Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Business Model
3C 4 INCUBATORS
Business Model
CHAPTER 1
THE OBJECTIVE OF THE CAPITALIZATION PROJECT
This work originates from the different experiences with success in former UE projects.
The objective is to capitalize on the former projects outputs, creating a broader vision.
By this more complete vision, we hope to make a contribution to Cultural and Creative SMEs, to Enterprise
Incubators and to SMEs tutors.
The final aim is to enhance the ability to generate business models in a balanced and complete way and
also to focus attention to the relationship between SME/territory and individuals.
The conclusions of this document also provide some proposals about the role of a new model of Cultural
and Creative Incubators, and describe the context in which the present work could be used.
CHAPTER 2
THE OUTPUTS TO CAPITALIZE
2.1 COMPUTERIZED INNOVATION AND INTERNATIONALIZATION
CAPACITY AUDIT METHODOLOGY FOR SMES
WHAT IS THE OUTPUT
The effective deployment of innovation has been widely recognized as a means of building a sustainable
competitive advantage and thereby enhancing organizational performance.
A focus group discussion of senior executives from innovative and internationalized firms in Western
Greece was conducted to test user understanding of the initial version of the framework. Revisions were
made based on their comments.
TARGETS
The capacity audit methodology was conceived for:
SMEs
The sum of the rates of each SMEs accumulated answers show the final score of this group of questions
in relation to the maximum possible score of the same group. The final scores of each group of answers
have been aggregated and hence we have an overall rating of the enterprise.
2.2 T
OOLKIT A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR SUPPORTING CULTURAL
ENTERPRISES (ICE)
The Toolkit is a paper guide that collects specific reflections, guidelines and tools (formats) based on the
most relevant management needs of cultural SMEs.
TARGETS
The Toolkit was written for:
Tutors of cultural enterprises
Cultural Managers
Cultural Entrepreneurs
The Toolkit for Cultural Enterprise Incubators aims to give a contribution to the former questions in terms
of reflection, approach and managerial instruments.
As final results of all these contributions, the Toolkit proposes 4 kinds of tools.
Starting from the above listed needs, the Toolkit proposes specific tools to manage a cultural business.
Coherently
with the framework
former
described and
order to reduce the cultural enterprise
It is possible
to identify
4 categories
ofintools:
weaknesses and to promote the strengths.
MANAGEMENT TOOLS
Portfolio,
Project Management,
Buying Policies,
Financial Plan,
Training
INNOVATION
TOOLS
Problem Solving
STRATEGIC
TOOLS
COMMUNICATION
TOOLS
Business and
Marketing Plan +
Networking
Communication Strategy
and Plan,
Evaluation of Results
10
TARGETS
N
ew businesses in the creative sector based in Emilia-Romagna (i.e. music, entertainment, media, communication, cinema, audio-video, literature, design, amusement parks and visiting places)
N
ew businesses in other sectors, but with an application in the creative sector
TARGETS
The model business plan has been conceived for:
SMEs
11
12
CHAPTER 3
CULTURAL ENTERPRISE, TERRITORY AND INDIVIDUALS
The business model for Cultural and Creative SMEs (henceforward C&C SMEs) is inspired by particular
themes that make this issue very different in comparison with others industries.
In this case we need to consider how the business dimension could be merged with:
the territory
the individuals living in or visiting the territory
There are many factors that could play a relevant role, in terms of relations, added value, and innovation.
Cultural and Creative Products/Services cant be assimilated into ordinary products/services. In this specific
case, the central issue is not to satisfy a delimited requirement or to make functional a match between demand
and offer. The true challenge for a cultural and creative business model is to stimulate and give value to a
relation system.
The relationship between C&C SMEs, the territory and the individuals (living or visiting the territory), have
to be a two-way relation. The output for everyone is something more than the pre-existing condition,
linked to the experience.
An experience that produces new ideas, sensations, innovation for everyone (C&C, SMEs, Territory and
individuals). However, this two-way relation is only potential, it needs to be activated.
The business model has to facilitate and contribute to the first business idea and the necessary factors to
exploit this potential.
13
SUBJECT
institutions
ideas/projects
people that manage or take care of public resources
activities that make the territory valuable and
attract people or investors
recovery of degraded areas
enhancement of traditions, events or others
public resources
authorization
sponsorship
funds
law opportunities
spaces/locations
involvement in events
education system
ideas/projects
trainers
innovative education tools
skilled people
expertise
business assignments
opportunity to experiment
research and development opportunities
cultural resources
ideas/projects
people that manage or take care of specific tasks
activities that make the resource valuable and
attract people or investors
recovery of degraded resources
spaces/locations
inspirations
involvements in events
other enterprises
ideas/projects
expertise
innovative management tools
innovative customer relation tools
new products/services/solutions
sponsorship
funds/equity
supply opportunities
business assignments
expertise
opportunity to experiment
research and development opportunities
distribution channels
access to new customers
enterprises/ideas
incubators
information
orientation
consultancy
tools
locations
ideas
networking opportunities
business acceleration
access to financing measures
financing system
ideas/projects
expertise
innovative management tools
innovative customer relation tools
new products/services/solutions
sponsorship
funds/equity
business assignments
expertise
distribution channels
access to new customers
physical
environment
inspiration
location
scenarios for the delivery of C&C solutions
infrastructures
Innovation
distribution channels
location
scenarios for the delivery of C&C solutions
There is also another intangible exchange that is worth exploiting: to give/receive inspiration and a unique identity.
A C&C business model has to provide orientation about the needed elements to activate the long list of
relations provided above.
14
DURATION'
ce
)'
om VA
er LU
'Ex E'
pe
rie
n
As#is#
us
t
To#be#
(C
interac/ons'
Number'of''
A C&C business model has to identify what the necessary factors for creating a relationship are. The management of C&C business has to develop these 3 factors, in a balanced way.
15
CHAPTER 4
BUSINESS MODELS AND MANAGEMENT TOOLS
4.1 CULTURAL INCUBATORS BUSINESS MODEL, CULTURAL
SMES AND MANAGEMENT TOOLS: A UNIQUE SYSTEM
The mission for a cultural incubator is to promote not only cultural enterprises or business, but to develop
a cultural business system.
This system could be based on:
enterprises
private and public organizations
territories
or could be the mixed result of a network composed of all these different entities.
In all these cases an incubator needs to:
a dvise a cultural SME in the phase of idea generation (by experiences, business models, and using a
coaching approach)
s upport the SME in a more technical way during the start up phase (by business plan tools, management
education, networking facilities, including financial networks)
a ccompany, pragmatically, the SME during the early management phase (by incubation, training, tutoring, tools)
facilitate the expansion phase, when the enterprise will leave the incubator because it is able to carry on
cultural business independently (by activating the right strategic lever e.g. internationalization, technology
growth, business model evolution etc)
The following picture shows in more detail this sequence, which can be defined as an Incubation Model:
Business angels
Crowdfundig
Venture capitals
Public finding
Creativity
Rave
Innovation\Internationalization support
Design thinking
methodologies
Playful multidisciplinary
workshops
Entrepreneurial
assessment
team building (ex
managers, designers,
technicians, venture
partnerships)
Psychological
assessment
Team alignment
assessment
Motivation support
Productt analysis
Boot-camp
(Max 6 months)
Idea Generation
Quan%ta%ve)and)Qualita%ve)monitoring)and)Repor%ng)
)in)order)to)establish)and)mantaing)trust)between)SME)and)Incubator))
16
In order to be effective in developing each phase, this model has to use business models and tools containing
the following requirements:
customized for cultural business,
able to give answers at all 4 stages (idea, start up, early stage, expansion)
flexible,
usable by enterprises and incubators tutors.
Our work and this report is focused on two contributions for a cultural incubator (and, obviously, for a
cultural enterprise too):
the business model for the cultural enterprise
the management tools for the cultural enterprise
A deep understanding of the cultural enterprise business model is a pre-requisite for the cultural incubator activity.
By this strategic model the incubator can make it possible to understand the following:
INCUBATION
STAGE
MANAGEMENT TOOLS
Idea
generation
Start up
Early Stage
Expansion
After dealing with these strategic matters, it is possible to reach a good definition of what the enterprise
business model is, at the moment, and has to be, in the future.
To be aware of this perspective, it must be allowed for the enterprise and for the tutor, to select the right
management tool in order to establish, reinforce and develop specific business model elements.
The following picture describes the relationships among the incubator business model, enterprise business
model, and management tools.
17
1st level
The incubator business model is the container, the ideal micro-environment in which the enterprise
could develop from idea stage to development stage.
2nd level
The cultural SME business model, is the way to understand the idea, its soundness, the path from the stage
idea to the following stages.
The enterprise business model helps the incubators tutor focus on real strategic requirements.
It is also a perspective from which to analyse the cultural businesses/enterprises to gather into the incubator. By this it could be possible to create a cultural system and not only to rent spaces to several enterprises. The objective is to select SMEs with synergizable business models.
3rd level
The management tools represent the operative level, which must be activated only after a clear understanding about business models requirements in order to select the appropriate tool. The tool is simply a tool, it
can produce results only if it is used to provide solutions for the right need.
A summary of this approach could be:
Incubator business model as general container and road map
Enterprise business model as priority perspective for the incubator to understand cultural business
status and identify ways to develop it.
management tools as instruments (for tutors and enterprises) to reach the required development of the
enterprise business model
In the following sections of this book a customized business model for cultural enterprise will be presented.
18
CHAPTER 5
CULTURAL SMES BUSINESS MODELS
5.1 A BUSINESS MODEL FOR CULTURAL AND CREATIVE SMES
What is a business model? A good answer is the following:
!THE$ARCHITECTURE$THAT$ENABLES$A$SME$TO$
!
ACQUIRE(
CREATE(
DELIVER(
!VALUE(
What is Value?
( FOR
PROFITS
SMEs
EMPLOYEE
SATISFACTION
SOLUTIONS
FOR
CUSTOMERS
The need to have a sound business model could be better specified by the following points:
to have a cultural resource does not mean having a (cultural) business idea
to have a business idea does not mean having done business
19
These points are especially true for cultural businesses, because the specific characteristics of C&C SMEs
can generate needs to manage:
It is possible to propose useful management tools in order to manage these needs, but it is more useful to prevent
failure risk, from the very early stages of a cultural/creative enterprise, by focusing on a detailed business model.
An interesting approach to this is made by the Business Model Canvas.
This approach proposes a strategic management template for developing new business models.
It is a visual chart with elements describing a firms value proposition, infrastructure, customers, and finances.
It assists firms in aligning their activities by illustrating potential trade-offs.
The Business Model Canvas was initially proposed by Alexander Osterwalder based on his earlier work on Business Model Ontology. Since the release of Osterwalders work, new canvases for specific niches have appeared.
In this document we developed a cultural version. The aim is to create a framework for entrepreneurs and
tutors, easy to use but, at the same time, covering all the strategic keys that a cultural/creative SME has to
understand to start with a business or develop it.
The Business Model for C&C SMEs, proposed in the following pages, is a way to create cultural and creative
business ideas:
sound,
balanced,
and aware
The business model will help entrepreneurs and tutors define specific + strategic + critical factors enabling
cultural SMEs to acquire, create, and deliver value. There are seven factors:
1. Value Proposition
2. Customers
3. Customer Relationships
20
4. Channels
5. Key activities
6. Key resources
7. Key partners
Factors 2, 3, 4 are related to revenue creation.
Factors 5, 6, 7 generate costs or are related to cost optimization.
A business model may define Customer Segments. An organization must make a conscious decision about
which segments to serve and which segments to ignore. Once this decision is made, a business model can
be carefully designed around a strong understanding of specific customer needs.
21
The customer needs will, of course, be strictly linked to Value Propositions but also have a very deep impact not
only on communication and distribution policies, but also on internal choices, like Key Activities and Resources.
The careful definition of the Customer targets will influence the overall business model.
In order to reach an effective relationship with the territory, the C&C SME could have a good part of its
customer portfolio comprised of subjects located in its territory.
It is possible to assess if ones business model is sound enough with regard to Customer Segments with
the help of the following checklist.
How to build a sound and aware Business Model for a cultural and
creative business:
Key Factor 1 - Decision About Customers:
KEY QUESTIONS
NOT THE
CASE
OR NOT
ENOUGH
MAYBE,
BUT IT
WOULD BE
BETTER TO
REINFORCE
THIS POINT
ABSOLUTELY
YES
22
The business model has to describe the bundle of cultural and/or creative products and services that create
value for a specific Customer Segment.
The Value Proposition is the reason why customers turn to one company rather than another.
It solves a customer problem or satisfies a customer need.
Each Value Proposition consists of a selected bundle of products and/or services that cater to the requirements of a specific Customer Segment. In this sense, the Value Proposition is an aggregation, or bundle,
of cultural/creative benefits that a company offers customers.
It is possible to assess if your business model is sound enough with regard to Value Proposition with the
help of the following check list.
23
How to build a sound and aware Business Model for cultural and
creative business:
Key Factor 2 - Decision about Value Proposition:
NOT THE
CASE
OR NOT
ENOUGH
KEY QUESTIONS
MAYBE,
BUT IT
WOULD BE
BETTER TO
REINFORCE
THIS POINT
ABSOLUTELY
YES
24
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
25
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
26
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To get inspired by the content and implementation aspects before launching a support programme for CCI start-ups.
To get inspired by the content and implementation aspects before launching a support programme for CCI start-ups.
27
The Distribution Channels describes how a company reaches its Customer Segments to deliver a Value Proposition.
Distribution, and sales channels, make up a companys interface with customers. Channels are customer
touch points that play an important role in the customer experience.
The distribution channel represents the access point for the service and/or to the product; it is the way to deliver your offer. Without a distributing channel your customer cannot have or cannot use your product/service.
Examples of distribution channels in the cultural and creative business could be internet, other mobile
devices, a sales agency, help desk or other counters in the territory, corners or offices in a cultural site, etc.
Several elements in the territory could represent a distribution option. For example: other enterprises could
allow access to their customers, but also the physical environment could be the place where to distribute the
product/service and/or local infrastructure (routes, buildings, digital networks, etc) could allow one to reach
their customers.
It is possible to assess if your business model is sound enough with regard to Distribution Channels with
the help of the following checklist.
How to build a sound and aware Business Model for cultural and
creative business:
Key Factor 3 - Decisions about Distribution Channels:
KEY QUESTIONS
NOT THE
CASE
OR NOT
ENOUGH
MAYBE,
BUT IT
WOULD BE
BETTER TO
REINFORCE
THIS POINT
ABSOLUTELY
YES
1. The channels that you use are specific for different customers?
2. Are the channels able to deliver the Value Proposition to customers in
an effective way?
3. Are the channels you use able to reach the customers in the right time?
4. Do you reach enough places/do purchase situations reach your channels?
5. Does the distribution channel have a good influence on the cash cycle? Or
is there an important delay risk? Does the customer first pay intermediaries
and then intermediaries pay your company? Is solving problems possible?
6. Do you have enough control over distribution channels? Or do you have
any constraints from public authorities or owners of cultural resources?
7. Are we able to exploit the distribution opportunities of the territory
(routes, buildings, digital networks, physical environment, etc)
8. Is the channel choice efficient or expensive?
28
29
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
The Customer Relationship factor describes the types of relationships a company establishes with specific
Customer Segments.
A company should clarify the type of relationship it wants to establish with each Customer Segment. Relationships can range from personal to automated.
The Customer Relationships called for a companys business model to deeply influence the overall customer
experience.
Customer relationships are made of communications that the company sends to the customers and also
conducted via means of communication that the customers can use to be in touch with the enterprise. It
is a two-way communication process.
C&C SMEs could use a large range of communication means: web, social media, fairs, events, printings,
30
How to build a sound and aware Business Model for a cultural and
creative business:
Key Factor 4 - Decisions about Customer Relationships:
KEY QUESTIONS
NOT THE
CASE
OR NOT
ENOUGH
MAYBE,
BUT IT
WOULD BE
BETTER TO
REINFORCE
THIS POINT
ABSOLUTELY
YES
1. Your relationship media/methods are able to catch the attention of your customers?
2. Your relationship media/methods are able to guarantee the comprehension
of your value proposition?
3. Your relationship media/methods are able to stimulate the right actions in
your customers (purchase first of all)?
4. Your relationship methods guarantee solid support to the customer during
the service/product usage?
5. Your relationship methods guarantee good after sales support to the customer?
6. Your relationship methods guarantee a continuous and tailored dialogue with customers, during the customer life cycle?
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
31
Every business model requires Key Resources. These resources allow an enterprise to create and offer a
Value Proposition, reach markets, maintain relationships with Customer Segments, and earn revenues.
Key resources can be physical, technological, financial, intellectual, or human. Key resources can be owned
or leased by the company or acquired/shared from key partners.
A cultural and/or creative enterprise focuses on human resources. Their knowledge and skills, but also their
motivation and engagement level, are crucial for success.
In the territory a lot of key resources, material and immaterial can be found: incubators could offer orientation, tools, locations, the financing system could make funds available, enterprises and the education system could be a source of knowledge, and in the territory there are cultural or natural resources that could
be the focal point for the C&C SME.
It is possible to assess if your business model is sound enough with regard to Key Resources via the following
check list.
How to build a sound and aware Business Model for cultural and
creative business:
Key Factor 5 - Decision about Key Resources:
KEY QUESTIONS
NOT THE
CASE
OR NOT
ENOUGH
MAYBE,
BUT IT
WOULD BE
BETTER TO
REINFORCE
THIS POINT
ABSOLUTELY
YES
1. Do you have enough skilled people in order to deliver to your customers the required amount of product-services? Is it easy to acquire others
skilled resources if necessary?
2. Do you have enough specialized tools (sw, hw, machinery, etc) in order
to deliver to your customers the required amount of product-services? Is it
easy to acquire others tools if necessary? In particular, do you have tools
to track the customer experience?
3. Do you have the necessary access (possibility to manage) to cultural
resources that distinguish your offer?
4. Do you have enough funds in order to deliver to customers the required amount
of product-services? Is it easy to acquire funds or new associates if necessary?
5. Are we able to involve in the business model territory key resources?
(e.g. incubators, financing systems, cultural and natural resources, etc...)
32
Do you need to reinforce any aspect? If necessary, take a look at the following management tools:
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
33
To assess the current status and identify development and improvement strategies.
The Key Activities factor encompasses the most important things a company must do to make its business
model work
Every business model calls for a number of Key Activities. These are the most important actions a company
must take to operate successfully.
As Key Resources, they are required to create and offer a Value Proposition, reach markets, maintain Customer Relationships, and earn revenue.
For C&C SMEs key activities could, first of all, be those related to innovation, or project management, or
networking management, etc...
A set of key activities have to be added to the business model in order to track, understand and develop
positive relations with individuals located or visiting the territory.
It is possible to assess if your business model is sound enough with regard to Key Activities via the following checklist.
34
How to build a sound and aware Business Model for a cultural and
creative business:
Key Factor 6 - Decision about Key Activities:
KEY QUESTIONS
NOT IN
THIS CASE
OR NOT
ENOUGH
MAYBE,
BUT IT
WOULD BE
BETTER TO
REINFORCE
THIS POINT
ABSOLUTELY
YES
1. Do you dedicate enough time to the creative process? (How many new
ideas, projects do you introduce successfully every year?)
2. Are the project management activities satisfying? Are you able to manage
the number of projects necessary to satisfy customers and make the business
profitable?
3. Are you satisfied by the networking activities required in order to develop
or stabilize your business?
4. What is the first requirement that your customer ask to your enterprise (e.g.
communication, accessibility, speed, cheapness, 360 solutions, etc...)? Do you
dedicate enough time to developing\stabilizing the performances related to
the first requirement of your customers?
5. Are the activities related to customer relations satisfying? In particular, are we
able to track, understand and develop the customer experiences from different
points of view? (e.g. sociological, psychological, anthropological point of view)
6. People are the success keys for a cultural and creative SME. Are you
satisfied with your people management and employee satisfaction?
Provides a general overview about a managerial approach to develop the key activity in the organization.
35
A key aspect was the promotion of selected startups and gathering feedbacks with the aim of developing similar actions with other funded sources. A
similar programme has, for instance, been implemented in the audiovisual sector.
The Key Partnerships factor comprises the network of suppliers and partners that make the business model work.
!
Companies forge partnerships for many reasons, and partnerships are becoming a cornerstone of many business models. Companies create alliances to optimize their business models, reduce risks, or acquire resources.
We can distinguish between four different types of partnerships:
Strategic alliances between non-competitors
Competition: strategic partnerships between competitors
Joint ventures to develop new businesses
Buyer-supplier relationships to assure reliable supplies
Cultural and creative business models usually have a large series of opportunities to enlarge their offer to other
customers/markets. Especially for SMEs, in order to access these opportunities, it is necessary to have partners.
Key partnerships allow one to develop the business without growing the enterprise dimensions or without an
increase in investments. Key partnerships also allow one to develop the business while maintaining flexibility.
Partnerships could very well be the most important way to develop relationships with the territory. As presented previously in this document, there are many subjects in the territory that could have a relationship
with the C&C SME. Subjects include: institutions, the education system, the cultural resource management
system, others enterprises, incubators, financing system, infrastructures system.
The number and the effectiveness of these relations are strictly linked with the success chances of a C&C SME.
It is possible to assess if your business model is sound enough about Key Partners via the following check list.
36
How to build a sound and aware Business Model for a cultural and
creative business:
Key Factor 7 - Decision about Key Partners:
KEY QUESTIONS
NOT IN
THIS CASE
OR NOT
ENOUGH
MAYBE,
BUT IT
WOULD BE
BETTER TO
REINFORCE
THIS POINT
ABSOLUTELY
YES
1. Do you have all the necessary partnerships in order to fill enterprise gaps
about key factors of the business model?
2. Is it easy to replace a partner if you need to?
3. Do you have the key factors that your partners need in order to fill their
business model gaps?
4. Do the partners need you to reach their objectives? (or can they reach
the final customers without your contribution?)
5. Are we able to establish a large number of effective and solid relations with
subjects located in the territory? (e.g. institutions, the education system,
cultural resources management system, other enterprises, incubators, the
finance system, infrastructure system, etc...)
37
A sound Business Model has to be sustainable. If the 7 key factors exist and are well mixed, the enterprise
has satisfied the pre-requisites to stay in the market in a successfully way.
The decisions about the 7 Business Model Key factors, will generate the fundamental structure of revenues
and costs. At this stage (not before) it is correct to evaluate if there is a good profitability perspective.
38
CHAPTER 6
FROM BUSINESS MODEL TO BUSINESS PLAN
Link to the collection of selected management tools
TOOLKIT
A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR SUPPORTING
CULTURAL ENTERPRISES
http://www.ice-med.eu/images/stories/results/livro2.pdf
ICE
MODEL 2INS BUSINESS PLAN
2INS Clusters
CREATER PILOT PROJECT OUTPUTS
Creative Growth
http://www.2insclusters.net/attachments/article/18/2INS%203%20
4%20c%20SB%20business%20plan.pdf
http://www.creative-growth.eu/Publications/tabid/1289/Default.aspx
39
CHAPTER 7
CAPITALIZATION RESULTS
7.1 FORMER OUTPUTS CAPITALIZATION
The project objective was to capitalize on the outputs produced by the former projects and to define new
ideas for a new model of cultural incubator.
The 4 outputs to be capitalized upon were quite different in terms of them having:
different support (digital tools, paper guides),
different style,
different focus (strategy, planning, day-to-day management, experimentation)
BUSINESS''
MODEL'
RELATION'BOX'
MODEL'
DURATION'
ce
)'
m VAL
er U
'Ex E'
pe
rie
n
to
As#is#
us
To#be#
(C
interac/ons'
Number'of''
(territory(and(individuals)(
RELATED'
BUSINESS'TOOLS'
exis%ng(outputs(by(
former(projects(
'
!
CLUSTERS''
INTEGRATE(SYNERGIC(BUSINESS(MODELS(
(
BUSINESS'TOOLS'
AGGREGATION'AND'RELATION'
GOVERNANCE'
In each output it was possible to find synergistic elements and the possibility of mixing them in order to
obtain something that could be defined as more than a simple sum of its parts.
40
CAPITALIZATION RESULT
A rational path from strategy to implementation, with a clear thread and evident links
among the outputs.
41
Much evidence has emerged during the 3C 4 Incubators project to support this concept:
a cultural and creative SME has a single idea that could be very effective but often this idea is also
very specialized and with a limited range of application,
in addition to this, it is not rare to see a high level of individualism in cultural entrepreneurs (more
so than in others businesses),
the success could be easily reached by the proposal of integrated solutions, and the incubators
have to support this process,
The cultural incubator has to motivate the enterprises to enhance a joined approach to the business, to go beyond the isolation and consequently undersize their ideas
The Open Incubator may be such not only in terms of tools. It helps to integrate ideas and partnerships, it could propose a model to develop relations with a territory and individuals.
The Open Incubator may be such, also in terms of relation activities. During 3C 4 Incubators
project we tested a social modality for the SMEs: the Factory Event. The event aimed to create
new common ideas among enterprises, supported by the business model methodology. This modality is a starting point, a modality that has to be merged with others (see next paragraph about
future proposals),
During the experimentations (including local events organized after the Factory Event) it was evident that the Open Incubator, by the business model methodology integrated with the methodology about relationships, can be used to build up enterprise clusters.
The aggregation function by the Open Incubator has to produce working clusters.
In order to make a cluster work, 3 key dimensions have to be present in the incubator:
1. Business and managerial tools
2. Aggregation method and Relation tools
3. Governance competences
42
GOVERNANCE COMPETENCES
(e.g. common strategy, common marketing and communication, common sustainable way
to run the cluster. We cannot assume that cultural and creative SMEs, although aggregated
in a cluster, would be capable of managing the cluster by themselves)
aim to
conduct the cluster towards the value creation for SMEs, the territory and its individuals
At the end of the 3C 4 Incubators project, and while also looking forward, we can summarize the current
status as follow:
KEY DIMENSION
AS IS
TO BE
BUSINESS AND
MANAGERIAL TOOLS
Available
Focused
Integrated
AGGREGATION METHOD
AND RELATION TOOLS
Enhanced
Create method to
Motivate
Aggregate
Results from the networking model Working group
Focus common way in a cluster
Maintain the necessary level of communication
Release 1 of the Relation box model
among cluster members
GOVERNANCE
COMPETENCES
n.a.
Defined
Implemented
43
BUSINESS''
MODEL'
RELATION'BOX'
MODEL'
DURATION'
ce
)'
m VAL
er U
'Ex E'
pe
rie
n
to
As#is#
us
To#be#
(C
interac/ons'
Number'of''
(territory(and(individuals)(
RELATED'
BUSINESS'TOOLS'
exis%ng(outputs(by(
former(projects(
'
!
CLUSTERS''
INTEGRATE(SYNERGIC(BUSINESS(MODELS(
(
BUSINESS'TOOLS'
AGGREGATION'AND'RELATION'
GOVERNANCE'
44
www.3c4incubators.eu