Innovation in a Business Incubator : - A study of IT Fornebu

Abstract

This study examines how Business Incubators are facilitating the entrepreneurial process. A case study on IT Fornebu has been applied to answer and analyze this research question. The findings highlight that a hybrid between a specialized and diversified Business Incubator has some advantages in terms of supporting entrepreneurs. Facilitating and managing various but related clusters from the Business Incubator may gain such advantages. This is highly dependent on the social networks and the absorptive capacity to the individuals working at the incubator. Social capital and sector specific knowledge is crucial to entrepreneurs and thus a specialized incubator with accumulated knowledge may seem better. The empirical evidence and the literature show that specialization sometimes leads to disadvantages and thus a hybrid might be preferable.