IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jtecht/v41y2016i2d10.1007_s10961-015-9412-0.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do graduated university incubator firms benefit from their relationship with university incubators?

Author

Listed:
  • Vernet Lasrado

    (University of Central Florida)

  • Stephen Sivo

    (University of Central Florida)

  • Cameron Ford

    (University of Central Florida)

  • Thomas O’Neal

    (University of Central Florida)

  • Ivan Garibay

    (University of Central Florida)

Abstract

Business incubators have become a popular policy option and economic development intervention tool. However, recent research shows that incubated firms may not benefit significantly from their incubator relationships, and may even be more vulnerable to failure post departure (graduation) from an incubator. These findings suggest that the impact of business incubation on new venture viability may be contingent on the type of support offered by an incubator and attributes of business environments within which incubation services are provided. Incubation services that protect and isolate ventures from key resource dependencies may hinder venture development and increase subsequent vulnerability to environmental demands. Alternatively, incubation services that help ventures connect and align with key resource dependencies are likely to promote firm survival. We propose that incubators vary in the services and resources they offer, and that university incubators typically provide greater connectivity and legitimacy with respect to important contingencies associated with key industry and community stakeholders. This leads us to propose that university affiliation is an important contingency that affects the relationship between firms’ participation in incubators and their subsequent performance. The purpose of this study is to evaluate this contingency by examining whether firms graduating from university incubators attain higher levels of post-incubation performance than firms participating in non-university affiliated incubators. We test this by evaluating the performance of a sample of graduated firms associated with the population of university-based incubators in the US contrasted against the performance of a matched cohort of non-incubated firms. The analysis uses an enhanced dataset that tracks the number of employees, sales, and the entry and graduation (departure) points of incubated firms from a university incubation program, so as to delineate the scope of influence of the incubator.

Suggested Citation

  • Vernet Lasrado & Stephen Sivo & Cameron Ford & Thomas O’Neal & Ivan Garibay, 2016. "Do graduated university incubator firms benefit from their relationship with university incubators?," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 41(2), pages 205-219, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jtecht:v:41:y:2016:i:2:d:10.1007_s10961-015-9412-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s10961-015-9412-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10961-015-9412-0
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10961-015-9412-0?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rothaermel, Frank T. & Thursby, Marie, 2005. "Incubator firm failure or graduation?: The role of university linkages," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(7), pages 1076-1090, September.
    2. Rudy Aernoudt, 2004. "Incubators: Tool for Entrepreneurship?," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 127-135, September.
    3. Douglas, Paul H, 1976. "The Cobb-Douglas Production Function Once Again: Its History, Its Testing, and Some New Empirical Values," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 84(5), pages 903-915, October.
    4. Siegel, Donald S & Westhead, Paul & Wright, Mike, 2003. "Science Parks and the Performance of New Technology-Based Firms: A Review of Recent U.K. Evidence and an Agenda for Future Research," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 20(2), pages 177-184, March.
    5. Milanov, Hana & Fernhaber, Stephanie A., 2009. "The impact of early imprinting on the evolution of new venture networks," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 24(1), pages 46-61, January.
    6. Lois Peters & Mark Rice & Malavika Sundararajan, 2004. "The Role of Incubators in the Entrepreneurial Process," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 29(1), pages 83-91, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Schwartz, Michael & Göthner, Maximilian, 2009. "A Novel Approach to Incubator Evaluations: The PROMETHEE Outranking Procedures," IWH Discussion Papers 1/2009, Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH).
    2. Elsie Harper-Anderson & David A. Lewis, 2018. "What Makes Business Incubation Work? Measuring the Influence of Incubator Quality and Regional Capacity on Incubator Outcomes," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 32(1), pages 60-77, February.
    3. Ernesto Tavoletti, 2013. "Business Incubators: Effective Infrastructures or Waste of Public Money? Looking for a Theoretical Framework, Guidelines and Criteria," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 4(4), pages 423-443, December.
    4. Li Xiao & David North, 2017. "The graduation performance of technology business incubators in China’s three tier cities: the role of incubator funding, technical support, and entrepreneurial mentoring," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 42(3), pages 615-634, June.
    5. Mian, Sarfraz & Lamine, Wadid & Fayolle, Alain, 2016. "Technology Business Incubation: An overview of the state of knowledge," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 50, pages 1-12.
    6. Schwartz, Michael, 2010. "A Control Group Study of Incubators’ Impact to Promote Firm Survival," IWH Discussion Papers 11/2010, Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH).
    7. Eric Stokan & Lyke Thompson & Robert J. Mahu, 2015. "Testing the Differential Effect of Business Incubators on Firm Growth," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 29(4), pages 317-327, November.
    8. Christina Theodoraki & Karim Messeghem & Mark P. Rice, 2018. "A social capital approach to the development of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems: an explorative study," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 51(1), pages 153-170, June.
    9. Filippo Giordano & Jacopo Di Domenico, 2018. "Universit? e trasferimento tecnologico: il ruolo degli incubatori universitari," ECONOMIA E SOCIET? REGIONALE, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 0(3), pages 42-51.
    10. Michael Schwartz, 2009. "Beyond incubation: an analysis of firm survival and exit dynamics in the post-graduation period," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 34(4), pages 403-421, August.
    11. Michael Schwartz, 2013. "A control group study of incubators’ impact to promote firm survival," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 38(3), pages 302-331, June.
    12. Surana, Kavita & Singh, Anuraag & Sagar, Ambuj D, 2020. "Strengthening science, technology, and innovation-based incubators to help achieve Sustainable Development Goals: Lessons from India," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    13. Baraldi, Enrico & Ingemansson Havenvid, Malena, 2016. "Identifying new dimensions of business incubation: A multi-level analysis of Karolinska Institute's incubation system," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 50, pages 53-68.
    14. Gregor H.F. Noltes & Enno Masurel & Toon Buddingh, 2013. "Performance measurement in business incubators: empirical evidence from Europe," Chapters, in: Tüzin Baycan (ed.), Knowledge Commercialization and Valorization in Regional Economic Development, chapter 11, pages 238-257, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    15. Sansone, Giuliano & Andreotti, Pietro & Colombelli, Alessandra & Landoni, Paolo, 2020. "Are social incubators different from other incubators? Evidence from Italy," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    16. Lise Aaboen & Hans Löfsten, 2015. "International new ventures localised in incubators - markets, resources and dynamic environment," International Journal of Entrepreneurial Venturing, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 7(1), pages 24-46.
    17. Ernesto Tavoletti & Corrado Cerruti, 2012. "Business Incubation: The Case of the European Space Agency," DSI Essays Series, DSI - Dipartimento di Studi sull'Impresa, vol. 29.
    18. Catarina Roseira & Carla Ramos & Francisco Maia, 2014. "Understanding Incubator Value – A Network Approach to University Incubators," FEP Working Papers 532, Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Economia do Porto.
    19. J. Piet Hausberg & Sabrina Korreck, 2020. "Business incubators and accelerators: a co-citation analysis-based, systematic literature review," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 45(1), pages 151-176, February.
    20. Kameliya Deyanova & Nataliia Brehmer & Artur Lapidus & Victor Tiberius & Steve Walsh, 2022. "Hatching start-ups for sustainable growth: a bibliometric review on business incubators," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 16(7), pages 2083-2109, October.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Resource endowments; Economic development; Regional development; Entrepreneur support organizations; Business incubation; University based business incubators; Graduate firms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L21 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Business Objectives of the Firm
    • L25 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Performance
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • O44 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Environment and Growth

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jtecht:v:41:y:2016:i:2:d:10.1007_s10961-015-9412-0. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.