoughts generated from the interview could be captured and

embraced in the codes while still fresh in the memory. Transcribing the interviews

myselfallowedmetofamiliarisemyselfwiththedata.

UsingNVivohelpedto improvedataanalysisbyenablingme tocode informationand

consequently group relatedparts to easily access the information, asRichards (1999,

p.16) points out that ‘[NVivo]usedocumentandnodedescriptionstostore information

aboutcontextetc.definecategoriesandshapeideas’.Moreover‘usingsoftwareinthedata

analysisprocess…addsrigourtoqualitativeresearch’.Thevalidityandreliabilitycanbe

increasedbyusingNVivo,ashumanerrorscouldbereducedbythesoftwarepackage.

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5.9.1Developingcodes

Usingthetemplateanalysisapproach,Icreatedtheinitialtemplateusingsomeapriori

codesdevelopedfromtheresearchquestionandtheoutcomesoftheliteraturereview.

Following theguidance fromKing (2004), I alsoused the themesof the interviewsas

theinitialtemplate(seeAppendixX).Thesecodes(impactofBIC,priorknowledge,and

waysofdevelopingbusinessideas)areusedasthehigher-ordercodes,withsubsidiary

lower-ordercodes.Under theheading ‘impactofBIC’, forexample, thereweresecond

level codes.Theyare: ‘experienceofBIC’, ‘reasonsof enteringBIC’, ‘skills obtained in

BIC’, and ‘experience of support from BIC’. There were then third level codes under

these,exceptunder‘experienceofsupportfromBIC’.

Bernard (2000, p.444) suggests that researchers should keepnotes about the coding,

potentialhypothesesandnewdirectionsfortheresearch.Withthisinmindeachtime

changesweremadeinthecodingprocess,forexample,differentcodesorstructure,an

olderversionof the coding structurewas stored in a separate file.Thishelpedme to

reflect on theprocessof coding aswell asdocumentingprogress in thedata analysis

process.

Aftercodingfiveinterviews,thefirstlevelcode‘waysofdevelopingbusinessideas’had

codes that derived from different concepts, including learning, opportunity

developmentandimpactofBIC.Thisdidnotcomeasasurpriseastheseconceptsare

intertwinedinthecontextofBIC.Theconceptofentrepreneurshipiscontextualisedin

theprocessofopportunitydevelopment,whichisstudiedthroughthelensoflearning.

AllofthelearningactivitiesIinvestigatedhadarelationtoBICandthiswashowthese

second level codes developedunder the first level code ‘ways of developing business

ideas’.Thereforearevisionoftheinitialtemplatewasneededandsomefirstandsecond

levelcodesneededtobere-defined(seeAppendixXI).

65

5.10Summary

Thischapterhassetoutthedatacollectedforthestudyandthemethodofdataanalysis.

Theprincipalmethodofdatacollectionisin-depthsemi-structuredinterviewswiththe

BIC incubatees, supplemented with data collected through interviews with the BIC

stakeholders, participant observation as member of the BIC steering group and

documentscollectedfromtheBICmanagement.

Data from semi-structured interviews provided an insight into the processes and

procureswithinBICfromtheperspectiveoftheincubatees;documentsfromincubatee

selection interviews and the BIC management office enabled me to provide a

contextualisedunderstandingoftheinterviewparticipants,andparticipantobservation

allowedme to build a relationshipwith participants in the study and to observe the

interaction between incubatees and the incubator management. The study therefore

capturesdataaboutrelationships,proceduresandprocesseswithinBICfromarangeof

perspectivesandsoenabledmetopreservethe‘wholeness’ofthestories.

After reviewing a number of influential qualitative data analysis approaches such as

grounded theory, analytical induction and template analysis, the more flexible and

practical approach of template analysis was selected for the study. NVivo qualitative

dataanalysissoftwarefacilitatedthisiterativeapproach,allowingdatatobestoredand

codesrevisitedandrevisedwithrelativeease.

Chapter6presentsaninitialanalysisofthedataintheformofaseriesofnarrativesthat

illustrate typical pathways through the incubation process. The narratives develop

valuableinsightsintotheincubationprocessandprovideacontextfortheanalysis.

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ChapterSix

TheBICExperience

6.1Introduction

This chapter explores the incubation experience and process in BIC from the

perspectiveoftheincubateesbypresentingaseriesofnarratives.ItaddressesResearch

Questions1and4(seeSection4.2)byprovidinginsightintoindividualperceptionsand

experiencesoftheincubationprocessandtheroleoftheBI.Indoingsoitrespondsto

callsforin-depth,qualitativestudiesintheincubationprocess(TodorovicandMoenter

2010;Hackett andDilts 2008, 2004;McAdamandMcAdam2006;Voisey et al. 2006)

andprovidesacontextualunderstandingofpathwaysthroughBIC.

The 20 interviews with frequent BIC users captured rich data about the incubation

process. In order to bring these narratives to life and to explore the incubation

experienceindetail,atwo-stageanalysiswascarriedout.Theaimofthefirststagewas

to identifykeystagesandactivitiesduringthe incubationperiod.Thekeyactivitiesat

the pre-, during, and post-BIC stages are summarised in Appendix XII, using the

individualincubateeastheunitofanalysis.

Thesecondstageoftheanalysisuses‘activities’astheunitofanalysis.Figure3draws

the information from Appendix XII together in order to identify individual pathways

throughBICbycomparingactivitiesandpatternsbetweencases.Flowchartsareusedto

illustratekeyactivitiesandstagesduringtheBICprocess.

6.2Stage1:theincubationprocess

Thenarrativesof each case are included inAppendixXIII.Theyare life storiesof the

respondents, which included contextual business histories of some entrepreneurs.

67

SomeofthebusinessideasintheshortstoriesweregeneratedpriortoBIC,butinorder

to focus on answering the researchquestions (see Chapter 4) only businesseswith a

linktoBICareincludedinthestudy.

The incubation process is divided into pre-, during, and post-BIC stages, it is

summarisedinAppendixXII.AlthoughwhathappenedduringBICisthefocalpointof

thisstudy,thepre-andpost-BICstagesprovideanunderstandingofthehistoryofthe

participantsandtheirpreferenceforstayingorleavingBIC.

The aim of usingAppendix XII is to explore in detail the relevant activities that took

place justbefore,duringandafterBIC for individual incubatees.At thepre-BICstage,

attentionispaidtohowreadytheideaswere,howtheparticipantsgottoknowBICand

the background of the participants. At the during-BIC stage, the focus is on what

activitieshadbeencarriedoutinBIC,whomtheyspoketoabouttheirideas,theirviews

onfacilitiesandmanagementofBICandUKU,andhowtheyevaluatedthedevelopment

oftheirideasorbusinesses.Thepost-BICstagemainlylooksatwhethertheparticipants

decidedtostayonforanotheryearofincubation.

6.3Stage2:individualpathways

Figure 3 brings together the individual narratives summaries in Appendix XII, using

‘activities’ as the unit of analysis in order to identify distinct pathways through the

businessincubationprocess.

68

Figure'6.1'+'The'process'of'business'incubation''''

''

Pre$BIC('Had(a(mature(business(idea:'Tim,'Andy,'Jane,'Ian,'Tony,'Jeff,'Peter,'Emma,'James,'Laura,'Karen'

Activities(in(BIC('Discussed(the(idea(with(other(tenants:'Helen,'Tim,'Andy,'Ian,'Tony,'Nick,'Neil,'Phil,'Jeff,'Paul,'Emma,'James,'Kath,'Laura,'Alex,'Kelly,'Mark,'Karen''Needed/liked(an(office(environment/facility:'Helen,'Tim,'Andy,'Jane,'Ian,'Tony,'Nick,'Jeff,'Paul,'Peter,'Emma,'James,'Kath,'Laura,'Alex,'Kelly,'Mark,'Karen''Spoke(to(a(business(advisor(and/or(mentor:'Helen,'Tim,'Jane,'Ian,'Nick,'Neil,'Phil,'Jeff,'Paul,'Kath,'Laura,'Alex,'Kelly,'Mark''Had(other(tenants/university(students(working(on(projects:'Tim,'Andy,'Jane,'Tony,'Emma,'James,'Kath,'Alex''

Working/studying/running(other(business(when(starting$up(in(BIC:'Helen,'Jane,'Neil,'Phil,'Peter,'Emma,'Kath,'Kelly''Collaborated(with(other(tenants(on(projects:'Helen,'Andy,'Ian,'Neil,'Jeff,'Paul''Used(library/Students(Union/lectures(or(any(other(UKU(facilities:'Ian,'Nick,'Neil,'Jeff,'Paul,'Kelly,'Mark''Worked(for(other(tenants:'Andy,'Tony,'Neil,'Phil,'Jeff,'Kelly''Developing/started(another(idea:'Ian,'Jeff,'Paul,'Kath,'Alex''Observed(and/or(learned(skills(from(other(tenants:'Helen,'Jane,'Paul,'Kath,'Kelly''Recruited(supplier/clients/partners(through(BIC:'Tim,'Neil,'Laura,'Kelly''Developing/starting(new(business(with(other(tenants:'Andy,'Ian,'Tony,'Jeff,'Paul''Business(development(was(delayed(due(to(problems(with(supplier/working(and(studying:'Peter,'Kelly''Used(BIC(for(storage:'Tim'

Stage(of(business(in(BIC(

'Developing(business(further/original(idea(on(hold(but(developing(another(business:'Jane,'Ian,'Tony,'Nick,'Jeff,'Paul,'James,'Kath,'Laura,'Alex,'Mark,'Karen''Still(refining(and(developing(the(idea(in(BIC:'Helen,'Neil,'Paul,'Alex,'Kelly''Developing(/(starting(new(business(with(other(tenants:'Ian,'Tony,'Jeff,'Paul'(Business(was(on(hold(but(re$starting(again:'Peter,'Kelly'''

Post$BIC('Staying(on(for(another(year/(intended(to(stay(for(another(year:'Jane,'Ian,'Tony,'Nick,'Neil,'Jeff,'Paul,'Peter,'James,'Kath,'Laura,'Alex,'Kelly,'Mark,'Karen'

Pre$BIC('Had(a(less(developed(business(idea:'Helen,'Nick,'Neil,'Phil,'Paul,'Kath,'Alex,'Kelly,'Mark''

Stage(of(business(outside(BIC'

'Developing(business(further/original(idea(on(hold(but(developing(another(business:'Andy,'Phil,'Tim,'Emma'

Post$BIC('Left(with(other(tenants(for(a(new(company:'Andy''

Post$BIC('Left/leaving(BIC(for(own(business:'Tim,'Phil,'Emma''

Figure3–Theprocessofbusinessincubation

69

Commoncharacteristics

Pre-BIC

AlltwentyparticipantssharedonethingincommonbeforecomingtoBIC.Inorder

toqualifyasa tenant,allof themhadabusiness ideathat theyhadpresentedtoa

selection panel during an entry interview. Some ideas or businesses were more

developed than others. Helen’s business idea, for example, was not completely

developedwhencomingtoBIC,assheexplains:

IthinkI’moneofthepeoplethatcameintoBICwithakindofa...averystart,startingofanidea…itwastotallyreallyembryoticatthatstage…youknow…soIcametoBICwithkindofverybroadidea.Iwannatorunmyownbusiness,it’sinsustainabilityfield,andit’sbeensinceI’vebeeninBIC, and sort of talking tomy business adviser and got amentor, freementor scheme, and other people, that I sort of refining more clearly,whatIwanttodo.

Incontrast,TimhaddrawnupabusinessplanbeforecomingtoBIC.Hehadalready

doneextensiveresearchforthebusinessandwasalreadylookingforavenueforhis

artgallerywhenmovingtoBIC.Hisideawasalmostdevelopedbeforetheincubation

stage:

ItwasmostlydevelopedintermsofIalreadyhadabusinessplanandthefundamentalideahasnotchanged,soactuallyonceIwasinBIC,itwasjustputtingmeatonthebonesandjustfleshingouttheideas.

DuringBIC

DuringtheirtimeinBIC,fourexperienceswerecommontoalltwentyparticipants:

1. Having social interactions with other tenants in BIC;

2. Developing businesses or ideas while in BIC;

3. Having interactions with BIC management;

4. Viewing social interactions and/or the entrepreneurial atmosphere as an important

element of being in BIC.

Post-BIC

At thepost-BIC stage, 15participants (Jane, Ian,Tony,Nick,Neil, Jeff, Paul, James,

Kath,Laura,AlexandKelly)werestayingorintendedtostayinBIC(Peter,Markand

Karen) for another year. Two participants (Andy and Phil) had left to join other

entrepreneurs,rentingmoreexpensiveofficespacesinthecityandonewasleaving

70

(Emma)attheendofherfirstyearincubation.Oneparticipant(Tim)leftBICafter

hisownartgalleryopened,sothathecouldmanageit fromthestoredirectly.One

participant(Helen)wasaboutsixmonthsinherincubationtimeanditwastooearly

todecideonhersecondyear incubation.The fact that themajorityofparticipants

stayed inBIC for another yearperhaps reflects theirpositive feelings towards the

incubationexperience.

SixpathwaysthroughtheBICprocessemergedfromthedata.Sixparticipants(Andy,

Jane, Tony, Ian, Paul and Kath) are selected to represent these pathways. Their

experiencewassowellarticulatedbythem,itcanbeusedtoexemplifyothersand

bringtheirstoriestolive.

Toprovideabettercontextualunderstandingofeachpathway,ashortsummaryis

firstpresented foreachcase.Vignettesare thenemployed tobring theirstories to

life.

6.3.1Andy’sexperience:BICasatransitionalphaseBusinessidea:webdevelopment(WD)

Summary: intending to start his own business as a web developer, Andy heard

aboutBICfromanincubateeandmovedin.Hisoriginalbusinessideawastousethe

skillshealreadyhadfromhispreviousemploymentasawebdevelopertoworkfor

theincubateehealreadyknew.Healsothoughtthattherentwascheapandheliked

the office environment,where he couldmeetmore potential clients thanworking

fromhome.WhenapplyingforaplaceinBIC,Andypresentedhisideaofdeveloping

websitestootherincubatees.

ShortlyafterenteringBIC,Andystartedtoworkwithanothertenant,whodesigned

the layout of websites and whose skills complemented his. Two months after

workingtogether,theycreatedanothercompany,whichthensubcontractedprojects

toAndy’scompany.Theyalsoteamedupwithathirdincubateewhowasrunninga

marketing and PR business. Andy and his partners employed two university

71

studentspart-timetoworkonsomeprojects.BeforetheinterviewtookplaceAndy

hadalreadymovedoutwithhisbusinesspartners,thoughhedidnotterminatethe

contractwithBICandretainedhisincubateestatus.Theyhadmovedtosomewhere

that had longer opening hours andmore professional offices andmeeting rooms.

Andy’sexperienceissummarisedinFigure4.

Figure4-Andy'sBICexperience

Pre-BIC

Hadamaturebusinessidea ↓

GottoknowBICfromaformertenant

ActivitiesinBIC

Discussedtheideawithothertenants

+Needed/likedanofficeenvironment/facility

+Workedforothertenants

↓Collaboratedwithothertenantsonprojects

↓Setupanewcompanywithanothertenant

↓Haduniversitystudentsworkingonprojects

StageofbusinessoutsideBIC

DevelopingthebusinessfurtheroutsideofBICwith

formertenants

Post-BIC

Leftwithothertenantsforanewcompany

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Andy’sstory:

AndycametoBICwithamaturebusinessidea,todeveloplowcostwebsitesforBIC

tenantsandotherSMEs.

[The]Businessideadidn’treallycomefromanywhere,becauseI’vebeenaweb developer before, I was aweb developer for a company in [thiscity],andbeforeIwasdoingitformyself,justforfriendsandfamily…

HegottoknowBICthroughanentrepreneurheworkedfor:

beforeIfoundoutaboutBIC,anothertenanthere,Jonathan…andIwasgoingtobethewebdeveloperforhim…sohealreadygotaplacehere,and he introduced me to the place, and I then applied to Jenny [BICadministrator].

WhenvisitingBIC,AndyrealisedthatBICitselfcouldbringbusinessopportunities,

because ithosteda lotofstart-ups.Thiscontributed to thedecisionofapplying to

BIC:

definitelyyeah,forme,comeherestraight,…Irealisedobviouslygonnabe several other tenantswhowoulddo similar thingsand requiredmyskillsorIwouldrequiretheirskillsandalsopeoplewhoactuallywantedtobuyproducts fromme, tobuymyservices.Thepeopleherehave juststartednewbusinesses…andtheydon’twantahugewebsite,soIknewthat a lot of them would be looking to get websites to increase theirpresenceonthe internet,orgenerally formarketing,anderh,obviouslytheystartfromasmallwebsite,whichIwasdoinganywayatthattime…IrealisedwhatBICwerelookingfor,andit’sakindofcommunityaswellas successful businesses to work here, erh, I catered my presentationtowardssmallscale,cheapwebdevelopments,whichIrealisedwouldbeattractivetocurrenttenantsinBIC.

During Andy’s time in BIC, two activities (discussed ideas with others and

needed/likedanofficeenvironment/facility)happenedcontinuously:

TobeginwithmeetingFrank, if Ihadn’tmetFrankIwouldn’tbedoingwhat I’mdoingnow,networking,meetingotherpeople tobounce ideasoff.AnexampleofthatisNickwhorunsWDD,wehavelotsofdiscussions,justgeneraltalkingaboutourideasandthere’skindofatrusttherethatifyoutalkaboutwhatyou’redoingthatitwon’tgoanyfurtherthanthatperson, as long as what you’re doing isn’t similar to them they’re notgonnastealyouridea...variousotherpeopleherewhoifIneededadviceonsomething,Iwouldaskthem,becausetherearelotsofpeoplewhoarespecialists in what they do in here. Also the BIC [management] team

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generally,Martin [BICmanager] and Jenny [BICadministrator]mainlyare thepeoplewho I’ve spoken to, but if youneverneedanyadviceonanything or pointing in the right direction, then those two have beenveryhelpful,andtheywillcontinuetobe.I’vesaidthatIwillbeinBIC,ifnotonedayaweek,at leastonceevery twoweeks [althoughwe’vegotanofficesomewhereelse].

Other activities happened in sequence. The sequential activities that distinguish

Andy’spathwaywere ‘getting toknowother tenants inBIC’ and ‘settingupanew

company’.

Andyworkedforandco-operatedwithFrankonanumberofprojects:

…becauseofthespeedIdidthatandtheleveloftheworkIcreatedforhim [frank], he then askedme to do more work, and that was after Istarted inBIC.Thenweweredoingwork for eachother, so if I neededthatwebdesign,I’dratheraskinghim,andheneededdevelopmentdoing,hewouldaskme.

TwomonthsafterAndyhadbeeninBIC,hestartedanewcompanywithFrank:

ThelevelofworkthatmeandFrankweredoinggrew,soweweregivingeach otherwork and Iwas trading asWD, and hewas trading asMC,anditgotapoint,meandFrankrealisedwewereactuallycreatingthesame website just with different designs, lots lots of times, and it waspointlessdoingthatway.Sohe’sgotabrandmanagingbackground,he’sdone branding, he’s done naming, he’s done customer service, we bothworkedineducation….he’sdonewebdesign,whereasI’mcompletelytheothersideofthat,I’vedoneproductionandmanagement,I’vedonewebdevelopment,databases,networking,andinsomeplaceswecrossoveralittle bit, butmostly we’re two halves of a very complete circle, whichworksverywell ... sowedevelopedakindofapackage,whichisstill indevelopment,butwe thendecidedbecausewearegonnabedoing this,we then started a third company, which is a partnership, called NV,whichisgoingsinceearlyDecember.

ThenewcompanyAndyandFranksetupemployeduniversitystudentsworkingon

projects:

Andy:wehavetwoladswhoaredoingworkexperiencewithus,sooneofthemwashere lastweek,wegotanotherguyworkingforusthisweek.Overthesummer,wegonnahaveoneorbothworkingfull-timeforus.Interviewer:aretheyuniversitystudents?

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Andy: yeah, I think they both are UKU [students] actually, but I’m notabsolutelysure.Hopefullyoneofthem,wellatleastoneofthemwillturnintoafull-timeposition,andifit’snotoneofthosetwo,thenhopefullywewillhavesomebodyelseworkingforus.Wearelookingatprobably,lateAugust, September time, becausewebelievewewill have enoughworkbythentobedoingthat.

Eightmonthsafterhisincubationperiod,Andymovedoutwithtwoothertenantsto

anewpremiseinthesamecity[CityM].Bothinpersonandinemail,Andyandhis

partnerFrankmentioned that theyprefer to remainassociatedwithBIC, although

theyhavemovedout:

Well,tobeginwiththeideawasdiscussedbyAngela[formertenant]andFrank,becausebothofthemareveryfrontfacingcompanieswheretheyneedtodealwithalotofclients.Frankdoesalotofbrandmanagementandit’simportanttohaveabusinessfront,andAngelaobviouslyit’sthesamedoingPR,sheneedstoappearveryprofessional,andoneofthe,thefewdownsidesofBICisthatit’sbasicallythatit’sagiantcomputerroom,where you come in, younetwork, andwhatAngela andFrank actuallyneededwasanofficewithameetingroomand Idon’tmeanameetingroomlikepartitions,Imeanameetingroomlikeanactualsoundproofroom,which looks veryprofessional. So theybegan to talkaboutofficespace and I saidwell I don’t have an issuewith getting office space, IknowthatIcanaffordtogetofficespace,andwealldidsomeresearchand found various different offices, the best of which was the expressbuilding in theNorthCornerof theMCity,weactually spoke tooneofthedirectorsthereandgotaverygooddealontheofficespacethere…thewallsthatmakeuptheofficescanbemoved,soifyouneedtomakeyourofficeabitbigger,andthepeoplenextdoor,oriftheroomisempty,theycanmakethatoneabitsmaller...soit’sfantasticreally,there’snotmuchmorewecouldaskfor.It’s24hoursaswell,soifyouwanttoworklateorcomeinearly…wedon’tactuallyworkinBICanymore,althoughwecomeinhereoccasionally.

6.3.2Jane’sexperience:BICasawaytoseparateworkandhomeBusinessidea:sportsmanagement(SM)

Summary:Janesetuphersportsmanagementbusinesswhenstudyingauniversity

degree. She organised netball leagues for women in the M City areas. Since the

companywasestablished,thebusinesshadbeengrowingorganicallyfrom7teams

to18teamsplayingatonenightand48teamsintotal,despitenoextraeffortsspent

inmarketing campaignsorplans for expansion.Duringher secondyearBIC entry

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interview, Jane mentioned that although there was a decrease in the number of

causalemployees(from10to8),SM’s turnoverhad increasedby30%to£36,000,

afteroneyear’sincubationperiod.

Jane came toBIC two years after her business had been running. Before that, she

workedasasportsdevelopmentofficerforfiveyearsandlearnedthattherewasa

market niche in the services she could provide and the business could be very

successful.ShemovedtoCityMtoundertakeanundergraduatecourseandworked

part-timeinsports.Herpart-timeworkenabledhertohavethefirstfacilitythatwas

neededtostartthebusiness,withverylittlerisk.Herstudy,however,didnotrelate

tothebusiness,butprovidedthetimethatwasneededtotestherbusinessidea,as

summerholidayslastquitelongforuniversitystudents.Theknowledgeshegained

fromthestudywasalsohelpfulwhentherewerehealthandsafetyissues,relatingto

her business. Before Jane came into BIC, she just completed her course and her

businesswasgrowing.

She had worked full-time for her job and worked for her own company in the

evenings and weekends. Just before her BIC entry interview was conducted, she

negotiatedsuccessfullywithheremployertotakeonedayoffperweekandworkfor

hersportsbusiness.JaneusedBIConedayaweektodoadministrationworkforher

company,asshefeltmoreefficientwhenworkinginBIC.Shealsolikedtoworkinan

officeenvironment thanworking fromhome,as shehadaccess toabetterprinter

andprofessionalmeetingspaces.Sheviewedbeingprofessional toherclientsvery

important.

Janehadonesessionwithabusinessmentorandsignedupforapresspackwitha

student,who studiedat the sameuniversity thatharbouredBIC.Although she felt

thatshecouldnotcontributemuchtotheBICcommunity,Janelikedtobepartofit.

Shegainedknowledgeaboutmarketingfromotherentrepreneursandbecamemuch

moreawareoftheimportanceofthemarketingandPRsideofthebusiness.Shealso

liked toobserveand learned fromother fellowentrepreneurs, regarding theways

howtheypresentedthemselvesandhowtheymarketedtheircompanies.Therewas

also the entrepreneurial atmosphere that attracted Jane to come in to BIC, which

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gaveherthecouragetogrowherbusinessandofferedherdifferentinsightsintothe

potentialsofherbusiness.Moreoverbeingwithotherfellownascententrepreneurs

offeredmoralsupportandexposedher todifferent information,opportunitiesand

events. Jane viewed BIC as a learning source, such as marketing and networking

skills.Therewerealsoentrepreneurswithdifferentskillssets,whocouldhelpherif

shedecidedtoexpandherbusinessfurther.AlthoughthemanagementteamofBIC

did not have a fundamental influence on the development of Jane’s business idea,

they were very supportive and yet not pushy. Through the help from the

management team, Jane employed other incubatees of BIC, to help her with

administration and to set up a website for the company. Jane’s BIC experience is

demonstratedinFigure5.

Jane’sstory:

JanecametoBICwithamaturebusinessidea:

I’vebeenrunning,Isetthatup[thesportsmanagementbusiness]whenIwas inmy first yearwithmy degree. Erh, so it has been running for acoupleofyearswhenIcametoBIC.

ShelikedtoworktoinanofficeenvironmentandthefacilityBIChad:

Becausethespace isbrilliantandIworka lotbetterwhenI’mhere ... Ijust found I’vebeena lotmoreproductivewhen I’vebeenherebecausewhenI’mhere it’s justmeandacomputerandIhavetogetonwith it.There’snodistractions things like that. So I feel likemyproductivity isdefinitelyimproved.It’s quite useful as a meeting space, so I have met some people herebefore,andit’sreally,it’sjustinvaluableformetogetawayfromhome,toactuallyhaveaspaceIcanworkandtohavingaccesstoprinter,theprinter is better thanmine, you know, things like that. You know, theactuallyofficespaceitselfisreallygoodforme.Sothat’sthemainthingreally.Andalsohavingthatmeetingspaceifyouneedit,erh,soitlooksabitmoreprofessional.

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Figure5-Jane'sBICexperience

While inBIC,abusinessmentorhadasessionwithJane,whohelpedhertoclarify

ideas:

Didhaveabusinessmentor,foralittlebit,shewasquitehelpful,erh,atthe beginning, because I was at a point where I didn’t really knowwhethertoreallygoformoreexpansionorwhethertojustsortofhandback a little back and make sure that what I had was OK enough tomanage,andshewasgoodjusttohaveachatwithher,youknowjusttosort of right, you need to do this this and this. Because Iwas thinkingthatIneedtogetalogo,Ineedtodothis,Ineedtomarketitbetter,andshewasgoing,‘doyoureally?Becauseyouknow,it’sworkingOKasitis’,sothatwasquiteusefulbutIonlyhadonesessionwithherandthenshecancelledthemeeting,andthennevergotbacktobeintouchwithme…

Pre-BIC

Hadamaturebusinessidea

ActivitiesinBIC

Needed/likedanofficeenvironment/facility

+

Spoketoabusinessmentor

+

Handothertenantsandauniversitystudentworkingonprojects

+

WorkingandstartingupabusinessinBICthesametime

+

Observedandlearnedskillsfromothertenants

Stageofbusinessafterfirstincubationperiod

Runningthebusiness

+

Developingthebusinessideafurther

Post-BIC

StayinginBICforanotheryear

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I guess for that session, she wasmore a sounding board… to say youknow, to helpme prioritisewhatwas important andwhat couldwait.The other thing she helped with, erh, because at one point I wasconsidering lookingathowto franchise it.Sothenmove itanothercityandtryitinanothercity.Andshedidn’treallyfeelthatitwasanoption,because you know the amount of work involved and again, because itwas, maybe it was just the niche thing that was here, so I wouldn’tnecessarilyrulethatout,butit’snot,again,isthatreallyapriority…soshewasmoreerh,itwasadvicethatanythinglikethat,butmoresortofmediatetermaboutthingswhathappeningnow...

Coordinated by academics in theUKUBusiness School andBICmanagement, Jane

hadastudentworkedforherpressrelease:

It was someoneMartin [BICmanager] sent email out and I replied tothat, and it’s a PR student, looking to put together a press pack, fordifferent organisations, so erh, they’ve accepted me for that, so I amgonna do that for the summerweeks, just also because itwill helpmeactuallytolearnaboutwhatIneedtodoandyouknow,howtowriteapressrelease(laughed)thingslikethat.AlthoughI’msureIcandoit, ismoregetting the time todo it aswell, so erh, yeah, that’s thing I hopewould happen and then would allow me to explore expansion in thesummer,whichispossiblyabitmorerealistic.

JanewasworkingasahealthprofessionalwhilerunningherbusinessfromBIC:

It was quite hard to get a job and I was quite lucky, I was offeredpermanentjobalmoststraightaway,soIneverreallyspentalotoftimehere, it’salwaysbeen, sortof youknow I’vealways takenannual leavefromworktotrytocomeinandgetsomeworkdone,orIwascominginonaSaturdaytodoit.SinceMay,Imanagedtonegotiateaday-offeveryweeksoIcancomeonaWednesday.I was always a little bit afraid of taking on too much when I’m stillworking, so much as well, so I do fit in two days a week. That’s onlyrecently that you know that’s come down from37hours aweek, so it’sbeen a little bit tough, I feel like I’ve not make the most of thatopportunityinsomeways.Sometimesthe[sports]teamswillemailmeduringthedayandIcannotaccessmyemailsatwork,andIdon’treallyfeellikeit’sappropriateforme to check me SM emails when I work either, so it’s quite hardsometimes. I say to them I cannot always access my emails, will youphoneme instead, but I cannot always usemy phone neither. So I justfind that I need to be a little bit careful, because I want to appearprofessional.Idon’tnecessarilywantthemtoknowthatyouknow,Ijustdoitasifit’sjustabitpart-time.Iwantthemtothinkit’smorethanthat.

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Soerh,IguessI’mabitcarefulhowIpresentittothem.Butitdefinitelyhelpshavingsomewherethatyoucanuse,youknow,[BIC’s]citycentreaddress,sortof,tryingmakemyselfabitmoreprofessional(laughed)…IfeellikeI’vegottwoalternativecareersrunningatthesametimeandIdon’t necessarily feel like I do either of them properly so I feel like atworkI’mdoingasmuchasotherpeoplearedoing,notwhenI’matworkbutoutsideofwork,sointermsofattendingcoursesandthingslikethat,andIthinkmaybeIdon’tdoasmuchthatasIshoulddo,andI’vegotthiswhereIfeeldefinitelydon’tdoasmuchasIcoulddo,soIactuallyrealisemybusiness’sfullpotential,soI’vegottwooptionsthereandIstilldon’tknowwhichwaytogo.

While inBIC, Janewasobservingfellowentrepreneursandlearningbusinessskills

fromthem:

It’smademealotmoreawareof…soundssilly,butalotmoreawareofthebits that I’mnotverygoodat.So Iwatchotherpeoplenetworking,andseehowusefulthatisforthem,andhowbeneficialisforthem,andIthink that I should do that more. I see how other people marketthemselves,erh,again,thinkIshoulddothatalotmoreandalotbetter.I feel like I’ve not make the most of that opportunity in some ways. Ithinkbeingherehasmademealotmoreawareofhowtomarket,wellknowing that there’s nonemarketing that I do, compared to everyoneelse.Erh,andhowinnovativeeverybody,youknow,orotherpeople,theimportanceofnetworking,thingslikethat.

JanewasstayinginBICforthesecondyeartodevelopherbusinessfurther:

Ithinkforthenextyear,mystrategywillbethesametotrytokeepmyheadabovewaterandthenrespondtoanydemandaswell,soifIdogetaninfluxofteamsthentobeabletoofferthemsomethingandhavethebackuptodothat,sohavetheinfrastructureyouknowhavetheumpires,havethevenue,haveanadminpersontohelpmeonthenightandthingslikethat.

ReallykeenonbeingpartoftheBICcommunity,Janeexplainedwhyshedecidedto

stayonforanotheryearinBIC:

J:Soit’sallthosereasons,butalsobecauseIdon’tfeellikeI’vegotthefullpotential outof thebusiness yet, so I feel like if Iwas to expand it anymore, if Iwastodothingsdifferently,sotryingtomarket itdifferently,andthingslikethat,IthinkIwanttotapintotheresourcesthatarehere.SoIdon’tfeellikeIcouldnecessarilydoitalone,soevenifIchosenottouse the facility as I do now, I cannot really ever see a time when I

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wouldn’twant tobepart of that community. So I knowweweregivendifferentoptionsforoursecondyear,andIthinkifitcomestonextyear,and you know, if I feel I can set up an office at homewhere I’mmoreproductiveetc.IthinkIstillwanttobepartofthisplaceasacommunityandtogetthoseemailsandthingslikethat.

6.3.3Ian’sexperience:BICasaphysicalandsocialspaceBusiness ideas: socialnetworkingevents (SNE/ Ian1)andhypnotherapyand

wellbeing(HW/Ian2)

Summary: Ian’s first business was to promote bands and club nights. He had to

purchase printing products to promote the business, butwas not happywith the

products and services. Recommended by a friend, Ian started his own printing

company,threeyearsbeforeenteringBIC.Hewasworkingonapart-timebasisfirst

untilhisemployerfoundoutandhehadtoresign.Thenhestartedtoworkfull-time

for the printing business. At the same time, he also started a business services

companyandamusicequipmenthiringservice.Ianrecruitedabusinesspartnerfor

theprintingbusinessbeforecametoBIC.Howeverhispartnerhadsomeproblems

andtheprintingbusinesswasnottrading.

Ianandhispartnerhadbeentoalotofnetworkingeventsbutwerenothappyabout

them.WhentheysawthefacilitiesinBIC,theythoughtthatitwasaverygoodvenue

forholdingnetworkingevents.Withtheirownsubstantialexperienceascustomers

ofnetworkingevents,Ianandhisbusinesspartnerthoughtthatwiththefacilitiesof

BIC,itwastherightopportunityforthemtostarttheirownnetworkingevents.The

eventstheyhostedinBICwerewellreceived,howevertheywerefreeofcharge,as

no onewould attend these events if theywere not free. Nevertheless Ian viewed

theseeventsasanopportunityofmeetingnewpeopleandsellingproductsfromthe

printing business. The talks and networking events brought other entrepreneurs

fromtheregiontoBIC,someofwhichthenconvertedtoapplicantsandtenofthem

joinedBIC.Ianmentionedthatalthoughthemanagementcouldnotcontributetothe

development of his business ideas, they were very helpful in organising the

networkingeventsforhim.

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Ian was very interested in hypnotherapy. During his time in BIC, he attained a

diploma in hypnotherapy. He used university library for his studies. He spoke to

Tony, who was seen as a fellow entrepreneur and a business advisor, about

marketing strategy for the business. Then hewas in the process of building up a

strategicalliancewithpeoplein-andoutsideofBICtoprovidewellbeingservicesto

customers.EnjoyedhistimeinBIC,IanhaddecidedtostayinBICforanotheryear.

HisentrepreneurialprocessinBICisdemonstratedinFigure6.

Figure6-Ian'sBICexperience

Pre-BIC

Hadamaturebusinessidea

ActivitiesinBIC

Discussedtheideawithothertenants

+Needed/likedanofficeenvironment/facility

+UsedthelibraryandotherUKUfacility

↓Spoketoabusinessadvisor

↓Collaboratedwithothertenantsonprojects

Stageofbusinessafterfirstincubationperiod

Notreadytoleave,runningfirstbusiness

+Developinganewbusinessideawithothertenants

Post-BIC

StayinginBICforanotheryear

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Ian’sstory:

Before IancametoBIC,hehadrunsomebusinessesalready.Thebusiness ideahe

brought inwithBICwas unrelated to his previous businesses, butwas associated

withthephysicalspaceBIChad:

Iusedtopromotebandnights,whenIleftmyformeremployerIactuallystartedupthreebusinessesatonce,well threewebsitesreally.Onewas[about business services], onewas [about band services] and the otheronewastodowithPAsystems.WhatIusedtodowasIactuallyusedtohireoutavenue in theMcitywithengineersandwithaPAsystemfortwo bands. I also used to do printing for a lot of bands, like flyers,business cards and things like this … so I think it was probably aboutthreeandahalfyears[beforecomingtoBIC].When I came toBIC, Iwasalready trading,asbusinesses, [oneof themwas]anonlineprintinganddesignstudio.Ialsoformedpartnershipwithmy business partner andwe formed another print company… [but] ithasn’tbeentrading[lately].WiththatSocialNetworkingEvents(SNE)business,wehadnointentionof setting up a networking event, that was just something which wethoughtwemightaswelldotobeperfectlyhonestandsowhenwecameto here we saw what a good state it was and we realised how muchpotential ithad forpeople todonetworkingandtherewasn’tanythinggoingonsowestartedrunningtheseevents,andsuccessfulaswellandso thatwas something that completely evolved frombeinghere, itwassomethingthatwewouldn’thavedoneotherwisesothatwasreallygood.

Not only Ian liked the facility in BIC, it was instrumental for constructing the

businessideaofsocialnetworkingevents(SNE):

Being atBIC has allowedme to have a better presence, I can domorethingsbecauseIusethemeetingroomsquitealotyouseeandIputonquite a lot of talks and events andwith that social networking eventsbusiness (SNE) we had no intention of setting up a networking event,that was just something which we thought wemight as well do to beperfectlyhonestandsowhenwecametoherewesawwhatagoodstateit was and we realised how much potential it had for people to donetworking and therewasn’t anything going on sowe started runningthese events, and successful as well and so that was something thatcompletelyevolved frombeinghere, itwassomethingthatwewouldn’thavedone[withoutBIC]sothatwasreallygood.

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UsingthefacilityinBICgaveIanaprofessionalappearanceforhisbusiness:

Well it’s been goodbecausewithmyhypnotherapies andalsowith themarketing talks we used to use a friends meeting house behind thelibraryandsincewehavegotlikeapermanentaddressandbasicallylikealectureroom,ithasenabledustoputonthesebigtalks–andforfreebecausethere’snocosttous,wellnorealcost,obviouslyit’sintheyearlymembershipbutthere’snorealcosttoussowewereabletoputontheseeventsforfreesoIhavemademoneyoutofit,youknowI’vebeenabletodothesetalksandputthepeopleonandactuallygetnewcustomers,andgetnewclientsoutofitaswellandit’salsomuchmoreprofessionalthanerm,wellIsupposehiringplaceswasokaybutit’snicetohaveyourownactual place where you can invite people to and also I have a lot ofpeople come in formeetings and come in to discuss joint ventures andthings likethatand itsnicetosaytheycancometomyoffice,knowingthat I can book out somewhere, or we can just use the café, well thekitchen…soithasputupaprofessionalimagebecauseIusedtoworkinmybedroomsofromworkinginyourbedroomtocomingandworkinginabigfacilitywithprofessionalprojectorscreens,flipcharts,tablesandakitchenhasbeenreallyreallygood!

WhileinBIC,IandiscussedhisbusinessideaswithTony,afellowentrepreneurwho

wasabusinessmentor,associatedwithMagnoliaConsulting:

He helped me through Magnolia Consulting … he helped me with thehypnotherapy he made me look at it as a real world example and heshowedmehow itwouldworkanddidall thecostingsandshowedmehowitwouldbesothatwasreallyreallyhelpful.…sohetookwhatmyideainbusinesswasandactuallylaiditdownintofiguresandnumbersandactualplans.

Usinghis connectionswithBIC, Ianhiredequipment fromtheuniversityandused

libraryandotherfacilitiestopromotehisbusinesses:

I’veusedthelibraryabit.I’vehiredsomebooksandI’vealsohiredermsomeequipments fromthestudentservicesormediaservices,whateveritmightbe,soIhaveusedthat,…ohinfactoneofthemembersofstaffhasdoneaspeakingeventforusaboutnetworking,Ihaven’treallyusedthe facilities thatmuch, I haven’t been in the library for awhile but IhaveusedthelibrarytoputflyersinandstufflikethataswellfortalkswhichIhavedoneheresoIwouldn’thavenecessarilyusedthefacilitiestothebestextent.

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InBIC,Ianstartedhissecondbusinessidea,whichwasabouthypnotherapy.Hewas

buildingastrategicalliancewithanutritionistoutsideofBICandMarkwhowasa

fellowtenantinBIC.AsIanexplains:

I’mdevelopingsortof‘strategicalliances’…soIamteamingupwiththenutritionistasandalsoapersonaltrainer–MarkfromBICandwearegoingtodosomeworktogether…Markcametooneofoureventshereandsigneduptocomeandworkherewhichisgood. SohopefullyIamgoingtodosomeworkwithhimandsothestrategicallianceisthatIamlookingtoworkoffotherpeople’smailinglists[fromthenutritionist]…andallthewomanaregenerally lookingforconfidenceandmotivationandthesekindsofthingswhichIcanobviouslyhelppeoplewithandthenthere’s a personal trainer, a nutritionist, so they all go hand in hand…Like a whole package so that’s what I am working towards at themomentandthat’swhatIamgoingtobedoingfortherestofthemonthsettingup,hopefullygettingthewebsitedonethisweekandsettingup,andalsoIamgoingtobeusingthisplacemuchmoretodotalksforlikeNew Years Resolutions which will hopefully involve Mark and thenutritionistbecauseifyouthinkaboutwhatNewYearsresolutionsreallyaretheyareusuallytodowithfitness,wealthorhealthkindofgoalsandsoMarkwillbeable to tellpeopleabouthowtokeep fitnessgoalsandhealthgoals,thesamewiththenutritionistandI’llbeabletotellpeoplehowtogetthecorrectmindsetandthenfromthatwearegoingtotakeclientsbecausewearegoingtoinviteallourclientbases,andwe’lleitherusethemeetingsuite,ifwegetmorepeoplewe’lljustdoitouthere,useeven more space and it will be a good place to exchangecustomers ,exchange clients, exchange leads and it won’t costmuch toputonaneventfor45minutesanditallgoeshandinhand…sotheyarethe things I am working towards and that’s kind of my strategy is towork with people who already have client bases and also to do jointventures with similar types of businesses that would have a strategicpartnershipwith.

HavingbeenabletointroducenewtenantstoBIC,theBICmanagerMartincharged

Ianthesamerentasoffirstyear’s.IanreallylikedthefacilityofBICandthesocial

interactionshehadwithothertenants:

I likethefacilities,I likebeinghere,Igenuinelylikebeinghereandyouwill find me here most days, I signed up as soon as it [BIC] becameavailable,Ilookedaroundtheplacewhenitwasstillbeingbuilt(laughs)Iwasdesperatetogetin…andifIdidn’tworkhereIcan’tjustifypayingforanoffice,aproperservicedoffice…[Therentforsecondyearentry]hasn’tbeenraised[forus],wehaveworkedsomethingoutwithMartin[theBICmanager],becausewedo thenetworkingwehaveworkedoutourratestostaythesameasthefirstyearbecausewehaveintroduced

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about tenpeoplewhohave joinedupsowehaven’t lostout (laughs)…but youknow it pays for itself veryquickly because if Iwant todo theevents,thespeakingeventsandstuffandifIdon’thaveabasetodoitinthenIcan’tdothem,orIwillhavetopaytousesomewhereandIliketohavethecitycentreaddressandIlikethecommunityelementofitandIliketoworkwithpeopleandIlikecominginandtalkingtopeopleandIcameintodayandit’sreallybusyandoverthelasttwomonthsit’sreallyreallypickedupwhichisreallygoodbecauseeveryoneisreallyniceandIlike that and everybody eats at 1 o’clock and stuff and goes out onmonthlymealssoit’sreallygood.

6.3.4Tony’sexperience:BICasatalentpoolBusinessidea:lifecoachingandbusinessadvice(LCBA)

Summary:attheageof14Tonystartedacarwashingbusinessanditwasthensold

for £50. He started his first marketing company with friends when he went to

university.Thecompanysoldenvironmentalfriendlyproducts.Howeveritwasnota

popular ideaat that timeandwasdifficult toattractnewcustomers.Asa result it

wasstoppedandsoldafterfouryears.Tonythenstartedadifferentcompanywith

twofriends.Thiscompanyprovidedservicesineventsmanagementandmarketing,

whichwassoldthreeyearslater.Tonyspottedabusinessopportunitywhenhewas

one of the first scholars on the NES (New Entrepreneurship Scholarships)

programme.HefoundthatthemarketingsectionforNESusedstrategiesforlarger

organisation,whereasNESisagovernmentinitiatedprogrammetailoredfornascent

entrepreneurs fromdeprivedareas.He thendidmarketing forNESand started to

runworkshopsfortheNESscholars.

InspiredbyanarticleinTimesMagazine,TonytravelledtoAmerica,tobetrainedto

bea lifecoach,whothenstartedLCBA,whichprovidedtrainingservices indating,

lifecoachingandbusinessadvice.WhenTonyenteredBIC,hestartedLCBA,withno

business partners. Nevertheless, he was planning to re-name LCBA to Marketing

Advice (MA),withinamonthafter the interviewwasconducted.Thedate training

serviceswasnotverysuccessful,thereforetoprepareforMA,Tonywasgoingtosell

hisdatetrainingbusiness,buttokeepthelifecoachingandbusinessadviceservices.

Tony was also going to have four business partners, three of which were fellow

entrepreneurshemetinBIC.OnebusinesspartnerwoulddealwithWebissues,one

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wouldbeinchargewithsalesandthethirdonewouldbeaprojectmanager.Tony’s

fiancé would be the fourth partner, who would help with the legal and financial

issues.

AsanassociateofMagnoliaConsulting,anenterpriseservicesandconsulting firm,

Tonyactedasamentor,formallyandinformally,forsomeBICtenants,helpingthem

withmarketingstrategy.TonyhadbeenamemberofBICforseventeenmonthsand

hehadpassedhissecondyearentryinterview,beforethisinterviewwasconducted.

Duringhis secondyearentry interview,hementioned thathehadsetupbusiness

targetsatthebeginningofhisincubationperiod.Hehadplannedtohelp100small

businesses and to have three private clients. The targetswerewell reached as he

helped187businessesandprovidedservicestosixprivateclients,oneyearafterhis

incubationtime.TheturnoverofLCBAwas£27,000,comparedto£0whenhemoved

into BIC. Despite this big success, Tony had planned to sell one of the daughter

companieswhichprovideddatetraining.FurthermoreTonyreportedthatMAwould

developnewproductstothemarketsbybroadcastinghisworkshopsonline,witha

subscription charge. He believed that this e-strategy will help him to reachmore

potentialclients.Figure7demonstratesTony’sincubationprocess.

Tony’sstory:

TonycameintoBICwithamaturebusinessidea:

Originally,whenIcametoBIC,ayearandabitagothe ideaoriginallywascalledLifeCoachingAndBusinessAdvice(LCBA).Ihavemainlybeendoinglotsoflifecoachingworkwithalittlebitbusinessadviceandthatisdevelopedfromthen,verymuchmorebusinessadvice,ratherthanlifecoaching, because life coaching is a very saturatedmarket. The datingsideofstuffhasgonewellbutmoreofkindofhobby,soIwasgonnabeteachingaboutattractionandpsychologyandthings,it’squitefun.

He enjoyedhaving social interactionswithothers inBIC anddiscussed ideaswith

othertenants:

Well,becauseit’saquiteopenspace,andbecausepeopleare,youknow,bumpintopeopleandtalktopeople,that’showImanagedtomeetDavidsomuchandthat’showIgettomanagetogettoknowmostpeopleI’mworkingwith,it’sjustbybumpingintopeople.

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Figure7-Tony'sBICexperience

TonylikedtheofficeenvironmentandusedBICtorunworkshops:

Theothernicethingisifyougot,Ithinkit’sjustchangedthewaythatIwork, because…when youareworkingat home, you canbe very veryblinkedatwhatyouaredoing,andyou justkeepgoingkeepgoing… I[also]usedBICfortheworkshops…This little room is really helpful, sowe draw the stuff, and because it’shot-desking, you can basically meet a lot more people. You know, BICitself will become too small for this business, and hopefully relativelysoon,butwithoutit,itwouldreallyexist.

Pre-BIC

Hadamaturebusinessidea

ActivitiesinBIC

Discussedtheideawithothertenants

+

Likedtheofficeenvironmentandfacility

+

Workedforothertenants

↓Hadothertenantsworkingonprojects

Stageofbusinessafterfirstincubationperiod

Originalbusinessonhold

↓Startingupanewbusinessideawithothertenants

Post-BIC

Stayingonforanotheryear

88

AccordingtoKelly,asafellowtenant,Tonyhelpedotherstogrowtheirbusinesses

byintroducingthemtootherSMEsandaskingthemtoworkforhim:

Ihave,asaresultofBIC,collaborated looselywithTonyandhe isverygood at roping people in to help himwith different things so in someways it helps people kick start into doing things and he has got meinvolvedindoingthePRsideforhisbusinessandhehasgavemeaclientHair Sense so I have been trying to drum up PR for them and also IrealisedwhilstIwasdoingmyMastersthatsomehowIstillhadtomakeabitofmoneysoIthoughtwhydon’tIdosmallgraphicdesignprojectsbecause I have that skill so that’s how my business has grown abit…[Kelly]

As an associate of Magnolia Consulting, an SME consulting service that often

deliveredprojectsonbehalfofthegovernment,Tonyprovidedbusinessmentoring

servicetofellowtenants,bothformallyandinformally,accordingtoIanandAlex:

Ian: He helpedme throughMagnolia, ohwemet atMagnolia actuallybuthehelpedmewiththehypnotherapyhemademelookatitasarealworld example and he showed me how it would work and did all thecostings and showed me how it would be so that was really reallyhelpful…wewent throughGoogleAdWords,wewent through SearchEngine Optimization, we went through my website and why it wasn’tworkingandalsonotcashflowbuthowmanysalesIwouldneedtogetper month from what advertising … Yeah basically this is how manyclients youwouldhave to see perweek tomake this amount ofmoneyper year so he did it all out on a big blackboard or whatever, a bigsqueakyboardthingandshowedmeyoucando thisadvertisingand itwillcostthismuch,thisishowmanyclientsyoushouldget…sohetookwhatmyideainbusinesswasandactuallylaiditdownintofiguresandnumbersandactualplans.Alex:TonymademethinkmoreabouthowIcouldusethefacilitiesandresources at UKU to help me build it and other things that might begoingonlikeMediaCityandsoonanditwasgood.

InBICTonymodifiedhisoriginalbusinessideaandwasabouttostartanewventure

withothertenants:

Well,basicallyMarketingAdvice(MA)developedbecauseI’mworkwithMagnolia Consulting, so through Life Coaching And Business Advice(LCBA), I got a contract with Magnolia, now by getting that contractwithMagnolia, I’ve learnt lotsofmoreaboutthetenderingprocessandabout how to get money out of the government. I know where the

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opportunities are, really. And that’s why I’m at a very very strongpositionnowwithMA,whichwasn’tbefore.IrealisedifIcouldgetagroupoftalentedpeopletogether,andtherightpeople and rightmotivation, we can then really revolutionise the waythat business is taught ... and even with the NES, that was the samereason,sothat’swhenIrealisedamarketingopportunity.

HavingbeenatenantofBICfor17months,Tonywasalreadyinhissecondyearof

incubation.HeexplainedthereasonswhyhestayedoninBICforanotheryear:

ItwaswhenIlistentoNeil’speech,I’verealisedactuallyit’snotjustthesocial side of it, it’s themotivation side of it, but also it’s meeting theright people. And as soon as I openedmymind, the possibility thatwecanmeet,youknow,therightpeople,soIthenmetalltherightpeople.Ithinkthey[Tony’sbusinesspartners]alreadystayedhere,theyalreadywerehere,Idon’tthinktheywannamove,andIdon’twannamovethem,youknow, I’mhappytomovedownstairs, if theopportunityarises,andit’sniceenoughthanIwilldo,butalsowouldn’tyouknow,attheendoftheday,theseguys[BICtenants]gavememyfirstclients,theyaregoodpeople,UKU…Istillhaven’tusedUKUenough,basicallyformetoleavenow. I’ve got lots lots contacts here, so I wouldn’t want to leave yet,before Imanagetoutilise thestrengthandpowerofUKU,becauseas Isay,asabrand,asauniversitybrand,youknow,youcouldn’treallysittoa better one anyway forwhat I’m trying to do, I’mnot trying to teachpeoplehowtobecomebetterentrepreneurs,andUKUistryingtoteachme how to become better professionals, or youmightmove those twothings togetherand that’s calleda tastypackage. I knowyou can takethatovertoyouknowplacelikeChina,andstuff,wecanexportthat,butIdon’t think I canexport thatunderMA,but I couldexport thatunderUKU,becauseit’sbetterwellknown.

6.3.5Paul’sexperience:BICasarepositoryofresourcesBusinessideaI:onlinefoodspecialist(OFS)

BusinessideaII:digitalpublishing(DP/Jeff-Paul,togetherwithJeff,see

AppendixXIII,caseno.10)

Summary:PaulaimedtobecomeanentrepreneurwhenhewasstudyingGeography

at auniversity.He combinedhispersonal interests, knowledgeand skills together

and formed the first business idea which was to sell environmentally friendly

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products online. This idea was also based on the research he conducted and his

personalexperienceinbuyinggreenproductsonline.

WhenPaulsignedupforBIC,heplannedtogrowonlyonebusinesswhichwasOFS.

NinemonthsafterhewasinBIC,heofficiallystartedDigitalPublishing(DP)withJeff

and another tenant. Paul and his business associates started to have the idea of

writingdigitalmanualsforstudentswhiletheywerestudying.Asusersthemselves,

theyspottedaneedinthemarket.Jeffandhispartnersconductedquantitativeand

qualitative studies with the potential users and found that writing easy-to-use

computermanualsandpublishingthemonlinecouldbeagoodbusinessidea.

Despite having had personal experience as a digital green food shopper, Paul

mentionedthat theOnlineFoodSpecialistbusiness(OFS)wasahighriskbusiness

becausehewasnot familiarwith the industryand that thebusinesswasatavery

early stage. He rated DP as a medium risk business because they did not have

specificindustryknowledge.PaulfoundthathisskillscomplementedJeff’sandthat

heenjoyedworkingwithJeff.Aftermonths’negotiationwithJeff,Paulwasbecoming

adirectorandshareholderofITServices(ITS),abusinessthatwasstartedupbyJeff.

Paul viewed ITS as a low risk business which generated some income. He also

viewedhavingskilledandresourcefulpeopleaspartnersveryimportant.

Paul believed that to become a successful entrepreneur, he still had a lot of

knowledgegaps to fill in.Asa tenantofBIC,hecontacted thebusinessschooland

wasable to sit in someMaters’modules for free.Hebelieved thatattending those

classeswereusefulindevelopinghisbusinesses.

Paul found that the incubatees were very supportive to each other and that he

learnedalotofthingsfromotherincubatees.Hementionedthatbeingabletohave

theaccesstothehumancapitalinBICwasveryimportantforhisbusinesses.Healso

believed that staying in BIC would save costs compared to moving out. He had

decided to stay on for another year in BIC. Figure 8 illustrates Paul’s incubation

process.

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Figure8-Paul'sBICexperience

Paul’sstory:

PaulcametoBICwithalessdevelopedbusinessidea:

Before I came to BIC I did a Master of Enterprise in EnvironmentalInnovation, so I got an idea that I wanted to sort be an entrepreneurafter I had finishedmy first degree and so but I also wanted to get a

Pre-BIC

Hadalessdevelopedbusinessidea

ActivitiesinBIC

Discussedtheideawithothertenants

+

Likedtheofficeenvironmentandfacility

+

Usedthelibrary,StudentsUnion,CareersService,free

classes,andotherUKUfacility

+

Learnedskillsfromothertenants

↓Spoketoabusinessadvisor

↓Collaboratedwithothertenantsonprojects

↓Developingtwootherideas

Stageofbusinessafterfirstincubationperiod

Developingfirstideafurther

+Developing/runningtwonewbusinessideaswithother

tenants

Post-BIC

Stayingonforanotheryear

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Mastersdegreeaswell so Idid theMastersofEnterprisedegreewhichwaskindof,wellhalfof itwasresearchandhalfof itwasbeingtaughthowtodevelopabusinessplanandhowtoevaluatethemarketanddoafeasibility studyandat the endof that I had touse the research that Ihad done and the stuff I had been taught to write a kind of piece ofresearch and then an extended business plan on how to sort of exploitthatpieceofresearchsoyesitsaboutsixmonthsintothatprocessthatIheard about BIC and came and did my interview and then once Igraduated I moved in here to start sort of exploiting that piece ofresearchthatI'ddone.

Hebelievedthatbeing inBICgavehimtheextravaluetohisbusiness,ashecould

discusshis ideaswithother entrepreneurswhowere like-mindedand supportive.

Paulalsomentionedthathefoundusefulinformationandcontactswhenspeakingto

fellowtenants:

YeahImeanthekindof thingwas, say if Iexplainedmy ideatopeopleoutsideofBICthentheywouldsaywhydoyouwanttodothatwhenyoucanjustgetagraduatejobandbeearninglotsofmoneyorwhywouldyouwant todo that, itmightnotworkand that typeof thing,becausetheycan’t seewhat I canseeand theycan’t see theopportunity that isthere to be exploited, whereas if you have the same conversationwithpeople in BIC then immediately because they can see the opportunitystraightaway… say for example youaredoinganonlinebusinessandthisiswhereyouwanttogetto,theywillunderstandwhereIamcomingfromandthenstarttoaddtotheideaorsayhaveyouthoughtaboutthisor thiswouldbeagoodbusinessmodel touseor theseare reallygoodcontactsandyoushouldgoandspeaktothesepeopleortheymightsaythey have experience in this and thatmight not be the bestway to goaboutdoingitbutadifferentwayworkedforthem,andthat’sthekindofthing, they add extra value to your business idea by giving you extrainputwhichpeopleoutsideofBICarelesslikelytogiveyoubecausetheythinkinadifferentwaysoyeahIthinkthosearethetwo…

PaullearnedusefulinformationandskillsfromotherBICtenants:

There’sprobablyathirdwaythatbeingaroundpeopleinBIChelpsandthat’s that everyone has an area of expertise that is different so theamountofinformationyoucanpickupfrompeoplewhichyouwouldn’tusually pick up is massive because there are web designers, webdevelopers, online retailers in here, recruitment agencies, legalconsultants,bookkeepers,youknowthereissomebodyinherewhohassome kind of experience into almost all aspects of the business andmarketingandallthatkindofstuffsoIthinkwhenyouaddthosekindofthreefactors’beingaroundotherpeople,havingthemaddtoyourideas

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andbeingabletoaccesstheirknowledge,skillsandexperiencethenthatmakesBICareallyreallyvaluabletooktohelpyoudevelopyourbusiness.

Paul liked the office facility in BIC, for a number of reasons: not being isolated,

having the access to office equipment with low cost and having a credible

appearanceforhisclients:

Ithinkhavingaplacetocomeisimportant,Ithinklotsofpeoplewhoarestartingout,especiallyiftheyaregraduatesandalreadyhavequitealotofdebts so theydon’thave toomuchmoney to invest into thebusinesstheotheralternativewouldbetoworkfromhomeandItriedthatforacoupleofmonths tobeginwithand Idon’t think it’sanywherenearasproductiveashavingaplacetocomeandwork,Ithinkintermsofyourmindsetitismuchbettertocomeawayfromwhereyousortofsocialiseand spend your spare time and go somewhere different which youassociatewithworkinghardanddoingbusiness–especiallyifthatplacehas thekindof facilities thatyouhavegotheresohavingaccess to themeetingroomsandthekindofnetworkingareas,fromapersonalpointofviewthatisverygoodwhenyouaresettingupyourbusinessbecauseit’s the kind of resources youmight not have otherwise and I think it’salsouseful,ithelpsyouwhenyouaredealingwithcustomersorexternalbodiesthatyouwanttomeet withbecauseitsmuchmoreprofessionalto come toaplace like thisandhaveameeting room to sitdownwithandhaveaccesstotheprojectorandthingslikethatanditwouldn’tbeeasyifyoudidn’thaveaccesstothosefacilitiessoIthinkfromapersonalpointofviewtomakesurethatyouworkhardandthatyoufocuswhenyouareatworkisimportantanditsimportantthatwhenyoumeetwithotherpeople youwant topresentaprofessional sort of image toand Ithink its also useful to have access to the internet, the computers theprinting, filing cabinet and those types of things which allow you todevelopyourbusinesswhereasifyoudidn’thavethosethingsitwouldbemoredifficult.

Similartowhatothertenantsexperienced,Paulbelievedthatthebusinessadvisors

were useful in helping with the generic business knowledge and referring the

tenants to other advisors, but were not very helpful in terms of very specific

businessknowledge:

I think it’s very depending on who you speak to, I think some of theadvisorsreallydoknowwhattheyaretalkingaboutandtheyarereallyusefultospeakto,others...wellIthinkthisappliesrightacrosstheboardtoallbusinessadvisorsbutIthinksomearen’treallyqualifiedtospeakauthoritativelytospeakaboutwhatthey’readvisingonsoIthinkthatonthefewoccasionswherewehavespokentoanadvisorwhoIdidn’treallythink they understoodwhatwewere talking about, for example I had

94

been to the library and read up on some of the laws to do withdirectorship and shareholdings… yeah so the two hours in the libraryprovidedmewithmoreknowledgeaboutwhatweweregettingadviceon than the advisor did so I think that’s not always the case but itsprobably the case with all business advisors its the same as I haveexperienced the same when I have sought advice from other businessadvisorsoutsideofBICthatsometimestheyarenotveryknowledgeableif you ask them a specific question, they can give you sort of generalbusinessadvicewhichisusefulwhenyouareattheveryveryearlystageof settingupbutas soonas youdevelop someexperience yourself theyhavelesstoofferintermsofvaluableadvicebecausetheycanonlyreallyadviseyougenericallyandcannotgiveyouspecificdetailsbutonethingthatwasusefulwassomeoftheadvisorshavebeenabletointroduceusto their network of contacts so if they weren’t able to answer thequestionthentheyreferredustosayaccountantsandsolicitorsandthattypeofthingwhohavebeenabletoofferusfreeadviceaswellsothat’sbeenuseful.

As a graduate entrepreneur, Paul felt that he had gaps to fill in terms of specific

business knowledge and experience.Heused the connectionofBIC to sit in other

classestaughtinthebusinessschoolandusedthisopportunitytogainaccesstothe

knowledgetheacademicsandotherclassmateshad:

I thought itwould be valuable to sit on some of themodules from thebusiness school as a MA and practicing management and MSc inleadershipinsomeofthemoduleswouldbeusefulforpeoplelookingtobecome sort of entrepreneurs because you do have to manage yourbusiness and be a leader and things like that so I have independentlycontactedstaffandIhavebeenallowedtositinontheirmodulesforfreebecauseIamhereatBIC.Havingaccesstoacademicswithspecificknowledgewasusefulbecausetheycouldobviouslylendtheiradvicetothebusinessandalsotheywereabletosortofsuggestothersourcesofinformationandthingslikethatand then Iguess likealsohavingaccess to someof the studentson thecourses because when I went to the MA in Practicing Managementlectures...alotofthestudentswhoweretherewerealreadymanagersinbusinesssoIwasabletoaccesstheirknowledgeandexperienceaswellas the academics who were teaching the modules so that was reallyuseful and I think being able to pick up that extra input is importantwhenyouareauniversitygraduatewithoutanyexperiencesoIthinkifyou are going to be a successful entrepreneur who is a universitygraduate you have to be quite honest with yourself in admitting thatbecause you don’t have experience there are very large gaps in yourknowledgewhich have to be filled somewhere and have to be filled as

95

quicklyaspossiblesoIthinkhavingaccesstoacademicsattheuniversitywho can help you fill those gaps is really important, both in terms ofdeveloping yourself as an entrepreneur and also developing yourbusinessideassothattheyperhapsaremorerealisticandmorelikelytobeeffective.

PauldidnotonlyusehisconnectionswithBICtoattendclassesforfree,healsoused

CareersServicesandtheStudentsUnionfromUKU.TheStudentsUnionparticularly

helpedinmarketinghisbusinesses:

IhaveusedtheBusinessSchoollibrarytotakeoutbookstoreadandI'vegot advice from the Careers Service because Iwanted to get advice onhowfollowingasortofentrepreneurialcareerpathtobeginwithwouldimpact my likelihood of getting a job later on in life if that’s what Iwanted todo so thatwasuseful togetadvice fromtheCareersServiceand also advice on how to get a part-time job and get an income tosupportmewhilstIamdevelopingthebusiness,wehavealsohadlotsofhelpfromtheStudentsUnionwhohavebeenquitesortofkeentohelpusdevelopourbusinessandthetwostudent-focusedbusinesses;thedigitalpublishingcompanyandtheITsupportservices,sotheyhavegonewellbeyondwhatwethoughttheywouldbeabletoofferuskindofintermsof giving us space to set up a computer drop-off pointwhere studentscometousandgetadviceandthings like thatandhelpinguswithourmarketing quite extensively by sending out e-mails to all the studentswithintheuniversitytellingthemabouttheserviceweoffer.

PaulcametoBICwithonebusinessideaandhewasstilldevelopingtheideafurther.

Atthesametime,hestartedtocollaboratewithothertenantsofBIC.Hewasstarting

upa secondbusinessand joininga thirdone thathadalreadybeenestablished in

BIC:

[I] was going to be an on-line retailer of environmentally friendlyproducts so that’s why I initially came here to do that but then afterbeing here for just over a year I am actually now involved in threebusinessessoIamstillworkingonthe initial ideathatIhadbutthenIhavealsostartedadigitalpublishingcompanysowithtwootherofthetenantshereatBIC–wearewritinge-booksforuniversitystudents.

Benefitingfromthephysicalspace,andthefinancialandsocialresourcesBIChadto

offer,PaulhaddecidedtostayinBICforanotheryear:

Ithinkforanumberofreasons,firstlypurelypracticalinthatitcantakelonger than 12 months to set up a business to the point which it issuccessful enough tomove somewhere else and that’s both in terms of

96

financialsuccessandalsoforthecompanytogrowsignificantlyenoughsoyoudon’tneedaccesstotheresourcesandthepeopleandthingsthatyouhavehereandIalsothinkIwouldliketo,wellIwouldn’tliketomoveoutofBICbutIcanseeitwillhavetohappenoncethebusinessesgettoacertainsizebecauseweare lookingtobeexpandingwitheachof thesebusinesseswithinthenext12monthsandthatcouldmeanthatatsomepointwearegoingtohavetomoveoutandsetuppremisessomewhereelsebutuntilthatpointwearemuchmorelikelytosucceedinbusinessifwecanstayhereuntilwegettothatpointIthinkandnotmoveoutandincur the extra financial costs and complications and I think what Iwould say is that the most valuable thing BIC has to offer is thecommunity on the human capital side, even if we have to move outbecausewe grow toomuch and have premises elsewhere, I would stillliketohaveaccesstothecommunityherebecauseIwouldn’tliketolosethevalue that that creates formybusinesses, justbecause I’mgrowingandhavetomoveout.

6.3.6Kath’sexperience:BICasadriverofentrepreneurialspirit

Businessidea:childcarevouchersmanagement(CVM)

Summary:witha fatherandasister inself-employment,Kathbelievedthat itwas

natural she was also in self-employment. Kath was a school teacher before she

startedachildcarebusinesseightyearspriortocomingintoBIC.Shementionedthat

shewasalwaysdifferentthanotherteachers, inaninnovativeandentrepreneurial

way.Kathranaportfolioofbusinesses,includingnurseries,out-of-schoolclubsand

holidayclubs.Shenoticedthatchildcarevoucherswereoftenusedbyparentsinher

nurseries.Despiteofmanyattemptsoffindingoutmoredetailsofthevouchers,Kath

didnotknowhowthechildcarevouchersystemworked.Shethendecidedtohave

thebusinessideaofchildcarevouchersonhold.

About four years later, Kath attended an event, which was held in BIC. The

entrepreneurial and buzzing atmosphere of BIC made Kath thinking of starting

anotherbusiness.Shethenpickedupthechildcarevoucheridea,whichsheputon

hold fouryearsago. Shedecided tobecomeaBIC tenantand spendmore timeon

studyingthechildcarevouchersystemwhilerunninghernurseriesandclubsatthe

same time. Kathmentioned that the core of the businesswas to set up an online

system,whichwouldbeeasytouseforvariousvouchers.Sheneededaspecialistto

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design a system and a website for her business. She then asked people in- and

outsideofBICandsubcontractedthewebsitetoaformerincubatee.

Figure9-Kath'sBICexperience

Asaverybusyentrepreneur,KathwasveryhappytohaveaspaceinBIC,thoughshe

hadahomeoffice.ShementionedthatbeinginBICenabledhertodelegateworkto

her manager and to only concentrate on developing the Childcare Vouchers

Pre-BIC

Hadalessdevelopedbusinessidea

ActivitiesinBIC

Runningaportfolioofbusinesseswhenstartingup

anotherbusinessinBIC

+

Discussedtheideawithothertenants

+

Likedtheofficeenvironment

+

Hadformertenantworkingonaproject

+

Learnedskillsfromothertenants

↓Spoketotwobusinessadvisors

Stageofbusinessafterfirstincubationperiod

Developingfirstideafurther

+Developinganothernewbusinessidea

Post-BIC

Stayingonforanotheryear

98

Management(CVM)businessonedayaweek.KathfeltthatthetenantsinBICgave

freshperspectivesthatshecouldnotgetanywhereelse,thoughshewasalreadyan

experiencedbusinesswoman,comparedtonewstart-ups.Shewashappytoreceive

comments fromother incubatees especially because theywerenot her employees

andtheygavehonestcommentstoherbusinessideas,whichshefoundveryuseful.

She also found that therewasmuch trust amongst the incubatees,where shewas

abletosharesecretsandideaswithothers,withoutfeelingbeingcopied.Beingquite

entrepreneurialandthoughtthattherewerenotenoughfemaleentrepreneurs,Kath

wasthinkingofanotherbusinessidea,whichwouldbewritinge-booksfornascent

femaleentrepreneurs.Afterayearof incubation,Kathhaddecidedtostayonfora

year inBIC, as she felt that she had benefited fromBIC in terms of networks and

support.Kath’sbusinessincubationprocessisdemonstratedinFigure9.

Kath’sstory:

Interested in the idea of a Childcare VouchersManagement (CVM) business, Kath

hadbeeninvestigatingtheideaaboutfouryearsbeforecametoBIC.Itwasattending

aneventinBICmadeherwanttopickuptheideaagainanddevelopitinBIC:

When I came into BIC for the very first time…wellwhen I had heardabout BIC for the very first time I had had the idea about childcarevouchers forabout threeor fouryearsbutnotbeenable todo itbut itwascomingtoBICthatmademebeabletodothat.Somaybetowardstheendof2004we tried [todevelop the idea]and thenwe left it forawhileandtriedagainabout12monthslatertoinvestigateitallandtryandgetintoitandagainnothingbuttheninNovember2007Iwenttoameeting at UKU about entrepreneurs or innovation or something likethat, something thatattractedmeandoneof theBIC tenantswhohadjust started,Christine, she justgaveaverybrief talk, coupleofminutesjust sayingwhatBICwas about and then the talk happenedand I justthought,‘That’sinteresting’,andIknewIwantedtogotoBICbutatthetimeIwasthinking,'wellwhatcanIdo,'andIwasthinkingmoreaboutonline businesses and it wasn’t until about a week later when I wasdrivingback frommynurseryand I thought, ‘I’lldochildcarevouchersanduseBICtohelpmetodothisthingthatI’vebeenwantingtodoforages'.

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Kathdiscussedherideaswithfellowtenants:

You get your ideas don't you from talking aswell so you talk and youmight develop an idea as you are speaking and if somebody is sayingsomething youmight follow it throughand say, ‘actually yes’, it’s a bitlike coaching, you come out with the idea yourself but you perhapswouldn’thavedoneifyouhadsomebodyhadn’thavetalkedaboutitanddonesomethingoverlunchwhenyoudidn’tknowyouweregoingtotalkaboutthat.

AlthoughKathhadherownofficefromtheotherbusiness,shelikedtocometoBIC

for her CVM business. This helped her to concentrate on developing the new

businessidea,withoutbeingdisturbedbyheremployees:

WhenIaminmyofficeathome,whichiswhereIruntheotherbusinessfrom, I get delayed with everything that is happening there because IhavevariouspeoplewhoworkintheofficebutifIamthereIgetaskedandIcannotconcentrateonwhatIamtryingtodoandsocomingtoBICcompletelyseparatedmefromthatbusiness,Iwouldleavemymanagersin charge, let themdo it, I’dhavephoneofforwhateverand I’mdoingsomething else, somethingdifferent and thatwasa real plus forme tosortofnothavetoworryforadayoranafternoonaboutwhatisgoingoninthatotherbusinessknowingotherpeopleweresortingitbecauseIwasdoingsomethingelse.

KathmadegooduseofthefreebusinessadvisersprovidedbyBIC.Shehadobtained

helpfromChrisaswellasTony,aBICtenantandanassociateofMagnoliaConsulting,

tohelpherwithmarketingstrategy:

IhaveusedChris fromMagnoliaConsultingand thatwas throughBIC,andIamjustabouttostartontheHighGrowthprogramme,IhavebeenacceptedonthatbutIamjustliterallywaitingtofindoutwhoIhavegotbutthatwasthroughBIC.OhTonyaswell,Ihaveworkedwithhim.Chriswasthebusinessadviserand I just said Iwanted somemarketing help so they gotme in touchwith Tony and I think from Chris’s point of view … he gave me someroutestomarket ...IhadacoupleofmeetingswithChrisbuthedoesn’tadvisemenowbutIseehimandhedoesadviseme ifyouknowwhatImean, he’ll probably make a comment like anybody else does but heknowsmoreabout thebusinessbecausehewent into it indetailat thebeginningsoyouknowifIseehimandhejusthappenstobeintherehewillsay,‘Whatareyouupto,what'shappening,’andI’llexplainwhatishappeningandhewillmakecommentsorwhatever…

100

WithTonyIwentonalittlecourse…Ithinkforbothofthemtheywerefree…withTony... IaskedatBICandtheysaidandthenIgot in touchwith him and told himwhat Iwanted andwent round to these officesandhedidaone-to-one so itwasa fulldaycourseandwedid it inanhourandahalf!Itwasfastitwasgood,buthestartedoffquiteslowbuthesaid,‘OhIthinkyou’llmanagethis’soweadjusteditandhesaidI’llgoasfastasyoucangosortofthingbutitwasgoodbecauseIgotalotofinformationtodowithmarketing.

How to develop the information system behind CVMwas the core of Kath’s new

business,afterspendingalongtimeonresearchingit,shedecidedtoletaformerBIC

companytakeonthework:

thepeopleIchose,wellitwasdownto3people–anoutsider,andtheirofficeisveryclosetowhereIlive,theywereverygood,somebodywhoisactuallystillatBICnowandsomebodywhowasatBICbuthaveleftBICandIwentwiththeone’swhoarenotatBICnowbuthavegone,sotheconnectionwasthereandtheyhavedoneit,andtheninadditiontothattheyhavedonethewebsiteaswellandthatwasmainlybecause I thenstartedaskingwhocoulddowebsites–youaskBICandanybodyyoucanspeak to and various names came up and they came up again and Ithoughttheyknowsomuchaboutthesystemtheycandothataswell.

After Kath started up the CVM business, she was already thinking about another

businessidea:

I have got to get the business up and running so I have got to look atmarketingout to clients, I stillwant to lookmoreat onlinemarketing,usingonlinethingsandIsupposemystrategyistoholdback,IhavehadacoupleofpeopleapproachmealreadyaboutwantingfranchisesandIamsoimpatientIamsayingYESbutIneedtodoityessoIcanironoutthemistakesandsayitisreadyforyoutopayfor,becausetheyhavetopayforitforstarterssothat’sastrategy–holdingmyselfbackreally.When I was at UKU I did my dissertation on work/life balance andwomenentrepreneurs…I'vewantedtodoforalongtime,justagainoneofthesethingsonthebackburner, istowriteabookforentrepreneursbecause there isn’t a lot out there for us, so I wanted to write a sortbusiness book but quite a light hearted one, one you would get forChristmas and think, 'oh great do you fancy being your own boss thatsort of thing,' and you read it over Christmas, not a heavy book andreallyintellectualbookbutonewithloadsofgoodideasinit…

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Despitehavingbeenasuccessfulentrepreneur,Kathwaskeenonlearningdifferent

skillsfromothertenants:

HowIlearnfromotherpeople?Wellonareallysimplelevel,IcameintoBIC there were certain things on the computer that I couldn’t do so Iwouldgoandasksomebodyandtheywouldsay,‘comeandsitdownforaminuteortwo,’youknowliterally, ‘haveyougotaminutenow,’ ‘yes,’‘well letmeshowyouthen,’ taptaptap,ohrightthat'showyousendamessagetoalotofpeople,youknowyoungerpeoplethey’retaughtthatat school and we weren’t taught things like that at school becausecomputersweren’tasprevalentwhenIwasatschool,soreallypracticalthingslikethat.Oranapplicationofthings,youcantakewhatsomeonehasjustshowedyou todo inapracticalphysical sensebutalsopeople talkabout, ‘oh Iwenttothismeetingandsomebodysaidsuchandsuchathing’andyoumight actually question that and take that idea and think, ‘I could dothat,’or'thatrelatestomeinthisparticularway,'andyoumightsortofuse it, I mean for example I went to a talk and the person who wastalkingIjustsatthereandthought, ‘Icoulddothis’andthatsortofledmetothinking,‘WhatwouldIneedtobeabletodothat’,…andthathasledmetotherouteofIhaven’tdonethisyetbutIhavegotalistofthingsto do and find out if I can get funding, so sometimes it isn’twhat youexpect…thenyoumighttalktothatpersonatBICandsay,‘DoyouknowIwas speaking to somebody theotherdayand I thought itmightbealittlesidelineforyourbusiness’andthat’swhathappensinthere,peopledothinkabouteachotherandsortofhelpeachother.

Reallyenjoyingthe‘familyfeel’ofBIC,Kathhaddecidedtostayonforanotheryear,

assheexplained:

Forthebenefits Igetoutof itandthecontactsthatIhavemade, IwasgoingtogodownstairsintooneoftheroomsbutIhavemadeadecisionnottodothatbecauseIhavedecidedbecauseofthefamilyfeelandtheway Iwant thebusiness tomove forwardandbecauseof the support Iget… I stillwant tobeatBICandhavecontactwitheverybodyandbepartofitsothat’swhyIamcarryingon.

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6.4Discussion

This chapter presents an exploration of what takes place in the ‘black box’ of

businessincubator(HackettandDilts2008).Inparticularthechapteroffersinsights

into each participant’s incubation process and identifies six distinct pathways

throughaBI.Indoingsoitaddressesresearchquestions1and4(seeSection4.2).

Drawingontherichdata,thischapterhighlightsthelivedinexperienceofindividual

entrepreneursstartingupanddevelopingtheirbusinesses inBIC.This linkstothe

‘development of individuals’ and ‘development of opportunities’ sections on the

conceptual frameworkdeveloped inChapter3(seeFigure2). Italsopresentshow

individual’slearningtakesplaceinaBIsetting.Toaddressresearchquestion1,the

chapterpresentstheactivitiesthat tookplacebefore,duringandafter firstyear in

BIC.Itputsemphasisontheincubationprocessbyexploringthevariouspathways

throughBIC.Byfocusingontheindividualsaswellasinteractionsthattookplacein

BIC,itpresentstheexperienceandprocessofstartingupabusinessinaBI.

To address research question 4, the chapter looks in particular at a number of

aspectsoftheimpactBIChadonthedevelopmentoftheincubateesandtheirideas.

This is particularly articulated through the different ways of how the incubatees

usedBIC to develop their opportunities. It is noted thatBICdidnot only help the

entrepreneursas individuals in theirsilos,butasasocialspace,where individuals

exchanged their knowledge and information and formed partnerships. It is also

interesting to point out that some business ideas only developed because of the

existence of BIC. Moreover not only the resources, including physical space and

mentoringserviceswereuseful,butalsoresourcesthatwerefromawiderrangeof

servicesthatareassociatedwithBIC,suchasthelibrary,classesandsoon.

Althoughrecentstudiesattempttounraveltheincubationprocess(HackettandDilts

2008,2004), this studyproves tobeunique in twoaspects.First, fromasampling

pointofview,thischapterlooksattheincubationprocessfromtheincubatees’point

of view rather than themanagement (Hackett andDilts 2008, 2004;Grimaldi and

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Grandi2005;Hannon2005b;O’Neal2005;LeeandOsteryoung2004;Hannon2003;

Brooks1986),whichisanunder-studiedareainBIliterature.Second,unlikemany

other studies seeking causal relationship between the incubator services &

resources and incubatee performance (Al-Mubaraki and Wong 2011; Zhang and

Sonobe2011;TodorovicandMoenter2010;Xu2010;HackettandDilts2008;Lee

andOsteryoung2004;Hannon2003; Lumpkin and Ireland1988), the study’s rich

data enables a closer and detailed exploration into the interactions between the

incubateesthemselvesaswellasincubateesandtheincubator.Thishelpstobuilda

morerobusttheoryofthebusinessincubationprocess.

ReferringtoareportfromtheNBIA(2008),America’sNationalBusinessIncubation

Association, Todorovic andMoenter (2010, p.28) suggest that studying the tenant

firms’ incubation process is much more important than the incubator facility.

Howevertheybelievethat‘studiesontheincubationprocessaresparse’.Thischapter

pertinentlyprovidesknowledgetorespondtothisgap,withdetailsoftheincubation

process.ThefollowingsectionsdiscussthefindingsoftheBICexperience,including

thesixcasestudiesaswellasallparticipantsingeneral.Keyissuesrisingfromthe

chapter in terms of business incubation are further discussed at the end of the

chapter.

6.4.1PathwaysthroughBIC

Whenlookingatthepathways(assummarisedin

Table 5), Jane was the most distinctive one among the six. She was a novice

entrepreneurandhadareasonablywelldevelopedideabeforecomingtoBIC.Asher

businesswasverysuccessfulandshecouldonlyspendonedayaweektoworkfor

the business, she only grew one business. Similarly to her, Kath was already a

successfulbusinesswoman,owningseveralnurseriesandafter-schoolclubs.Shehad

thechildcarevoucherssystemalongsideofherotherbusiness.Thedifferenceisthat

oncethesystemwasdevelopedandrunning,Kathwasalreadythinkingofthenext

business idea adding to her portfolio, which was to write a guidebook for new

femaleentrepreneurs.

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Table5-TheBICprocessintermsofideadevelopment

Case OriginalideabeforeBIC

TheBICprocessintermsofideadevelopment

Andy webdeveloping same idea, keeping original company and formed a new onewith two

otherBICtenants

Jane sports

management

keepingthesameidea,successful,andthinkingofexpanding

Ian networkingevents keepingthesameidea,andestablishedanalliancewithaBICtenantona

differentidea

Tony lifecoachingand

businessadvice

thinking of selling the coaching business and was forming a new

marketingcompanywithfourothertenants

Paul greenfoodonline developing original idea further and getting involved with two other

businesseswithtwotenants

Kath childcarevouchers

system

developing the idea further and thinking of writing a book as a new

businessidea

BICasanimportantphysicalandsocialspace

Unliketheotherfourentrepreneurs,bothJaneandKathdidnotaddothertenantsto

their businesses. However they bothmentioned on different occasions during the

interviewsthattheyusedBICtodividetheirrolesfromtheirotherwork/business

roles.Theyalsolearnedalotthroughobservingothertenantsandbeingpartofthe

BICcommunity.This isdiscussedfurther inChapter8.AlthoughJaneandKathdid

not form formal strategic allianceorpartnershipwithotherBIC tenants, theyhad

UKUstudent(Jane)orformerBICtenant(Kath)toworkforthem.

BICasatrustedplacetoforgealliances

Theotherfourcasestudieswereintheprocessofforminganewbusiness(Ianand

Tony)orhavealreadystartedupnewbusinesseswithothertenants(AndyandPaul).

UnlikemostofthetenantswhochosetostayinBICforanother12monthsaftertheir

initial incubation period, Andy got to know two other tenants, collaborated with

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themonprojects.Thepositiveexperiencehehadmadehimdecidedtoformanew

company with the tenants. They then moved out as one company and rented an

office space in the city centre,which provided 24-hour access. The new company

thensub-contractedprojectstoAndy’scompanyandheworkedonthetechnicalside

of the business with web development, whereas the other two worked on web

design (the look of a website) and provided marketing consulting to clients.

Thereforeundertheumbrellaofthisnewcompany,theydiversifiedtheservicesand

offered a package of services to clients. Although Andy had left BIC when the

interviewwasconducted,hementionedthathestillwouldliketobeassociatedwith

BICandreceivenewsletters.Thisshowsthatevenforafledglingbusiness,BICwas

stillusefulinprovidinginformationandsocialresources.

Ian’snetworkingeventsbusinessworkedwell if theywere free.However theydid

notbringincomeforIan.Passionateabouthypnotherapy,Ianlearnedandobtained

certificate for it.He then built up a strategic alliancewithMark, a BIC tenant and

someoneoutsideofBICtoofferapackageofwellbeingservicetoclients.AsforTony,

hewasgoing tosellanarmofhisbusiness,whichwas lifecoachingandto forma

new marketing company with four other tenants. He mentioned that the new

companywouldn’texistwithoutBIC,wherehemetallthe‘right’peopleforthenew

business.Similarly,Paul’sinitialbusinessideatookalongtimetotakeoff.Duringhis

time inBIC,heworkedwith Jeff, aBIC tenant.After a fewmonths,hebecame the

partnerof Jeff’sbusiness.At the same,he, Jeff anda third tenantwas settingupa

thirdbusiness,writinganebookforstudents.

BICactedasaresourceharbour for theseentrepreneurs,whose first ideamight

nothaveworkedverywellandneededmoretimetodevelop.Atthesametime,the

entrepreneursinthisharbourlookedforresources(andinthiscase,othertenants),

sothatotherpeople’sknowledgeandskillscouldbeutilisedtoformnewideas.Ina

sense,theseentrepreneursareverygoodatre-organisingresourcesandidentifying

newopportunitiesthattheycouldexploit.

BIC could also be seen as a trampoline, where it cushioned the entrepreneurs

when they fell andbounced thembackwhen theywere ready.WithoutBIC, these

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entrepreneursmighthavegivenupontheirinitialideas,whentheytookalongtime

to develop. Because they formed partnerships with other tenants, which could

potentiallybringthemsomeincome,theyhadtheleewaytodeveloptheinitialidea

further.Althoughsomeparticipantsdidnothavemorethanonebusinessidea,they

mentionedthatwithoutBIC,theywouldhavealreadygivenup.Thiswasmainlydue

tothe‘entrepreneurialcommunity’effect,whichisdiscussedinChapter8.Fromthis

perspective, BIC increased entrepreneurial activities, sustained and enhanced

entrepreneurship.

6.4.2ThephysicalfacilityofBIC

Some findings of the study are consistentwith the literature (Arlotto et al. 2011;

ZhangandSonobe2011;TodorovicandMoenter2010;McAdamandMarlow2007;

McAdamandMcAdam2006;WynarczykandRaine2005)intermsoftheusefulness

ofthephysicalspaceofaBI.Mostofparticipatingtenantsneededorlikedtheoffice

environmentandfacilityinBIC.Thisisalsosupportedbythesixchosencases.Most

tenantsbenefittedfromthecheaprent,theprofessionalcitycentreaddress(rather

thanahomeaddressorPObox),andfeltthatthefacilityenhancedtheircredibility

andprofessionalism.

6.4.3Theshiftfromaphysicalspacetoasocialone

Interestingly,itisnotthecheaprenttheparticipantsemphasised,ratheritwasthe

officeenvironment,whichseparatedtheirworkandlife.Thiscouldalsobeseenas

anenactmentofbeingan‘entrepreneur’ora‘businessperson’,sothattheyfeltasif

they were working, rather than being distracted by working from home. This is

consistentwiththeliterature,andsuggeststhatBICmayplayaroleinincreasingthe

professional identity of the entrepreneurs. The participantswere happy that they

had professional office space to meet business associates and to hold events.

Booking meeting rooms and space without extra charges also encouraged the

tenantstoholdeventsandmeetingsinBIC,whichinturnmadeBICbusierandfilled

with entrepreneurial activities, which again, aggregates entrepreneurialism. This

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shiftsthe‘physical’meaningofaBICtoamorepersonalandsocialoneandmirrors

thefindingsofBøllingtoftandUlhøi(2005)whichsuggestthat inaprivateowned,

networking enabled business incubator, tenants viewed the social aspects as very

important.

6.4.4Instrumentalforbusinessideas

Quitedistinctively,BICwasinstrumentaltothecoreofthebusinessideasforAndy

andIan.InthecaseofAndy,hegottoknowBIGwhenhewasworkingforatenantof

BIC.WhenvisitingBIC,Andyidentifiedanopportunityofconstructingwebsitesthat

weresimplewithminimcosts,whichcouldbespecificallytailoredtobusinessstart-

upsinBIC.Hethenappliedtobeatenantcompany,whocouldmakebusinessoutto

thetenants.

InthecaseofIan,heandhisbusinesspartnerhadbeentomanynetworkingevents

butwerenotparticularlyhappyaboutthem.AftertheyattendedaneventinBIC,Ian

felt that BIC itself was an opportunity for them to set up their own networking

company,wherehe could implementall the improvementshe thoughtof fromhis

ownexperience.Againbecause therewereno extra costs tohold events inBIC, it

savedtherunningcostofthebusiness.Iancouldputoneventsasoftenasheliked,

asfarastherewerenobookingsatthesametime.

6.4.5SocialactivitiesinBIC

As the emphasis of BI studies has shifted from incubator centred to incubator-

incubatee impact centred, more recent literature (Todorovic and Moenter 2010;

McAdamandMcAdam2006;BøllingtoftandUlhøi2005;Hannon2005b;Voiseyetal.

2005) looksat impactofsocialactivitiesandnetworkingonthe incubatees. In line

withtheliterature,mostoftheparticipantsdiscussedtheirideaswithothertenants.

This is also consistentwith fiveof the chosen cases (except Jane).This couldbe a

result of being the only participant (among 20) who possessed all three types of

priorknowledge(markets,customerproblemsandmeanstoservemarkets).Having

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had these types of prior knowledge was a powerful mix, which formed amature

business idea for Jane before coming to BIC. The impact of prior knowledge on

opportunity identification is furtherdiscussed inChapter7.Although Janedidnot

discusstheactualbusinessideawithherfellowtenants,shefeltitwasimportantfor

hertostartupthebusinessinBICasamemberoftheentrepreneurialandbusiness

community. This is also the case for Helen, Paul, Kath and Kelly. Kath is a very

interestingcase.Althoughshehad theChildcareVouchersManagement ideaa few

yearsbeforecomingtoBIC.ItwasonlyattendinganeventinBICmadeherdecided

topickuptheideaagain.Chapter8looksfurtheratthesocialactivitiesinBICasa

learningcommunity.

6.4.6Businesssupport

InBIC,thereweremasterclassesinaccounting,financeandlegalissues.Thetenants

couldalsoapply formorepersonalisedbusinesssupport in the formatofbusiness

advisory andmentoring. According to Rice’s (2002) definition, these personalised

services are the reactive and episodic counselling, in a sense that the tenants

initiatestherequestoftheserviceandthat it isad-hoc,basedontheagreementof

theserviceprovider.

Likethemajorityoftheotherparticipants(8outof14),fouroutofsixchosencases

(Jane, Ian, Paul and Kath) spoke to a business adviser or mentor during their

incubation time. For most participants, the business support service was useful

when the business was at a very early stage, where entrepreneurs needed the

generalknowledgeofstartingupabusiness.Howeverasabusinessgrew,theadvice

was less useful as the advisers did not have enough specific knowledge in the

business or industry. Tony, as an associate of Magnolia Consulting advised some

fellow tenants onmarketing and planning. The tenants used the service generally

founditveryuseful.

ThiscanbeseenasaparadoxofbusinesssupportinaBI.Ononehand,aBIneedsto

runawiderangeofgenericbusinesssupportprogrammeswithalimitedbudget,but

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ontheotherhand,asbusinessesdevelop,specialised,targetedsupportisrequired.It

couldbeviewedasamatterofhowtomanageexpectation,ortobetterunderstand

theneedsofthetenants,inordertoprovideservicesmorepertinently.Tomeetthe

diverse needs of the tenants in terms of business support, rather than having a

number of adviserswhohave similar knowledge in start-ups, aBImight consider

usingabroadrangeofbusinessadvisers,sothatmorespecialistsupportindifferent

topicscouldbecovered.

6.4.7ResourcesassociatedwithBIC

AsamemberofBIC, the tenantswereentitled toaccess to the library, though the

majority of the participants did not take advantage of this. However it is quite

interestingintermsofhowsometenantsutilisedthelinkwithBICtopromotetheir

businesses.Amongtheparticipantswhousedthelibrary,itwasquitecommonthat

they used it to disseminate promotional flyers for the business. Officially having

accesstothelibrarywastheonlyUKUresourcethatwasofferedtotheBICtenants.

However some participants were very entrepreneurial and used their association

withBICtonegotiateandgetsupportfromdifferentdepartmentsofUKU.Mark,for

example got support from HR and he was going to add wellbeing tips to staff’s

payslips.IanrentedITequipmentfromthetechniciansforhisevents.

Paulwasthemostdistinctiveoneamongtheothers.HenegotiatedwiththeBusiness

School and attended classes for free,wherehewas alsobuilding a social network

with local managers who were the students on the course. After he became a

business partner with a fellow tenant Jeff, he spoke to the Students Union, who

helpedtopromotetheirbusiness,whichwastoprovideITsupportforstudents.Paul

evenwent to theCareerServices, toseehowhecouldenhancehisskillsandwhat

careerpathhecouldhave ifhedecidedto look fora job.This inawayprovideda

safetynet,ifthebusinessesdidnotdowellorifheandhisassociateswantedtosell

thebusinesses.

When looking at the link between a university incubator and the resources a

universityhas,extantliteraturetendstofocusonknowledgetransfer.Howeverthis

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is not really the case of BIC. Most participants did not think of contacting any

academicstaffwithintheuniversityinordertocollaborate,norweretheacademic

staff (except one) keen on working with BIC. There was however some linkage

betweenthetenantsandthestudents fromtheBusinessSchool.Someparticipants

hadstudentsworkingonprojects, suchaswebdevelopmentandpresspacks.The

increasing demand of academic staff’s workload, did not give time to seek

collaborationwiththeentrepreneursinBIC.

Much of the BI literature refers to knowledge transfer in science and technology

focusedincubators.AsthetenantsinBICwerenotgenerallyhigh-techstart-ups(see

AppendixXIV,adistributionofallregularusersofBIC(i.e.potentialinterviewees),

usingUKSIC2007StandardIndustrialClassification),itcouldbethathavingsmall,

flexibleandstudentfocusedprojectswithBICwasthebestwayforward.Fromthe

university point of view, the students gain experience inworking for a realmicro

firm, which would still enhance their skills and employability prospect. From the

tenants’pointofview, theysavecostsbyhaving thestudentsworkingonprojects

where they are the experts. It can represent a win-win situation for a business

school. However, the narratives suggest that if universities want to have more

integration and collaboration between an incubator and academic faculties, then

furthersupportwouldbeneededfortheacademicstaff,especiallyintermsoftime

allocationandworkload.

6.4.8Collaborationbetweentenants

Some tenants collaboratedwitheachother, in termsofworking forother tenants,

collaborating on projects, and in extreme cases, forming partnerships and even

startingupnewbusinessestogether.Thisrefutesthefindingsofthestudyconducted

byMcAdamandMcAdam(2006),which isa longitudinalstudyonentrepreneurial

networkingwithinauniversityscienceincubatorinIreland.Theyfoundanumberof

negative aspects of networking such as lack of co-operation, hostility, and

competition. There could be two reasons why such difference exists in the two

studies.First,BIC’s tenantscame fromabroadmixofbackgrounds,acrossvarious

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businesssectors,whereastheincubatorMcAdamandMcAdamstudied(2006),was

a high-tech incubator. This may have created a more competitive atmosphere.

Second, it could be the perception the tenants of BIC have and the values theBIC

communitycreatedthatisverydifferenttotheincubatorinMcAdamandMcAdam’s

(2006)study.BøllingtoftandUlhøi’s(2005)ethnographicstudyinDenmarklooksat

thenetworkingactivityinaBIandtheypointouttheimportanceofpre-creatingthe

perceptionandvaluesofsocialnetworking.Theprivatelyownedincubatorintheir

study emphasised the importance of networking at the selection stage andduring

companies’ incubation period. As a result, the tenant companies had a low failure

rate.Althoughitcanbearguedthattheselectioncriteriaplayedanimportantrolein

thesuccessrate,italsosuggeststhatthefactthattheincubatorstressedthevalues

ofnetworkingandtrustmayhaveplayedanimportantroleinencouragingthefirms

tocollaborate.

Theparticipantsinthisstudyoftenmentiontheword‘trust’,evenwhentheywere

notspecificallyaskedaboutit.Thisaddssupporttothenotionoftrustasthe‘glue’of

networkingactivitiesamongmicrobusinesses(ChellandBaines2000).Mostofthem

recognisedtheimportanceofbeingamemberofBIC. Infactwhenthetenantshad

their selection interview, one of the questions was ‘what can I bring to BIC’ and

many applicantsmentioned that they could bring awide range of knowledge and

skills.This canbe seenasawayof ‘pre-installing’ thenotionofnetworking in the

tenants’mind.TheselectionpaneloftenpointedouttenantsofBICwhohadsimilar

orcomplementaryskillstotheinterviewees.Someparticipantsmentionedthatthey

werethentoldthisinformationagainbytheBICmanagement,whenitwastheirfirst

day at BIC. In such a way, the referral connected the tenants and encouraged

collaborationsinBIC.TheBICcommunityisfurtherdiscussedinChapter8.

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ChapterSevenTheRoleofPriorKnowledgeinOpportunityIdentification

7.1Introduction

ThesixpathwayspresentedinChapter6highlightedanumberofdifferentwaysthat

ideas evolved during the incubation process (see Figure 3 in Section 6.3). In this

chapterIexplorethisfurtherusingtheconceptsofpriorknowledgeandopportunity

identificationasanalyticalframeworks.Theabilitytodiscoveranddevelopbusiness

opportunities is often considered to be among the most important abilities of a

successfulentrepreneur(Politis2005).Anumberofscholarshavepointedoutthat

experiencedentrepreneurshavevaluablepriorknowledgeaboutcontacts,markets,

products and resources that improve their ability to identify and develop

entrepreneurial opportunities (Shepherd et al. 2000;Hudson andMcArthur 1994;

StarrandBygrave1992;Ronstadt1988).Politis(2005)expandsonthistosuggest

that it is the total stock of prior information and knowledge that influence an

individual’s ability to recognise opportunities. This might be prior knowledge of

business start up, but could also include industry specific knowledge as a former

employee or customer and experience of management, where skills such as

leadership, communication or problem-solving have been acquired (Shane 2003).

The interaction between different types of prior knowledge and opportunity has

potential, therefore to provide an insight into theway how businesses developed

duringtheirtimeinBIC.Moreover,itrepresentsanimportantpointofdepartureto

investigateknowledgethatisnewlyacquiredduringtheincubationprocess.

I begin the chapter by discussing how I define an entrepreneurial opportunity.

DrawingonthecasestudiespresentedinChapter6andAppendixXIII,severaltypes

of prior knowledge are identified. The interaction between prior knowledge and

opportunityidentificationisthenexplored.Theanalysisisanchoredtherefore,inthe

literature of both prior knowledge and opportunity identification. The chapter

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concludeswith threeemerging themes,whichareachievedby linking theanalysis

withtheempiricaldataandtheliterature.

7.2Definitionandselectionofentrepreneurialopportunities

Shane and Venkataraman (2000) state that not all recognised entrepreneurial

opportunitiesareexploited.InlinewithShaneandVenketaram’sdefinitionIusethe

wordopportunity torefertoallbusiness ideas includedinthisstudy,regardlessof

whethertheyareexploitedornot.AsdiscussedinChapter3(Section3.2.2),forthe

sakeofsimplification,thewordopportunity isusedheretorefertoentrepreneurial

opportunity. They both imply the identification of new means-ends relationship

ratherthantheoptimisationwithinanexistingorganisation.

There were a total of 20 respondents who mentioned altogether 23 business

opportunities. Three respondents, Ian, Paul and Alex were each developing two

business opportunities. Because Ian and Alex had more than one business when

comingintoorafterenteringBIC,subscriptednumbersareusedinthischapternext

toIan’sandAlex’snames,todistinguishthedifferentopportunitiesandtosignifythe

orderinwhichtherespondentsidentifiedthem.Thishasthebenefitofshowingthe

sequence of opportunities, which in turn presents a contextual story of the

respondents. There is one opportunity, which uses two respondents’ names (Jeff-

Paul). This is because the opportunity was identified and developed by both

respondents.

Usingthesamenamefortherespondentsandtheiropportunitiesisalsoinlinewith

Churchill and Lewis’s (1983) Five Stages of Small Business Growthmodel, which

advocatesthatattheexistencestageofthebusiness(andinthisstudysomeareat

the pre-existence stage), the entrepreneur and the business share one identity. In

ChurchillandLewis’s(1983,p.33)words:‘theowneristhebusiness’.

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SomerespondentshaddevelopedopportunitiesoutsideofBIC,forexamplePhilhad

invested in a tailoring business established by a friend. He played the role of an

investor, with little involvement in the decision making process. Because this

businesswasnotdirectlycreatedbyPhiland thebusinesshad littleconnection to

BIC,itisexcludedfromthestudy.However,itispartofPhil’snarrativeandprovides

aninsightintohisexperienceandinterests.

Shane and Venkataraman (2000, p.219) suggest that ‘entrepreneurship does not

require,butcaninclude,thecreationofneworganizations’.AsdiscussedinChapter3

(Section3.2.2),adoptingadevelopmentviewofentrepreneurshipsuggeststhatthe

foundation of such a process is the idea development, rather than whether an

opportunityisexploited.Itisworthnotingthatthisstudyfocusesontheprocessof

how ideas develop into business, rather than the outcomes or outputs of

opportunities. It explores the process of how prior knowledge and learning

moderate suchaprocess andhowabusiness incubator affects theprocess.Hence

whetherthebusinesseshadbeenestablishedwhentheinterviewstookplaceisnota

decisive factor for including or excluding the opportunity in the study. Therefore

therewere10opportunitiesthatweredevelopingbutthecorrespondingbusinesses

hadnotstartedtradingwhentheinterviewswereconducted.

7.3Priorknowledge

AccordingtoKolb’s(1984)ELT,alearningprocessbeginswithexistingknowledge,

whichisthencombinedwithnewlyacquiredinformationandtransformedintonew

knowledge, and in this context, a new business idea. The notions of perception,

existing knowledge and prior knowledge, suggest that entrepreneurs are

heterogeneous individuals (Alvarez and Busenitz 2001) who have different

experiencesandvaluesandpossessdifferentknowledgeat theveryearly stageof

opportunitydevelopment.Differences inpriorknowledgethereforehaveavarying

impactontheopportunityidentificationandexploitationprocess(Shane2000).This

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section focuses on the first stage of an opportunity development process, namely

howpriorknowledgeplaysaroleinidentifyinganentrepreneurialopportunity.

Sincethemid-nineties,howanowner-manager’shumancapitalaffectssmall firm’s

survivalandgrowthhasattracted theattentionofscholars(Ucbasaranetal.2009,

2008,2006;DavidssonandHonig2003;Dahlqvistetal.2000;Deakins1999;Basu

andGoswami1999;Cooperetal.1994;Brüderletal.1992).Priorknowledgewhich

islinkedtotheasymmetriesofinformationisderivedfromtheAustrianschooland

human capital literature. It emphasises the termknowledge, andmore specifically

thethreedimensionsofpriorknowledge,proposedbyShane(2000).Theyare:prior

knowledge of markets, prior knowledge of means to serve markets, and prior

knowledgeofcustomerproblems.

Thesethreedimensionsofpriorknowledgefromtheliteratureactedasaheuristic

toolwhen I started the first stage of data analysis. I listed all prior knowledge in

relationtoanidentifiedopportunity(seeAppendixXV).Thedefinitionsofthethree

dimensions of prior knowledge were adopted from Shane (2000). Using these

definitionsIinvestigatedtheinterviewdataandlookedforevidenceofwherethese

typesofknowledgeexisted.IthenextractedthemandlistedtheminAppendixXV.

While investigating the beginning of the opportunity identification process, the

domain of personal interests emerged frommy interview data as having a strong

associationwithopportunity identification.This supportsArdichvili et al.’s (2003)

seconddomainofpriorknowledge, called special interest,which refers toanarea

that is described as fascination and fun to the entrepreneurs. Personal interests

playedanimportantroleinsevenopportunities(Ian2,Tony,Neil,Paul,Alex1,Alex2,

and Kelly). It helped to provide an in-depth explanation of why and how some

opportunitieswereidentified.ThusIincludepersonalinterestswhenexaminingthe

impactofpriorknowledgeonopportunity identification.All fourdimensionswere

developedfromthisstage.Thesearepriorknowledgeintermsofmarkets,customer

problems,waysofservingmarketsandpersonalinterests.

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Thesecondstageofdataanalysisexploresrespectivelywhat impactseach formof

prior knowledge had on opportunity identification. I then explored these factors

furtherbycomparingcasesandinvestigatingdeviatecases.AsaresultIfoundthat

in some cases (Helen,Andy, Ian1, Ian2,Nick, Phil, Peter, James, Laura,Alex1,Alex2,

Mark and Karen) only one form of prior knowledge was present when an

opportunity was identified and it was sufficient to explain how it affected

opportunityidentification.Howeverinothercasesitwasacombinationofdifferent

forms of prior knowledge that was present when identifying an opportunity.

Isolatingeachformofpriorknowledgewasnotsufficienttoofferacomprehensive

andcontextualexplanationofhowopportunitywasidentified.

This led to the third stage of data analysis investigating the combination of these

forms of prior knowledge. At this stage, nine different combinations of prior

knowledge were identified and presented. By linking the interview data with

literature,thisstagehelpedtodrawoutthreeemergingthemes,whichidentifythe

impactsofpriorknowledgeonopportunityidentification.

Toillustratethisrichandcomplexdata,quotationsandinformationdemonstrating

the existence of prior knowledge in the opportunity identification process are

presentedinAppendixXV,togetherwithdetailsofpersonalinterests.

7.4Priorknowledge

Among the 20 participants, 11 of them (Helen, Andy, Ian1, Ian2, Nick, Phil, Peter,

James,Laura,Alex1,Alex2,MarkandKaren)hadidentifiedopportunitieswhenonly

one form of prior knowledgewas present. On the other hand prior knowledge of

meanstoservemarketscouldnotactalonetostimulateopportunityidentification.

Thisformofpriorknowledgeneededtobecombinedwithotherpriorknowledgeto

result inopportunity identification.The formofknowledgethat ismost frequently

mentioned is prior knowledge of markets, whether being present as the only

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knowledgeortogetherwithotherknowledge.Figure10demonstratesthedifferent

combinations of knowledge when an opportunity was identified. There are

altogether9differentcombinationsofpriorknowledgeandpersonalinterests.The

followingsectionspresentthesecombinations.

Figure10-Distributionofpriorknowledgeandpersonalinterests

7.4.1Priorknowledgeofmarkets

This section looks into how prior knowledge of markets influences opportunity

identification.AsdiscussedinChapter3(Section3.2.2),priorknowledgeofmarkets

can be information about supplier relationship, sales techniques, or capital

equipment requirements that differ acrossmarkets. Theknowledge canbe gained

through work experience or by being a customer in the particular markets.

Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblems

Priorknowledgeofmeanstoservemarkets

Personalinterests

Helen

Andy

Nick Phil

Peter

Laura

Mark

Karen

Ian1

James

Alex1 Alex2

Ian2

Tim

Jeff

Emma

Kath

Paul

Kelly

Jeff-Paul

Jane

Tony Neil

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Education and personal events are also sources of prior knowledge of markets

(Shane2000).

Box1-Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledge

ofcustomer

problems

Personal

interests

Priorknowledge

ofmeansto

servemarkets

Eight respondents identified opportunities when only prior knowledge of the

marketswaspresent.Theyare:Helen,Andy,Nick,Phil,Peter,Laura,MarkandKaren.

When looking deeper into the interview data and the BIC records about the

respondentsandlinkingthemtotheliterature,twothemesrelatedtotheimpactsof

prior knowledge ofmarkets on opportunity identification became apparent. They

areeducationandbusinessexperience.

Education

Within the dimension of prior knowledge of markets, 5 out of 8 opportunity

identification events are linked to education (Helen, Andy, Nick, Phil, and Karen).

From a human capital and information asymmetry point of view, it increases the

likelihood of success, if entrepreneurs choose an area that is familiar to thembut

maynotbeotherpeople’sspeciality(Ucbasaranetal2008;Peña2004;Shane2003;

Dahlqvistetal.2000;Shane2000;Cooperetal.1994).Itcouldalsobethattheareas

theentrepreneurs chose to studywere the subjects theywere interested inat the

firstplaceandwhentheyidentifiedanopportunity,itwassomethingthatlinkedto

their interests. After conducting a longitudinal study of women entrepreneurs,

Dolinskyetal.(1993)discoveredthateducationhasapositiveeffectontheentering,

staying and re-entering self-employment. In particular Deakins (1999) found that

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educationboostsconfidenceinbusinessstarters.Tostartabusinessinanareathat

is familiar to the entrepreneurs gave them the confidence, or sometimes the

intuition, to identify an opportunity. Therefore, this specialist knowledge attained

from education may have helped entrepreneurs to recognise values in new

informationthatothersdidnotidentify.

TakingHelenasanexample.Sheonlyprocessedpriorknowledgeofmarketswhen

identifying an opportunity, which was to provide environmental sustainability

management and consultancy. Helen’s business ideawas verymuch based on the

degreeshestudied,whichledhertobelievethatalotofworkcouldbeundertaken

intheenvironmentalmanagementconsultancysector,asshedescribed:

IdidaMasterslastyearinEnvironmentalManagementandSustainableDevelopment,and itkindofcameoutofthatreallythatthere’sa lotofworktobedoneinthat.Mybusinessideaisaboutprovidingconsultancyin environment management sustainability and people developmentlinkingthetwotogetherverymuchwiththat.

ThespecialistpriorknowledgeofmarketsHelenhadfromherstudiesprovidedher

with extra knowledge and skills in the field, which helped her to identify an

opportunityinenvironmentalconsultancy:

My ideas are all about promoting collaboration between differentorganisations, and sort of networking and researching, you know,consultation, so I’ve got a few things that I’ve got, an assessment toolthatIdevelopedoffthebackofmyMastersprogramme.Hmm,intermsof, you know, how organisations are doing and compared to bestpractice.

Asymmetryinpriorknowledgenotonlyhelpedtobuildastrongerknowledgebase,

butalsoenabledHelentobemoresensitivetonewideasthanothers,whomightnot

perceive them. This in turn further influenced the process of transforming new

information, and helped to identify opportunities othersmight not recognise. The

use of prior knowledge in this way supports Shane’s (2000) finding that

entrepreneursmay identify an area that is familiar to thembut not to others. As

Helendemonstratesinhernarrative:

Ifyoulookatallthenetworkingclubsandstuff,thatthatareoutthere,theyareall verygeneric andwhen yougoandattend them, youknow

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andyoutalktopeopleaboutenvironmentalsustainability,nobodyeverthinksitreallyappliestothem…

Businessexperience

Businessexperienceincludesbothworkexperiencewhileworkingforanemployer

andexperienceinrunningyourownbusiness.Businessexperienceispresentinall

opportunity identification events in thedimensionof prior knowledgeofmarkets,

suggesting a strong positive influence on opportunity identification.My interview

data indicates that having had business experience in an industry helped

entrepreneurstoidentifyanopportunityinthesamesector.Thisisconsistentwith

the study carried out by Davidsson and Honig (2003). They found that tacit

knowledge,suchasexperienceinsmallbusinesses,enhancesnascententrepreneurs’

ability in identifying opportunities. More importantly, the specific business

knowledge gained from experience gave them insights into how some industries

worked. Having such experience helps entrepreneurs to cope with uncertainties.

Fromtheperspectiveof informationasymmetry (Shane2003), these insightsgave

them the prior knowledge others did not have. This enabled the respondents to

becomemorealerttonewinformation.

In linewiththestudies fromUcbasaranetal. (2009;2008),Politis(2008)believes

thathavingexperienceinsettingupbusinessescanhelpentrepreneurscopebetter

with the uncertainty of new venture creations. The experience is an important

sourceoflearninganditenhancesunderstandingofnewopportunities.Inaddition,

having had specific business experience in the industry where entrepreneurs

identified an opportunitymay be also an indicator that these industrieswere the

areas they were interested in per se. Taking Phil as an example, he had some

experienceofsettinguphisownbusinesses.Similartothethirdbusiness(onlinejob

searching andmanagement) hewas setting up during his time in BIC, both of his

earlierbusinesseswererelatedtoonlinetechnology:

I used to sell those [hats] onEbayand I built it upandhadanon-linestorebutIsoldthatwhileIwasatuniandthatdidreallywellsothat’swhatspurredmeonandIwasatUniversity…thensetupWD,whichisawebdesigncompanythatofferswebdesignsolutionsandthingslikethattovariousclients…WhenIfinisheduniIneverthoughtIwouldworkfor

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myself straight away, I thought I would get a job and then work formyself, I always knew I would work for myself at some stage but notstraightaway,soIlookedforjobsandthat’swheretheideaofOnlineJobSearchandManagementcamein.

Although Phil explained the differences between WD (Web Design) and OJSM

(Online Job Searching andManagement), it is apparent that his knowledge in the

onlineservicebusinesswastransferredfrompreviousbusinesses:

WDisawebdesigncompanywhichoffersbespokewebdesigntovariousclients, erm small to large. Online Job Search and Management iscompletely separateand isanon-line service…andwhilst Iwasdoingthat [runningWD] Igainedexperience in thekindofmarketandknewwhatwasgoingon,differenttechnologiesandhadtheideaofOnlineJobSearchandManagement(OJSM).

Phil’sknowledgeinthedigitalindustrywastransferredandusedtohelphimtoset

up a different business in the same industry. The business experience he had

enabledhimtogaininsightsoftheindustryintermsoftechnology.

It is intriguing to findout thatunlikeotherrespondents in thegroup,Peter,Laura

and Mark did not have education that is linked to their business ideas. Instead

businessexperiencealoneplayedafundamentalroleinidentifyinganopportunity.

Whenlookingcloselyintothesethreecases,allofthemhadextensiveexperiencein

theindustrytheyhavechosentoruntheirbusinessesin.Thishighstockofbusiness

experiencemoderates the lack of formal education in the specific field. Moreover

extensive experience itself could be converted into knowledge to fill the gap in

formaleducation.

Laura:Itwasverymuchlikemyoriginal[job]…soit’sthesamesortofmodel…Ihaveworkedintherecruitmentindustryforover20yearsandIwasdevelopingtraininganddevelopmentprogrammesforrecruitmentconsultantsandmanagersinspecialistrecruitmentbusinessesandwhenI was made redundant, which was just before I came into BIC. I wasbasicallyapproachedbya lotofmypreviouspeoplewho Ihad trainedmyself…ask[ing]meifIwoulddoconsultancywiththemwithregardstohelpingthemdeveloptheirbusinessesandtheirconsultants…IthoughtaboutthatandIstartedtodosomesalestrainingforpeoplegenerallyintheNorthWestandIactuallymetupwith…oneofthebusinessadvisors[in BIC], and I thought to myself, ‘Should I start to look at this as a

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businessidea?’asopposedtodoingsomemarkettestingwithpeoplewhoIknew,soIcametoBIC.

7.4.2Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblems

Box2-Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblems

Priorknowledge

ofmarkets

Priorknowledgeof

customerproblems

Personal

interests

Priorknowledge

ofmeansto

servemarkets

Two participants (Ian1 and James) identified an opportunity, when only prior

knowledgeofcustomerproblemsexisted.Asharedpatternacrossbothcasesisthat

both respondentswere customers for a particular business (Ian1 as a networking

event user and James as a landlord). They bothwere not happywith the services

theyreceivedandthoughtthattheycoulddosomethingbetter,solelybasedontheir

negative experience. This experience turned out to be a foundation of the

entrepreneurial opportunity. Both Ian1 and James tried to improve the current

system they worked with and to build up a better system as the basis of their

businessideas:

Ian1: becausemyself andTom (businesspartner)havebeen toa lot ofnetworking events and we were coming home one night and a lot ofthemarereallybadandwejustsortofsaidweshouldrunourownandthatwasalltheplanningthatwentintoittobehonest.James:TypicallyIhadlotsofproblems,Ihadlettingagentsthatstoppedpayingme rent, takingmoney from tenantswithme, went bust, I hadletting agents who put tenants in and when I found the paperwork Iwouldn’thaveputthemintomyownproperty…soIhaveseenbecausethe market has been booming and the way they work hasn’t beenparticularly customer focusedandhasn’t beenparticularly competitivein termsof cost so Iwasalreadyawareof that as a backgroundand Isawthisidea…

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7.4.3Personalinterests

Box3-Personalinterests

Priorknowledge

ofmarkets

Priorknowledge

ofcustomer

problems

Personalinterests

Priorknowledge

ofmeansto

servemarkets

Three opportunities (Ian2, Alex1 and Alex2) were identified when only personal

interestswerepresent. Inall threeopportunities, therespondentswere fascinated

byanideaorahobby.Theinterestsweresostrong,theparticipantsreallyenjoyed

pursuingthem,withouthavingknowledgeofthemarketsorknowinghowtoserve

the customers. The strong passion and firm belief in an idea also gave the

entrepreneurs confidence to look at the hobby as a business. These ‘life style

entrepreneurs’tendtolookatthelogicofthebusinessatalaterstageofopportunity

development,comparedtootherparticipants.Thisisillustratedbothinthecaseof

Ian2andAlex2:

Ian2: Imet somebodywhowasahypnotistandheoffered tohypnotiseme so I went along, got hypnotised and really enjoyed it, did a fewsessionswithhim,thoughtitwasreallyinterestinganddecided…hesaid,‘You should train, you’d be really good’, and I didn’t need any moreconvincing than that to be honest… the thing is… before I get into abusiness I don’t really sit there and do a business plan and everythinglikethat,IgenerallyjustdowhatIenjoyandthentrytomakemoneyoutof it which I know is the wrong way around to be perfectly honest(laughs) but I start doing something and if I enjoy it then I’ll make abusinessoutofit…Alex2: I became obsessed with a camera, (laughs) it was an antiquecamera…it’scompletelybeautifulandIsawitonEbayandlustedafterit and I knew I shouldn’t get this camera because itwould become anobsession forme… there’s filmbut it’sexpensiveand I cannotafford itand I had actually had this obsession for a while, about two or threeyearsagoandIputitdownbecauseofthisreasonandwhenIsawthis

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camera I knew I had to get it so I did and it was sitting there and Ibought some film and I said to myself if I am going to justify takingpictureswith this camera Ihave tomake this thingpay for itselfand Ithought the best way to do this was to look at places which were anoveltysituationwhereIcouldbepaidandIthought‘nightclubs’,Icouldtakepicturesofpeopleinnightclubsandtheycouldpayme!

In the case of Alex1, for the online socialmaps opportunity, the interestswere so

overwhelming, he even questioned the necessity of having any knowledge of the

marketswhenaskedaboutwhetherhehadinvestigatedthemarketneeds:

Nonotintheslightest,Iamnotinterestedinthemarketneed,thisisthewrongwaytolookattheinternet,Ineedtolookattechnologyandthisnevergoestowardsthemarketneed…themarketneedisn’tthereforalot of things which then become critical to the web, for instanceTwitter…Twitterisnowexploding,whatisthemarketneed?Idon’tknow.IfanyonecantellmewhatthemarketneedforTwitterisIwillbuythemabeertonightbecauseIcanseenomarketneedwhatsoeverforTwitter,howeveritisexploding…whatIcanseewithinwhatIamdoing,withinmymaps idea ...I can see tremendous personal utility and I think thatutilityextendsbeyondmyself, themarketneed Idon’tknowbut I thinkthere is tremendousutility in it and I thinkaround thatamarketmaycohere,Icouldn’tguaranteeitbutIthinkthereissomethinginit...

Alex1’sscenarioreflectsliteratureinentrepreneurs’personality,whichsuggeststhat

thosewhohaveconfidenceandstrongbeliefs,areopportunisticandwillingto live

with uncertainty and risks (Kolereid and Isaksen 2012; Burns 2011; Legge and

Hindle2004;KruegerandBrazeal1994).Italsoindicatesastrongsenseofneedfor

achievementandinternallocusofcontrol.

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7.4.4Priorknowledgeofmarketsandcustomerproblems

Box4-Priorknowledgeofmarketsandcustomerproblems

Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledgeof

customerproblems

Personal

interests

Priorknowledge

ofmeansto

servemarkets

EmmaandKathidentifiedanopportunitywhentheyhadboththepriorknowledge

ofmarketsandcustomerproblems.Inbothcases,theentrepreneursweretheusers

of the services. Emma was a buyer purchasing aviation parts and Kath provided

services toparentswhousedChildcareVouches.Bothrespondents’business ideas

were in the markets where they had obtained their knowledge of customer

problems.The substantial experience the respondentshad in themarkets enabled

them to observe and experience the problems customers had in the particular

markets.Itisworthnotingthatbothparticipants’knowledgeinmarketscamefrom

their business experience as opposed to education. This indicates that business

experienceoffers insights andpractical knowledge thatmaynotbeobtained from

education. It is the concrete experience that provided the knowledge that was

necessarytospotthegapinthemarket.Atalaterstageoftheopportunityprocess,

whentheybegantosolvetheproblemstheyhadidentified,thisknowledgeinspired

them to develop better products and services to pursue as a business idea. This

combinationofhavingknowledge in themarkets andknowingwhatproblems the

customers had led to a problem-solving opportunity identification, as Emma’s

experiencedemonstrates:

Emma: I worked with a buyer for airlines for the last 17 years andbecauseofthatIpickeduponaneedforawebsitethatshowedapprovedsuppliers, well the approvals that suppliers have because we weren’tallowedtobuyfromanysupplierswhodidn’tmeetour‘approvalcriteria’butitwasveryannoyingwhenIcouldfind20suppliersonpart-searched

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databases thathad spareparts that I requiredbut I couldn’tgoaheadandbuyfrom,untilthey’dgonethroughtheapprovalprocess…

7.4.5Priorknowledgeofmarketsandmeanstoservemarkets

Box5-Priorknowledgeofmarketsandmeanstoservemarkets

Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledge

ofcustomer

problems

Personal

interests

Priorknowledgeof

meanstoservemarkets

TimandJeffidentifiedanopportunitywhentheyhadpriorknowledgeofmarketsas

wellasmeanstoservemarkets.Timgainedhisknowledge inretailingthroughhis

sevenyear’sworkexperienceasabuyer.Hecombinedthisknowledgewithwhathe

learnedfromhisfriend’sartgallerybusiness.Jeff’sknowledgeofthemarketscame

both from education and work experience. He studied Computer Science and

Enterpriseandworkedpart-timeforacomputerstore.HealsoprovidedITsupport

tofamilyandfriendsduringhisfreetime.Havinghadtheknowledgeinmarketsand

meanstoservemarkets,andpossiblywithanoptimisticfeelingtowardsthemarket,

it felt like a natural progression in having a business in the field that the

entrepreneurswerefamiliarwith:

Jeff:Itwaswell,IwasjustdoingitforlikeaparttimejobreallysoIwasjustdoingitasasteadyincome,soIdecidedinmymasterstotryanddoit on a larger scalewithmore people and that’s basically the businessidea.

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7.4.6Priorknowledgeofmarketsandpersonalinterests

Box6-Priorknowledgeofmarketsandpersonalinterests

Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledge

ofcustomer

problems

Personalinterests

Priorknowledge

ofmeansto

servemarkets

Paul andKelly had prior knowledge ofmarkets and personal interestswhen they

spotted an opportunity. Personal interests seem to be dominant when such a

combination of knowledge plays a role in opportunity identification. Both

respondentsindicatedtheirpassioninthechosenmarkets:onlineenvironmentally

friendlyfoodforPaulandmarketingforKelly.Withoutknowingcustomerproblems

ormeans to servemarkets, theybothwerequite positive about their ideas at the

opportunityidentificationstage.Paul’scommentsaretypicaloftheirapproach:

Paul:whenIwaslookingintowhatcareerthatIwantedtofollowIbothlooked at what my interests were and what kind of things I waspassionate about and also the type of person I was … so I wantedsomethingkindofmore exciting tohelpmeactually createnew thingswhichiswhatIwantedtodoandthenIalsothoughtaboutthethingsIampassionateabout,theotherthingistheenvironmentandprotectingthe environment becausemyunder-graduate degreewas in geographyso I lookedatkindofclimatechangeandthattypeof thing,so IgottotheendofmydegreeandkindofthoughtbecauseIhaddonethreeyearsofstudyingandresearchintoclimatechangeandwhateverIwasfairlysurethattherewasabigproblemandpeoplehadtodosomethingaboutclimatechangesoIwantedtofollowacareerthatwassomethingtodowith that, also creating things and being entrepreneurial which IthoughtIwouldbeandthat’swhatkindofmademeembarkonsortofthinkingabouttheenvironmentalidea.

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7.4.7Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblemsandmeanstoservemarkets

Box7-Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblemsandmeanstoservemarkets

Priorknowledge

ofmarkets

Priorknowledgeof

customerproblems

Personal

interests

Prior

knowledgeofmeanstoserve

markets

Therewasoneopportunityidentifiedwhenpriorknowledgeofcustomerproblems

and means to serve markets were present. The opportunity (Jeff-Paul, digital

publishing) was identified by two BIC tenants together with another former

classmate. As former university students and classmates, Jeff and Paul had

experience of being users of computer manuals. Although they did not have any

knowledge of the digital publishing business, the negative experience they had as

customers made them think of solutions of this problem. This led to the

identificationofanopportunity.Inthiscase,theknowledgetheydevelopedtosolve

theparticularproblemstheyhadascustomersmoderatedthelackofknowledgeof

themarkets:

Jeff: when you are at university the text books that you are givenspecifically on things like how to use software programmes on yourcomputer, they are not written in the way that students would likebecauseifyouareabusystudentworkinghardonyourresearchandyouhavetolearnhowtouseanewprogramme…sothey'llbethatthickandloadsand loadsofwritingand theway it iswritten is almost like theywant to teach you everything there is to know about it and the onlyreason that the student is using that computer programme is becausethey have got something to do and that is all they care about, gettingtheirworkdone.Paul: threeofuswhowereworkingon itwereall studentsat the timewhenwestarteddoingitanditwasoutofourdirectexperiencesbecausewewereworkingonprojectstogetherwhilststudentsandlearninghowto use these computer programmes and by the end of our course the

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threeofusknewsomuchmoreaboutwhat thecomputerprogrammesdidthanwedidatthestartthatwekindofsaidifonlytherehadbeenabookthatwasreallyquicktogothroughandhadwereaditatthestartitwouldbemuchmoreuseful…

7.4.8 Prior knowledge of markets, customer problems and means to servemarkets

Box8-Priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandmeanstoservemarkets

Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledgeof

customerproblems

Personal

interests

Priorknowledgeof

meanstoservemarkets

When Jane identified the opportunity in sports management, she had prior

knowledge of markets, customer problems and means to serve markets. Jane

workedasasportsdevelopmentofficer,whereshegainedexperienceinorganising

sports events as a social activity.When travelling abroad she learned cultural and

genderdifferencesinsportsandrealisedthattherewerenotenoughsportsevents

available forwomen to play, not as competitions, but as social and fitness events.

When she worked in London, she witnessed how another entrepreneur became

successful when providing services in organising sports for large companies’

employees. These different types of prior knowledge acted as pieces of a jigsaw,

whichthenportrayedapicture,orinotherwordsanopportunity,forJane.

Jane:… trying sort to tapping into the fact that there’s very few teamsportsavailable forwomenwhereas compared tomen,who cangladlyplayfootballorcricketandetc....Becauseinthiscountryyouneedtobegoodat sportswhereas youknowplace likeAustralia orNewZealand,it’sseeingmoreasasocialthingandyoujustgoandhavefunandplay.Andyoucanparticipatewhereasoverherewomenjustsortofcompetinginthatsportwhereasalotofpeoplejustwannadoitforfitnessandfun

130

and don’twant it take it that seriously. So I feel like it’s hit a bit of anicheininthatrespect.I used to work for a football club in London. Working for theircommunity programme ... that was basically where my understandingcame fromabouthow sportworks in this country.Andalso I travelledquiteabitandspentquiteabitinAustralia...Somyskillstoactuallyrunthebusinesscomefromthere.AndthenoneoftheprojectsIwasworkingon was working within the community in east London, and it was totargetwomenandgirlswho’sinacertainarea.…AnAustraliangirlsetup in London, and she sort of again found this niche where she wastargetingcompaniesthatworkedaroundCanaryWharf,youknow,alotoftheselargecompanieshavelotsofmoneyforsocialactivitiesfortheiremployees. So she was targeting those really, to sort of trying to getthose teams toplay inher leagues,and I just realisedhowsuccessful itwasbutalso,howmuchshewasmakingfromit.

7.4.9Priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandpersonalinterests

Box9-Priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandpersonalinterests

Priorknowledgeofmarkets

Priorknowledgeof

customerproblems

Personalinterests

Priorknowledge

ofmeansto

servemarkets

Tony and Neil identified their opportunities when prior knowledge of means to

servemarketswasabsent.Intermsofpriorknowledgeofmarkets,theybothgained

knowledge in the relevant industry from their education and they obtainedwork

experience in themarkets, though indifferentways.Tonyhada seriesofhisown

businesses,whichwererelated tomarketingandcoaching.Neilon theotherhand

workedinthetrainingandconsultancyindustryovermanyyears.Bothofthemhad

strong personal interests that were related to their business ideas. The personal

interestsitselfactedasastrongdriveforthemtopursuebusinessesintheindustries

they were passionate about. This powerful knowledge combination of markets,

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customerproblemsandpersonalinterestsmoderatesthelackofknowledgeinways

to servemarkets. Furthermore there is a pattern shared between Tony and Neil.

Theybothspottedproblemsthecustomershadwhentheywereserviceproviders.

Again, thiscouldbedrivenby theirstrongpersonal interests in the fieldand their

intentions in creating something that was better than what was available in the

market.TakingNeilasanexample:

Formanyyears Ihave seen leadershipand trainingprogrammesand Ihave deliveredmany of them inmany kinds of organisations and theyseem to operate in a language that people don’t understand. Theyoperate in the made-up language of academic organisationaldevelopmentandtheytalkaboutsynergiesandleverageandteamwork,theyspeakinanalogiesofsporttopeoplewhodon’tplaysport…I have always been interested in sociology and psychology, those havealwaysbeenmyprimaryinterests.

7.5Emergingthemes

Bhave(1994)believesthattherearetwotypesofopportunityidentification.When

externally stimulated, the entrepreneur filters the opportunities by aligning prior

knowledge with market needs. When an opportunity identification process is

internallystimulated,theentrepreneurexperiencesthemarketneedsthatcannotbe

fulfilledbytheavailableproductorserviceproviders.Thentheentrepreneurstryto

create their own solutions to the customer problems or newmeans to serve the

markets. Indeed such identification is a process of learning by transforming

knowledge and/or by creating new ideas. This interaction between the tenant,

learningandcreationisalsocapturedinthischapter.

Venkataraman(1997cited inShane2003)believes thatspecificexperiencegained

frompersonallifecanoffertheaccesstoinformationothersmightnothave.Thisin

turnhelps to identifyopportunity. Shane (2003)mentions thathighstockofprior

knowledgecannotonlyhelpto interpretnewinformation inameaningfulwaybut

alsotoenhancetheabilitytofindasolutiontoaproblem.Whenexaminingfactors

influencing opportunity, Ardichvili et al. (2003) explain that together with prior

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knowledge, creativity also plays a role in identifying opportunities. Therefore

opportunity can be identified not only by expanding or transferring the existing

knowledge to an industry, but it can also create solutions to problems, in other

wordstoinnovate(DeakinsandFreel2012;Burns2011;StokesandWilson2010).

Drawing on extant literature when comparing different cases, I investigated the

impact of prior knowledge on opportunity identification in detail and found three

different streams that became apparent in the data: change and innovation,

knowledge transferandknowledgereplication(seeFigure11).The interviewdata

indicates that prior knowledge and personal interests enabled entrepreneurs to

identifyproblemswheretheyworkedandactedasafoundationtomotivatethemto

make change and innovate. On the other hand, prior knowledge and personal

interestsalsoactedasatestingground,wheretheentrepreneurscouldtryouttheir

knowledge gained from education and/or work experience and find out whether

theycouldsetupabusinesswiththeideastheyhad.Suchchangeandinnovationare

oftenexternallystimulated,definedbyBhave(1994).

Figure11-Theroleofpriorknowledgeinopportunityidentification

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The second stream is knowledge transfer. As for this stream, the knowledge the

respondentshadwasnotexactlythesameasthebusinessestheywantedtosetup.

Neverthelesstheywereabletotransfertheirpriorknowledgetoadifferentbusiness

idea.

In line with what Lumpkin et al. (2004) call the incubation stage of opportunity

identification,thepurposeoftestingdidnothavetobeexplicitduringthetimethey

workedfortheindustry,butatalaterstageoftheentrepreneurialprocess.Withthe

catalyst of new information, it could stimulate entrepreneurs to look at it as a

serious business opportunity (Shane2000),whichwould take place at the insight

stage(Lumpkinetal.,2004).

In this opportunity identification process, prior knowledge also helped some

participants’ knowledge replication process. The prior knowledge gained from an

industrytheparticipantsworkedforremainedstable,withnoorminimumchanges

orinnovationaddedtothenewbusiness,whichtheentrepreneurstriedtoestablish.

Since Schumpeter’s (1942) definition of entrepreneurship, which highlights the

importantrole itplays indisruptivecreationand innovation,anumberofscholars

haveviewedtheprocessofentrepreneurshipasaprocessinvolvinginteractionsof

creativethinking(Sanz-Velasco2006;Corbett2005;Lumpkinetal.2004;Ardichvili

etal.2003;LongandMcMullan1984).Howevertheextantliteraturecallsformore

in-depth understanding of how knowledge interacts in such a process. The three

streams identified in the chapter shed new light on such query. On the creative

spectrum, these streams are organised below from beingmost to least creative. I

discussallthesestreamsinthefollowing.

7.5.1Stream1-Changeandinnovation

There are 7 opportunities in this stream: Ian1, Tony,Neil, Paul, Emma, James and

Kath.TakingNeilasanexample,heworkedasaconsultantinvariousareas,suchas

marketing, public relations, sales and operations management. These business

experienceshelpedhimtogainpriorknowledgeinspecialisedfields,whichrelated

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to his business idea of providing consultancy services to organisations using

unconventionalapproaches toconsultancy.Ashedescribed,his insights intoother

consultancyservicesgainedfrombusinessexperiencewerehelpful:

One of the key problems ofmost organisational development is that itinsists on certainty that if you do X, Y will result, it’s an Americanpositivist parodyand it doesn’t actually understand that in theheat oforganisations things are taken, decisions are taken on partialinformationthroughgutfeelings,panicandjumpingtoconclusionsandthat kind of degree of rationality and certainty of cause and effectsdoesn’t exist in the real world. It also prioritises written disciplinaryprocedure over the political and emotional realities of people dealingwithpeople, if you lookat theCIPDwebsite,95%of it isaboutdealingwith,andIquote,‘problemstaff’,itsnotaboutdevelopingorganisations,it’sbecomeadisciplinaryprocedureasopposedtoanempowermentanddevelopmentprocedure. Itswholepurposetomeseemstohavebecomeinvertedandcorrupt.Peopleadmirecertaintraitsinothers,theyadmireintegrity,theyadmireshrewdnessandbyusingwordslikeintegrityandshrewdness you will never actually find those in old organisationaldevelopment literature. You won’t find terms like, ‘good personalrelationships’, thestuff thatmattersdoesn’tactuallyreachthepagesofthetrainingmanual.

Neilaccumulatedthisknowledgeduringhisemploymentandbeforehehadtheidea

ofestablishinghisowncompanydeliveringdifferentapproachestoconsultancy.His

priorknowledgeofmarkets,customerproblemsandpersonalinterestshadadirect

linktotheopportunityheidentifiedatalaterstage.Thisstockofknowledgebecame

moreapparentwhenusedasabasis foraddingnewinformationtotransforminto

an opportunity. When working as a consultant, he gained understanding of the

consultancybusiness, howserviceswereusuallydelivered,what thenormsof the

industrywere, thepitfalls heperceived from the relationshipbetween clients and

serviceproviders and soon.These typesof insights enabledhim to scrutinise the

industry aswell as gave him the confidence to try out his ideaswhen other new

informationreachedhimandblendedwithhisexperience.

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7.5.2Stream2-Knowledgetransfer

Unlike the other two streams, Tim, Jane, Phil, Peter andMark all had somework

experienceintheindustrieswherelatertheyspottedanopportunity.Tim,Janeand

Petertransferredtheirpriorknowledgefromworkingforotherbusinesses,whereas

PhilandMarktransferredknowledgefromtheirownbusinesses.

Peter forexample, identifiedanopportunity in sellingmobilephones to corporate

clients. The experience Peter had in selling mobile phones is quite mixed. He

mentioned buying and selling mobile phones when he was 13 years old. He also

workedinsalesandadministrationinalargemobilephoneretailingchain,wherehe

gained more professional experience in selling mobile phones to end users. This

workexperiencealsogavePetertheaccesstogainknowledgeintermsofhowthe

mobile telecommunication industryworked, fromtheperspectivesof salesaswell

as administration. Peter thenworked for his friend’s companywhere he obtained

knowledgeinsellingmobilephonestocorporateclients,whichmotivatedhimtoset

up his own company. Peter believed that the knowledge he had in the mobile

industrygavehimsufficientknowledgeandhesawitasanopportunityforhimself:

What I was going to do is do the same thing, as I was working forsomebodyelseIwasgoingtodoitformyselfsoanditwasjustastageofwaitingtogetaVATnumberbecauseyouneedaspecialVATnumbertogetintotelecommunicationsandyouhavetopassextensivecreditchecksandmoneylaunderingchecksandtheyhavetocomeandseeyoucheckallyourbankstatements,passport, theyseeallyour ID–bothbusinessandpersonalidentificationandbankaccountstomakesureyouarenotinvolved inanything illegal, so Ipassedall these likeveryhardsecuritychecks…

IncontrastPhilhadsomeexperiencesettinguphisownbusinesses.Similarlytothe

thirdbusinesshewas settingup, bothof his earlierbusinesseswere aboutonline

technology.Althoughtherearedifferencesinthewebdesignbusinessandtheonline

job services, it is apparent that his knowledge in online service business was

transferredfrompreviousbusinesses:

Web Design Co. is a web design company which offers bespoke webdesign to various clients, erm small to large. Online Job Search andManagementiscompletelyseparateandisanon-lineservice.

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And whilst I was doing that (running Web Design Co.) I gainedexperienceinthekindofmarketandknewwhatwasgoingon,differenttechnologies and had the idea of Online Job Search and Management(OJSM).

Hisknowledgeinthedigitalindustrywastransferredandusedtohelphimtosetup

adifferentbusiness in thesame industry.Thebusinessexperiencehehadenabled

himtogain insightsof the industry in termsof technologyandtrendsofcustomer

needs.

7.5.3Stream3-Knowledgereplication

Knowledge replication is different from knowledge transfer. There are 11

opportunities where prior knowledge and personal interests play a role in

knowledge replicationat the identification stage (Helen,Andy, Ian2,Nick, Jeff, Jeff-

Paul, Laura, Alex1, Alex2, Kelly and Karen). Knowledge or experience in a specific

industry provided the entrepreneurs not only with the knowledge, but also the

confidence,insettinguptheirownbusinessesinthesamearea.JeffandKarenhad

been working part-time and recognised that they could carry out the businesses

formally in full-time self-employment. Andy and Lauraworked full-time for other

companiesasemployeesand in thecaseofLaura,whenshewasmaderedundant,

shedecidedtosetupherownbusinessinthesameindustrybecausesheconsidered

herselftobeaveryexperiencedtrainerinhersectorandthatshehadaccumulateda

lotofbusinesscontactsthroughhercareerwhichwouldbebeneficialwhenstarting

herowncompany.Laura’scommentsaretypicalofthisgroup:

Ihaveworkedintherecruitmentindustryforover20years…foralargerecruitment business where I … [developed] training and developmentprogrammes for recruitment consultants and managers in specialistrecruitmentbusinessesandwhenIwasmaderedundant,IwasbasicallyapproachedbyalotofmypreviouspeoplewhoIhadtrainedmyselfwhohadmovedonfrommyoldcompanywhohadbasicallysetuptheirownrecruitment businesses and basically started to ask me if I would doconsultancy with them with regards to helping them develop theirbusinessesandtheirconsultantswheretheydidn’tnecessarilywantthecostofatrainingmanagertobefull-timewithinthebusinessbutwherethey could use me on an ad-hoc as and when basis and basically Ithought about that and I started to do some sales training for people

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generally in theNorthWest and I actuallymet up one of the businessadvisors[fromBIC}andIthoughttomyself,‘ShouldIstarttolookatthisasabusinessidea?’

7.6Discussion

Since Shane and Venkataraman’s (2000) seminal paper on the domain of

entrepreneurship research, several studies have looked at entrepreneurship as a

process, rather than outcomes. There has been some work on how an

entrepreneurial process can be better understood when using learning theories

(Man2012;Holcombetal.2009;HuovinenandTihula2008;Corbett2007;Hughes

etal.2007;PittawayandCope2007;Sanz-Velasco2006;Corbett2005;Politis2005;

Rae2004;TaylorandThorpe2004;Ardichvilietal.2003;Cope2003;Honig2001;

Minniti and Bygrave 2001; Rae and Carswell 2001; Cope andWatts 2000), or in

other words, when it is more process orientated. However the literature in

opportunityidentificationandlearningisstilldivergent,whichcallsformorerobust

work tobridge thedifferent theoretical frameworks.Also littleresearch is focused

ontheoriginofabusinessidea,whereanopportunitymayormaynotbeexploited.

To respond to calls for more in-depth studies in opportunity identification and

learning, this study looks at opportunities that are just being identified and

developedbyentrepreneurswhousedBIC.

Among the 20 respondents, prior knowledge of markets was the most common

factor that contributed to opportunity identification (appearing in 17 of the 23

opportunities). The prior knowledge stage is in line with Lumpkin et al.’s (2004)

preparation stage, in the creativity based model of entrepreneurial opportunity

recognition.Theybelieve that ‘morethan50percentofstart-upideasemergefroma

person’spriorworkexperience’ (Lumpkin et al. 2004, p.78-79), which is a form of

priorknowledgeofmarkets.Thedata thatemerges fromthisstudy lookeddeeper

intotherolepriorknowledgeplaysintheopportunityidentificationstageandfound

thatbotheducationandworkexperienceplayaveryimportantroleinthisprocess.

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Moreimportantly,incontrasttogenericknowledgegainedfromeducationandwork

experience, it is the specific knowledge that is relevant to the markets that is

fundamental to this process. This is consistent with Ucbasaran et al.‘s (2008)

findings that entrepreneurship-specific human capital is more important than

generalhumancapital,inidentifyingopportunities.

Priorknowledgeofcustomerproblemsispresent in8opportunities,makingit the

secondmost importantfactorforopportunity identification.Howevercomparedto

priorknowledgeofmarkets,itismuchlessdominant.Amongthese8opportunities,

Janeistheonlyparticipantwhodidnothaveanegativeexperienceoftheparticular

service.Alsoincontrasttotheothers,sheistheonlyonewhohadpriorknowledge

of markets, customer problems and means to serve the markets. The experience

gained from various sources evolved and formed her own business idea. The

positiveexperienceshehadintheindustrymadehertransferherpriorknowledge

toanopportunitythatisslightlydifferenttotheopportunitiessheobserved.

Incontrast, Ian1onlyhadpriorknowledgeofcustomerproblemswhen identifying

anopportunity.Whenopportunityismainlybasedonnegativeexperience,itismore

opportunistic thanwhen possessing high levels of prior knowledge. The fact that

Ian1 identified opportunities with limited prior knowledge, especially without

knowing how to solve customer problems suggests that Ian may be more

entrepreneurialandrisktakingthanJane(KolvereidandIsaksen2012;Burns2011).

Personalinterestsispresentin7opportunitiesattheidentificationstage.Itcanact

alone or combined with other prior knowledge as a motivation to identify an

opportunity.Whenactingaloneasthemotivationitsignalsthattherespondentsdid

nothaveknowledgeorexperienceinthefieldanditisoftenalifestylechoice.When

combined with other forms of prior knowledge, it often indicates that the

respondentsfoundagapinthemarket(inthecaseofPaul),orintendedtochange

andimprovethemarket.

Priorknowledgeofmeanstoservemarketsisonlypresentin4opportunities.Inall

cases, they transferred knowledge or experience gained from their friends or

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themselvestotheopportunities.Formanyentrepreneurstheideaofhowtofillagap

mightcomeatalaterstage,whentheycancombinevariousinformationwiththeir

own situations and prior knowledge. It does not come as a surprise that at the

opportunity identification stage, possessing prior knowledge of means to serve

marketsisrare.

Itisworthnotingthatopportunityidentificationiscomplexandthatisolatingeach

type of prior knowledge cannot offer a whole picture of the phenomenon, the

dynamism involved and the interactions between the knowledge and the

opportunity.Thereforethechapternotonlyexamineseachtypeofpriorknowledge,

but more importantly explores the varying combinations of prior knowledge and

theirimpactsonopportunityidentification.

The chapter represents an important first step inaddressing researchquestions2

and 3 about how incubatees use their existing knowledge and acquire new

knowledgetodeveloptheirbusinesses.Morespecifically,thechapterexploreshow

different types of prior knowledge and varying combinations of prior knowledge

haveaneffectonopportunity identification. Italso looks intohowtheopportunity

developmentprocesstakesplaceundertheinfluenceofstartingupabusinessinaBI

environment.AsillustratedinFigure2(Section3.6),thischaptermainlyfocuseson

the right half of the conceptual framework, in other words, the development of

opportunities.Thatis,theprocessoftransformationofbusinessideas,fromexisting

knowledgetobusinessopportunities.

A cross case study is carried out to compare the varying combination of prior

knowledgeandtheirroleinopportunityidentification.Consequentlythreedifferent

impactsarediscovered,listedfrommosttoleastcreative,theyare:

• change and innovation: in this scenario, the opportunity was often

externally stimulated. The entrepreneurs discovered problems in the

productsor services theyhave received.They thencreatedsolutions to the

problems,whichwereperceivedasanopportunity;

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• knowledge transfer: this is the least common stream. For this stream, the

entrepreneurs have accumulated knowledge through studying and work

experience. They then transferred the knowledge to a related but different

business,whichformedtheopportunityidentificationstage;

• knowledge replication: the most common stream, with 11 out of 23

opportunities. In this scenario, the entrepreneurs applied their knowledge

and interests inanareawhere theyhadworkedand/orstudiedandwhere

theyfeltconfident.

The findingsof thechapteralsohighlight fourother interesting issues, in termsof

personalinterests,priorknowledgeofmeanstoservemarkets,priorknowledgeof

customerproblems,andimplicationsoffuturestudiesinopportunityidentification.

Firstly, personal interests play an important role in opportunity identification. It

corresponds to what Ardichvili et al.’s (2003) call a second domain of prior

knowledge, or special interests. In three opportunities, it is the only reason the

entrepreneurs saw the opportunities. Linking this finding with literature in

entrepreneur’s personal traits, the participants in this category exhibited typical

characteristics of being an entrepreneur, for example, risk taking, opportunistic

behaviourandself-confidence(Burns2008).Thereforewhenanentrepreneurhasa

lowstockofpriorknowledgebutstrong interests in theopportunity they identify,

thebusinessislikelytoberiskyand/orlife-stylebased.

Secondly,whenpriorknowledgeofmeans to servemarketsoccursalone, it isnot

sufficient to identify an opportunity. This is because this type of prior knowledge

representsasolutiontoaproblem.Forittobeeffectiveinidentifyinganopportunity

it is necessary to combine itwith prior knowledge of customer problems, and/or

prior knowledge of markets, and/or personal interests. Without these additional

forms of prior knowledge, knowledge ofmeans to servemarketswould not have

existedinthefirstplace.Inthissense,comparedtoothertypesofpriorknowledge,

priorknowledgeofmeanstoservemarketsplaysadistinctiverole. It isacatalyst,

where standing alone it does not help in identifying an opportunity, but it can be

utilisedwhenotherformsofpriorknowledgearepresent.

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Thirdly, Lumpkin et al. (2004) studied entrepreneurs from the Chicago Area

EntrepreneurshipHall of Fame and other business owners from the Chicago area

withturnoverbetween$5millionand$100million.Theyfoundthatmorethan90%

oftherespondentsstronglyagreedthatopportunityrecognitionwasfromaspecific

problemorneedidentifiedamongcustomers.Howeverthisisnotthecasewiththe

BICparticipants.Thereareonlytwoopportunityidentification(Ian1andJames)that

aresolelylinkedtopriorknowledgeofcustomerproblems;andincludingthesetwo

opportunities,thereareonly8outof23opportunities(Tony,Neil,Emma,Kath,Jane

and Jeff-Paul) where prior knowledge of customer problems played a role in the

identification process. This may be due to the age of the businesses. The

entrepreneursLumpkinetal.(2004)surveyedaremorematureandsuccessfulthan

the(prospective)entrepreneursinBIC.Thissuggeststhatpriorknowledge’srolein

opportunity identification may vary depending on the age of a business and/or

experienceof theentrepreneur.Alsoknowledgeofcustomerproblemsmaynotbe

present at the opportunity identification stage but at a later stage of opportunity

development. This reflects the nature of opportunity development process as a

journeyoflearning,where,withothernecessaryinformationtransformedandskills

&resourcesacquired,anidentifiedopportunitycanbedeveloped.Thisisdiscussed

furtherinChapter8.

Finally, for the majority cases, it was a combination of different types of prior

knowledge that helped to identify an opportunity. This suggests that studying the

dynamicinteractionsbetweenpriorknowledgeandopportunityidentificationisan

importantstepinunderstandingopportunityidentification.Theemphasisofstudies

toexploreopportunitydevelopmentshouldperhapsthereforefocusoninteractions

andprocess,asopposedtocontentorisolatingfactors.

The next chapter continues to explore the opportunity development process,

specificallywherenewinformationwasacquiredthroughBIC,andtransformedinto

experience and new knowledge. Also as a continuation of Chapter 6 (the BIC

experience), Chapter 8 explores further at the role BIC played in such a learning

process.

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ChapterEightTheProcessofOpportunityDevelopmentinBIC

8.1Introduction

InChapter6, I explored theprocessofbusiness incubation that tookplace inBIC.

Afterlookingatallthepathwaystheparticipantswentthrough,sixindividualswere

selectedtodemonstratetheirincubationexperienceandtoexploretheroleofBICin

such a process. To gain a more in-depth understanding of the entrepreneurial

processIexplorethecoreofsuchaprocess,whichisopportunityidentificationand

development. In order to achieve this aim, in Chapter 7 I began by looking

specifically at the relationship between prior knowledge and opportunity

identification.

In this chapter I continue to explore the development stage of an opportunity by

exploring the opportunity development process through the lens of learning. The

outcomesfromthetwopreviouschapterssuggestthatBICplayedanimportantrole

in developing entrepreneurship, not only by providing physical facility,mentoring

andbusinessadvice,butalsobycreatingasocialspaceandprovidingresourcesthat

arecrucialintheentrepreneurialprocess.

This chapter aims to shed more light on the opportunity development process

through the lens of learning, and to look further at the role BIC played in such a

process. It takes theexperiential learning frameworkused inChapter7andbuilds

onittoexploreopportunitydevelopmentwithinBIC.

Conceptualframework

Writingaboutthefivestagesofopportunityrecognition,Lumpkinetal.(2004)point

out that theopportunityrecognitionprocess isrecursive,notnecessarily linerand

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‘maynot followanypredeterminedsequence’ (p.80). Similarly Politis (2005, p.408)

arguesthattheprocessofentrepreneuriallearning:

‘does not necessarily follow a predetermined sequence of steps according to

Kolb’s (1984) four-stage learning cycle, but rather can be conceived as a

complexprocesswhereentrepreneurstransformexperience intoknowledge in

disparateways.’

Thusbothopportunityidentificationanddevelopmentandentrepreneuriallearning

can be conceptualised as complex processes, where individuals may reverse or

repeat stages. From a learning point of view, business concepts or ideas can be

derived and constantly moderated or transformed by experience (Man 2006).

Viewedfromthisperspective,itispossibletoinvestigateopportunitydevelopment

asaprocessbyfirstexploringpriorknowledge(Chapter7),andtheninvestigating

what information was acquired and how it was transformed by entrepreneurs

duringtheopportunitydevelopmentprocess.

I begin this chapter by presentingmy analysis of that transformation process. In

order to do this it is important to have an understanding of the context inwhich

learningandopportunitydevelopmentare interacting.ThereforeIdrawonthesix

case studies used in Chapter 6, as their pathways have already beenpresented in

detail.

InSection8.3IbuildonanalysespresentedinChapters6and7bycombiningthem

with the analysis of the transformation process presented in Section 8.2 of this

chapter.ThisallowsmetopresentaholisticviewofthelearningprocesswithinBIC

that takes account of context, the type of prior knowledge the six participants

possessed when identifying an opportunity (Chapter 7) and the transformation

processthattookplace(Chapter8)duringtheparticipants’incubationperiod.

ThechapterconcludesbydiscussingtheroleofBICindevelopingentrepreneurship.

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8.2OpportunitydevelopmentinBIC

Asdiscussed inChapter3,anopportunity isnewknowledge. It iscreatedbythree

fundamental elements. They are prior knowledge, the process of acquiring new

information and the process of combining the prior knowledge with new

information, in order to transform them into newknowledge (Corbett 2007; Kolb

1984),andinthiscontext,developthemintoanopportunity.Thissectionfocuseson

howthistransformationprocesstakesplace.

8.2.1Andy

Developedknowledgeofcustomerproblems

WhileinBIC,Andydevelopedknowledgeofcustomerproblems.Hebelievedthatto

haveaviablebusinessidea,thekeyistosetupeasytousewebsitesforcustomers,

ratherthanconfusingthemwithtechnicaljargons.Heunderstoodthattheproblema

lot of customers hadwas being confrontedwith toomany technical details, as he

explains:

Well,alotofpeopledon’tknow.Theyknowtheinternetexists,andtheyknow how to use it, but they don’t understandwhatmakes itwork ormakes it tick, and as far aswe are concerned, they don’t need to, theyshouldn’thavetoandtheydon’twantto.Soourideahasalwaysbeentomake everything do as simple as possible, including the support …especially with the internet, there’s a lot stuff that people, would gostraightoverpeople’sheads,inoneearandouttheother,andthat’stheway it shouldbe,because theyare concentratingon theirbusinesses…theydon’tneedtoworryabouthoworwhytheirwebsiteisworking,justthecontentaboutthewebsite,really.

Developedmeanstoservemarkets

After teaming up with Frank, Andy and his partner reflected on the process of

websiteproductionsandcameupwithnewwaysofservingthemarkets.Inthisway,

not only did they became more effective, it also made cost saving possible and

thereforeincreasedcustomernumbersandsatisfaction:

Thefirstthreeofourwebsitewejustdidandthengavetotheclientandthensaidright,thereyougo,andIthinkthreeofthefourcamebackand

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they just asked just to do changes on the website. So straightaway,there’sthingswegottodothatwearenotbeingpaidfor,becausethat’sincludedinthequote,theoriginalquote.Werealisedthatactuallytheycanchangethemselves,orallthewebsitesareveryeasyforustoupdatethen it would save us time, make us more money, customers will behappier, so itwaspointlessproducingoneoffwebsiteagainandagainandagain,whenactuallywhatweneededwasthissystemfordoingit.we realised we were sitting down and spending, say a week, creatingalmost exactly the samewebsite,aswedid theweekbefore, except thewayit looked.Sowedecidedtocomeupasystemforre-usingwhatwealreadydoneinthepast.Tosaveussometimeandmakeussomemoremoney,andalsospeeduptheprocessfortheclient.Sowecameupwithwhat we are currently developing which is a content managementsystem.

Teamedupwithothertenantswithcomplementaryskillsforanewcompany

HavingbeeninBICenabledAndytomeetotherentrepreneursandfindpeoplewho

had complementary skills and knowledge to his. He formed a new companywith

FrankandothertenantsbecauseofBIC:

It’sverydifficulttoworkonyourown,it’sveryhardtobeasole-trader,withnobodytoleanon,withnobusinesspartner,oratleastpeoplewhoare doing similar things. The benefits I got from working with Frank,although we work in the same industry, we’ve got complete oppositesidesofknowledge,withouthissideofknowledge,Iwouldeithernotbeabletosellproductsthatneedthat,orIhavetoemploysomebodyelsetodothat.WithFrank, I literallyhavesomebodyontheendof thephone,wheneverIneedhim.BecomingafreelancerwasalwaysgonnabesomethingtodountilIhaveabusinessideathatwouldbringmeregularincome.Idon’twannabeafreelancerfortherestofmylifeandgoingfromfreelancertowhatIamdoing now is has taught me massive amounts of all sorts of differentbusinessesaswell, soI’ve learnta lot fromFrank, I’ve learnta lot fromAngela, I’ve learnt a lot fromTom, and I continue to do so. It’s been agoodeightmonths,isit?Feltjuststarted,it’sgoingreallywell.

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8.2.2Jane

Aspacetolearnpracticalskillstofurtherthebusiness

For Jane,BICwasnotonlyaphysical spacewhichsheused forasanofficeand to

meetassociates, importantly,sheviewedBICasaresourcefor learning,whereshe

couldlearnbusinessskillsthatshecouldnotgainfromanywhereelse:

J: I feel like I’vestillgota lot to learn,andI feel likethattheresourcesthatarehereand thepeoplehere couldhelpmeachievewhat Iwouldwanttoachieve,youknow,tolearn,IfeellikeIwouldhavenowheretogotogetthoseskillsortolearnthoseskillsotherwise.Interviewer:sowhatskillsdoyouwantdevelop?J:thingsyouknow,thingslikethemarketingandnetworkingskills.Youknow,thingslikethat,youknow,consideringgettinganewwebsite,andIknowthere’salotofpeoplelikegraphicdesigns,websitedesigninhere,youknow,it’snicetobeabletogotothemandsay‘couldyoupleasedothis forme’ but also know that you are generating a bit of income forthemaswell.Youknow,it’sIthinkhavingthatasyourfirstportofcall,Ithink it’s quite comforting almost, I feel like I’m someonewill helpme(laughed)someonesomewherewillhelpme,ifIneedit.SoIthinkthat’squite important where I come from a public sector background, youknow, voluntary background, not necessarily a private, you know, acommercial company, and I don’t feel like I’ve learnt someof the skillsthatmaybewouldneedtoactuallywhenyouareinbusiness.

Acquiredinformationandresourcesneededtodevelopthebusiness

BIC’smanagement acted as a brokerbetween thedifferent resources and tenants.

Theyhelped Jane to acquire the informationand resources to furtherdevelopher

business:

Idofeelquitesupportedandyouknow,IfeellikeifIhadaproblem,evenif theycouldn’thelpme, theywouldknowwhotoputme in touchwithandyouknow, I’vegonetoMartin [theBICmanager]andsaid Ineed Ineed some helpwith administration, I’ve got a load of fixtures to do, Ineedtosortthewebsiteout,youknowIcannottakeanytimeoffwork,Ineedsomehelpandhesaid:‘rightwell,youknowthereareanumberofpeopleinhereyouknow,theycouldhelpyou’.SotheyletmesortitoutandthenputmeintouchwithAnne,andshewasgreat.Sointheshortterm,theycanhelpwiththingspracticalsolutions,thingslikethat.SoifIwant to access to that support, it would be there, and it’s nice just tohavethoseemailscomingaroundso,ifyoufeelyoucan,thengreatgofor

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it,andthere’snopressureifyoucannot,ifyoudon’thavethetimetodoit.

Theentrepreneurialexperience

JanewasinspiredbytheentrepreneurialatmosphereinBIC.Itwasadirectcontrast

tothepublicsectorsheworkedashermaincareer:

Ithinkthisplaceinitselfhasagoodenergyaboutit,soyoucomeinhere,and if I compare it to where I work which is in an old hospital withpeoplethathavebeentheresincetheywere21,andtheyworkthereforlike you know, 15, 20 years, and they are very entrenched in that, andtheyarevery limited inwhat they cando. Soyoumightwant tobuyapieceofequipmentthatis50pounds,buttheamountofhoopsyouhaveto go through, to actually get that equipment whereas you come hereand you just feel that people are that much more sort of that lateralthinkingandyouknow,havethatautonomytogooutanddowhattheywanttodoandthere’salotmoredrive,ifIthinkaboutthem,here,youfeel,youcanfeelthepeopletherearearoundareverydrivenandreallywanttosucceedandthey’vegotthesegreatideas.

TheBICmanagementhelpedtocreateaninspiringenvironmentforJane,whilenot

beingtoopushy:

Ialsofelttheyarequiteencouragingofyoutothinkofthebiggerpictureandtohaveabitofplanaboutwhereyouwanttogoandthingslikethat.I think they are supportive, but they are not too pushy, so likeMartinknowsIwork,andit’squitehardformetotryingtofiteverythingin,sohe’snotsortyouneedtodothis,needtodothis,needtodothis.It’sjustliketrying,youknow,‘haveyouthoughtaboutdoingthat?’.

BeingpartoftheBICcommunity

I feel quite supported here aswell. So you get you know, a number ofemailsaboutdifferentopportunitiescomingupanddifferentthingsyoucanattendandyoudofeellikeyouarepartofthislittlecommunity.I’mnotsayingthatIcontributethatmuch,tothecommunity,becauseagain,it’squitedifficultwhen I’vegotonedayaweek…butyouknow, ithaschanged theway I think aboutmy business andwhat it could do in apotential for it, because I think well, if I can achieve this, with doingminimumreally,justtokeepitgoing,ifIwastoactuallyconcentrateonitandputalotmoretimeintoit,thenitcouldactuallyachieve,youknow,soit’smademethinkaboutitslightlydifferently,Ithink.

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8.2.3Ian

Acquiringsocialcontactstodevelopthebusiness

BICmanagementhelpedIantoattractmoreclientstohissocialnetworkingevents

byintroducingsocialcontacts:

They’vehelpedusputonthenetworkingevents.WespoketoMartin[BICmanager] and Jenny [BIC administrator] about it and they were verypositiveaboutitandsotheysaidwewillhelpyouandwewillhelpyoutoputthemon,sowestartedrunningthemandnextyearMartinisgoingto start advertising, well hopefully resourcing it out to externalcompaniessotheycancomeinandpromotetheirbusinessestopaytheadvertisingbasically.Becausehehasalreadygotthesecontactsandhe’swanting to bring more external people in to our events so they havehelpedustogrowitinthatsense.

Continued with the first not-for-profit business, while developing a second

businessidea

Ian came to BIC with the idea of setting up the Social Networking Events (SNE)

business.Howeveritdidnotworkoutasheassumed:

SNEdidn’thaveastrategy,itdidn’thaveaplan,itdidn’thavearealgoal,itwas just something I decided to do, like a side-project,we did try tocharge in for it and itwouldhavebeennicebutas soonaswe startedcharging for it nobody turned up, so it wasweird, it went from 40-50peopletozero,justpeoplebeingcheap,sowedecidedtokeepitfreeandwemightget some sponsorshipandwemightget somepeople tohavestallsandsellstuffsomethinglikethat,Idon’tknow.

At one of the events Ian organised he got to know someone who was in the

hypnotherapybusiness.Priortothat, Ianhadbeentosomehypnotherapysessions

andhadbeeninterestedinitasahobbyandabusiness:

Ibecamereallyfriendlywithagirlwhocomestomynetworkingeventsactuallywhorunsahypnotherapy trainingcompanyandsoshehelpedmewithalotofthings,soI’vedonethreediplomasIthink,I’mnotquitesure. Standard hypnotherapy, another standard hypnotherapy and anadvancedhypnotherapy/psychotherapydiploma.

AsSNEwasnotmakinganyincomeforIan,heshiftedhisfocustothenewbusiness

idea,hypnotherapy.TherentBICchargedwasverylow,comparedtoacommercial

rate, and it did not charge any fees for rentingmeeting space. Because of this Ian

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decidedtokeepSNE,whichmightgeneratebusinessleadswhenhenetworkedwith

otherbusinesspeopleinthenetworkingeventsheorganised.Thelowrentcharged

byBICalsohelpedIantosustainthebusinessandtotryouthisideasforlonger:

The on-line printing [business] is making money, it’s making residualincomeat themoment so I can’t knock it. SNEand the actual value ofmakingmoney out of it is nothing but that’s fine and I don’t want tomakemoneyoutof itreally.Thehypnotherapy ispotentiallyvery largeso that’s where I am going to be puttingmost of my time and effortsbecause that’swhere I am going tomake themostmoney and it’s themostinterestingareaofthethreeaswelloutofprinting,networkingandhypnosissothat’sanareawhereIamveryinterestedin,sothat’swhereIamgonnatobeputtingalotoftimeandfocusovertheNewYear.I’m not going to let it [SNE] take up toomuch time because again itsmore of a social enterprise thing rather than a money generatingbusinesssoIcanonlyputsomuchtimeintoitsoIdon’twantittogrowtoo big but I will keep the events going, keep the website going andhopefully itwill carryon tobe successful like Ihopeand Idon’t seenoreasonwhynot.

Inthemeantime,IanwasdevelopinganewwayofservingthemarketsforSNE,so

thatitcouldbeasuccess:

FornextyearIhavebeencontactedbysomepeoplewhorunmarketingcompanies inthiscityandtheyareinterestedincominginanddoingatalkeachmonthonadifferentspecificareaofmarketing.Nowtheyarealso possibly interested in putting some money into the event as wellwhichwouldmake it a bitmore profitable whichwouldmean I couldthendosomeadwordsandhavealittlesnowballeffectonit.

While having the hypnotherapy idea as themain business, Ian was still trying to

understand customers’ problems with social networking, and developing ways to

servethemarkets:

Iwillaskthepeoplewhocometoitwhattheywantbecauseitsnotreallymy business it’s the peoplewho come to it and if no people came thentherewouldn’t beanything sowewill continueasking themwhat theywould like to see at the event andwewill probably try all these, wellspeak toMartin [BICmanager] and seewhatwe can do for next year.Hopefully if we can get some people to come in and advertise at theevents thatwouldbegreataswell soweare justgoing to seewhere itgoes. Idohaveabitofastrategy, I’mgoingtohavespeakersateveryeventandthat’ssomethingwhichIreallywantnow.

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Teamedupwithanothertenantforthenewbusinessidea

From theknowledgehe gained in the industry regardingmeans to servemarkets,

Ianplannedtosetuphishypnotherapybusinessasa jointventure.Hesuccessfully

recruitedoneofthebusinesspartnersinBIC:

Right okay well basically just because I wanted to do joint venturesbefore but havenever bothereddoing themand then I’ve reada lot ofmarketing materials and also by speaking to my external influenceswhich are the other people who do hypnotherapy around the country,theysaytheydojointventureswithotherpeopleanditsverysuccessfulsothat’sgivenmethemotivationbecausethethingisI’vebeenbuildingupcontactsforquitesometimeandnowI’mgoingtostartusingthem.

Establishinganentrepreneurialcommunity

The BIC management provided support for Ian to run his networking events

smoothlyandprofessionally.Inthemeantimethenetworkingeventsalsohelpedto

enhancetheentrepreneurialenvironmentinBIC:

BecauseIdoalotofspeakingeventshereandthey’vealwaysbeenverysupportive, they’ve always come along and I have always handed outleaflets and flyers and I’ve always had either Martin, Christine [BICmarketing coordinator] or Jenny actually start the event in speakingintroducingwhatBICis,sooureventsdoworkhandinhand,youknow,andtheysortofhelpmetodothemandIthenpromoteBICandpeoplehavejoinedupasaresult,whichisgood.

8.2.4Tony

Developedknowledgeofmeanstoservemarkets

Tony came toBICwith the idea of runninghis Life Coaching andBusinessAdvice

(LCBA)business.Howeveritdidn’tworkwellashethought.HegottoknowDavidin

BICandchangedthedeliverymethodsforthebusiness:

I’velostthedatetrainingsideofit,becauseitwasnotmakinganymoney.Alsowhen Ioriginallymoved intoBIC, I thoughtBICwouldbeabetterarea todoworkshops than it is,even though ithasgot the facilitiesdoworkshops,theactual location,really looksverygood, isn’t!Becausenoonecanfinditandnoonecanparkhere,it’sabitannoying.SonowI’mnot…I’vemovedmygoalpostslightly,orI’vemovedtheidea,soinsteadofpeoplecomingherefortheworkshops,I’mgoingtodoitasawebcasting.I’mgonnatoputitontheInternet.Sowe’vegotsomehow

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utilisewhatBIChavegot,likethosesmallspaces,butdoingitacrosstheInternet,sopeopledon’thavetocomehere.Sowelaunch,hopefully,we’vegotourfirst10customersnow,welaunchinJanuary.Soyeahtheideahasdevelopedlots,becauseoftheexternal,notexternal,theinternalproblemsIsuppose,withBIC.ButalsoBIChasgivenmetheopportunitytomeetDavid,andwithoutDavid,wewouldn’thavethatproduct.

BecauseoftheotherfourtenantsTonymetinBIC,hisbusinessideaevolvedinthe

process.Insteadofrunningworkshopsonmarketinganddatetraining,heshiftedhis

focusentirelyongivingmarketingadviceonline.Thisprocesshelpedhimtodevelop

knowledgeinmeanstoservemarkets:

TherefinementoftheideaIsupposecomesfromjustmarketresearchingmore.WithLCBA I thought I did enoughmarket research, but I hadn’tand I just launched itonmygut feeling,and itworks,becausehalf thebusinessworks,butthedatetrainingsideofitdidn’t,sonowfor[thenewbusiness], Marketing Advice (MA), I’m actually doing the opposite, I’mgoing to bring in four people, those business partners, but each one ofthemhasaspecialism.We’vegotDavidwho’sourwebguy,we’vegotasalesguy,we’vegotaprojectmanager,andthenwe’vegotTaniaaswellwhoisfinance…andthat’sreallythroughBIC.This ideawouldn’thappenwithoutBIC.MAwouldhappenwithoutBIC,full stop, really. A, because of the people I met; B, because of the, Isuppose, the atmosphere; C, design of this room, this room is reallyhelpfulaswell.From now on, doing a lotmore PR stuff, as soon asMA launches, lotsmore PR, a lot more PR online, much more spokespersons for smallbusinessesandforenterprise.

TeamingupwithotherBICtenantswasawayforTonytocopewiththenewnessof

thebusiness:

This isMA,LCBAwillbedestroyed,becauseLCBAwill justbepartof…becauseLCBAwasjustme,Iwasjustbasicallyworking,Ihadajobreally,I had 3 or 4 clients, thatwas really a job.Whereas this is a company,anotherplanofthis,isastheysaidinEntrepreneur,youknow,it’snotabusinessunlessyoucanwalkaway from itorunlessyoucanbe illandyouknow,thingsstillwork.TheproblemisIcannotbeill,atthemomentwithLCBA,ifI’mill,ifIstopworking,Idon’tmakeanymoney,there’snotmuch,justme,soIgonnatomakethisintoabusiness,andhopefullywiththat thing there (knocking on the white board), a residue business, it

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makesmylife,ifwehaveahundredpeoplesigningup,andIhavetodooneworkshop,and twoaudio, that’sa lot easier fora largeamountofmoney.Andthatmeans,thissalesjobisalotharder,butthat’swhyI’mbringinthatsalesguy.Because I’ve brought otherpeople into the roles,my job canbe canbeexactly which should have been, which is basically PR,marketing, andbeingan entrepreneur, andbeinga flagship for thewhole thing, that’sthe reason I brought these guys in, so I don’t wanna bogged down bydoingasalesrole,orboggeddowndoingthefinance,orthedelivery,orthewebsites. Somy role is really just to be out thereand shoutingMAfromthetallestbuildings.

Beingandactingasanentrepreneur

Tonyreadbooksaboutentrepreneursandwasinspiredbythem.InBIC,afterhemet

allthe‘rightpeople’withtherightskills,herecruitedthemashisbusinessassociates

forMA.WhenhewassettingupMA,hisplanwastobehaveasanentrepreneur,in

terms of his role in the new company and the future plan for the company – like

otherentrepreneurswhoselltheirstart-upsandsetupnewones:

Interviewer:Sowhatwouldbeyourrolethen?Tony:Entrepreneur.Interviewer:Entrepreneur.Tony: Entrepreneur guy, comes upwith themad ideas ... And thenmyplanistosellinthreeyearsandIleaveafterthreeyears,andthat’sgood.I didn’t realise there’s actually a bigger opportunity, until couple of amonthago,Isuppose,whentheinternetchangedabit,whenIreadabitaboutEntrepreneuragain,andthesearethebooksI’dreadyearsyearsyearsago,andI justhadn’tbeeninthesituationthatI’mnow,andI’vehadthelifeexperienceandit’ssuddenlyallmademoresensetome.I started toreada lotmoreautobiographies, so things likePeter Jones,RichardBranson,whichisprettygood.BareEntrepreneur,fantastic,soIre-read it again. And the E-myth, another brilliant book, because theyare all good. I think it’s beenmore effective, because books have beenmoreinfluentialthanpeople,andIcannotwaituntilJohnLeechandhiscrew,becausethat’s,Imeanthat’swhatIrealisedisI’vegottoacertainlevel, which is great, but I need to get another level, which can onlyhappenthroughmeetingbetterpeople.Infact,BICmadeahugedifference,well,otherwiseIwon’thavemetanyofthesepeople,Ihaven’tbeenmuchnow,that’snottrue,I’vemetallofthem,butIwouldn’thavemettheminBICwithoutBIC.

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BeingpartoftheBICcommunity

Influencedbyhis fellowtenantNeil,Tony felt the importanceofbeingpartofBIC,

notonlyforenhancingmotivation,butalsotoacquiretherightpeople,withtheright

skills,inordertodevelophisbusinessideafurther.Benefittingfromthecommunity

effect,TonywasalsobuildinguphisowncommunityandintegratingitwithBICby

choosingtostayonforanotheryearandnottorentaseparateroominBICforthe

newcompany:

Interviewer: In what ways has being with other people starting abusinessaffectedthedevelopmentofyourbusinessideas?T:Yeah,massively,wouldn’tit?Withoutit,withouttheenergylevelsthatyougetfromworkingaroundotherpeople,Idon’tthink,Ithinkalotofthesebusinesses survive,because theycancome toBICandhaveabaddaybutstillbearoundpeoplethataresmiling, I think it’s,youknow, ifyouhaveabadday,youbyyourselfathome,andultimatelyifyouareathome,halftimeyouspenditwatchingtelly.ItwaswhenIlistentoNeil’sspeech,I’verealisedactuallyit’snotjustthesocial side of it, it’s themotivation side of it, but also it’s meeting theright people. And as soon as I openedmymind, the possibility thatwecanmeet,youknow,therightpeople,soIthenmetalltherightpeople.And it was listening to Neil, doing things on culture developmenttrainingandconsultancy(CDTC),andhispointwas,youknow,notalotpeoplehereusethisasabase,forcreatingideasandhavingpartnership,it’saverygoodpoint,sothat’swhyIstartedworkingwithDavid,Ithengotthesalesguy,Joe,theyjustmovedinnow,Igotthoseguystomovein,Tania,IgottoknowcompletelythroughBIC,andTaniadoesmyfinance.SoeveryoneelsewillbeBICbased.

8.2.5PaulDevelopingfirstideawhiledevelopingtwootherideaswithothertenants

WhenPaulcametoBICwithhisownidea,itwasaboutsettingupaspecialistonline

foodbusiness(OFS),sellingenvironmentallyfriendlyfoodviatheInternet.However

it tookmuch longer thanPaulplanned. In themeantime, he lookedat someother

options in BIC. He teamed up with Jeff and another tenant, working on a Digital

Publishing (DP) business and he became the business partner of Jeff, who was

alreadytradingasITSupport(ITS):

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WhenIfirstsetupIthoughtyousetupabusinessandthreemonthslateryouaremakingmoney…butinrealityIthinkittakessixmonthsbeforethecompanyismakingadecentamountofmoneyandthenanothersixmonthsbefore the company canafford topayyouasadirectormoneyandifyouhaven’tgotlotsofmoneytoploughintothecompanyupfronttobeginwith,soIwasattractedtothethirdideaITSjustbecauseitwasalready trading and it could provide a source of income much morequicklythantheotherones.Iguess thekindofpersonality Ihave I sortofanalyse theenvironmentaround me a lot and I find it quite easy to pick out trends and spotopportunities and things and I could do that with Jeff’s ITS ideabecause…IcouldseetherewasneedforitandIwasalsoattractedtoitbecauseit’sarelativelylowriskbusinessandtheinvestmentrequiredisquite low and he was already trading so there’s hardly any sort ofbarriers to entry for us becausewe've got the linkswith theuniversitywhich the competitors don’t have and so it just seemed like a sensibleventure to get involved in and I think additionally it was attractivebecausemyfirst ideawasquiteahighriskbusinessbecause itrequiresquitealotoffinancialinvestmenttogrowittothescaleIwanttogrowitto.Sothefirstone[OnlineFoodSpecialist(OFS)]wasquitehighriskanditmight not have worked so we potentially could spend a lot of moneydevelopingitanditnotwork.TheDigitalPublishing(DP)businesswaskind of a medium risk so it was more likely to work, quite a lot lessmoney but both of those things had been taking quite a long time todevelop…soIwasattractedtothethirdidea[ITS], justbecauseitwasalready trading and it could provide a source of income much morequicklythantheotherones.

Teamedupwithothertenantswithcomplementaryskills

WhenI'dstartedthetransferbecominganentrepreneurandsowhenIstarted toworkwith Jeff on thedigital publishingbusiness I started tonotice that this was the type of person that I wanted to work withbecausehewasfromadifferentbackgroundwithkindoftechnicalandITskillsandadifferenttypeofpersonalitywhichcomplementedmine…We seemed to be working quite well together and we seemed tocompliment each other quite well and right from the very start I hadalwayswantedtoworkinteamsformyprojectsbecauseIthinkyouaremuch more likely to succeed having a team of people withcomplimentaryskillsthanyouareworkingalone.

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Makingthefirstideamoresustainablebyjoiningotherventuresandoffsettingtherisks

Paul was passionate about his first OFS idea. However he needed investment to

actualisetheidea.Byjoiningothertenants’ventures,hewastryingtooffsettherisks

ofOFSwhileworkingondevelopingthebusinessidea:

ITShaspotentialtomakelessmoneybutitismorelikelytomakemoneybut if it doesmakemoney itwon’t be asmuch. The digital publishingbusinessislikelytomakemoremoneyifitdoesmakeanymoneybutit’sslightlymoreriskybecausetheprobabilityofsuccessisslightlylessandOFS is likely to make an awful lot more money but the likelihood ofsuccessforthatislessagain.IthinkwhilstwehavebeenatBICworkingonthebusinessandaccessingtheresourcestheprobabilityofsuccesshasdefinitelybeenincreasingaswe’vedeveloped.WithOFS, the firststrategywastogetasmallamountof financeonsothat I could develop a concept, or proof of concept so that should befinishedsoon…wecanthenstarttradingforperhapsmaybesixmonthsproofthatitisworkingandthenwecanstartlookingtoputproposalsintovariouspeopletogetfunding.ComingtoBICandworkingonthefirstbusiness[OFS]startedtomakeusthink that sort ofmaybewe should take the other ideamore seriouslyandstartdevelopingitsoyeahthat’showthatsecondbusinessstarted.

Asfortheothertwobusinesses,Paulandhisassociatesweredevelopingthemeans

toservemarkets:

With thedigital publishing companyweare tradingwith thatandournext strategy is to focus on marketing and products, probably againlooking to attract a non-executive board of directors and we will becontinuingtoapproachvariouspeoplehighupinthepublishingindustry.Martinhas theexperienceofworking in thedigitalpublishing industryso he was able to sit downwith us and give us lots of really valuableadvicewhichwehave factored intoourbusinessplansand someofhisideas actually form the basis of our marketing strategies so that wasuseful.Because I have only been involved [in ITS] for the last six months Ihaven’t had toomuch to dowith the strategy but I think in realitywehavetestedtheconcepttoacertainextentinthelastsixmonthsandnowthe biggest limiting factor to growth at themoment is ourmarketingand if that is successful and we can prove that the model we havedevelopedisaprofitableone,wewillprobablybelookingatexpanding.

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Beingandactingasanentrepreneur

It was quite clear with Paul that he wanted to become an entrepreneur. He was

thinkingasanentrepreneurandwantedtodowhatcreativeentrepreneursdidby

planningtobringotherentrepreneursandinvestorsonboard:

I wanted to follow a career that was something to do with that, alsocreatingthingsandbeingentrepreneurialwhichIthoughtIwouldbe.I'vealwaysbeenwhatIwouldcall‘acreator’andIamverygoodatsortofanalysingsituations,spottingopportunities,beingpro-activeandsortofgoingoutmeetingpeopleandgainingtheirsupportandthattypeofthingsoIthought,'that'swhatI'msortofprettygoodat’.ThethingthatIreallyreallydidn’twanttodowastoget intoasituationwhereIwasjustkindof likea little slot ina company, justa tiny little rolewhich IhadtodoeverydayfortherestofmylifeandIreallywouldn’twanttodothat, so I wanted something kind ofmore exciting to helpme actuallycreatenewthingswhichiswhatIwantedtodo.AtthemomentIamveryhappytobeanentrepreneurandtoacceptthekind of levels of pressure and things you are under and the financialuncertaintythatcomesalongwithowningyourownbusiness.My expertise is more about being the entrepreneur and havingexperiencewithanenvironmentalbackgroundso thewebdevelopmentandthingsarebeingdonebyateamofotherpeople. Iamstrategicallylookingforpeoplearoundthecountrywhocouldjointheteamaslikeanadvisorwithasmallsharehold,justtokindofbuilduptheteambecauseI think as a university graduate who has just left university and isstartingsomethingIthinkonpaperyouarenotveryinvestablebecauseyou'vegotnoexperienceandprobablynotverymuchmoneyandallyouhave is an idea so now that I amgetting close to having something toactuallyshowpeoplebecauseOFS’webdevelopmentisalmostfinished,Iamnowlookingatgettingateamofpeopleonboardwhowill,onpaper,make the company look a lotmore prestigious so I am looking for thetype of people that I could use so people from sort of Google, Ebay,Amazon, the Sustainable Consumption Institute and all those type ofpeople.

BeingpartoftheBICcommunity

PaulreallylikedthesupportiveandentrepreneurialcommunityfeelBIChadtooffer.

Itnotonlyenabledhim theaccess touseful information for thebusiness,but also

provided an environment where likeminded entrepreneurs motivated and

supportedeachother:

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I think the human capital side of BIC and being in an entrepreneurialcommunity isby far thebest thingthatBIChas toofferand it’salmosttheonlyreasonwhyIcameintoBICtobewithotherpeople.I mean the social capital side of things works in more than one waybecauseit’snicejusttobeworkinginanenvironmentwithotherpeopleso from in terms of like a motivational point of view and just havingotherpeoplearoundyouanditdoesn’tevenmatteriftheyarenotdoingthe same thing, just having other people around you is much moreenjoyable than say sittingat home in yourhomeoffice just by yourselfand I think being around other people who have a sort ofentrepreneurial way of thinking is incredibly valuable because that isreally really unique – especially in Britain, well with British culturebecause people in Britain generally tend to, if you say youwant to dosomethingpeopleusuallyfindreasonstoadviseyounottodoitsokindof;‘it’srisky,itwouldbeeasiertogetajob’,andthosekindofthingsandsotogetacommunityofpeoplewhoallthinkthesamewaythatyoudoasanentrepreneurandtheycanseethereasonwhyyoushouldbedoingsomethingandtheycanseetheopportunityandthereforetheycansortofseewhyyouwanttobedoingit,Ithinkthat'sreallyuseful.MartinandJennyseemtounderstandwhateveryoneisgoingthroughinhere so like I said theyare very supportivebecauseagain theyarenotoutsidepeoplewhoquestionwhyyouaredoingitorthattypeofthing,soIfindthatreallyuseful.

8.2.6Kath

Developedmeanstoservemarkets

InBIC,Kathspent12monthsdevelopingherbusinessideafurther.Sheworkedon

thebusinessconcept,thetargetmarketandthenameofthebusiness:

It developed from scratch really … so it has taken 12months … and Ithink we would be ready then but everything has happened in thebusiness since then, the organisation of howwe are going to do it… Ichangedthename[of thebusiness]andthatwasabigchangebecausewhatwewantedtodowastodevelopitnotjustasachildcarevoucherbusiness but just in case the government decide you can have thevouchersforolderrelativeswhogotohomesetc.…themodelIhavesetup is going to be a maximum 2000 customers because to me 2000customers, a bit like my childcare company, I know everybody, peopleknowme…andthatisreallyniceandimportantandthatisthebitthatIthink is very good about the other business, so I have transferred thatontothisbusiness.SotokeepitsmallbutyetstillprofitableandthewayI

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am going to expand it is to franchise it out and that idea only camewhilstIwasatBIC,probablyaboutSeptemberorOctoberoflastyear.

After witnessing a major competitor in the same region selling their childcare

business, Kath learned that her competitor was growing too fast and the owners

couldnotmanagethebusinessanymore,duetotoomanyemployeesandclients.To

tacklewiththisfuturepotentialproblem,Kaththoughtofdevelopingasystemthat

wouldbesuitableforatwo-peopleteam,withamanageableamountofclients.That

alsomadeherthinkoffranchisingherbusiness:

Iamdevelopingitandwehaverefineditandrefineditsotheprocessisdeaddead simple, the strategy is that itwill be easyand simpleand itwont be time consuming,when I first didmybusinessmodel I thoughtthat for2000clientsyouwouldneedabout fivepeopleandnow Ihavegotitdowntotwo[employees]…Ihavedevelopedthatstrategybecausewhat I amnow thinkingbecauseof the franchise thatwe talkedaboutearlierifIcanfranchisethattoahusbandandwifeteamsoIsupposemystrategyhasbeentotryandreducethenumberofemployeessothat itcouldbeahusbandandwifeteamsothatagainyouhavegotthefamilyvoucherssideof itsoit’sahusbandandwifeteamoracouplewhocanrunthebusinesssothat’sthestrategyIamworkingon.

Kath used BIC’s tenants to get information and feedback on her idea, in order to

improveasystemshewasdevelopingforthebusiness:

That’swhereBICcamein,becauseIwasatBICandImeanIcanworkacomputer and I have basic skills but I cannot design things but I amcreativeandIknowwhatIwantandthatisexactlywhathappened.BythesummeroflastyearIhadworkedout,youknowIsaidIdidalotofresearchandworkingout the system that Iwanted, sowhen Ihadgotthe system that Iwanted I took the systemandwent toBICand I saiddoesanybodyknowwhocoulddesignasystem,noteventhewebdesign,Iwasmore interested in thesystembecausethesystemisalmost likealittlebankingsystemthatoperatesbehinditallandIjustputoutathingouttotheBICpeoplesaying, ‘ThisiswhatIwant, isanybodyinterestedinme telling themmore’, and thenof course variouspeople cameby, Ialsowentoutside,IwentoutsideBICandwenttocompaniesaswellandsaidthesamething ‘wasanybodyinterested?’.SoIdiduseBICforthat.At first everybody toldme Iwas being too ambitious and the system Iwanted could be donebutwould cost tens of thousands of pounds andhadIgotthatkindofmoneyandwasIpreparedtoputallmuchthatinand all that sort of thing, so I did tone it down and then put it downagain saying it was different this time and not as mad and chose [aformertenantcompany]todoit.

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Awell-runsystemwasneededtorealiseKath’sbusinessidea.Kathwastestingthe

system inBICand improving ituntilonedayshecouldsell thisbusiness ideaasa

franchise:

Justthroughtrialanderrorreally,Imeancertainlywhenwehavebeentestingthesystemthingshavecomeupandwethought,‘Wedon’twantthat,thatdoesn’tmakegoodsensetousorthatdoesn’tfitinwithwhatwedidyesterdayonthispartofthesystem,’soit’smainlythroughusingthe system, although its not ready to go out to the public yetwe havebeenusingitsincebeforeChristmas,we'vebeentestingitandpullingitapartandtryingtogetthingsrightandthat’showitsbeenbeingrefined,soforthreemonthswehavebeendoingthattomakesurethatwhenitdoesgooutitdoesexactlywhatitsays,ifwesay,‘Ifyoudothatyouwillget an e-mail’, you will get an e-mail no matter what because that iswhatwehavesaidwillhappenandthate-mailwilltriggerofftosaytome togoandcheck thebankaccount to see if theyhavepaidusand iftheyhave thenwewill ithasand then thewhole thingpayseverybodybutwehavetosayyestheyhavepaiduswhichiswherethecashpositivethingcomesinthatImentionedbefore.

AcquiredrelevantinformationthroughBICmanagement

Ithinkoneofthemainwaystheyhaveaffectedthings isbycontinuallysending us courses, conferences, meetings, seminars, we get a lot ofinformation from themand obviously I don’t go to everything but I dolookateverythingtheysendandIdosortofthinkifthatwouldbenefitme and that’s another benefit, you obviously don’t get that from thetenants youget that from themanagementand theyare theoneswholook at a course or look at a seminar and think it might be useful tosomebody and then send that out so you get the e-mail so it’s verybeneficialforthat.

Beingandactingasanentrepreneur

Kathmentioned that shewas creative and entrepreneurial. Itmade her feelmore

likeanentrepreneurinBICthanabossinherotherbusiness.Shealsofeltthatother

entrepreneurswere able to offer her ‘refreshing’ and ‘different’ points of view for

settingupabusiness:

I think if you are an entrepreneur you can’t help it, I was anentrepreneurialteacheraswell.Itwas like itwasalwaysgoingtohappen.MyDadisself-employedandmysisterisself-employedsoitwasalwaysgoingtohappen.

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WiththisparticularideaIhaveboughtawebsite,that'salittlehobbyofmine,Icollectwebsiteswithgoodnames–justincase.Themain thing Ihave foundwithBIC is that theotherpeoplewhoarearoundareabletoofferyouadviceandencouragementandadifferentperspectiveonwhat you think is clear-cut, someone then comes inandturns it completely on its head by just asking a simple question ormakingacommentandyouthink,‘ohrightIhadn’tthoughtaboutitlikethat’andIthinkthatisastrengthofBICasfarasIamconcerned,isthecontactsthatyoumake,Imeanalotofthepeoplealreadyintherelookatmeandthink, ‘ohwellshe’salreadygotabusiness,she’sasuccessfulbusinesswoman,shehasdoneX,YandZ,’andIhaveandIknowalotofthings that they perhaps don’t knowbut I also get somuch back fromthosepeoplewhopossiblybecausetheyhaven’thadtheexperiencesthatIhavehaddon’tseewhatIcanseeandsotheyputacompletelydifferentviewpointforwardandit’sreallyrefreshingandaswellwithBICpeople.InmyotherbusinessI’mboss…whereashereIamjustKath,sonobodyhas to be careful what they say to me, do you know what I mean?Whereas here it's really really positive, I think, that, you can get somehonestopinionsandhonestfeedback.

BeingpartoftheBICcommunity

BeingatenantinBICmadeKaththinkallmembersofBICsharethesameidentity.

Thisalsohelpedtobuilduptrustbetweenher,fellowtenantsandmanagement.This

trustenabledher toshareher ideaswithotherentrepreneursandget feedback to

improveherideas:

K: I think BIC has affected it [the business idea] 100% or whatever.Because when I come here everybody is excited about business andeveryone is going for the same goals, although in completely differentbusinesses, and I find that very very refreshing.When I come into BICthere is always somebody to talk to for a start-off, there is alwayssomebodytosaysomethingtoandthereisthesortoffamilyatmospherethatit’salmostlikeanunwrittenrulethatyoucantrustpeopleinBIC,solike I have just said to youabout the franchise and that’s a secret andloadsofpeopleknowthatsecretintherebutIknownobodyisgoingtonicktheideaoffmebecausethetrustisthereaswell.Interviewer:andwhydoyouhavethiskindoftrust?K: I don't know ... I suppose it’s a bit like teacherswe are the same, ifsomebody says to me, ‘oh I'm a teacher,’ I immediately have theimpressionthatIcantrustthem,becauseIwasateacher, Iknowwhatyou'vebeen through… Idon’t know, I suppose it’sbecausewehaveallbeenendorsedbyMartinorsomebody likehim,anybodyelsewho ison

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thatlittleteamandifyoutrustthatteamyoutrustthepeoplethattheyhavesaid,‘ohyou'reokaytocomeintoBIC’.

8.3Discussion:theroleofBICindevelopingentrepreneurship

Building on Kolb’s (1984) experiential learning framework, Corbett (2007, p.100)

believes that the process of learning consists of three elements: ‘the existing

knowledge, the process through which individuals acquire new information and

experiences, and the manner in which individuals transform new information and

experiences into new knowledge’. In the context of opportunity identification and

development, theexistingknowledgereferred tobyCorbett canbeconceptualised

as the prior knowledge identified by Shane (2000). In Chapter 7, I discussed the

impactofpriorknowledgeonopportunityidentificationandmappedoutthetypeof

priorknowledgeeachparticipanthadwhenidentifyinganopportunity.

BuildingontheworkinChapter6and7,thischaptercontinuestoaddressresearch

questions2, 3 and4. Thenatureof the researchquestionshighlights the evolving

process of the individual’s and opportunity’s development. Relating it to the

conceptual framework developed in Chapter 3 (as illustrated in Figure 2, Section

3.6), this chapter brings together the left and right hand sides of the diagram to

examine the development of the incubatees and their business opportunities. It

exploreshowlearningtakesplaceasaprocessofexperiencetransformationinaBI.

Through the lens of learning, it also demonstrates the interaction between the

entrepreneursandtheirbusinessideas.Theoutcomesofthelearningprocess,orin

otherwords,thetransformationofknowledgeandinformationhelpstodrawoutthe

roleaBIplayedontheindividualincubatees,thebusinessesandtheBICcommunity.

Exploring the role of business incubation through the process of opportunity

developmentandentrepreneuriallearning,suggeststhatsomekeyconceptsoverlap.

Therefore to simplify the analysis, the following discussion is divided into four

sections.

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In Section 8.3.1, I discuss the information and skills acquired through BIC. This

correspondstothe‘developmentofopportunities’partoftheconceptualframework.

In Section 8.3.2 the final element of a learning process, that is the transformation

process, is discussed. In particular, it looks at how knowledge and identity were

transformed. This links to the ‘development of individuals’ and ‘development of

opportunities’partsoftheconceptualframework.

Section8.3.3discussesBIC’sroleasalearningcommunityandSection8.3.4reports

on the role of a business incubator in developing entrepreneurship. These two

sectionsbringtogetherthethemeoflearninginaBIcommunity,whichisembedded

in the process of developing individuals and opportunities. This allows me to

examinetheconceptualframeworkasawholeandbringsallelements/conceptsof

the framework together, including the role of a business incubator in developing

entrepreneurship.

Beforepresentingtheanalysisitisworthnotingthatlearningisconceptualisedasa

continuous and evolving process. Tenants developed their ideas formally and

informally, inside and outside of BIC and therefore the idea development process

itselfwasnotphysically restricted inBIC.However,asaprincipalobjectiveof this

studyistoexploretheroleofabusinessincubatorindevelopingentrepreneurship,it

is essential to draw the boundary of such a learning process. Therefore the

discussionislimitedtoinformationandskillsacquiredthatcanbedirectlylinkedto

BIC.

8.3.1Acquiredinformationandskills

In order to understand what role BIC played in the opportunity development

process, this section looks at the information and skills obtained fromBIC,which

thentransformedintonewknowledgeandaidedopportunitydevelopment.

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The study supports extant literature in learning and entrepreneurship, which

suggests that informationplaysanumberof importantroles in the transformation

process,where learningoccurs.ForexampleKolb(1984)mentions thatoneof the

vital elements for learning is to acquire information. In the context of

entrepreneurship, Dimov (2007a, p.722) believes that ‘information to which

individuals are exposedhasa considerable effect on the ideas that theygenerate’. A

number of commentators stress the role of information asymmetry in the

opportunitydevelopmentprocess (Minniti 2004;Ardichvili et al. 2003; Shane and

Venkataraman 2000; Shane 2000) and more recent work by Corbett (2007)

highlights the importance of learning asymmetries in identifying an opportunity.

Thisstudy found that inanentrepreneurial learningprocess,notonly information

can be acquired, but also skills, and that both information and skills helped to

develop anopportunity. Table6 summarises the sources of information and skills

providedbyBICthataidedopportunitydevelopmentforeachofthesixcasestudies.

Table6-SourcesofinformationandskillsacquiredinBIC

Case

Information Skills

Andy

acquiringskillsdirectlyfromother

tenants

Jane

administrativeandwebdesignsupport

fromBICManagement

acquiringskillsbyobservingother

tenants

Ian

socialcontactsthroughBIC

management

acquiringskillsdirectlyfromother

tenants

Tony

acquiringskillsdirectlyfromother

tenants

Paul

industryspecificinformationfromBIC

management

acquiringskillsdirectlyfromother

tenants

Kath

informationfromtenantsforimproving

ideas

So,inthecaseofJane,shewasawarethatBICmanagementwashelpingtolinkthe

tenants and their talents. She got information from BICmanagement, in terms of

whichtenantscouldhelpherwithadministrativeworkandbuildingawebsitefor

her business. As for Ian, the BIC management used their external contacts to

introduce speakers and advertisers for Ian’s Social Networking Events business.

Ian’s future strategy for the business was then developed around the type of

contacts he got from the management. In this way, Ian’s SNE business acquired

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relevant information through BIC, his learning process was based on such

informationandasaresultthestrategywasdirectlyinfluencedbythecontacts.As

forPaul’sDigitalPublishingbusiness,heacquiredinformationaboutthepublishing

industryfromtheBICmanager,whohadworkedinthepublishingbusiness.Again,

similar to Ian’s case, this informationwas then integrated in the learningprocess,

where the information was then transformed to new knowledge, which in turn

shapedthemarketingstrategyfortheDPbusiness.

Unliketheothertenants,Kathacquiredinformationdirectlyfromthefellowtenants.

Sheusedothertenants’specificknowledgeinsystemsdesigntoexperimentonher

ideas,toreflectonthefeedback,andtousethisinformationtotransformittonew

knowledgeofmeanstoservemarkets.

In terms of acquired skills in BIC, itwasmainly the skills fromother tenants the

participants(Andy,Ian,TonyandPaul)acquired.Theyacquiredthesebyforminga

new business with the tenants who had such skills. Jane was the only one who

acquired skills by observing other tenants. Except for Paul, who knew his newly

acquiredbusinesspartnersbeforecomingtoBIC,Andy,IanandTonydidnotknow

the new business partners prior to entering BIC. In other words, these three

participantswouldhavenot startedanewbusiness,without the skills ofpartners

theymetinBIC.

Jane’s learning took place in BIC by observing how other tenants used their

marketing and networking skills, and reflecting on them. She transformed these

skills through extension, defined by Kolb (1984) as a process where reflective

observation is carried out. Jane had a career in physiotherapy,where sheworked

four days a week, while spending one day a week in BIC, running her Sports

Managementbusiness. Shementioned that thepublic sector sheworkedwasvery

differenttoBIC,intermsofthecolleagues/tenants,wayofthinking,andskills.Itis

apparentthatJanewouldhavenotbeenabletolearntheseskills,ifshedidnotstart

upandrunherbusinessinBIC.RaeandCarswell(2001,p.155)arguethat‘skillsare

learned from other practitioners by working with them’. Jane’s case suggests that,

withinanincubator,extension(Kolb,1984)mayrepresentanimportantadditional

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dimension to this process whereby skills can also be learned by observing and

reflectingonother’sactions.

For the four participantswho acquired skills by formingnewpartnerships (Andy,

Ian,TonyandPaul),itwasaquickwayforthemtoacquirethecomplementaryskills

theydidnothaveandcouldnotlearninashorttimeframe.Andypartneredupwith

Frank, whowas good at designingwebsite, whereas Andy’s skills lied at theweb

development side of the business. For Ian, his second business in BIC was

hypnotherapyandwell-being.HeformedastrategicalliancewithJonathanwhowas

a fitness trainerandanutritionist fromoutsideofBICtodeliveranewpackageof

services to customers. Tony acquired four skilful tenants to formanew company.

Thesetenantswouldworkonaccounts,marketing,clients,andwebsiteforthenew

company,whereTonycouldconcentrateondevelopingworkshopmaterials.Asfor

Paul, he formed a partnership with Jeff, who owned IT Support. Paul viewed the

businessasa low-riskbusinesswhichgeneratedsteady incomes.Paul’s specialism

wasnotITbutmarketing,sohehelpedJefftoexpandthemarketbase,whereasJeff

was leading the IT support side of thebusiness. Similarly to IT Support, Paul also

formedapartnershipwithJeffandanothertenanttodeveloptheDigitalPublishing

business,wherehismarketingskillsandhisknowledgeinITmanualscouldbeused.

SimilartoJane’slearningexperienceinBIC,Andy,IanandTonymightnothavebeen

able to formpartnershipswithoutbeinga tenant inBICandmeeting tenantswho

possessed complimentary skills to theirs. In the case of Ian, Tony and Paul,when

theirfirstbusinessideadidnotworkoutastheyplanned,BIChelpedinenhancing

entrepreneurshipbysustainingtheirbusinesseswhileworkingonotherideaswith

other tenants (IanandPaul)orhelped them(Tony) in finding thepeoplewith the

‘rightskills’toformanewbusiness.

BIChelpedthetenantstocopewithnewnessofthebusinesses,byquicklygathering

skills that were difficult to attain in a short time frame, and at a time, when the

entrepreneurs have to fight with scare resources and the smallness of business.

Taking Andy as an example, alone, Andy had a web development company. By

teamingupwithFrank,theystartedupanewcompany,whichofferedwebdesign,

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webdevelopmentandmarketing.Thediversityinskillshelpedthemtoattractmore

customerstothecompanyandalsohelpedtomakethecompanybiggerthanAndy’s.

8.3.2LearninginBIC:aprocessofexperiencetransformation

Based on the framework proposed in Chapter 3 regarding the learning process,

Chapter 7 has laid out the type of prior knowledge each participant possessed;

Section8.3.1presentedthenewlyacquiredinformationandskills,andinthissection

itisthetransformationprocessthatisstudied.

AsdiscussedinC3,apartfromexistingknowledgeandnewlyacquiredinformation,

the process of transforming information and experience is one of the three

important elements of learning (Kolb 1984). In a social context, Wenger (1998)

arguesthattheexperienceofparticipationandengaginginacommunityofpractice

helpstoconstructnewmeaningsofidentity.Bringingpersonal,socialandcontextual

learning together, Rae’s (2007, p.40) entrepreneurial learningmodel explains that

‘people constructmeaning through experience ina context of social interaction, and

createnewreality’.

Using these three frameworksasaheurist tool, the following twosectionsexplore

howinformationandexperiencearetransformedduringthelearningprocesswithin

BIC.Drawingondata fromChapter6,7and8, and linking it to the three learning

frameworks, two key themes can be identified. Theme 1 focuses on opportunity

development and explores how information is transformed into new knowledge.

Theme 2 puts emphasis on how the participants’ experienced the transformation

processofthemselveswhentheyweredevelopingopportunitiesinBIC.

Theme1–transformationofknowledge

InChapter7,priorknowledgeintheformofmarkets,customerproblems,meansto

serve markets and personal interests were explored in relation to opportunity

identification. Building on that analysis, this section looks at opportunity

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development, focusinginparticularonthetypeofknowledgethatisdevelopedand

transformedintoamorematurebusinessopportunity.

Figure12summarisesthetypesofknowledgethesixparticipantsweredeveloping.

Therearetwocolumnsrecordingopportunitydevelopment.Thethirdcolumnlists

the typeofknowledge that is stillbeingdevelopedand the fourthcolumn lists the

learningoutcomes, inotherwords,thetypeofknowledgethathasbeendeveloped

duringtheincubationtime.Bringingthedatatogetherinthiswaydemonstratesthe

processofopportunitydevelopmentinthecontextoftime,frompriorknowledgeto

knowledgedevelopedinBIC.IanandPaulidentifiedmorethanoneopportunity(see

Chapter7),andbecauseeachopportunityhaddifferentpriorknowledge, the table

takesopportunityastheunitofanalysis.

Figure12-KnowledgedevelopmentinBIC

Case Typeofpriorknowledge

Stilldevelopingknowledgeof…

Developedknowledgeof…

Maturityofidea

Andy

markets

customerproblems+

meanstoservemarkets

trading

Jane markets+

customerproblems+

meanstoservemarkets

tradingand

makingprofit

Ian1

(SNE)

customerproblems customerproblems+

meanstoservemarkets

implementedbut

noincomes

Ian2

(HW)

personalinterests meanstoservemarkets nottradingyet

Tony markets+

customerproblems+

personalinterests

meanstoservemarkets nottradingyet

Paul1

(OFS)

markets+

personalinterests

customerproblems+

meanstoservemarkets

nottradingyet

Paul2

(DP/Jef

f-Paul)

customerproblems+

meanstoservemarkets

markets trading

Kath markets+customer

problems

meanstoservemarkets tradingin1month

TheprocessofknowledgedevelopmentinBIC

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Thereare threeopportunities (Andy,TonyandKath)whichhadall three typesof

prior knowledge (markets, customer problems and means to serve markets)

developed through the process of incubation. Chapter 7 found that personal

interestswere important in identifyinganopportunity. Incontrast, in thischapter,

nopersonal interestswere foundtobe importantat the laterstageofopportunity

development.Becauseof this, the followingdiscussionexcludespersonal interests,

asthefocusisonthepost-priorknowledgestage.Where‘alltypesofknowledgeis

mentioned’, it refers to knowledge of markets, customer problems and means to

servemarket.

Jane isanextra-ordinarycase.She is theonlyonewhohadall threetypesofprior

knowledgebeforecomingtoBIC.Noneofthesetypesofknowledgeweredeveloped

inBIC.HoweverJanebelievedthatshehadbenefittedfrombeinginBICinanumber

ofways.ThisisdiscussedfurtherinSection8.3.3.

IncludingJane,fouropportunitiesdevelopedacompletesetofknowledgetoexploit

anopportunity.Thesefouropportunitieshadbeeneitherexploitedorwerenearto

exploitationatthetimeofthestudy,suggestingthatarobustmixtureofknowledge

maybeusefulineffectivelyexploitingopportunities.

Howeverthisdoesnotnecessarilymeanthatallentrepreneurswaituntilallformsof

knowledgearefullydevelopedbeforeexploitinganopportunity.InthecaseofPaul2

(digitalpublishing),itwasanopportunitydevelopedbetweenPaul,Jeffandanother

tenant. It could be the alliance that made themmore confident in experimenting

withtheiridea.BothPaulandJeffhadotherbusinesseseitherbeingdeveloped(OFS)

or already trading (ITS). Thismay represent away for them to balance the risks

associatedwithsomeideaswhileexperimentingwithothers.

Theme2–transformationofidentity

Jane noted her awareness of becoming an entrepreneur. Wenger (1998, p.149)

mentions that ‘wedefinewhoweareby thewaysweexperienceour selves through

participationaswellasbythewaysweandothersreifyourselves’.Taking Janeasan

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example,theentrepreneurialenvironmentinBICmadeherawareofdifferencesin

people’sbehaviourcomparedtoherpublicsectorjob.ThetenantsinBICmadeher

think of her own identity as an entrepreneur and how she would do things

differently compared to the other work place. This supports the entrepreneurial

learning model developed by Rae (2007, p.42), which suggests that learning is a

transformationofidentity,inotherwords,‘becominganentrepreneur’.

On a slightly different note, Ian, Tony, Paul and Kath mentioned how they were

practicingasanentrepreneur.ThisissimilartoWenger’s(1998)conceptoflearning

aspractice.Forexample,forTonybeinginBICmadehimreadmanyentrepreneurs’

autobiographies. According to Kolb’s (1984) definitions of learning styles, Tony

learned about being an entrepreneur through assimilative learning. BIC provided

Tonywiththeopportunitytopracticewhatitreallymeanstobeanentrepreneur.He

formed anew company,wherehe couldplay the role of entrepreneurby running

workshops for SMEs online. Rae’s model (2007, p.42) suggests that ‘whatwe do

shapes our identity’. The case studies discussed above provide some evidence to

supportthismodelofentrepreneuriallearning.

8.3.3Beingpartoftheentrepreneurialcommunity

There was strong sense among the participants of being part of or belonging to

(Wenger1998)theBICcommunity.WhilethereweresomesimilarbusinessesinBIC,

eachbusinesshadauniquebusinessidea/angle.Neverthelessallparticipantsshared

acommonidentityinperceivingthemselvesasbeingorbecominganentrepreneur.

Themeaning of starting up a business and being an entrepreneurwas negotiated

throughconversations(discourse),theirunderstandingofstartingupandrunninga

business(concepts),andeventstakingplacein-andoutsideofBIC.

Data from interviews and documents suggest that this community did not only

belongtothetenantsofBIC,butratheritincludedmanagement,thesteeringgroup

ofBIC,businessadvisersandmentors,andguestspeakersatBICevents.Theconcept

of a community was explicitly articulated by tenants andmanagement, while the

otheractorsimplicitlyarticulatedtheidea.Therewasastrongsenseofidentityand

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membershipofBIC,suggestingthetypeofmutualengagementidentifiedbyWenger

(1998). Participants’ shared stories and ideas, developing what Wenger (1998)

referstoasa‘sharedrepertoire’.InthiscontextBICcanbeseenasajointenterprise

(Wenger1998)thatparticipantswerebuildingandmaintainingthroughnegotiated

meaning&learning,andsharingideas&goals.

For example Paul mentioned how other entrepreneurs would share their

understandingofstartingupabusiness,whereaspeopleoutsideofBICwouldnot.

He alsomentioned that the BICmanagement was supporting the entrepreneurial

communitybysharingtheirunderstandingandenhancingengagementinactivities.

When explaining the concept of negotiated enterprise in the entrepreneurial

learning model, Rae (2007, p44) suggests that negotiated enterprise includes

‘negotiatingmeaning, structuresandpractices–developing sharedbeliefsabout the

venture’. InPaul’scase,thesesharedbeliefswereaboutbeinganentrepreneurand

settingupbusinessventures.

SimilarlyKathmentionedthatBIChadaffectedthewayshedevelopedherbusiness

idea.ShenotedthatalthougheveryoneinBICwasrunningadifferentbusiness,they

sharedthesamegoalofbecomingasuccessfulbusinessowner.Becauseofthejoint

enterprisetheybuilttogether,Kathandothertenantshadtrustineachother.Thisis

demonstrated through their mutual engagement. They readily exchanged ideas

without fear of being copied and they helped each other to improve the business

ideas.

8.3.4TheroleofBICindevelopingentrepreneurship

Fromthediscussionsabove it is clear that the transformationprocesswouldhave

notbeentakenplacewithouttheexistenceofBIC.BICnotonlyprovidedaphysical

space,butasocialspacewherethetenants,management,advisers&mentors,and

externalspeakerscouldmeetandinteractwitheachother.Thesocialspacewasnot

usedonly fornetworkingactivities,butasa space for the tenants todiscuss ideas

and work towards a common goal: to start up and grow their businesses. This

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finding supports Dimov’s (2007a, p.723) proposition that in a social context, ‘the

social audience with which individuals engage to discuss their ideas affects the

processes of interpreting and integrating through providing information,

interpretation, resources,andreinforcement thathelp shape/develop the individuals’

ideas’.

Taking together the findings from Chapter 6, 7 and 8, this study follows the

pathways the participants took during their business incubation period, and

explores theBIprocess indetail.Using this holistic view, Figure13 illustrates the

role of a business incubator in the opportunity identification and development

process.

Atcentreofthemodelistheindividual’sopportunityidentificationanddevelopment

process.This is shapedbya complex interactionof knowledge, skills and learning

thatbeginspriortoenteringtheBIandcontinuesthroughouttheincubationprocess.

ThegreenarrowsrepresentpriorknowledgegainedbeforeenteringaBI.Theyellow

arrows represent the information, skills, experience and resources the incubatees

gain fromaBI.TheoutercirclerepresentstheBIcommunitywherenewskillsare

learned and new information is acquired, embedded within this are the learning

activities whereby knowledge and skills are transformed into opportunity

identificationanddevelopment.

Within the first circle learning occurs at a personal level, and also through the

interactionbetweenthe individualsandtheBIcommunity.These interactionstake

placebetweendifferenttypesofpriorknowledge,theinformation,skills,experience

and resources acquired through a BI, and through becoming a member of the BI

community.Movingtowardsthecentreofthemodel,thelearningprocessallowsthe

transformation process to be completed. Newly acquired information, skills,

experience and resources from BI are combined with existing knowledge, new

informationandtransformedintonewknowledge,inthiscontext,opportunity.

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Figure13-TheroleofBIsintheopportunityidentificationanddevelopmentprocess

Thecirculararrowsinthemodeldemonstratethetransformationstage,wherethe

individuals negotiate the meanings of new information and their identity as an

entrepreneur. The process is circular because knowledge and identity are created

andre-created(Kolb1984).

DrawingtogetherthefindingsfromChapter6,7,and8,theroleofBICindeveloping

entrepreneurshipcanbesummarisedasfollows:

kets

of

Personal interestsge

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An important physical and social space to start up a business. BIC was an

importantspacewheretheincubateesmet.Theopenofficespaceencouragedthem

to engagewith each other and to discuss their ideas, share valuable contacts and

exchange experiences.The cheap rent alsohelped the incubatees toovercome the

financialliabilitiesofastart-up.

Atrustedplacetoforgecollaborationsandalliances.The informalandfriendly

environment helped to build trust between the incubatees. Meeting other people

whowere starting up a businessmade the incubatees feel that theywere having

similarexperiencesregardingrisktaking,whichtheir familyandfriendsmightnot

understand.Thissharedunderstandingmadethemtrusteachother.Alsoitisoften

difficultforstart-upstobuildtheirreputationquickly.Bycollaboratingandworking

for eachother, the incubatees often got their jobsdonequite cheaply at the same

timebuildingupalonglistoftestimonialsandrecommendations.Someincubatees

started strategic alliances with other incubatees, so that they could acquire each

other’sknowledgeandskillsquickly.Othersdevelopedalliancessothattheycould

diversifythemselvesandspreadtheriskstootherbusinesses.

A resource harbour. It was not only physical space and office resources BIC

provided, but resources at a much wider sense. BIC itself provided professional

servicestotheincubatees,suchasacitycentrelocationandpostaladdress,business

mentors&advisers, social events, guest speakersandmaster classes.Through the

link between BIC and the university (UKU), the incubatees had free access to the

library, professional audio and video equipment, the Students’ Union, the Careers

Services,andevenuniversityclasses.Theseresourcesareuseful,notonlytosavethe

costofstartingupandrunningabusiness,butinprovidinghighqualityandrelevant

informationtotheincubateesthathelpedtoshapetheirbusinessideas.

A catalyst for business ideas. Quite distinctively, BIC was instrumental in

identifyingbusiness ideas for two incubatees.Andythoughtofstartinguphisown

business inBIC, becausehe sawa lot of start-ups and thought thatmanyof them

would need a cheap and easy-to-run business website. Ian was not happy about

manyofthenetworkingeventsheattended,heconsideredBICasareallygoodplace

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to run his social networking events. In both cases, BIC added new information to

theirexistingknowledge,whichhelpedthemtoidentifyopportunities.

A learning space where further information and skills can be acquired. As

discussedearlierinthechapter,theincubateesacquirednewinformationandskills

through BIC, which were crucial for them in creating new knowledge. The data

suggest that it was often the specialist knowledge incubatees learned that was

importantforideadevelopment.Theincubateesalsofoundafasttracktoacquiring

skills,bycollaboratingandpartneringupwithotherincubatees.

Acommunitywheretenantslearntobecomeanentrepreneur.Inthischapter,it

has been demonstrated that the incubatees learned to become entrepreneurs by

engaging with the BIC community, which included other incubatees, the BIC

management, theBICsteeringgroup, theTenantsAssociation,businessmentors&

advisers,andguestspeakers.ThroughtheinteractionswiththeBICcommunity,and

by participating in BIC activities, the incubatees thought and behaved more like

entrepreneursanddistinguished themselves fromtheir familyand friends,but the

same time, became more similar to each other. The significant transformation

process,notonlytransformedtheirstart-upexperience,butalsotheiridentity.The

processitselfisalsoalearningprocess.

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ChapterNineConclusions:Contribution,ImplicationsandFutureResearch

9.1Introduction

Thischapterdrawstogetherfindingsfromthestudyinordertodiscusshowithas

contributed toknowledge. I alsodiscuss the implicationsof the research for those

runningormanagingabusinessincubator,prospectiveandexistingincubatees,and

policymakers.Theoverallaimof the researchwas toexplore the roleofbusiness

incubatorsindevelopingentrepreneurship.InordertoachievethisIaddressedthe

followingfourresearchquestions:

1. HowdoincubateesexperiencetheprocessofstartingupabusinessinaBI?

2. Inwhatwaysdoincubateesusetheirexistingknowledgeandnewlyacquired

information, to develop andnurture their businesses during the incubation

period?

3. Howdoestheopportunitydevelopmentprocesstakeplaceduringincubation?

4. What is the role of a business incubator in this opportunity development

process?

After mapping the process of starting up a business in BIC, I used stories of six

selected cases to demonstrate the varying pathways through business incubation.

Chapter6unravelledtheexperienceofstartingupabusiness inaBIenvironment.

ThishelpedtoaddressResearchQuestion1.

Chapter 7 mainly focused on the impact of prior knowledge on opportunity

identification. While Chapter 8 explored the effects a BI has on the opportunity

developmentprocess. Joiningtogether,Chapter7and8 lookedatthetypeofprior

knowledgethe incubateeshadwhencomingintoBICandhowthisknowledgewas

used todevelop intobusiness opportunities,when combinedwithnewly acquired

information and skills obtained from BIC. These aimed at addressing Research

Question2and3.Researchquestion4isaddressedinChapter6and8.Chapter6put

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emphasis on the individual entrepreneurs and Chapter 8 looked at the BIC

communityasawhole.

Figure 14 illustrates how each research questionwas addressed in the three data

chapters(Chapter6-8).Thefiguredemonstratestheinter-relationshipbetweenthe

keyelementsof thestudy: the individual(Chapter6), theopportunity(Chapter7),

andthedevelopmentofbothinaBIenvironment(Chapter8).Italsoshowsthatto

understandthecompleximpactofbusinessincubation,itisimportanttounravelthe

process of learning, in other words, the development and transformation of

entrepreneursandtheirbusinessideas.

Figure14–Howtheresearchquestionsareaddressed

The chapter is organised as follows: the first section discusses how the research

contributestoknowledge;thisisfollowedbyacriticalreflectionofthestrengthsand

limitations of the study and suggestions are made for future research; the final

sectionofthechapterdiscussesthepracticalimplicationsofthestudy.

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9.2Thecontributionofthestudy

A principal aim of the study is to understand the role of business incubators in

developing entrepreneurship, from the incubatees’ perspectives and experience.

Influential studies of business incubation conducted by Hackett and Dilts (2008;

2004)usebusinessincubatorsasunitsofanalysis.Incontrast,thisstudyfocuseson

the experience of the incubatees and the learning and opportunity development

process that tookplace in aBI.This relativelynovel approachallows formore in-

depth exploration of the entrepreneurial process from the perspective of the

incubatees.

Theoutcomesofthestudycontributetoknowledgebyadvancingunderstandingof

the process of business incubation. Specifically it advances understanding by

exploringhowindividual incubateesexperience the incubationprocess in termsof

opportunity identification and development, and learning that is embedded in the

knowledgeandidentitytransformationprocess.

Inordertoaddressresearchquestions1and4,Chapter6ofthestudylookedathow

the incubatees experienced the process of starting up a business in a BI. It also

exploredtheroleofabusinessincubatorinthisstart-upprocesstoprovideinsight

into what Hackett and Dilts (2008) describe as the ‘black box’ of the business

incubationliterature.

Unlikemanyexistingstudiesthat lookatBIsfromthemanagement’spointofview

(Hackett andDilts 2008; Grimaldi andGrandi 2005;Hannon 2005b; O’Neal 2005;

HackettandDilts2004;LeeandOsteryoung2004;Hannon2003;Brooks1986), in

Chapter 6 of this study, it is the incubation process from the perspectives of the

incubatees that is explored in depth. This pertinently responds to calls for more

incubationprocessfocusedstudies(TodorovicandMoenter2010;HackettandDilts

2008).

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Moreover, drawing on individual narratives has allowedme to build a conceptual

framework of the distinct pathways that individuals follow during the incubation

process. This novel approach draws on rich qualitative data,which has enabled a

closer and detailed exploration of the interactions between the incubatees

themselves, as well as between incubatees and the incubator. This explorative

approachdistinguishesitselffrommanyotherstudiesofBIs,whichfocusonseeking

causal relationships between the incubator services & resources and incubatee

performance(Al-MubarakiandWong2011;ZhangandSonobe2011;Todorovicand

Moenter2010;Xu2010;HackettandDilts2008;LeeandOsteryoung2004;Hannon

2003; Lumpkin and Ireland 1988). The distinct pathways developed in Chapter 6

help to build amore robust theory of the business incubation process. Using the

narratives as a powerful tool to shed light on the incubation process, the chapter

helpedtoexplorethe leftcolumnoftheconceptual frameworkasdemonstrated in

Figure2(seeSection3.6).

Among the many different roles BIC played in the incubation process, Chapter 6

found a quite distinctive one, which is instrumental for business ideas. For two

participants(AndyandIan),theycombinedtheirpriorknowledgewiththeexistence

ofBICandthathelpedthemtoidentifybusinessopportunities.

Chapter 7 addressed research questions 2 and 3. Using the concept of prior

knowledgeandopportunityidentificationasaheuristictoolallowedmetodevelopa

conceptualframeworktounderstandthedifferentrolespriorknowledgecanplayin

the opportunity identification stage. Drawing on the four different types of prior

knowledge, identified by Shane (2000) and Ardichvili et al. (2003), the study

explored each of them in depth by looking at the varying interactions of prior

knowledgeandtheirroleinopportunityidentification.Bydoingso,thischapterput

its emphasis on the right column of the conceptual framework (see Figure 2), in

otherwords,thetransformationofbusinessideas.

Drawingontherichqualitativedataandexistingliterature,threethemesintermsof

the roleprior knowledgeplays in opportunity identification emerged (change and

innovation, knowledge transfer, and knowledge replication). This finding enriches

179

the extant literature in opportunity identification by detailing the effects of prior

knowledge.Inotherwords,itnotonlysuggeststhatpriorknowledgehasanimpact

onopportunity identification,butoffers someexplanationofhow itmayaffect the

processofopportunityidentification.

When looking at each form of prior knowledge alone, the study found that prior

knowledgeofmarketswasthemostcommonformamongparticipantsinthestudy.

This is followedbypriorknowledgeof customerproblems,personal interestsand

means to servemarkets, suggesting that education,work andpersonal experience

playedaveryimportantroleinidentifyinganopportunity.Thestudyalsofoundthat

when opportunity identification is based mainly on negative experience as a

customer,itoftenindicatesthattheentrepreneurismoreopportunisticandwilling

totakerisks.

Prior knowledge of means to serve markets was the least common form of

knowledgeamongparticipants.ThefindingsfromChapter7suggestthatknowledge

of means to serve markets alone is unlikely to be sufficient to identify new

opportunities. However, where opportunities have already been identified,

knowledge of means to serve markets can act as a catalyst and increase the

likelihoodofdevelopingtheopportunityfurther.

Compared to studies (Lumpkin et al. 2004) with more mature and successful

businesses,thisresearchunderlinesthedifferencesbetweenverynewstart-upsand

more established ones. In this research, the role of prior knowledge of customer

problems is much less important than in other studies, such as Lumpkin et al.’s

(2004) findings.Thissuggests thatpriorknowledgemayplayan importantrole in

understanding the dynamic process of business start-up, where knowledge of

customerproblemsisdevelopedatalaterstage,asdemonstratedinChapter8.

Chapter 7 found that in most participants studied, it is a combination of prior

knowledge, rather than a single form that led to opportunity identification. This

suggeststhat it is importanttostudythe interactionbetweenknowledge, learning,

and opportunity identification and development. This finding suggests that it is

180

important to adopt a process- and interaction-orientated approach to study

opportunityandentrepreneurial learning,ratherthananoutputsorfactor-focused

approach.

TheoutcomesofChapter6and7laidameaningfulfoundationforthedataanalysis

inChapter8.Basedonincubatees’priorknowledge,thechapterlookedatthenewly

acquiredinformation,skillsandtheresourcesobtainedfromBIC.Thisthenledtoan

explorationofhowknowledgeandexperiencearecreatedandtransformedduring

the incubation process. In this way Chapter 8 was able to draw the data from

previouschapters together inorder toexplore researchquestions2,3and4.This

reflects the holistic approach of this study, in other words, looking at BIC as a

learningcommunity,whereindividualsdeveloptheirbusinessopportunities.Thisis

demonstrated by the circle in Figure 2, which illustrates the transformation of

learningexperience.

Tounderstandtheroleabusinessincubatorplayedintheopportunityidentification

anddevelopment process, Chapter 8 specifically explored the incubatees’ learning

process that was directly linked to BIC. In terms of entrepreneurial learning and

opportunity development, the outcomes of the chapter suggest that it is BIC that

helped the incubatees to obtain specialist knowledge and skills to develop their

business ideas.Anovel findingof the chapter is that the incubateesusedBIC as a

‘fast track’ to acquire skills by collaboration and forging alliances with other

incubatees.Developingskillsinthiswayhelpedtheincubateestostartupandgrow

theirbusinessesmuchquickerthanotherwiseitwouldbe.Thisalsohelpedthemto

overcomethenewnessofastart-up.

Itisalsointerestingtofindthatitwasnotonlytheinformationandskillsthathelped

in creatingnewknowledge and transforming it into business development; itwas

alsotheidentityandtheBICcommunitythatwastransformingandevolvingatthe

same time.Being inBIChelped the incubateesunderstand theprocessofbusiness

start-ups,theimportanceoflearning,themeaningofbecominganentrepreneur,and

thebondandmutualengagementwithintheBICcommunity.

181

AmodelisdevelopedinChapter8(seeFigure13,Section8.3),whichdemonstrates

the important components of the entrepreneurial learning and opportunity

development process. It represents a new conceptual framework that attempts to

capturethecomplexprocessofopportunityidentificationanddevelopmentwithina

BI.ViewingtheincubationprocessinthiswaycouldhelpBImanagementtoidentify

importantelementsthatcanhelpincubateestolearnanddeveloptheirbusinesses.

Themodel can be used as a heuristic tool to guide future research that seeks to

understand the complex interactions between learning, opportunity development

andbusinessincubation.

Taken together, through the lens of learning, Chapter 7 and 8 offer a fresh

perspective on how the entrepreneurial process could be studied in a BI

environment, where opportunity identification and development take place.

Specifically,Chapter6,7and8buildonexistingBIliteraturebyprovidingin-depth

empirical data that traces incubatees’ experiences back to prior knowledge (in

Chapter7)andlinkthisdirectlytotheincubationprocess(Chapter6&8).

Theoutcomesofthestudydemonstratetheeffectivenessofusinglearningtheories

to study the impact and process of business incubation, which is identified as a

knowledgegapatthebeginningofthestudy.Itillustratesthevalueofusinglearning

theories as a heuristic tool to understand the complex interplay between the

entrepreneur and the opportunity, and how individuals with business ideas can

developopportunitiesbyacquiringnewinformationandskillsinaBIsetting.

Thefindingsindicatethatknowledgealonemaynotfullyexplaintheentrepreneurial

process. It is the dynamics of learning that offers a greater understanding of how

information,experience,skillsandidentitycanbetransformedintonewknowledge,

whichinturnleadstoopportunityidentificationanddevelopment.Bydoingso,the

studyadvancesourunderstandingoftheprocessofBIandhighlightstheimportance

of learning. It also suggests that although a high stock of knowledge is important

prior to entering a BI, it is learning that is evenmore crucial to the opportunity

developmentprocess,wherenewknowledgeiscreatedbycombingpriorknowledge

andnewinformation&experience.Thissuggests thatencouragingandsupporting

182

learning should be paramount for BIs, and underlines the importance of

understandinglearninginaBIenvironment.

Finally,incontrasttoexistingstudiesthatlookatthephysicalfacilities,professional

appearanceandsocialnetworksofaBI(Arlottoetal.2011;ZhangandSonobe2011;

Todorovic andMoenter 2010;McAdam andMarlow 2007;McAdam andMcAdam

2006;Bøllingtoft&Ulhøi2005;Voiseyetal.2005),theresearchsuggeststhestrong

influenceofa learningcommunity inshaping incubatees’ identityandencouraging

opportunitydevelopment.

9.3Criticalreflectionsandfutureresearch

Firstly, intermsofthedevelopmentof literature, thestudyfocusesonauniversity

businessincubatorwhichhostsentrepreneursfromadiversebackground,inother

words,notall thestart-upsarehigh-techor fromthesameindustry.Thismakes it

moredifficult tocompare theoutcomeswithexisting literature that tends to focus

onhigh-techBIs(AhmadandIngle2011;CooperandPark2008;Aertsetal.2007;

Hughesetal.2007;McAdamandMcAdam2006;Kohetal.2005).

Moreover unlike other research based on university BIs that highlight the

importance of encouraging trust between the incubatees (McAdam and McAdam

2006;McAdamandMarlow2007),thisstudydemonstrateshowtrustbetweenthe

incubatees helped them to forge alliances and to overcome the smallness and

newnessofbusinessstart-ups.ThismaybeduetothenatureoftheBIstudied.

BIC is amix incubator, with companies from various sectors (see Appendix XIV).

This mixed nature may have helped in bringing entrepreneurs from different

backgroundstogether,withadiverserangeofpriorknowledgeandcomplementary

skills. Instead of a hostile, highly competitive environment, BIC encouraged

individuals to exchange their knowledge, skills and information. Future research

couldincludecomparativestudiesofmixedand,forexample,high-techincubatorsto

explore the role of BIs in the context of knowledge transfer, learning and

183

opportunityrecognition. Anotheravenueforfutureresearchistoexplorewhether

thepositiveexperienceofBICcouldbetransferredintootherincubators,including

universityhigh-techones.

Also because the majority of university BIs are (partially) subsidised by public

funding,much researchbasedonuniversityBIs looksat theoutputs in relation to

public funding, policy and implication. This, on one hand, highlights the unique

natureof thisstudy,however it restricts thepossibilities fordrawingcomparisons

withotherstudies.

Nevertheless, the theoretical framework in terms of knowledge and identity

transformationdevelopedinthestudyoffersthepossibilityforfutureresearchersto

exploresimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweenauniversityBIandothertypesofBI,as

wellasbetweendifferenttypesofnon-academicincubators.

Secondly, as for themethods used for the study, the 20 in-depth interviewswith

incubatees, documents from the 1st and 2nd year incubatee selection interviews,

anddocumentsfromtheBICofficeprovidedveryrich,in-depthandmeaningfuldata

for the study. Other forms of data collected but not systematically analysedwere

collected through interviewing the BIC stakeholders, attending steering group

management meetings, tenant association meetings, and other BIC events. These

formsofdataenrichedmyunderstandingofhowauniversityBIwassetupandrun

as well as what challenges the management group had. These data therefore

providedcontextandaidedunderstanding.Howevertobeabletospecificallyfocus

ontheincubatees’entrepreneurialprocess,andtoenableanin-depthexplorationof

how individual’s learning took place in a BI, these data were not systematically

analysed. Future research could take account of these issues and extend the

conceptual framework to include factors such as the alignment of policy, BI

management strategy and their interaction with the personal development of

incubatees.

Thirdly, as an exploratory study, this research has its advantages, as well as

limitations. The study offers meaningful insights into how incubatees experience

184

their start-upprocess in aBI environment. By exploring the learningprocess that

took place in BIC, the study goes some way to opening up the ‘black box’ of BI,

describedbyHackett andDilts (2008),whocriticise theBI literature for failing to

shed light on the process of business incubation and highlight the importance of

learning in a BI. However, as an exploratory, qualitative study seeking to develop

theory,theoutcomesofBIarenotmeasuredinnumericterms.Thismakesitdifficult

to locate the study among existing research that seeks to measure a BI’s role in

termsofoutputs,suchasturnoverandemployeenumbers.

Theconceptual frameworkdeveloped in this thesisprovidesan importantstarting

pointforfutureresearchbasedonaqualitativeapproach.Itisimportantthatfuture

researchbasedonsuchanapproachofBIflourishes.Thiswillallowmorebalanced

literaturetoevolve,wherenotonlyoutputs,buttheincubationprocessarestudied.

9.4Implicationsofresearch

Having discussed the contributions to knowledge in Section 9.2, what are the

implications for business incubator practitioners, prospective and existing

incubatees,andpolicymakers?Oneoftheimportantfindingsoftheresearchshows

that it is the learning environment, which is important for idea generation and

developmentoftheincubatees.Hencehowtodevelopandmaintainthissupportive

learning environment has crucial implications to incubator managers, users and

policymakers.

9.4.1ImplicationsforBIpractitioners

The study suggests a number of factors that impact on opportunity identification,

and which in turn can contribute to the effectiveness of business incubators in

nurturing and developing nascent entrepreneurs. By identifying the important

componentsandprocessofopportunitydevelopment,theresearchhasthepotential

185

to raise awareness among BI practitioners of the need to support and develop

learningstrategies.

Inparticular, the study found that the information acquiredduring the incubation

periodiscrucialtothelearningprocess.Thissuggeststhatitisimportanttoprovide

incubatees with the relevant information, in order to help them to start up and

nurturethebusinesses.Thisinformationmightbemasterclassesinaccounting,legal

issues,marketing,PRorenterprising skills.Beingrelevant to the incubatees is the

keypointhere.Thisrequiresthemanagementtohaveacloserrelationshipwiththe

incubatees, and to ensure that information regarding incubatees and their

businessesisfrequentlycommunicated,systematicallyrecordedandupdated.

IncontrasttothehostileandhighlycompetitiveenvironmentMcAdamandMcAdam

(2006)referred to, incubatorpractitionersshoulddevelopandmaintaina friendly

working environment for the incubatees.This environment should alsobe aplace

where the incubatees can trust each other so that more effective networking

activitiescanbestimulated(ChellandBaines2000).Onewaytoachievethismight

be by having a less formal leadership style, organising informal social events,

explaining this ‘family feel’ to the new incubatees, and reinforcing the idea

throughout the incubation process. This suggests that not only formal ‘business’

events should be organised, but incubatee-led, out of office hours social events

should be highly encouraged by the management, so that incubatees develop

personal bonds and begin to trust each other. There is some evidence of good

practicefoundinthestudy,whichsuggeststhattheincubateesbenefittedfromthe

supportive environment. This enabled them to share business ideas, which they

wouldn’t even share with family and other friends, and it encouraged alliances

betweenthetenants,evennewventuresbranchedoutfromtheserelationships.

ThestudyalsosuggeststhattheroleofBImanagementshouldperhapsnotalways

be restricted toactingasa ‘manager’.Forexample, the findingsof thestudyshow

thatincubateesoftendidn’tknowhowlongitwouldtaketostartupabusiness.The

managers,ononehand, canactasmangers;on theotherhand there isaneed for

themtoplaytheroleof‘mentors’.Thiscanhelptoeasetheanxietyincubateesmay

186

havewhentheylearnhowlongitmighttakeforabusinesstotakeoff.Management

needtoprovidea tolerantenvironment,where the incubateeswillnotgiveup too

early,andlearnthroughouttheprocesstobecomeentrepreneurs.

FinallyfortheBIpractitioners,itmaybeimportantnotonlytoselectincubateeson

themeritsoftheirbusinessideas,butalsotheirnotionsofdevelopingasupportive

learningcommunity.Thefindingsofthestudysuggestthattheincubationperiodisa

crucialtimeforincubateestodevelopandtransformtheirentrepreneurialidentity.

Such a process needs support from the BI management and the incubatee

communitytoreinforceconfidenceandself-belief,sothattheincubateescanbetter

copewithuncertaintywithintheopportunitydevelopmentprocess.Suchsupport,of

course,doesnotmeanblindly encouragingover-confidence in anyhigh-risk ideas.

But,afriendlyandsupportivelearningcommunitybuiltbytheBImanagementand

the incubatees can help to encourage the exchange of ideas and experiences in a

‘worry-free’ environment aswell as gaininguseful social contacts,whichwill help

the incubatees critically reflect and improve on the ideas. This, in turn, enhances

confidenceandlikelihoodofsuccess.

9.4.2Implicationsforprospectiveandexistingincubatees

As fortheprospectiveandexisting incubatees, theoutcomesof thestudyhighlight

theimportanceofthetransformationprocess(experience,knowledgeandidentity)

that can takeplace in abusiness incubator.Thekey to theprocessof opportunity

identificationanddevelopmentislearning,whichrequirestheincubateestoobtain

relevant information, combine itwith prior knowledge and swiftly transform it to

new knowledge. Some information and experiencemay not appear to be relevant

before identifyinganopportunity,howeveras the findings indicate, educationand

workexperiencecanhelpidentifyingopportunities.Thisalsomeans,toincreasethe

stock of knowledge and experience prior to discovering an opportunity may be

fruitful.

187

Thestudyalsofindsthatitisnotonlyonetypeofpriorknowledgethatisimportant

to opportunity identification, but a powerful mix. Therefore incubatees would

benefit from broadening their knowledge and experience by actively networking

with other fellow entrepreneurs, who may have a different set of knowledge,

experience, skills and social contacts. This may even lead to strategic alliance, as

demonstratedamongBIC’sincubatees.Suchalliancescanhelpstart-upstoovercome

someoftheliabilitysuchasnewness.Insomecases,itcanevenhelpincubateesto

buffertheirliability,byworkingtogetherwithothersondifferentbusinessideas,so

thateventuallytheycanrealisetheirowndreams.ThisisdemonstratedbyIanand

Paul’sstories,wheretheyformedpartnershipswithothertenants,whileworkingon

andsustainingtheirownoriginalideas.

Personalinterests,whichplaysanimportantroleinsomeopportunities,shouldnot

be overlooked by the (prospective) incubatees. The fascination of somehobbies /

ideas is often the origin of creation and innovation. Incubatees, and indeed any

entrepreneurs, should not be stopped from chasing their passion. However, this

studysuggeststhattheyneedtolookatwhether/whatotherknowledgetheyhave

intheindustrytheyareinterestedin,andhowabusinessincubatorcanhelpthemto

developtheknowledgeneededtolaunchabusinessmotivatedbypersonalinterests.

Finally a note for the prospective incubatees. In line with Dimov’s (2007a)

proposition, that social context plays an important role in developing ideas, the

findings of the study reveal that it is not only the physical space that helps the

businesses to grow, but more importantly the social space and the supportive

community learningenvironment.Whenchoosingabusiness incubator,oneof the

key selection criteria for the prospective incubatees, should be whether the

incubatorhasafriendlylearningenvironment.Thisrequiresacaringmanagement,

who can provide pertinent information to the incubatees, andwho can nurture a

supportivelearningcommunity.Italsomeansthatitmaybeworthwhiletospeakto

themanagers aswell as the incubatees, to get a ‘flavour’ of the incubator, before

applyingforone.Indeed,afriendlyandsupportivelearningenvironmentisdifficult

to spot on paper, but easier to recognise by observation and participation. Also a

learningenvironmentneedstobepopulatedbyincubatees,astate-of-artincubator

188

without actively networked incubatees, would not be an effective learning

community.

9.4.3Implicationsforpolicymakers

The outcomes of the study highlight the importance of the learning process that

takesplaceinthestart-upprocess.Italsoprovides‘fresh’viewsofhowaneffective

businessincubatorcouldbeoperated.Thedeeperunderstandingofhowincubatees

explore, identifyanddevelopopportunitiessuggestsafreshapproachtothepolicy

agenda.

The outcomes of the study suggest that by gaining a deeper understanding of the

processofbusinessincubation,policymakersmaybeabletobettertargetfundsin

areas such as amore nuanced approach to recruitment in BIs, providing relevant

information to individual incubatees, building knowledge and experience,

developing a supportive community and importantly encouraging and supporting

learning. This will help to set up and maintain a more effective BI and enhance

entrepreneurial activities in the BI and local areas. Ultimately, the growth in

entrepreneurship will have an impact on the regional economy (Pickernell et al.

2011;Packhametal.2010;Matlay2009;Matlay2006;Necketal.2004).

These initiativesdonotrequirea largefinancial investment in facilities,butrather

aninvestmentintrainingamongBIstaff.Thisstudysuggeststhat,itwasnotmodern

facilities that helped the incubatees learnmost effectively, but the supportive and

friendly learning community. Setting up a successful business incubator doesn’t

requireahugeamountofpublic funds,butrather,BImanagementandincubatees,

whocan,togetherbuildaneffectivelearningcommunity.Inthestudy,theincubatees

oftenenjoyedtheopenofficespace,openkitchenandthehot-deskingpolicy,where

incubateescouldbeintroducedonaveryinformalbasis.Thisresultedindiscussions

ofideas,collaborationsandevenpartnerships.

189

Ratherthanfocussingfuturepublicspendingonstateoftheartdividedofficespace,

money may be spent more effectively on organising pertinent events (including

inviting good guest speakers and investors) for the incubatees, so that relevant

informationcanbeacquiredandtransformedtonewknowledge,andinthissense,

intonewopportunities.Public fundscouldalsosupportsomerelevantsessionson

enhancing enterprising skills for the incubatees, which in turn, can help them to

developandnurturetheirbusinesses.

Lastbutnotleast,theoutcomesofthestudydemonstratehowaBIwithtenantswith

mixed backgrounds and a broad range of prior knowledge can encourage and

facilitatelearning,whichleadstodevelopingnewbusinessopportunities.Thisisan

important finding for policy makers, who should consider shifting funding from

high-techincubatorstomixedincubators.

190

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Appendices

219

AppendixI–SuccessindicatorsandtheroleofBI

Author(s) Date HardFactors SoftFactors Typeofincubator

FutureResearchDirection

Cooper 1985

-Location

-Patternsofgeographicmobilityfor

entrepreneurs

-Natureofincubateebusinessrelatingtotype

ofincubator

-Typeofincubator

-Sizeofincubator

All

incubators

Brooks 1986 -Pooledsupportservices

-Alinktoauniversity

-Supportnetwork All

incubators

Fry 1987 Theroleofincubatormanagersinfostering

businessplanningamongstincubatees

All

incubators

-Anincubatee-

centredapproach

shouldbeused

-Incubatormanagers’

involvementwith

incubatees

Lumpkin&

Ireland

1988 -Financialratios:

liquidity,profitability,assetutilisation,price

earnings,debtutilisation

-Personalcharacteristicsofmanagement

team:

age,sex,technicalskills,managementskills,

financialskills,marketingskills,

aggressiveness/persistence,creativity,

personalinvestment,referencesfromothers

-Marketfactors:

currentsize,growthrate,uniquenessof

product/service,marketabilityof

product/service,writtenbusinessplan

All

incubators

-Therelationship

betweenthescreen

processforincubatees

andoccupancyrate

-Typeofincubator

(retail,hightechetc.)

andperformance

220

Author(s) Date HardFactors SoftFactors Typeofincubator

FutureResearchDirection

Allen&

McCluskey

1990 -Administrativeeffectiveness

-Economicefficiency

-Occupancyrate

-Jobcreated

-Firmsgraduated

All

incubators

Morein-depth

empiricalworkis

neededtodevelop

sophisticated

performance

measuresintermof:

-synergisticeffect

betweenincubatees

-servicequalityand

howservicecanbe

delivered

-subsidyand

sustainabilityof

incubators

-impactonlocal

economy

Peña 2004 -Humancapitalofentrepreneur:business

ownerswithadvancededucationand

managementexperience

-Businesscourses,individualconsulting

assistanceandmonitoringservicesprovidedby

incubator

All

incubators

-Additional

refinementsforthe

measurementof

growthfor

entrepreneurial

ventures

-Tomeasurethe

benefitsandcostsof

BIasagrowthtool

221

Author(s) Date HardFactors SoftFactors Typeofincubator

FutureResearchDirection

Bøllingtoft&

Ulhøi

2005 -Howincubatorisconstructedaffects

networkingactivities

-Socialconnectionsbetweenthetenantsare

veryimportanttonetworkingandcooperation

-Thevalueswhichtheincubatorisbasedon(as

opposedtoatop-downmanagementstyle)

affectsnetworkingactivities

-Sizeisimportantfornetworking.Ifthereare

toomanyfirms,networkingactivitiesdecreases

All

incubators

-Aparticipatory

approachisneededto

studythesocial

activityinaBI

-Nouniversalsolution

tostudyBI,specific

contextand

circumstancesshould

begivenwhen

studyingit

-Tocompareventures

in-andout-sideofaBI

environment:howthe

networkingactivities

differandwhatare

thedis/advantages.

Grimaldi&

Grandi

2005 -Reducedstart-upcosts

-Localnetworks

-Localeconomicgrowth

-Acceleratedstart-upprocessforhighly

promisingenterprises

-Asaboveplusimprovedknowledgetransfer

Non-Profit

For-Profit

University

Hannon 2005a Humancapitalcapabilitywithinprofessionals

andpractitionersintheincubationcommunity

All

incubators

-Toenhancehuman

capitalinincubator

projects

-Alearnercentred

approachisneeded

forincubatorsto

succeed

222

Author(s) Date HardFactors SoftFactors Typeofincubator

FutureResearchDirection

Voiseyetal. 2005 -Incubatorspecific:

salesturnover,profitability,growthof

enterprise,graduationtoindependent

trading

-Incubateespecific:

numberofclient,numberofbusinesstrading

independently,meetingtargets,continued

operation

-Incubatorspecific:

growthinexpertiseofstaff,recognitionby

enterprisesupportcommunity,continued

supportfromstakeholders,internal

evaluationbasedonneedsofincubatees

-Incubateespecific:

Increasedclientprofessionalism,improved

clientbusinessskills,increasedconfidencein

selfandbusiness,increasedandproductive

networkingwithpeers,increasedclient

knowledge,costsavingsduetouseofBI

resources,positivepublicity

All

incubators

Wynarczyk&

Raine

2005 Location;typeofincubator;businesssupport;

flexibility;jobcreation;ownershipand

purpose

All

incubators

McAdam&

McAdam

2006 -Incubatorresource:

provisionofinfrastructureofficespace&

facilities,canteen,secretarialservices

-Universityservice:

accesstoequipment,accesstostudents

-Incubatorresource:

credibilitywithcustomers&suppliers,shared

values

-Universityservice:

accesstouniversityreputation,specific

programmesandresearch

-Clusteringeffects:

networkopportunity,trust,personallinks

University Disadvantagesof

incubation:

-Isolation

-Incubatorlayout

feedssuspicion

-Highlycompetitive

andhostile

environment

McAdam&

Marlow

2007 Provisionofinfrastructure -Credibilitywithcustomersandsuppliers

-Incubatorimage

-Firmproximity

-Managingtrustamongstentrepreneurs

-Managingchangeandentrepreneurial

transition

-Howtohelpfirmstogainincremental

independence

All

incubators

Toidentifypotential

areasoftension

arisingfromproximity

betweenventures

223

Author(s) Date HardFactors SoftFactors Typeofincubator

FutureResearchDirection

Bergek&

Norrman

2008 -Selectioncriteria

-Businesssupport

-Mediation All

incubators

-Dobestpractice

modelsdifferbasedon

differentgoals

-Selectionstrategy

-Efficiencyinusing

resources

Todorovic&

Moenter

2010 -Infrastructuresupport -Coachingandbusinesssupport

-Networkingopportunities

University -Studiesoutsideof

theU.S.

-Furtherworkoncase

studiesand

quantitativeanalysis

Vanderstraet

en&

Matthyssens

2010 -Averageincubationtime

-Shareofstart-ups

-Shareofhigh-techfirms

-Clientsatisfaction

-Overallsurvival

-Employmentgrowthaftergraduation

All

incubators

-Todevelopvalidated

scalestomeasure

success

Arlottoetal. 2011 -Functionalservices

-Infrastructures

-Accesstoresourcesandservices

-Workqualityofincubatormanagementteam

-Socialperformanceofincubatees

All

incubators

Zhang&

Sonobe

2011 -Infrastructure

-Financialresources

-Location

-Humanresourcesofincubator University

andNon-

Profit

Vanderstraet

en&

Matthyssens

2012 Non-Profit -Quantitativeanalysis

-Forprofitincubators

-Typeof

entrepreneursor

incubator’s

geographicalsegment

224

AppendixII–Datacollectiontemplate

Casecode

Dateinterviewedtoenter

Incubationstartingdate

Dateinterviewedbyresearcher

Incubationlengthwheninterviewedbyresearcher

Age

Gender

Ethnicity

Education(relatingtocurrentbusiness?NES?)

Notesfrom1stinterview

Notesfromcompanysupportmonitoringform

-datewhenformfilledin

-website

-no.ofemployees

-turnover

-ageofbusiness

-sector

NotesfromBICreviewform

-tradingsince

-summary

-currentturnover

-othernotableactivity(e.g.customers,sales,

225

advertising,awarenessraisingetc.)

-requirements

-BICactions

-businessadviserandcomments

-mentorandcomments

-Inospaceexitstrategy

Notesfrom2ndyearreview

Notes from company support output monitoringform

-datewhenformfilledin

-website

-no.ofemployees

-turnover

- initiated any schemes to develop new environmental

technology/techniques?

-developednewproductsornewmethodsofworking

-increasedturnoverby

226

AppendixIII–Interviewscheduleforpilotstudy

Iamreallyinterestedinyourbusinessidea,whereitcamefrom,howithasdevelopedandhowBIChasaffectedthatprocessifatall.

(contentsinbracketsorwithbulletpointsarejustprompts,forcontingentuses)

1.Socouldyoustartbytellingmewhereyourbusinessideacamefrominitially?2.SohowdidyourbusinessideadevelopbeforeyoucametoBIC?

● Wheredidtheseideascomefrom?Ø Didyouseetheopportunityyourself?Ø Wasitbecauseofyoustudied?Ø Wasitbecauseyouwerefamiliarwiththisindustrysector?Ø Didsomeonelikeyourfriendstoldyouaboutthisopportunity?

● Didyouhaveanyknowledgeorexperienceinthebusinessyouaredoing,beforeyoustartedyourowncompany?

3.WhydidyouapplytocometoBIC?

Ø Meetingspaces?Ø Exhibitionspaces?Ø Meetingotherentrepreneurs?Ø Adminsupport?Ø Citycentrepostaladdress?Ø Mentoringservices?Ø Businessadvisors?Ø Networkevents?Ø Sub-contractoropportunity?Ø Supplieropportunity?Ø Clientopportunity?Ø Productdevelopmentopportunity?

(andwhatmadeyouthinkanyofthese(services)wouldhelptodevelopyouridea?)

227

4.HowdidtheinterviewtoenterBICaffectyourthinkingaboutyourbusinessidea,ifatall?

5.Andnow,couldyoutrytotellmeinasmuchdetailasyoucanwhathashappenedsinceyouenteredBICandhowthishasaffectedyourbusinessidea,ifatall.SopleasestartfromDay1inBICandtellmethestoryofyourbusiness.6.Justtoclarify,whatinfluencehasBIChadonthedevelopmentofyourbusinessideauptonow?7.Andwhatdoyouthinkaboutyourbusinessideanow?8.Whatareyougoingtodonextwithyourbusiness?

228

AppendixIV–InterviewscheduleforBICincubatees

I am really interested in how you have developed your business ideas.Where they came from, how they have developed and how the BusinessIncubationCentrehasaffectedthatprocess.

1. Firstofall,couldyoubrieflytellmeaboutthebusinessideaorideasthatyouweredevelopingwhenyoucameintoBIC?

I would like to explore how your business idea(s) developed before youcametoBIC.

2. Socouldyoutellmewherethis/thesebusinessidea(s)camefrominitially?● Didyoudevelopthebusinessidea(s)yourselfordiditdevelopfrom

talkingtosomeoneelse?● Andinwhatways, ifany,didyourinitial idearelatetocoursesyou

havestudied?

3. Andwhendidyoufirsthaveyourbusinessidea?

4. AndhowdidyourbusinessideadevelopbeforeyoucametoBIC?

5. Didyouhaveanyknowledgeorexperienceintheindustr(ies)relatedtoyourbusinessidea(s)?

SonowIwouldliketomoveontotalkaboutcomingintoBIC.

6. Could you please start from Day 1 in BIC and try to tell me about thedevelopmentofyourbusinessidea(s)inasmuchdetailasyoucan.

229

7. Just to clarify, what influence has BIC had on the development of yourbusinessidea(s)?

● In what ways has being with other people starting a businessaffectedthedevelopmentofyouridea(s)?

● AndhowhavethepeoplemanagingBICaffectedthedevelopmentofyouridea(s)?

● Whatabouthavingaplacetocome,andanaddressinManchester–howhasthataffectedthedevelopmentofyouridea(s)?

● And the advisors and mentors available in BIC, how have theyaffectedthedevelopmentofyouridea(s)?(knowledgeandskills)

● Andwhataboutthegeneralknowledgeheldbytheuniversity–howhasaccesstothelibraryortheknowledgeofacademicstaffaffectedyourbusinessidea(s)?

8. And how have people outside of BIC affected the development of yourbusinessidea(s)?

● Familyandfriends● Externaladvisors● Networks

SonowIwouldliketomoveonandtalkaboutyourstrategyinmakingthebusinesssucceed.

9. Whathasyourstrategybeensofar?

10. Whatisyourstrategyfromnowon?

11. Sooverallwhatdoyouthinkaboutthepotentialofyourbusinessidea(s)now?

12. AndwhatareyourplansaboutstayingoninBICorleaving?-Canyoutalkmethroughwhyyouhavedecidedtostayon/leave?

230

AppendixV–InvitationletterfromdirectorofERC

DearHelen

TheImpactofBIC

I amwriting to introducePingPingHongwho is a full-timePhDstudent in theEntrepreneurship Research Centre, UKU Business School. BIC is an importantinitiative for thecentreandtheuniversity–andweare thereforeverykeentoensure that the project is successful in supporting all our tenants. PingPing iscurrently conducting research on the impact of BIC. The outcomes of thisresearchwill contribute to the improvement of our service and help promotemore effective business start-ups in the future. In order to make this projectpossible,PingPing intends to interviewall the regularusersofBIC. I hopeyoucanprovideyoursupportbyparticipatinginthisstudy.Youareassuredthattheinformationyouprovidewillbestrictlyconfidentialandyouridentityaswellasthatofyourorganisationwillbecompletelyanonymised.The intentionof this research is to improve the general understandingof howuseful business incubators are in supporting new entrepreneurs. The views ofindividual tenantswill notbe reported to those responsible for theday-to-daymanagementofBIC.PingPingwill contact you to arrange a time and place for the interview. Yourparticipation in this research ismuch appreciated and if you have any furtherquestionsabout the interviewsorabout thepurposeof the researchpleasedonot hesitate to contact me by phone (0111 123 1234) or email(director.erc@uku.ac.uk)YourssincerelyDirector(professorofinnovationandentrepreneurship)

231

AppendixVI–Invitationtointerviews

DearHelen

ImpactofBusinessIncubationThankyouforyourinterestinthisresearchproject.Theaimofthisresearchistoinvestigate the impact of business incubators on business start-ups. Theoutcomes of this research will contribute to the improvement of incubators’quality in termsofadministrativeeffectivenessandeconomicefficiency,and inturn,thiswillhelptoprovideabetterserviceforthebusinessstart-ups.For this reason, I needyourparticipation in this interviewand Iwould like toknow about your experience in using BIC. Your experience is highly valued inthis research and your answerswill help toprovide a better understandingoftheprocessofbusinessincubation.YouwillbeaskedseveralquestionsastohowyourbusinessideaschangebeforeandduringyourtimeintheBusinessIncubationCentre,ifatall.Eachinterviewwill last approximately one hour. The interview can be conducted at aconvenientplaceandtimetoyouanditwillbeasingleface-to-faceinterview.The interviews will be recorded and transcribed but the interviews are foracademic researchpurposesonly.The informationyouprovidewill be treatedwithstrictconfidentialityandtheidentityofyourselfandyourorganisationswillbekeptconfidential.Yourparticipationinthisresearchismuchappreciatedandifyouwouldliketoreceiveasummaryofthefindings,pleasecontactme.Ifyouhaveanyfurtherquestionsabouttheinterviewspleasedonothesitatetocontact me: PingPing Hong, the Entrepreneurship Research Centre, UKUBusinessSchooloratp.hong@uku.ac.uk.Ireallylookforwardtomeetingyouandhearingaboutyourexperiences!Yourssincerely,PingPingHongDoctoralResearcher

232

AppendixVII-Outlineofthepotentialinterviewees

StartDate No.ofBusinesses

NameofEntrepreneurs IfInterviewed

in…

IncubationLengthwhenInterviewed

(months)

No.ofInterviewstobeConductedinthe

Month

Jul07 3 Tony,Ian,Neil Nov08 16

Aug07 2 Phil,Jane Nov08 15 5(Nov08)Mar08 1 Alexandra Dec08 10

Sep07 1 Jeff Dec08 15 Oct07 2 Paul,Nick Dec08 14 4(Dec08)Nov07 0 Dec07 2 David,Laura Jan09 13 Jan08 1 Peter Jan09 12 3(Jan09)Feb08 2 Jonathan,Kath Feb09 12 Mar08 0 Apr08 3 Emma,Terry,Keith Feb09 11 5(Feb09)May08 1 Nicola Mar09 11 Jun08 3 Nicky,Joe/Alistair1,Alison Mar09 10 4(Mar09)Jul08 4 Robert,James,Karen,Mark Apr09 10 4(Apr09)Aug08 4 Mahmood,Nigel,Ahmed,Kelly May09 09 4(May09)Sep08 0

Total 29 291JoeandAlistairarefromthesamefirm,onlyneedtointerviewoneofthemAlreadyinterviewed:Helen,Tim,Andy,Tony,Ian,Neil,Phil,Jane,Jeff,Paul,Nick,andPeterInterviewshavebeenre-scheduled:LauraandEmmaStillnegotiating:David(hasleftBIC)

ContactedbyJenny(BICadministrator)butnoresponses:Alex,Jonathan,Kath,Terry,andKeith

233

AppendixVIII–InterviewscheduleforthefirstmanagerofBIC

Firstofall,IwillbefocusingonthedevelopmentandimpactofBIC

1. Canyoutellmewhenandwheretheinitial ideaofsettingupabusinessincubatorwasfrom?

2. Canyoutellmehowitwasthendevelopedfromthisidea?

3. Just to clarify, what challenges did the management have whenestablishingBIC?

4. Whatweretheinitialaimsofthisincubator(intermsof...UKU,students,ERC)?

5. Havetheaimschangedsinceitsestablishment?Why?

6. Sowhathasbeendonetoachievetheseaims?

7. ThereisasteeringgroupaswellasaboardforBIC,canyoutellmewheretheideaswerefromtoformthesegroupsandwhatactionsdidyoucarryouttoformthesegroups?

8. Was there a formal/informal system implemented to monitor theperformanceofBIC?(Ifyes,howdoesthissystemwork?Ifno,whynot?)

9. WhatchallengesdidthemanagementhavewhenrunningBIC(-funding,politics,tenants,managingfacilities,supportfromERC,supportfromUKU,supportfromexternalorganisations)?

10. How much influence you think the university and the business schoolexecutiveshaveonthedevelopmentofBIC?

11. WhatimpactdoyouthinkBIChasonitstenants,thebusinessschool,andthewiderentrepreneurialcommunityinthiscity?

234

12. Todate,doyouthinkthatBIChasachieveditspotentials(why/whynot?)?

Now I’d like to move on and explore the relationship between themanagementteamandthetenants

13. I understand that in summer 2007, just before BIC was launched, themanagementtriedtobringasmanyqualifiedentrepreneursaspossibletoBIC. What was your ideal number of tenants? Have you reached thisnumber?(Ifnot,whatdoyouthinktheproblemswerethatcausedthis?)

14. WhenBICwasestablished,therewerenotasmanypeopleashopedusingthespace,doyouknowwhy?Whatactionsdid themanagement take toimprovethissituation?

15. BIC holds a number of courses and events. Could you talkme throughthese courses and events andwhat impact theyhadon the tenants, theuniversitystudents,andanyotherparticipants?

16. There’sawebsiteandaBICWiki,couldyoutellmethereasonswhytheywerecreated,andwhethertheyhavemettheirexpectations?

17. From talking to some tenants, I got to know that BIC liaises universitystudentswiththetenants.Somestudentsdidprojectsforthetenantshere.I think it’saverygood idea,couldyoutellmewheredidthis ideacomefrom?

18. MostofthetenantsImethaveverypositiveviewstowardsBIC,howeverIhavebeenmadeawareofmainly twoareasof concerns in termsofBICservices. First is about communications between the management andtenants. I was told that originally according to the tenant agreement,tenantscouldhaveBICastheirbusinessaddresseswhenregisteringwitha bank and at the Companies House. However this item was removedfrom the agreement. The tenants got to know the news from an email.Couldyoutellmewhyithappened?

19. Thesecondareaofconcern is the freebusinessadvisoryandmentoringservicesprovidedbyBIC.Sometenantsappliedfortheservicesbutcouldnot get onementor and some had one session but could not getmore.Could you tellmewhether therewas a formal system tomonitor these

235

servicesandwhatchallengesyouhadwhenmanagingtheseservices(wasthereenoughsupportfromtheuniversity)?

20. Wasthereaformalselectionprocesstochoosetheadvisorsandmentors?

Finally,IwouldliketoknowabitmoreaboutthemanagementofBIC.Wewill first talkabitaboutyour role inmanagingBIC, thenmoveon to themanagement.

21. Soinwhatways,youthinkthatyouhavecontributedtothedevelopmentofBIC?

22. ArethereanyfactorsthatrestrainedyoufromcontributingevenmoretoBIC?(allocationoftime,budget,…)

23. Now we move on to the management team, what were the aims andresponsibilitiesofthemanagementteam?

24. Do you think that the management team as a whole has achieved itsexpectations?

25. There were often changes in the admin team, could you tell me thereasonsbehindthis?

26. YouhaveseenchangesinthemanagementofBIC,ithashadtwodirectorsandwillhaveanothernewdirectorinMay;youhavejustleftBICandthecurrent manager is on a six-month contract; the admin team also hadchanges in team members. Did you notice any impact on the tenantsbecauseofthepersonnelchanges?

27. YouhavejustleftBIC,couldyoutalkmethroughthereasonswhyyouleft?

28. LookingbackatyourinvolvementinBIC,isthereanythingthatyouwouldhavedonedifferently?

29. ArethereanyotherthingsyouwouldliketotellmerelatingtoBIC?

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AppendixIX–Interviewscheduleforamemberofthesteeringgroup

ofBIC

Firstofall,IwouldliketoknowaboutyourroleinBIC.

1. Whenwas the first timeyouheardabout thesettingupof theBusinessIncubationCentre?

2. Sowhatdidyouthinkabout this ideaofhavingabusiness incubator, inrelationtothebusinessschool,tothestudents,totheentrepreneurs,andtothewiderentrepreneurialcommunity?

3. Iunderstandthatyouareamemberof thesteeringgroup,sowhenandhowyourjoinedthisgroup?

4. Sowhatresponsibilitiesdoyouhaveasamemberofthesteeringgroup?

5. Justtoclarify,whatwereyourreasonstojointhesteeringgroupforBICand what you intended to achieve from this role, in terms of yourprofessionaldevelopmentandthedevelopmentofBIC?

6. Sodoyouthinkthatyourexpectationsofthesedevelopmentshavebeenachieved?(why/whynot?)

7. Inwhatways,doyouthinkthatyouhavecontributedtothedevelopmentofBIC?

8. ArethereanyfactorsthatrestrainedyoufromcontributingevenmoretoBIC?(allocationoftime,budget,…)

9. Doyouthinkthatthesteeringgrouphasachieveditsexpectations?

NowI’dliketomoveonandexploreyourrelationshipwithBIC.

10. WhenyousawBICthefirsttime,whatdidyouthinkofit?

237

11. WhatisyourrelationshipwithBICnow?12. AndwhatisyourrelationshipwiththemanagementofBIC?

13. IseeyouquiteofteninBIC,canyoutellmehowyouusethisspace?

14. SowhenyouneededtouseBICforyoureventsandcourses,howwasthereactionfromthemanagement?

15. WhatimpactdoyouthinkBIChashadonthepeopleyoubroughthere,onBICitself,onBICtenants,andonthebusinessschool?

16. Ideally,howwouldyouthinkBICshouldbeused, intermsofpromotingand developing entrepreneurial cultural, entrepreneurial aspiration,entrepreneurshipeducation,UKUpublicity,andsoon?

17. WhatpotentialsdoyouseeinBIC?

18. SodoyouthinkthatBIChasachieveditspotentials(why/whynot?)

19. BIChadbusinessmentorswereyouoneofthem?(--Ifyes,whydidyouchoosetobeone?andwhyareyounotoneanymore?--Ifnot,whynot?)

FinallyIwouldliketoexploreyourviewsonthedevelopmentofBIC.

20. You have seen changes in the management of BIC, it is having a thirddirector, thepreviousmanagerhas leftand thecurrentmanager isonasix-monthcontract.Theadminteamalsohadchangesinteammembers.Whatdoyouthinkofall thesechangesandhave thesechangeshadanyimpactonthewayhowyouuseBIC?

21. How much influence you think the university and the business schoolexecutiveshaveonthedevelopmentofBIC?

22. WhatimpactsdoyouthinkBIChashadonitstenants,thebusinessschool,thestudents,andthewiderentrepreneurialcommunitiesinManchester?

238

23. LookingbackatyourinvolvementinBIC,isthereanythingthatyouwouldhavedonedifferently?

24. ArethereanyotherthingsyouwouldliketotellmerelatingtoBIC?

239

AppendixX–Firsttemplateofcoding

Treenodes:

● ImpactofBICØ experienceofBIC

- collaboration- don'twanttoworkaloneathome- gettingworkdonethroughothertenants- networking- sharepeerexperience- workinginofficeenvironment

Ø reasonsforenteringBIC- cheaprent- don'twanttoworkaloneathome- networking- sharepeerexperience- space- universitylink- workinginofficeenvironment

Ø skillsobtainedinBICØ experienceofsupportfromBIC

- space- structuredtimeframe- supportedbutnotpressurised

● Incubatees’priorKnowledgeofØ marketsØ customerproblemsØ waystoservemarketsØ personalinterests

● Incubatees’waysdevelopingideasØ bytestinginnewsituationsØ formingabstractconceptsØ inBICØ throughbusinessadvisor&mentorØ throughconcreteexperienceØ throughnetworkingØ throughreflection

240

Freenodes:

● businessstrategyformation● commentsontheidea● engagement● entrepreneurialalertness● entrepreneurialaspiration● futurebusinessplans● initialidea● learningasexperience● learningthroughobservationandreflection● opportunitydiscovery● opportunityexploitation● opportunitysearching● personalinterests● riskassessment● values

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AppendixXI–Finaltemplateofcoding

Treenodes:

● ImpactofBICØ experienceofBIC

- collaboration- dobusinesseswithothertenants- don'twanttoworkaloneathome- gettingworkdonethroughothertenants- sharepeerexperience- workforothertenants- workinginofficeenvironment

Ø reasonsforenteringBIC- costsavings- don'twanttoworkaloneathome- networking- premisesandresources- sharepeerexperience- universitylink- workforothertenants

Ø experienceofsupportfromBIC- businessadvisor-mentor- costsavings- frommanagementteam- increasedalertnesstoopportunity- increasedprofessionalism- informationhub- knowledgepool- location-(not)important- management-encouragestrategicthinking- premisesandresources- skillinputs- structuredtimeframe- supportedbutnotpressurised- universityresources- universitysupportivecourses

Ø ProblemsofBIC- notsupportedbyuniversity- pitfallsofBICfacilities- pitfallsofBICcommunicationmanagement

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- problemsofBICadvisersandmentors

● LearningØ experientiallearning

- priorknowledge- newinformation- skills- newknowledge- transformationofexperience- transformationofidentity

Ø communityofpractice- community-learningasbelonging- identity-learningasbecoming- meaning-learningasexperience- practice-learningasdoing

Ø inBIC

● OpportunitydevelopmentØ Incubatees’priorKnowledgeof

- customerproblems- personalinterests- markets- waystoservemarkets

Ø businessstrategyformationØ entrepreneurialalertnessØ opportunitydevelopmentØ opportunitycreationØ opportunityidentificationØ opportunityevaluation&reflectionØ opportunityexploitationØ opportunitysearchingØ personalinterestsØ resources

Freenodes:

● commentsontheidea/businessstage● entrepreneurialaspiration● financialmotivation● futurebusinessplans● initialidea● intuition● riskassessment● values● workcreation

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Sets:

● MutualengagementØ collaborationØ dobusinesseswithothertenantsØ don'twanttoworkaloneathomeØ gettingworkdonethroughothertenantsØ networkingØ workforothertenants

● SharerepertoireØ businessadvisor-mentorØ networkingØ shareknowledgeØ sharepeerexperienceØ skillinputsØ universitysupportivecourses

● ExperientiallearningØ byformingabstractconceptsØ bytestinginnewsituationsØ throughconcreteexperienceØ throughobservationandreflection

● LearningperspectiveofopportunitydevelopmentØ Knowledge

• ofcustomerproblems• ofthemarkets• ofwaystoservemarkets

Ø skillsØ opportunitycreationØ opportunitydiscoveryØ opportunityexploitationØ opportunitysearchingØ opportunitydevelopmentØ resourcesØ businessstrategyformationØ entrepreneurialalertnessØ initialidea

● SociallearningØ community-learningasbelongingØ identity-learningasbecomingØ meaning-learningasexperienceØ practice-learningasdoing

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AppendixXII-Theprocessofincubation

Respondent Pre-BIC DuringBIC Post-BICHelen -MastersdegreeinEnvironmentalManagement

andSustainableDevelopment-Freelanceworkforlocalairportinclimatechange-Plannedtoprovideconsultancyinsustainabilitymanagement-Arawideawithassessmenttoolsdevelopedfromthestudies-KnewaboutBICwhilestudyingandhadavisitbeforeapplying

-Talkedtoabusinessadvisor -Gotamentor-Refiningandnarrowingdowntheidea-Learninggenericbusinessskillsfromotherincubatees-Gotfeedbackfromotherincubateesontheidea-Submittedatenderwithafellowincubatee-Wouldn’thavecarriedonwithoutBIC-Viewedthebusinessasanexperiment

N/A-stillinfirstyearofincubation

Tim -Workedsevenyearsasaretailbuyer-Ideafullyformedandhadabusinessplan

-ImplementedtheideawhileinBIC-UsedBIC’sspacetostoreartworkbeforefindingagallery-HeldanexhibitioninBIC-Talkedtoabusinessadvisor-Afellowtenantdesignedthelogoanddidbranding-Updatingbusinessplan

JustleftBICafterowngallerywasopen

Andy -StudiedDesignandTechnology-Workedasawebdeveloper,anddecidedtostartownbusiness-WorkedwithatenantandgottoknowBIC-SawBICitselfasanopportunitywhichhostedmanystart-upswhoneededwebsites

-Gottoknowawebdesigner(atenant)andgaveworktoeachother-Startedacompanywiththetenantandsub-contractedworktoowncompany-Spoketoanotherwebdeveloperalotaboutideas-SpoketoBICmanagementwhenneededinformation-Hadtwostudentsworkingonprojects

Movedoutwithtwoothertenantstoformanewcompany,preferredaplacewithasoundproofmeetingroomand24-houraccess

Jane -Organisingsportseventsasasocialactivity-Workedasasportsdevelopmentofficer-StudyingandworkingforUKUwhenstartedthebusiness-Hadafull-timepermanentjobwhenrunningownbusiness-BusinesswasalreadyrunningwhencomingintoBIC

-Managedtogetone-dayoffaweekfromworktocometoBICandworkforownbusiness-FeltmuchmoreproductivewhenworkingfromBIC-Learnedhowinnovativeothertenantswereandtheimportanceofnetworking-Hadabusinessadvisordiscussingonexpansion-Hadastudentdoingapresspack-FeltBICmanagementwereverysupportive-Hadatenanttohelpwiththeadministrationofthebusiness

Stayingonforanotheryear

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Respondent Pre-BIC DuringBIC Post-BICIan -Experienceofbeingacustomeratmany

networkingevents-AlreadytradingasabusinesswhencomingtoBIC,butcametoBICwithadifferentbusinessidea-ThoughtBICwasagoodnetworkingvenuewhenvisitingit-Wasreallyinterestedinhypnotherapy

-UseBICanditsmeetingroomsalotfornetworkingeventsandtalks-Talktoabusinessadvisor,whowasalsoanincubatee(Tony).HehelpedIanwithmarketing-BICmanagementhelpedrunningnetworkingevents-BroughtinnewincubateesforBICthroughnetworkingevents-Usedlibraryandotheruniversityfacilities-TeamedupMarkandsomeexternalpeopleforthehypnotherapyandwellbeingbusiness

Stayingonforanotheryear

Tony -Hadmuchexperienceindoingmarketingandtraining-Hadaneventsandmarketingcompanywithfriends

-GottoknowothertenantsinBICandwasforminganewmarketingcompany-Disappointedbythelocation(difficultywithcarparkingspace)andfacilitiesofBIC(limitedworkshoprooms),thedatetrainingbusinesscouldnotbedevelopedfurther-Planningtosellthedatetrainingbusinesswhenhavingthenewmarketingcompany-MentionedthatthemarketingcompanywouldnothaveexistedwithoutBIC

Stayingonforanotheryear

Nick -Experienceinbuildingwebsites-HadabusinessplanbeforejoiningBIC

-Metotherincubateesandgottheiropinionsonthebusinessidea-Metsomeadvisorsandamentorforgeneralbusinessideas-DevelopingthebusinesswhileinBIC-Tryingoutthenewsystemforwebdesignwhilehavingthefirstclient-Developingmarketingstrategy-Viewedthebusinessasanexperiment-Usedthelibraryforjournals-UnhappywithBIC’sproceduresinchangingTenantsAgreement-ViewedtheBICcommunityveryimportant-SetuptheTenantsAssociation

Stayingonforanotheryear

Neil -Experienceinprovidingconsultancyinknowledge-basedandoperationalmanagement-StudyingaPhD,linkingmotivation,change,psychologyandsociology-Hadownideasofhowconsultancyshouldbeprovided

-ViewedtheBICcommunityveryimportant-SetuptheTenantsAssociation-Encouragedotherstonetworkactively-Formedaworkingpartnershipwithanothertenant-GothelpfromTonyonmarketingstrategy-DidsomeworkforLaura’sbusiness-Readalotofbooksfromthelibrary-MentionedonlyoneacademicstaffwasinterestedinBIC

Stayingonforanotheryear

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Respondent Pre-BIC DuringBIC Post-BICPhil -Hadanonlineshoponebaywhile

studying-Wasrunningaweb-designbusiness,specialisinginblogdesign-Wasworkingfromhomeandwantedtoseparateworkandprivatelife-Waslookingforofficespaceandotherplacesweremuchmoreexpensive

-DevelopedanotherbusinessideawhileinBIC-HelpedJamesbuildingawebsite-OftenspoketoNickaboutideas

-MovedtoanofficewherePhilinvestedinthetailorbusiness-Organisingeventswithassociatesinnightclubs-StillsocialisingwithJames

Jeff -ProvidingITservicestofamilyandfriends-BusinesswastradingforamonthbeforecomingtoBIC

-Spoketoadvisorsandchangedpricingandmarketingstrategy-SpoketouniversityandStudentsUnionstaffandpromotedthebusinesstothem-SetupastallattheStudentsUnion-GotbusinessfromBICtenantsandtheirfriends-Usedlibraryforbooks-Recruitedaformerclassmateasabusinesspartner(Paul)afteroneyearinBIC-StartedanotherbusinesswithPaulthreemonthsafterbeinginBIC-Viewedcitycentreaddressuseful

Stayingonforanotheryear

Paul -WasstudyingMastersinEnterpriseinEnvironmentalInnovationwhengottoknowBIC-WantedtobecomeanentrepreneurandappliedforBICsixmonthsbeforegraduation-MovedintoBICaftergraduation

-Preparingfortheonlinefoodspecialistbusiness-Thewebsiteforthebusinesswasnearcompletion-BecameJeff’sbusinesspartnerfortheITservicesbusiness-StartedtodevelopathirdbusinessideawithJeffandafriend-Whentoclassestogainmorebusinessknowledge-FeltthatBICtenantsshouldbeabletogotoanyclassesatUKU-UsedthelibraryandCareersAdviceatUKU-BIChelpedthebusinesstolookmoreprofessional-Goodfacilities-Hadabusinessmentor

Stayingonforanotheryear

Peter -Wasintheprocessofre-establishingthebusinessbeforecomingtoBIC

-Hadproblemsbecausethesupplierwasmergedwithanothercompany-Workingfull-timewhilechangingtoadifferentsupplier-DuetotheproblemsPeterencountered,BICManagementgavethefirst12monthsforfree-ViewedBICasaprofessionalplacetomeetclientsandsuppliers

Intendedtostayforanotheryear

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Respondent Pre-BIC DuringBIC Post-BICEmma -Wasmaderedundantafter17years

-Hadabusinessideatwoyearsbeforebeingredundant-Workedpart-timewhiledevelopingtheidea-HadthewebsitesetupwhencomingintoBIC

-BeentosomenetworkingeventsatBICandbenefitedfromthem,butfeltthattheywerenotspecialisedenoughforherbusiness‘scontacts-Inthebeginning,usedBICeverydaywhenwasnotworkingpart-time-Feltthecitycentreaddressmadethebusinessmorecredible-Althoughdidnothavemuchtodowithothertenants,foundBICaninspirationalplace-Hadabusinessadvisorandwasnotveryuseful-HadanMBAstudenttodoapresspack

Astherentwasmoreexpensivefor2ndyeartenants,wouldworkfromhomeafterthefirst12monthsandsavethemoney.

James -Nothappyasalandlordandwantedtosetupownbusiness-HadtheideabeforecomingtoBIC-ChoseBICbecauseitdidnottakeastakeofthebusiness

-LikedthesocialinteractioninBIC-HadPhiltosetupthewebsite-FeltthatBICaddedcredibilitytothebusiness-LikedthefacilitiesinBICbutwouldhavelikedlongeropeninghours

Stayingonforanotheryear

Kath -Alreadyhadaverysuccessfulbusiness,with10childcaresites-Hadthebusinessideafor3,4yearsbutdidn’thavetimetodevelopuntilcomingtoBIC-WhentoanentrepreneurialtalkatUKUandgottoknowBIC.Wantedtostartanotherbusinessandthoughtoftheideathatshehadforafewyears

-UseBICasaseparateplaceforadifferentbusinesssothatKathcouldconcreteonthisbusinessandnotbeingdisturbed-Spentalotoftimeonresearchingtheideaandthecompetitors-Developinganonlinesystemforthebusiness-Askedthetenantstodevelopthesystemandthewebsite.Aformertenant’scompanythendidit.-Althoughbeingaveryexperiencedandsuccessfulbusinesswoman,KathlikedtheentrepreneurialenvironmentofBICandthehonestopinionsshereceived-AnotherideacameupduringtimeinBIC-Usedabusinessadvisorbutnotveryhelpful-Tonyhelpedwithmarketing

Stayingonforanotheryear

Laura -Workedinrecruitmentfor20yearsbeforebeingredundant-Doingadhoctraining-DoingtrainingforNESatUKUandgottoknowBIC-Businesswastradingfor6monthsbeforeBIC

-UsedBICasanofficeforpreparation,planningandtrainingcourses-UsedBICtonetworktogainnewbusinesses-Ranfreecoursesforgraduatesandtriedtorecruitthemforclients-Developingnewclientsandprojectswhileworkingoncurrentones-LikedtheinformalrelationshipinBIC-Hadbeenhelpedandwashelpingothertenantsfortheirbusinesses-ViewedexchangingideasinBICimportant-Likedcitycentrelocationandfacilitiesforrunningtrainingcourses-Usedabusinessadvisorandfoundituseful

Stayingonforanotheryear

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Respondent Pre-BIC DuringBIC Post-BICAlex -Hadanideaforonline

socialmaps-Hadbeentoadifferentuniversityincubatorbutleft(notmanyactivitiesandwantedapercentageofthebusiness)

-Neededinvestmentinthebusinesstodeveloptechnologyfortheidea-Didn’thaveenoughmoneyandthoughtofadifferentideatomakealiving-AftersixmonthsinBIC,putthefirstideaonhold-AftersixmonthsinBIC,startedthesecondbusiness,makingsnapshotsinnightclubs-Hadatenantworkingforthesecondbusiness,adminandoutreach-Enjoyedhavingconversationsanddebateswithothertenants,seeingitasasourceofideas-Likedtheofficeenvironmentbutwouldhavepreferred24haccess-SpoketoTonyasabusinessadvisorandfellowtenantaboutideas-SpoketotheresearchofficeatUKUbutgotaninformalcomplainttotheBICmanager

StayingonforanotheryearandplanningtogotoGermanytodevelopbusinessideas

Kelly -Gotredundantandwantedtostartownbusiness-JustcompletedNESanddrewupabusinessplan-NESofferedgraduatesfreefirstyearrentatBIC,sotooktheoffer

-Workedpart-timeandwasstudyingaMastersdegree-WorkedforTony’sbusinessonPR-Tonyintroducedaclient-Doingagraphicdesignproject-WasveryexcitedaboutthebusinessbuthadtoslowdownduetoMastersdissertationandpart-timework-Juststartedworkingonthebusinessagainaftercompletingthedissertation-ViewedBICasasupportivelearningenvironment-Hadabusinessmentorbutwasnothelpful

WouldpayforthebasicrentforBICforsecondyear,keepingtheaddressandnetwork.ButsinceworkingforUCUpart-time,nootherfacilitieswereneeded.

Mark -Hadbeenprovidingpersonalfitnesstrainingonanad-hocbasisfor8years-Intendedtohaveaseparatebusinessinthecorporatemarket,8monthsbeforemovingtoBIC

-ChangedbusinessstrategyandnetworkedmorepurposefullywithHRmanagersinlargeorganisations-FeltBICmadegoodPRfortenantcompanies-HadmeetingswithotherSMEsatBICandlikedthatthevenuewas‘free’-MentionedBICmanagerwasveryhelpful-Usedthelibraryalotandwashelpfulwhenwritingtrainingcourses

Intendedtostayforanotheryear

Karen -Workedforaproductioncompanyinmediaasajournalistandproducer-Justsetupowncompany

-Purchasednecessaryequipmentformakingdocumentaries-Tenderingforprojects-Producingradioprogrammes-MakingpodcastsforaScottishuniversity-UsedBICtohaveabusinessaddress,tomeetclientsandinterviewees,tostructureaworkingday,andtohaveadminsupport(sendingandreceivinglettersetc.)-Informallynetworkedwithothertenantsandtoshareexperienceofstartingup

Intendedtostayforanotheryear

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AppendixXIII-Narrativesofcasestudies

CaseNo.1:Helen

Opportunity:environmentalsustainabilitymanagement(ESM)

Before studying for her Masters degree in Environmental Management and

Sustainable Development, Helen had been an HRmanager and a nurse.While

completingherdegree,Helenidentifiedanopportunityprovidingconsultancyin

environment sustainabilitymanagement andpeopledevelopment. She came to

BIC with a very broad idea about running her own business in the field of

sustainability. Feeling the need to work away from the study room at home,

HelencametoBICforamorestructuredworkingenvironmentandtosharethe

experienceofsettingupabusinesswithotherincubatees.

She mentioned three impacts of BIC. These were: to refine ideas with other

incubatees;herbusinessmentorandadviser;andtolearnhowotherpeopleset

upandgrowtheirbusinesses.WhileinBIC,Helenlearntthatjusthavinganidea

wasnot enough, shealsoneeded to learnhow tomarkether ideas.Helenalso

mentionedthatshewouldnothavecarriedonafter3or4monthswithoutbeing

inBIC.Shefoundthatitwasveryusefultobewithothernascententrepreneurs

and to share their experiences.Aspartof theprocess, shemet a fellow tenant

and they prepared some tenders together. This provided Helen with an

opportunitytolearnwhatwasinvolvedintheprocessoftenderingforcontracts

inenvironmentalsustainabilitymanagement.

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CaseNo.2:Tim

Opportunity:artgallery(AG)

HadbeenworksevenyearsasaretailbuyerandcompletedanMBAdegree,Tim

spottedagap in themarket forpaintings.He intendedtobringoriginalmiddle

market affordable art to customers by introducingmore customer-focused art

pieces to themarket.He came toBICwith theaimsofhavingaplace towork,

storingartworkandnetworkingwithotherentrepreneurs.Ratherthanworking

formhome,Timalsoneededanofficeenvironmenttorefinehisbusinessplan.As

TimalreadyhadabusinessplanbeforeenteringBIC,hemetotherincubateesin

BIC who helped him with branding. He also recruited artists through BIC’s

networking events and from BIC’s incubatees directly. Tim used BIC as an

exhibitionpremise forartworkwhile looking formoresuitableretailspace.He

alsoused theseexhibitions to testhis ideas.Beingquite research focused,Tim

used different ways to refine his business idea, such as trade magazines,

publications, feedback from other incubatees, potential buyers and business

advisers from BIC. The interview took place two weeks before Tim’s own art

galleryopened,bywhenhefledgedfromBIC.

CaseNo.3:Andy

Opportunity:webdevelopment(WD)

ThiscaseispresentedinSection6.3.1

CaseNo.4:Jane

Opportunity:sportsmanagement(SM)

ThiscaseispresentedinSection6.3.2

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CaseNo.5:Ian

OpportunityI:socialnetworkingevents(SNE/Ian1)

OpportunityII:hypnotherapyandwellbeing(HW/Ian2)

ThiscaseispresentedinSection6.3.3

CaseNo.6:Tony

Opportunity:lifecoachingandbusinessadvice(LCBA)

ThiscaseispresentedinSection6.3.4

CaseNo.7:Nick

Opportunity:webdesignanddevelopment(WDD)

Nick had his ownweb design company and also formed partnershipwith two

other associateswho are not tenants of BIC. After having had theweb design

businessesforoverthreeyears,Nickintendedtochangethebusinessmodeltoa

more sustainable one for the business he ranwith his partners. He chose BIC

where he could experiment the new ideas. Nick liked working from BIC and

benefited from having conversations with other tenants to reflect on his own

ideas.Hefoundithelpfultobeabletoworkawayfromhomewhenplanningfor

the new business idea. Although he was not happy about the way how the

management ofBICmade changes to theTerms andConditions of the tenants

agreement, he suggested that other tenants shouldhave amore regularuseof

thespace,ratherthanjustusingitformeetings.Havinghadacoupleofmeetings

withbusinessadvisersandmentors,Nickfeltthatitwasnotparticularusefulfor

him because it is too general. When the interview was conducted, Nick had

alreadybeenasecond-yeartenantandhadalreadystartedtoimplementhisnew

252

ideas thoughhe thought that themarketingstrategycouldhavebeen launched

earlierthanplanned.

CaseNo.8:Neil

Opportunity:culturedevelopmenttrainingandconsultancy(CDTC)

Neil had worked in the knowledge-based consultancy and had experience in

raising seed capital. He mentioned that he had been delivering leadership

trainingprogrammesandworkedinPRandmarketingandunderstoodfinance

at an advanced level before came toBIC and topursuehis ownbusiness idea,

which isorganisationcultureandcommunicationconsultancy.Asheexplained

thathewasaboardfor12yearsandonlybacktothecountryfor2,3years,Neil

wasverykeenonnetworkingandgettingtoknoweveryonewhilecomingtoBIC.

Hebelievedthatitwouldbebeneficialforhimtonetwork.

Neil was very passionate about building up a community in BIC and together

withNickhewas formingaBICassociation.Neilrecognisedtheheterogeneous

nature of the tenants and understood that theywere all at different stages of

their businesses. Therefore he believed that productive networking would be

beneficial for all the incubatees. Neil also found that meeting other

entrepreneurs helped him to reflect on his business ideas. Having spotted

problemsofcurrenttrainingprogrammesavailableinthemarket,Neilwasvery

confident about his own ideas. Hewas studying a PhD degree at UKU and he

mentionedthatthePhDstudieswasaspin-offofhisbusinessideas.WhileinBIC

Nick formed a partnership with Christine (a fellow tenant of BIC) for his

communicationconsultancy.Nickandhispartnerhadgainedtwoclientssincehe

started the business, however they had not decided their strategy in which

253

market to targeton.Keenonbuildingasupportivecommunity inBIC,Neilhad

alreadydecidedtostayanotheryearinBIC.

CaseNo.9:Phil

Opportunity:onlinejobsearchingandmanagement(OJSM)

Philwanted to ownhis business since his childhood.While hewas studying a

businessdegree,heandhisclassmateswonafewenterpriseawards.Hewasalso

Inspiredby a classmate at theuniversity, and startedhis first onlinehat store

while studying. After made some money from the business, Phil sold it and

movedontohissecondbusiness,whichwaswebdesign.As thebusinessgrew,

Philalsosubcontractedtaskstospecialistwhoworkedonsometechnicalparts

of the projects. Two years before entering BIC, Phil started a nightclub events

businesswithtwobusinesspartners.WhenmovingintoBIC,Philregisteredhis

webdesigncompany.HoweverhismainpurposeofbeinginBICwastodevelop

a new business idea he had which was about online job searching and

management.WhenPhilwasinterviewed,hehadleftBICforsevenmonthsand

movedintoanoffice,whereoneofhisbusinesspartnersalreadyhad.Thatwasa

tailoringbusinessinthecitycentre,whichPhilinvestedin.

PhilreallylikednetworkingwithothertenantswhenhewasinBIC.Hefoundit

useful forhimtoreflecthisown ideas.HeoftenmentionedNickandMarkand

despite the fact he had some business partners, he still met with these two

sometimes and discussed business ideas. Phil met some business advisors to

helpwithhisideasbutfoundthatitwasnotveryhelpful.

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CaseNo.10:Jeff

OpportunityI:ITsupport(ITS)

Opportunity II:digital publishing (DP/ Jeff-Paul, together with Paul, see case

no.11)

Jeff had the ideas of running his own business in IT support when he was

studyingaMastersdegree.Aspartofhisdissertation,hedrewupabusinessplan

in ITsupport forstudents. Jeffhadsomeexperience inproviding ITsupport to

familyandfriendsandhespottedagapinthemarketwheretheuniversitydid

notprovidethisservice.OnemonthbeforehemovedintoBIC,Jeffstartedtorun

his business. Jeff viewed having an city centre address and a linkage to the

Universityveryimportanttothegrowthofhisbusiness,whereafewuniversity

organisationssuchastheStudents’Unionhaveendorsedandgavesupporttohis

business. Jeff also benefited from the business advisers from BIC, who helped

himtorefinethemarketingstrategy.

WhileinBIC,Jeffdevelopedadigitalpublishing(DP)ideafurtherwithtwoother

BIC tenantswhowere also classmates in hisMaters course. All of themwrote

easy-to-use ITmanuals for students,whichwere sold only online. Having two

businessesrunningthesametimeandapart-timejob,JeffviewedITSashiscore

business. Because of all the benefits Jeff gained from BIC, he was already a

secondyeartenantwhentheinterviewwasconducted.Hisbusinesspartnerfor

ITSwasalsooneofthepartnersforDP,whichispresentedincaseno.11.

CaseNo.11:Paul

OpportunityI:onlinefoodspecialist(OFS)

Opportunity II: digital publishing (DP/ Jeff-Paul, together with Jeff, see case

no.10)

ThiscaseispresentedinSection6.3.5

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CaseNo.12:Peter

Opportunity:mobilephoneproviderforbusinesses(MPPB)

Peterwasmakingmoneywhenhewasateenager,hemadeandsoldcomputers

tofriends.Laterinhislife,heworkedinamobilephonestorewherehegained

knowledgeof salesandadministration.After twoyears,hewent towork fora

friend in thesame industryusingbusiness-to-businessmodel.About twoyears

beforeenteringBIC,Peterstartedhisownbusinessinthemobilephonesector.

HegottoknowaboutBIConradioandthoughtthathewouldbenefitfromacity

centreaddressandmeetingrooms.Peter’sbusinesswasdelayedasthecompany

whosubcontractedhisbusinesswentbankrupt.Hewasworkingfull-timewhile

waitingtogetall thepaperworkreadyandtogetsubcontracted fromamobile

phone provider. Peter had just started his business again when he was

interviewed.Hesawalotofbenefitsofbeingwithotherpeoplewhostartedtheir

businesses. He also viewed a professional business environment very

importantly where he could meet clients. He had decided to stay in BIC for

anotheryearandthemanagementhadagreedtoofferhimaspacefree-of-charge,

duetotheproblemsPeterhadfromhisbusiness.

CaseNo.13:Emma

Opportunity:approvedaeroplanepartsdatabase(AAPD)

Emmahadworkedasabuyerforairlinesfor17yearsbeforecametoBICtostart

upherownbusiness.Asausershespottedproblemswithdatabasesforbuyers

sourcing for aeroplane parts and had the idea of a more integrated and

comprehensive system a few years before coming to BIC. When Emma got

redundantbyheremployerandgotsomecompensationshedecidedtostartup

herbusinessinBIC.Togeneratemoreincometosupportthefamily,Emmaalso

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workedpart-timeforanaviationcompanyandwasdoingsomefreelancework

inthesameindustry.Tobeabletoconcentrateondevelopingherownbusiness

idea,Emmachosetoworkasanadministratorforherpart-timejob.Shealsogot

apartnerforthebusiness,whoworkedonmarketingstrategy.Emmawasabout

toformallylaunchherbusinesswhentheinterviewwasconducted.Sheprovided

theserviceforfreetosomeclientssothatshecouldtryoutthesystemandmade

it credible before she introduced the company to one of largest expo in her

industry.ThroughtheconnectionofBIC,ShealsohadanMBAstudentworkedon

her press pack ready for the expo. Emma mentioned that she did not attend

many networking events in BIC as she worked on Wednesdays (when the

networkingeventswereheld)andthatthepeoplewhoattendedtheeventswere

notsuitableforherbusiness,whichwasveryspecificallyintheaviationsector.

Howevershestillbenefittedfromnetworkingasshefoundherbookkeeperfrom

oneoftheevents.Shealsofoundthecitycentreaddressusefulasithelpedthe

business to appearmoreprofessional. Emmadecided tomoveon fromBIC, as

the rent for a second year tenantwas three times of the first year’s. Shewas

willingtopayforasmallerfeesothatshecouldkeepthecitycentreaddressbut

shewouldprefer to spendmoneyona systemupgrade forherwebsite,which

wasveryimportantatthatstage.

CaseNo.14:James

Opportunity:onlinelettingandestateagent(OLEA)

James’sideainitiallycameaboutayearbeforemovingtoBIC,hesawabusiness

forsalewhichwasapropertywebsite.Hespottedafewproblemsofthewebsite

and thought that he could run his own online letting and estate agent.Having

beenalandlordbeforeanddealtwithlettingagencies,Jamesknewtheproblems

he had as a customer and was confident that he could provide a service that

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would be much more customer focused and more cost effective. James had

worked a large corporations and gained insights of how to bemore customer

oriented. He also noticed thatmany large companiesweremoving businesses

onlineandthoughtthatanonlinelettingagentwouldbeagoodideatopursue.

JamesstartedtopreparefortradingfourmonthsbeforemovingintoBIC.During

thattimehewasraisingfunds,sortingoutthewebsiteandconductingresearch

forthebusiness.Whentheinterviewwasconducted,OLEAhashadaninvestor

and a part-time employee.While having day-to-day tasks tomanage including

dealingwithlandlords,Jameswasalsobusydevelopingthestrategytogrowhis

business further. James had a former incubateewho designed hiswebsite. He

likedbeinginBICasitseparatedprivateandworkinglife.Althoughhishadvery

specific ideas of his business, he still found it useful being with other

entrepreneurs and exchanging ideas. Jamesmentioned that he chose BIC also

because they did not ask for an equity stake as an exchange for the space.He

found that an office environment gave his business more credibility when

meeting clients. Jameswas very keen on growing his business and he actively

lookedforadvicefromdifferentsources,suchasdifferentuniversitiesandhigh

growth programmes. Although James would have preferred longer opening

hoursinBIC,heintendedtostayoninBICforanotheryear.

CaseNo.15:Kath

Opportunity:childcarevouchersmanagement(CVM)

ThiscaseispresentedinSection6.3.6

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CaseNo.16:Laura

Opportunity:trainingservicesforrecruitmentagencies(TSRA)

Afterworked as anOperations andTrainingDirector for over 20 years, Laura

wasmaderedundantbyheremployer.Afterthataformercolleagueofher,who

startedownbusinessintherecruitmentindustry,askedhertoprovidetraining

for the employees. Laura spotted as an opportunity for her to start her own

businessinprovidingtrainingservicesforrecruitmentagencies.Lauraprovided

some training sessions for entrepreneurs who were on the NES, which was

associatedwiththeresearchcentre.ShethengottoknowaboutBICandapplied

to use it to develop her own business. After six months being in BIC, Laura’s

business started to trade. Laura used BIC in various ways: running training

courses, doing preparingwork and business planning. She also found the city

centreaddressusefulforherbusiness.Havinghadexperienceinsales,Laurawas

awarethatsheneededtokeepthecurrentclientswhilethesamelookingfornew

ones. After speaking to a business advisor from BIC, she decided to set up a

website to promote her business to new potential clients. The website was

developed by a company inBIC. Laura enjoyed the informal friendship inBIC,

where tenants exchange ideas and supporting each other. When Laura was

submittingsometenders,shehadotherincubateesgivingfeedbackonherwork.

Withherexpertiseandexperience,shealsohelpedotherrecruitmentcompanies

that were based in BIC. Liked the city centre location, the resources and

networksavailablefromBIC,Laurawasalreadyinhersecondyearofincubation

whenbeinginterviewed.

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CaseNo.17:Alex

OpportunityI:onlinesocialmaps(OSM/Alex1)

OpportunityII:nightclubsnapshots(NS/Alex2)

When Alex had a business idea of developing an online socialmap, he looked

aroundwherehecouldstartthebusiness.Hefirstwenttoadifferentuniversity’s

incubator. After he was successful at the selection interview, he started his

incubation there. However he was not happy that the incubator did not have

many activities and that he had to give a percentage of the company to the

incubator.He resigned from that incubator andmoved toBIC. Alex’s ideawas

initially inspiredbyabriefpresentationataconference.Usingtheexamplesof

Google, Face and Twitter, He mentioned that he did not believe that it was

importanttofindoutwhethertherewasamarketneedforhisservice.Alexhad

beenlookingforatechnicalteamtoworkontheonlinesocialmapideaandhe

wasalsothinkingofobtainingthetechnicalknowledgehimself.Sixmonthsafter

havingtheideaandlookingforinvestment,Alexputitonhold.Hehaddecidedto

move toBerlin in fivemonths time, fromwherehewouldbuildupa teamand

worksolelyondevelopingthisidea.

AlexwasalwaysfondofphotographyandheboughtanantiquePolaroidonline.

Tojustifyforthemoneyhespentontheequipment,hecameupanideaoftaking

photos for customers innightclubs.He started the snapshotbusinesswhenhe

decided to put the online map idea on hold. The photography business is

profitable and as a result, Alex had employed a fellow tenant to work on the

businesspart-time.Alexenjoyedbeing inanopen-planenvironment,wherehe

couldhavea lotof interactionswith fellow incubatees.Healso liked todebate

withothertenants,fromwhich,hewasthinkingofathirdbusinessidea,which

wasaboutonlinepublishing.Helikedtohaveaplacetogotoworkandwished

BIC to have longer opening hours. Although Alex is moving to Berlin in five

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months’timetodeveloptheonlinesocialmapsidea,hehaddecidedtostayonin

BICforanotheryear.HelikedtohaveconnectionswiththetenantsinBICandhe

foundthat forabitmoreextrahecouldstorehisequipment inBIC,whichwas

goodforhisbusiness.

CaseNo.18:Kelly

Opportunity:marketing,PRandgraphicdesign(MPRGD)

Kellyhadworked inmedia for fiveyearsbefore shewasmade redundant. She

washappythatshehadachancetopursueherownbusinessideasinmarketing.

Ten years before Kelly had the business idea, she had tried to get a job in

marketing but was not successful at that time. Had completed the NES

programme,KellywasstudyingaMastersdegreeinmarketingwhencomingto

BIC.Whendrawing up the business plan,Kelly thought she needed something

uniqueabouthermarketingbusiness.Asablackconsumer,shefoundthatmany

smallbusinessesrunbyblackpeoplewerenotverygoodatmarketingandshe

decided to shape her business especially for this minority. Kelly did not have

muchtimetodevelopherideasasshewasatthefinalstageofherpostgraduate

studiesandshewasworkingpart-timefortheuniversity.Tonybroughtthefirst

client to Kelly, who needed someone to helpwith PR. Kelly used her skills in

graphic design for the company. While not having much work experience in

marketing, Kelly has learnt marketing from books, other people’s stories and

from observing Tony’s work in BIC. Kelly also was reading journals and

magazinestokeepupwiththelatesttrendsinmarketing.Beingagraduateofthe

NESprogramme,KellywasofferaoneyearfreerentalfromBICandshetookthis

opportunity to setupherbusiness inBIC.Kelly liked theprofessionalworking

environment in BIC and it felt that it’s a good place tomeet her clients.More

importantly, she found that coming toBICmotivatedherworking on the idea.

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Shereally likedthe interactionsshehad inBIC,comparedworking fromhome.

She found very useful when she could learn from other tenants’ experience.

HoweverKelly felt that someprocedurescouldbemore formal inBIC, suchas

inductionandbusinessadvisorservices.

CaseNo.19:Mark

Opportunity:corporatewellbeingconsultancy(CWC)

Leftschoolattheageof16,Markstartedhisjobintheconstructionsectorasa

labourer.Heusedhisfreetimetostudyconstructionengineeringandsetuphis

own construction consultancy company about eight years ago.Markhad some

health issueswhenhewasa teenager.He started runningand recovered from

the problems. His friends then asked him to train them to run. Mark enjoyed

beingapersonaltrainerandthroughword-of-mouth,Markworkedasapersonal

trainer on an adhocbasiswhenhewasworking as a construction consultant.

Aboutfouryearsago,Markmadeprofit fromsellingaflatheownedinLondon

andhedecidedtorunhisownconstructioncompany.Howeverheoncehadan

accidentandhiswifeaskedhimtoleavetheconstructionindustry.Atthattime

Markhadbeenapersonaltrainerforaboutfouryear.

Markthensetuphispersonaltrainingcompanyandithadbeenverysuccessful.

Marktookthebusinessverypersonallyandheonlyemployedthebesttrainers

hecouldfind,evenifitmeantturningdowncustomersduetonothavingenough

trainers.Atthesametime,Markwasverykeenongettingall thequalifications

that are related to training and wellbeing. He believed that this helped him

selecting the best trainers and also enabled him to talk professionally to his

potential clients in the corporate environment. After two years running his

personal training business, Mark started to consider offering wellbeing

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consultancytolargeorganisations.Whilebeingverypersonalabouthispersonal

trainingbusiness,Markwouldliketomakealotofmoneyfromlargecorporate

organisations.AboutoneyearafterMarkhadthecorporatewellbeingidea,Mark

joined BIC. After attending many networking events and hoping to get HR

directors’contacts,Markrealisedthatheneededabetterwayofgettingintothe

corporateworld.HethenbecameamemberoftheCIPD(CharteredInstituteof

Personnel and Development). He used BIC as a venue to organise some local

CIPDbranchmeetingsandgot toknow localHRdirectors.When the interview

wasconducted,Markmentionedthathehadreceivedawellnessauditcontract

fromanorganisation,whichhadover4,500staff.

MarkhadonesessionwithabusinessmentorfromtheHighGrowthProgramme,

associated with the research centre. Mark found it useful in a way that the

mentorhelpedhimtostructurehistime.Markreallylikedthecommunityfeelof

BIC,whereotherentrepreneursgavehimhonestfeedbackonhisideas.Healso

used tenants for his informalmarket research. Mark found that BICmade his

businessmorecrediblebecauseoftheprofessionalmeetingplacesandheusedit

to organise the regular CIPDmeetings. The venuewas free to use,whichwas

very good for him and his attendees who are also SME owners. He also

mentionedthatBICofferedmanyPRopportunitiesforbusinesses.Beingatenant

alsoenablehisaccesstothelibrarywhichheusedalotwhenwritinguptraining

programmes for his trainers.While only being in BIC for 9months,Mark has

alreadydecidedtostayoninBICforanotheryear.

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CaseNo.20:Karen

Opportunity:radiodocumentaryproductions(RDP)

Karen had worked as a middle-level manager for a large insurance company

beforemoving to aproduction companywith5 employees. Forbothposts she

feltthatshewouldliketohavemorecontroloverherrolesandthatshewould

like to set up her own company. Karen studied Journalism at a Masters level

duringher freetime.Sheconsideredaradioproductioncompanyasa lowrisk

route to start up. Before coming to BIC, Karen already purchased all the

equipmentneededfortheproductionbutdidnothaveanyclientsat that time.

Karen found that BIC helped to structure her time. She also used it to meet

clientsorsubjectmatter,asitwasmuchmoreprofessionalthanmeetingpeople

athomeorinacafé.KarenalsolikedthattheadministratoratBICdidtheirposts.

Although having had knowledge and experience in documentary productions,

Karen did not have any experience in setting up her own business. She found

beingwith other peoplewhowere also in theprocess of startingupwas very

important. Although Karen was looking for another premise for professional

documentaryproduction,shestilldecidedtobeinBICforanotheryear.

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AppendixXIV–DistributionofallregularusersofBIC

All regular users are potential interviewees. Categorisation uses UK SIC 2007StandardIndustrialClassification

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Count

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AppendixXV–Dimensionsofpriorknowledgeandpersonalinterests

Respondent OpportunityPriorKnowledgeof…

PersonalInterestsMarkets CustomerProblems MeanstoServeMarkets

Helen

Environmentalsustainabilitymanagement

1)MastersdegreeinEnvironmentalManagementandSustainableDevelopment2)Freelanceworkforlocalairportinclimatechange

Tim

Artgallery Workedsevenyearsasaretailbuyer

AfriendofTimhadagallery.Timknowsthathavingartworkappealingtothecustomersisimportant.

Andy

Webdevelopment

1)StudiedDesign&Technology2)Workedasawebdeveloper

Jane

Sportsmanagement

1)Organisingsportseventsasasocialactivity2)Workedasasportsdevelopmentofficer

IntheUKtherewereveryfewsportsforwomentoplayasafitnessandfunsocialactivityafterwork.

AfriendofJanetargetedatyoungprofessionalsinadifferentcitymadeaverygoodprofitbyorganisingsportsevents.

Ian1

Socialnetworkingevents

Experienceofbeingacustomeratmanynetworkingevents,believedthatmanynetworkingeventswerenotgood.

Ian2

Hypnotherapy&wellbeing

‘I’vealwaysbeeninterestedinhypnosisandNRPwhichisalikeaformofhypnosisandIwasreadingaboutitandIwaslearningaboutit.’

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Respondent Opportunity

PriorKnowledgeof…PersonalInterestsMarkets CustomerProblems MeanstoServe

Markets

Tony lifecoachingandbusinessadvice

1)StudiedpsychologywhendoingaLawdegree.2)Experienceindoingmarketing.3)Hadaneventsandmarketingcompanywithfriends.

Havinghadexperienceinbeingacustomerformarketingadviceandknewthatitcouldbeimproved.

Interestedinpsychology,communications,andlifecoaching.

Nick

Webdesignanddevelopment

1)FirstdegreeinElectronicImagininginMediaCommunications.2)Teachingwebdesignincollege.3)Experienceinbuildingwebsites.

Neil Culturedevelopmenttrainingandconsultancy

1)FirstdegreeinSociologyandPolitics2)StudyingaPhD,linkingmotivation,change,psychologyandsociology.3)Experienceinprovidingconsultancyinknowledge-basedandoperationalmanagement

‘FormanyyearsIhaveseenleadershipandtrainingprogrammesandIhavedeliveredmanyoftheminmanykindsoforganisationsandtheyseemtooperateinalanguagethatpeopledon’tunderstand.Theyoperateinthemade-uplanguageofacademicorganisationaldevelopmentandtheytalkaboutsynergiesandleverageandteamwork,theyspeakinanalogiesofsporttopeoplewhodon’tplaysport…’

‘Ihavealwaysbeeninterestedinsociologyandpsychology,thosehavealwaysbeenmyprimaryinterests.’

Phil

Onlinejobsearchingandmanagement

1)FirstdegreeinE-Business.2)Hadanonlineshoponebay.3)Wasrunningaweb-designbusiness,specialisinginblogdesign

Jeff

ITsupport 1)FirstdegreeinComputingScienceandMastersdegreeinEnterprise2)Workedpart-timeinamass-marketcomputersuperstore3)ProvidingITservicestofamilyandfriends�

PracticalknowledgeofITsupportgainedfromworkingforfamilyandfriends

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Respondent OpportunityPriorKnowledgeof…

PersonalInterestsMarkets CustomerProblems MeanstoServeMarkets

Jeff

Digitalpublishing,Jeff-Paul

Experienceofbeingareaderforcomputermanuals.

‘Whenyouareatuniversitythetextbooksthatyouaregivenspecificallyonthingslikehowtousesoftwareprogrammesonyourcomputer,theyarenotwritteninthewaythatstudentswouldlikebecauseifyouareabusystudentworkinghardonyourresearchandyouhavetolearnhowtouseanewprogramme,thebookstendtotellyoueverythingthereistoknowaboutthatprogramme,sothey'llbethatthickandloadsandloadsofwritingandthewayitiswrittenisalmostliketheywanttoteachyoueverythingthereistoknowaboutitandtheonlyreasonthatthestudentisusingthatcomputerprogrammeisbecausetheyhavegotsomethingtodoandthatisalltheycareabout,gettingtheirworkdone.’

Paul Onlinefoodspecialist

FirstdegreeinGeographyandMastersdegreeinEnterpriseinEnvironmentalInnovation

Toprotecttheenvironment.

Peter

Mobilephoneproviderforbusinesses

1)Buyingandsellingmobilephoneswhen13yearsold.2)Experienceinsalesandadministrationinalargemobilephoneretailingchainaimingatendusers.3)Workedforafriendwhosoldmobilephonestocompanies.

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Respondent OpportunityPriorKnowledgeof…

PersonalInterestsMarkets CustomerProblems MeanstoServeMarkets

Emma

Approvedaeroplanepartsdatabase

Havingbeenabuyer,purchasingpartsforairlines.

Suppliersoftendidnotprovideenoughinformationonwhetherthepartshadbeenapprovedandtheapprovalprocesstookalongtimeforaircraftparts.

James

Onlinelettingandestateagent

Havingbeenalandlord,understoodproblemsofbeingacustomerforanestateagency.

Kath

Childcarevouchersmanagement

Hadchildcarebusinessandwasreceivingchildcarevouchers.

Asachildcarevoucherrecipient,Kathexperiencedlotsofdifficultiesofusingvouchersfromdifferentsourcesandsystems.

Laura

Trainingservicesforrecruitmentagencies

1)Workedintherecruitmentindustry.2)WorkedasanOperationsandTrainingDirector.3)Experienceindevelopingtraininganddevelopmentprogrammes.

Alex1

Onlinesocialmaps

1)Interestedinblendingartwithtechnology.2)Interestedinmaps.

Alex2

Nightclubsnapshots

Obsessedwithanantiquecamera.

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Respondent OpportunityPriorKnowledgeof…

PersonalInterestsMarkets CustomerProblems MeanstoServeMarkets

Kelly

Marketing,PRandgraphicdesign

1)FirstdegreeinFashionPromotionandmastersinMarketing.2)Workedasanofficemanagerandwasalsoinvolvedinmarketingforamagazine.

Interestedinmarketing.

Mark

Corporatewellbeingconsultancy

Experienceinprovidingpersonalfitnesstrainingonanad-hocbasisfor8years.

Karen Radiodocumentaryproductions

1)Journalist.2)Radioproducer.3)Workedforaproductioncompanyinmedia.4)MastersdegreeinJournalism.5)Experienceinmakingradioprogrammesanddoingresearch.