Entrepreneurial know-how is a critical issue for the success of an innovative business formation. It is the business incubator’s mission to transfer the required know-how to the entrepreneur.
This inductive study explores the practiced know-how transfer processes. The research methods are various and used in a mixed combination, by analysing secondary data of best practices, by the use of interviews with experts, and by a questionnaire survey with business incubators. The results show that the know-how transfer is mostly done in a long lasting resource consuming process due to the belief that the entrepreneur must be capable of facing all entrepreneurial challenges in a way that shows a high level of quality. The entrepreneur must have special abilities and skills in various fields. Besides profound technical and business managerial know-how, the entrepreneur must have many personal qualifications for the entrepreneurship as well as the ability to recognise opportunities and to make decisions.
Based on these findings the dissertation presents a conceptual framework of an efficient know-how management – the Next Practice Approach (NPA). The NPA designs the know-how transfer process with a clearly lower consumption of resources on the incubators’ and entrepreneurs’ side. The entrepreneur must acquire considerably less know-how and executes the business formation even faster and with a higher quality compared with the currently practiced processes.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Statement of Research Problem
1.2 Background to the Research Problem
1.3 Terms and Definitions
1.3.1 Entrepreneur
1.3.2 Entrepreneurial Success
1.3.3 Know-how
1.3.4 Business Formation
1.3.5 Business Incubation and Business Incubator
1.4 Research Aims and Objectives
Chapter 2: Literature Review
2.1 Know-how Transfer
2.2 Success Factors in Innovative Entrepreneurship
2.3 Business Incubation Process
2.4 Focal Theory – A Conceptual Framework
2.4.1 Focus on Self-Reflection and Idea Development
2.4.2 Using External Know-How Components
2.4.3 Creation of an Interactive Virtual Library
Chapter 3: Research Design and Methodology
3.1 Dissertation’s Research Design
3.1.1 Analysis of Secondary Data
3.1.2 In-Depth Interviews
3.1.3 Questionnaire
3.1.4 Semi-Structured Interviews
3.2 Reliability and Validity in Qualitative Research
3.2.1 Reliability
3.2.2 Validity
3.3 Research Ethics
Chapter 4: Empirical Study – Data, Analysis, and Interpretation
4.1 Secondary Data
4.1.1 Selection
4.1.2 Coaching
4.1.3 Mentoring
4.1.4 Networking
4.2 Interviews
4.3 Questionnaire Survey
Chapter 5: Conlusion
Chapter 6: Recommendations
6.1 Empirical Study – What could have been done better?
6.2 Future Research and Outlook
Research Objectives and Core Themes
This dissertation aims to design a conceptual framework for efficient know-how management in business incubators, specifically focused on enhancing the survival rate of innovative business formations by optimizing the transfer of practical expertise to entrepreneurs.
- Analysis of the required know-how for innovative business formations.
- Evaluation of currently practiced know-how transfer methods within incubation settings.
- Development of the "Next Practice Approach" (NPA) to improve incubation efficiency.
- Integration of virtual know-how components and interactive virtual libraries.
- Empirical assessment of incubator practices through interviews and surveys.
Excerpt from the Book
2.4.1 FOCUS ON SELF-REFLECTION AND IDEA DEVELOPMENT
As Figure 8 shows, the business formation process in the NPA can also be subdivided in four sub-phases from the idea to the market entry, as described in detail by Landwehr (2005). But in the NPA, the focal points of this process are the development and permanent refinement of the idea and its early testing on the market. The Idea Development and Refinement phase is going to take the most time of the incubation process. That is because the entrepreneur’s idea is not simply taken as a given precondition, as it is still often usual in the current start-up consulting. Rather the idea is basically questioned, and lighted especially in the view of the entrepreneur’s abilities and self-efficacy. Only, and in accordance with Faltin (2008), when the idea will be able to meet the requirements of (1) a clear and sustainable customer benefit and market advantage, (2) an advance compared to imitators, (3) minimised investment costs, (4) a high flexibility in regard of technical and economical changes, and (5) an integrated marketing- and financing concept, the Idea Phase is largely completed. It is therefore the main objective of the incubation process in the NPA to facilitate the entrepreneur’s acquisition of the idea know-how by a systematic idea development process actively (e.g. by questions and feedback rounds), and to refine it continuously.
The transition to the Entrepreneurial Concept Phase is smooth. In this phase it is important to transfer the refined business idea into a concept. In contrast to the conventional business plan, the idea is emphasised and an extensive market- and competitive analysis, as well as a medium-term business- and implementation planning is foreseen. The business planning has, as empirically proven, no influence on the success of the business formation (Ripsas, et al., 2008). Concerning Faltin’s concept-creative business formations, it is relatively easily possible to execute them without a great need of investment, and thus without banks and financing investors. A business plan of the conventional kind is no longer urgently needed during the business formation process.
Summary of Chapters
Chapter 1: Introduction: Outlines the research problem regarding the lack of efficient know-how transfer for first-time entrepreneurs and defines key terminology.
Chapter 2: Literature Review: Synthesizes existing research on know-how transfer, success factors for entrepreneurs, and the business incubation process.
Chapter 3: Research Design and Methodology: Details the exploratory, inductive research design and the qualitative methods, including interviews and surveys, used to gather data.
Chapter 4: Empirical Study – Data, Analysis, and Interpretation: Presents the findings from best practice analyses, expert interviews, and the global questionnaire survey among business incubators.
Chapter 5: Conlusion: Summarizes the study's findings and confirms the potential of the proposed Next Practice Approach (NPA).
Chapter 6: Recommendations: Provides practical suggestions for improving research methodology and suggests future directions for the implementation of virtual incubation practices.
Keywords
Business Incubation, Know-how Transfer, Entrepreneurship, Next Practice Approach, Start-up Success, Business Formation, Incubator Management, Virtual Library, Self-efficacy, Knowledge Management, Innovation, Entrepreneurial Coaching, Mentoring, Business Networking, Knowledge Components.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this dissertation?
This work focuses on optimizing the process of transferring practical know-how from business incubators to entrepreneurs to improve the success rates of innovative start-ups.
What are the central themes discussed in the research?
Key themes include the critical role of the entrepreneur's personality, the efficiency of traditional vs. innovative know-how transfer, and the utilization of "know-how components" and virtual libraries.
What is the core objective of the study?
The main objective is to design a conceptual framework called the "Next Practice Approach" (NPA) that allows for more resource-efficient and high-quality knowledge transfer.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The study utilizes a mixed, qualitative approach, incorporating a literature review, an analysis of secondary best practice data, expert interviews, and a worldwide questionnaire survey.
What does the main body of the work cover?
It covers theoretical models of know-how acquisition, critiques of traditional business planning, the role of self-efficacy, and a detailed exploration of how virtual tools can substitute for time-consuming traditional training.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
The work is defined by concepts such as Business Incubation, Know-how Transfer, Next Practice Approach, and Entrepreneurial Success.
Why does the author advocate for a shift toward "know-how components"?
The author argues that entrepreneurs cannot be "all-rounders" and that delegating specific business functions to external experts is more efficient and leads to higher quality outcomes than internal, long-term learning.
How does the proposed "virtual library" function within an incubator?
It acts as an interactive platform for "many-to-one" communication, where entrepreneurs can search for and rank answers to questions, reducing the burden on incubator management and ensuring standardized knowledge access.
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- Marco Thom (Autor:in), 2011, Business Incubation - How to Manage the Know-how Transfer, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/182704
