Free e-book · 155 pages
A practical guide for anyone who wants to create, manage or grow an incubator: from types of incubators to the stages of incubation, from the CERNE maturity model to five cases inspired by real life.
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About the book
Incubators are much more than physical space. They connect entrepreneurs with mentors, investors, universities and large companies, and help startups cross the “valley of death”. This book explains, in plain language and with many Brazilian examples, how these organizations work and how to manage them well.
What an incubator really is, its history in Brazil, the five types of incubators and how they differ from coworking spaces, hubs, accelerators and technology parks.
From birth to maturity, Geoffrey Moore’s chasm and the stages of incubation, with selection criteria, the Business Model Canvas, MVPs and fundraising.
Good practices, performance indicators and the CERNE maturity model, by Anprotec and Sebrae, explained level by level.
An eight-step roadmap to plan your incubator and five cases that show theory in action, from the Pernambuco backlands to a large energy company.
The incubation journey
Tap each stage to see what happens in it and what the incubator needs to offer.
Ideas and concepts are explored before the company exists. Workshops, market research and brainstorming with mentors help entrepreneurs validate their idea and arrive ready for incubation.
The incubator offers Training programs, ideation sessions and early mentoring.
The stage that defines the quality of the whole program. Business model viability, innovation, founding team, growth potential and fit with the incubator are among the most common criteria.
The incubator offers An experienced evaluation team and clear, objective criteria.
The startup defines how it creates, delivers and captures value. The Business Model Canvas, with its nine blocks, helps visualize the whole business and adjust it as market feedback comes in.
The incubator offers Expert mentoring, design thinking and market analysis tools.
Time for the MVP: a minimum version of the product to test hypotheses with real users. Interviews, prototypes, landing pages, A/B tests and usage metrics show what really creates value.
The incubator offers Labs, software, technical mentoring and partnerships for testing.
With a validated MVP, the focus shifts to growth: more customers, more revenue and fundraising, whether from angel investors, venture capital, crowdfunding, grants or strategic partnerships.
The incubator offers Networking events, investor pitches and sales workshops.
The startup establishes its market presence and seeks stability: internal processes, a strong organizational culture and continuous innovation to stay competitive.
The incubator offers Ongoing support in management, finance and innovation, and an open channel for advice.
Graduation is not the end of the relationship. The incubator stays close to help the company scale, diversify and adapt to a changing market.
The incubator offers Ongoing mentoring, governance, growth strategies and networking.
Maturity model
Created by Anprotec and Sebrae, CERNE organizes incubator management into maturity levels. The book explains each level, its key processes and examples of incubators that have implemented them.
Essential processes to attract, select, develop and graduate companies: awareness and prospecting, selection, development, graduation and basic management.
Strategic management, expanding boundaries, idea generation and a system to assess and certify the supported companies.
Institutional relations, network development and participation in sustainable regional development.
Internationalization of the incubator itself and of the companies it supports, with global networks, soft landing and open innovation.
Typology
R&D, labs and proximity to universities, like Incamp and Cietec.
Focused on one sector, such as agribusiness, health, energy or the creative economy.
Impact businesses that combine financial sustainability with social change.
Remote mentoring and training, with no geographic borders and lower costs.
Large companies supporting startups aligned with their strategy.
Testimonials
“This book, written in simple and direct language, is an indispensable tool for managers of innovation environments. It will undoubtedly be a reference for everyone working to promote innovative entrepreneurship.”
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About the author
César França teaches Software Engineering in the Department of Computing at UFRPE and, for more than 10 years, in the professional master’s and doctoral programs at CESAR School. He holds a PhD in Computer Science from UFPE, with a sandwich doctorate at The Open University (UK) and a postdoc at the Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro (Italy), and leads the G.E.N.T.E. study group (People in Business and Technology).
He was Head of Knowledge at CESAR, one of Brazil’s largest innovation centers, and is an Associate Scientist at TDS.Company. An entrepreneur since college, he is the author of four books and more than 100 scientific papers on the human side of technology, and co-author of Transformação Digital – uma jornada possível (2021). He is known for making dense topics accessible to a broad audience, with good humor.
Other publications
There are four books on the human side of technology, all with a free PDF in Portuguese, English and Italian, plus more than 100 scientific papers, talks, interviews and podcasts.
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The physical book in Portuguese, to read, annotate and lend. Sold and shipped by Amazon.
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I offer consulting, mentoring and talks on incubation, innovation ecosystems and entrepreneurship.
