Publication: Reaching Entrepreneurs through Alternate Models : Lessons from Virtual Incubation Pilots
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Date
2014
ISSN
Published
2014
Author(s)
World Bank Group
Abstract
Entrepreneurship is an essential
component of a growing and dynamic economy. It is a key
driver of competition, innovation, and net job creation. The
founders of these enterprises can innately gravitate toward
cities or hubs that provide them with the resources needed
to start or grow their businesses. A 2013 report by Endeavor
on what attracts entrepreneurs to cities (What Do the Best
Entrepreneurs Want in a City?) noted that entrepreneurs are
able to find relevant talent, resources, access to customers
and suppliers, and often incentives such as lower taxes and
business-friendly regulations in metropolises. infoDev
focuses on enabling the start-up and growth of innovative
enterprises. infoDev designed a small pilot project to test
the merits and values of virtual incubation, recognizing
that many innovative entrepreneurs in emerging and
developing markets may be situated in less urban areas and
that often even the more developed cities lack access to
basic resources, such as access to Internet, electricity, or
other services and talent. Virtual incubation aims to bring
the range of services and tools provided by traditional
business incubation to the entrepreneur, in contrast to the
entrepreneur availing those services and tools at a fixed
location. In addition, understanding that an entrepreneur
may have varying needs, virtual incubation provides a more
diverse range of these services and tools. This includes
outreach services, drop-in services and facilities, online
tools, consultancy, mentoring, and networking. The pilot
project focused on Vietnam and aimed to assess the
cost-effectiveness, sustainability, and impact of services
and tools provided to entrepreneurs through this
intervention. The pilot comprised a number of activities,
including the development of a new generation of
entrepreneurs in the country, the establishment of angel
networks, the dissemination of best practices, and the
expansion of entrepreneurial networks and communities across
major hubs in Vietnam.
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Citation
“World Bank Group. 2014. Reaching Entrepreneurs through Alternate Models : Lessons from Virtual Incubation Pilots. © Washington, DC. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/20107 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”