News

Fourth Quarter 2004

Science Alliance Conference on in Science-based Incubators, Oxford, December 2004

The conference focused on opportunities and constraints for international partnering among incubators and their clients, as well as the role of university-industry linkages and public/private funding. We were invited to chair the session on Partnering with Asia and to join the forum discussion “Towards a World Innovation Network”.

In conjunction with the Science Alliance conference, we presented a pilot module of the EU-supported Business Incubator Management Training Institute.

Global Forum on Business Incubation, New Delhi, October 2004

The Forum, hosted by the Government of India, the infoDev Program and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, brought together infoDev grant recipients and resource groups, including BTDS. The break-out sessions on regional and key-issues resulted in lively exchanges on the specific support needs of incubators to enhance performance.

This was followed by the International Summit of Business Incubation Associations, which made proposals on definitions and administration of future activities.

General Assembly of Asian Business Incubation Association, Shanghai, October 2004

This was the largest AABI gathering to date, hosted by the Shanghai International Business Incubator. We made a keynote presentation on “Enhancing the Performance of Business Incubation in Asia”. We also headed the selection committee for the ‘AABI Incubators’ that will host clients from foreign nations. From 20 nominations received, the six selected were Shanghai Technology Innovation Center - China, Hong Kong S&T Park - Hong Kong, TREC-STEP - India, Kitakyushu Telework Center - Japan, JTC Techpreneur Center - Singapore, National Taiwan University Innovation Center - Taiwan.

Third Quarter 2004

17th Biennial Congress Of The World Association Of Industrial and Technological Research Organizations (WAITRO) , Nairobi, Kenya

BTDS President Rustam Lalkaka is a member of the Standing Consultative Committee of WAITRO and has been closely involved in its governance. At the Nairobi Congress, he made a keynote presentation on ‘Leveraging Innovation for Empowerment’.

Under the auspices of the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, we were invited to present a seminar on “Essential Elements of Business Incubators and Technology Parks”.

Enhancing Governance and Management at the SODBI Incubator, Shymkent, Kazakhstan

SODBI is a general-purpose incubator located in Shymkent, South Kazakhstan. It has received strong support from local and national government in Kazakhstan, and from international donors such as the Soros Foundation, the Eurasia Foundation and the infoDev Incubator Initiative. We visited SODBI in August 2004 to advise on enhancing SODBI’s governance and management capabilities.

Strengthening the Technology Business incubation System in Malaysia

Under the leadership of the Multimedia Development Corporation, we are contracted to present an Incubator Managers’ Training Workshop. The first four-day seminar at Cyberjaya was attended by about 30 participants from 15 incubators. Visits were also made to the incubators at MDC, Universiti Sains Malaysia - Penang, and Kulim High Tech Park.

“Shanghai - Toward Internationalization”, Shanghai, China

We made a presentation on “Lessons Learned from International Experience in Urban Entrepreneurship Development” at an international conference on sustainable urban development sponsored by the Shanghai Overseas Returned Scholars Association. Among other points, the presentation argued for effective outreach services to improve the environmental sustainability of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in China.

Second Quarter 2004

NBIA Conference, Atlanta

We made two presentations at the annual conference of the National Business Incubation Association in Atlanta. One was on “The Impact of Culture and Context on the Performance of Business Incubation”, where we argued that culture, history and geography are important determinants of incubation outcomes. Our second presentation was on “The Progress of Business Incubation in India”. We estimate that there are around 64 incubator-variants in India, almost all focused on technology.

Inputs to the Mid-Term Evaluation of the infoDev Incubator Initiative

BTDS was requested to make recommendations to be used in a mid-term evaluation of the infoDev Incubator Initiative.

First Quarter 2004

Employment creation for youth in Saudi Arabia

On assignment with the King Abdulaziz & his Companions Foundation for the Gifted, BTDS made the keynote presentation at the workshop on “Technology Incubators: The Present and the Vision”. The Foundation has a variety of programs to foster creativity, stimulate inventions, nurture talent, and enrich the education opportunities for the gifted.

The workshop was opened in Riyadh by HE Mr. Hashim Yamani, Minister of Trade and Industry, with participation by the Organization for Industrial Estates, King Abdulaziz City for Science & Technology and University, Chambers of Commerce & Industry - Riyadh and Dammam, General Investment Authority, Saudi Entrepreneurship Development Institute, National Information System, Embassy of India, and others. Representatives from Bahrain, Turkey and Ireland also attended. The discussions focused on the unique conditions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that require the adaptation of incubation to meet the challenges of youth-led employment. A vacant building space has been identified for the proposed incubator and further preparations are underway at the KAC Foundation.

Earlier in March 1999, BTDS had participated in the workshop sponsored by the Saudi Credit Bank and the World Bank on Small Scale Enterprise Development, Riyadh.

Fourth Quarter 2003

Incubator Management Training Institute for Europe

Under a European Union grant, BTDS with its UK partner, the Center for Strategy and Evaluation Services will help develop a major training program for European incubator managers. This will include a comprehensive survey to identify training needs, preparation and testing of the courses, and dissemination through a web-based e-learning system.

The first meeting of partners of the consortium took place in Cyprus in December 2003 to launch this important program.

infoDev Incubator Initiative

BTDS was invited to participate in regional workshops to help publicize the World Bank’s infoDev Incubator Initiative. As resource persons, we made presentations at the Asia Regional Workshop in Bangalore, October 2003.

The grants under this program, supported by the infoDev Incubator Support Center (iDISC) and run by ANPROTEC-IBI/San Jose, are expected to make significant contributions towards leveraging ICT to enhance capabilities of existing and new incubators in developing countries.

“Virtual Incubator” to promote Italian joint ventures

A program was launched to stimulate joint ventures between Italian small businesses and those in selected developing countries. The possibility will be explored of establishing a technology business incubator in China, to be supplemented by an ‘e-incubation system’ based on mobilizing counseling and other inputs from a network of Italian incubators.

BTDS had detailed discussions with the project sponsors in Rome to review various business support options that are presently available or likely to be feasible.

Lecture Tour in Japan

BTDS principals spent three weeks in Japan as guests of the Japan Academic Society for Ventures and Entrepreneurs (JASVE). We spoke at workshops on venture creation and business incubation in Tokyo, Kawasaki, Nagoya, Osaka and Kitakyushu. In Kitakyushu, we also participated in the Board meeting of the Asian Association of Business Incubators, and in the Incubator Associations Summit.