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Finding an incubator begins with determining where you
would like to start your business. You can find the nearest
incubator by calling local chambers of commerce or visiting
the National Business Incubator Association at www.nbia.org.
In general, incubators fall into three broad sponsor categories
(although many are combined): universities, private investors,
and economic development/government organizations.
Universities
For most technical and R&D businesses, you may first want
to consider the university approach. This begins with
researching academic institutions around the country to
determine if they have an incubator program and academic
specializations that are compatible with your business.
You may have already heard or read about research being
done in your field of endeavor and may find several universities
whose incubator programs have the facilities and knowledge
assets to match your goals.
Due to the lack of financial support from traditional
sponsors, many universities embrace the industrial sector
as a potential source of revenue and financial resources.
Faced with many financial limitations, the academic sector
is encouraging its experts to modify their research for
use in entrepreneurial applications. On the other hand,
many businesses are finding it imperative to ally themselves
with universities because the demands of research are
becoming increasingly complex.
Private Corporations & Venture Capitalists
If being affiliated with a university is not imperative,
there is the private approach. This involves finding investors
who have established their own incubators seeking to profit
from your particular field, technology or industry segment.
Private investors can come in the form of a corporation,
a consortium of corporations, banks, and individual financiers.
You might want to seek companies that already have support
capabilities, equipment and laboratories to assist your
efforts.
Many private investors view technology for its potential
to create new industries, products and markets. Although
such investments often involve a high risk, their return
can be higher than most traditional economic sectors.
Even for existing technologies, there are ever-increasing
commercial expectations for making improvements in the
manufacturing process and expanding profit margins that
attract private investment.
Economic Development & Government Authorities
You can also pursue the economic development approach.
This involves finding a regional government or economic
development corporation that is affiliated with an incubator
designed to improve the local economy. Many cities across
the U.S. are part of the Federal Empowerment and Enterprise
Zone initiative. These empowerment and enterprise zones
provide special incentives (public funds, tax breaks,
and other resources) which can involve incubators. If
your business goals are complementary with the economic
development goals of a particular city or region, you
may find an incubator structured around job creation,
community revitalization or industry specialization.
Other factors
If you are not restricted by any of these factors, you
may want to choose an incubator for other reasons. Perhaps
your business is better suited for certain regional features
such as cultural, geographic, or environmental conditions.
Or, perhaps the type of workforce you require is concentrated
in one area. Some parts of the country are better suited
for new businesses. Consider the following table, which
ranks the best American cities for entrepreneurs:
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City/Metro Area
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2002 Rank
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2001 Rank
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Washington,
DC, Northern VA, Maryland
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1
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4
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Dallas,
TX
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2
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1
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Raleigh/Durham/Chapel
Hill, NC
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3
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9
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Middlesex/Somerset/Hunterdon
Counties, NJ
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4
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28
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Orlando,
FL
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5
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2
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Fort
Lauderdale, FL
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5
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7
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Fort
Worth/Arlington, TX
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5
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5
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Houston,
TX
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8
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17
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Monmouth/Ocean
Counties, NJ
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9
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33
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Nashville,
TN
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9
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22
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Norfolk/Virginia
Beach/Newport News, VA
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11
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26
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Atlanta,
GA
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11
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7
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Sacramento,
CA
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11
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45
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(Source:
Dun & Bradstreet, Entrepreneur Magazine, 2002 Annual Ranking)
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