NBIA Releases Study Demonstrating the Impact of Business Incubation

The National Business Incubation Association (NBIA) has released a new report that confirms that business incubators are helping to build healthy, long lasting businesses, and they are doing it at minimal cost with a good return on investment to supporters.

The report was conducted by the University of Michigan, NBIA, Ohio University and the Southern Technology Council under a grant from the U. S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration. It examines the impact of business incubators which house early stage companies and provide on-site management and a full array of business planning, marketing and financial services.

The study indicates that:

• Incubator companies experience very healthy growth. The average firm's sales increase by more than 400 percent from the time they enter the incubator until they leave the program.
• Business incubation programs produce companies with a high survival rate. A reported 87 percent of the companies that fulfilled the program's requirements are still in business today.
• Business incubation programs create new jobs for minimal cost and good return on investment. The estimated cost per job created in relation to public grants was $1,109.

The lessons learned from this project will enable incubator practitioners to assess and improve their programs in the future The researchers also developed a "toolkit" to help local communities and incubators carry out an incubator impact assessment of their own.

For further information on the study or to obtain a copy of the report contact NBIA at 614/593-4331 or via the web at www.nbia.org. The cost for the publication is $50.00 a copy.