A stakeholder approach towards a consolidated framework for measuring business incubator efficacy

Southern African Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management

 
 
Field Value
 
Title A stakeholder approach towards a consolidated framework for measuring business incubator efficacy
 
Creator Trethewey-Mould, Rowan L. Moos, Menisha N.
 
Subject Entrepreneurship; Business Incubation; Efficacy Measurement business incubation; entrepreneur support organisations; incubator efficacy; consolidated framework; qualitative research; stakeholder theory
Description Background: Business incubators (BIs) are considered enablers of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, however there remains a lack of consensus as to whether incubators are effective or even as to how incubator efficacy should be measured.Aim: This study seeks to develop a consolidated framework for measuring the efficacy of BIs using stakeholder theory as its theoretical basis. This study set out to answer the following research questions:What is the relevance of stakeholder theory to incubator efficacy measurement?What stakeholder groups are relevant to BIs in South Africa?What relationships between stakeholder groups and perspectives on BI efficacy exist that would underpin a framework for measuring incubator efficacy?Setting: Empirical research was conducted with BIs operating within South Africa, with various incubator types, contexts and industry focus included in the study.Methods: A sample of nine incubator managers were interviewed as part of this exploratory qualitative study, demonstrating the breadth of the incubator industry in South Africa.Results: A framework comprising two distinct but related perspectives on incubator efficacy is proposed. Further to this, two additional concepts – incubator-stakeholder conflict and restrictive incubator context – were identified.Conclusion: This study proposes a consolidated framework for measuring the efficacy of BIs, considering a variety of stakeholder perspectives, and may inform policymakers regarding business incubation in the future.Contribution: This study identifies and defines incubator-stakeholder conflict as a concept, making a theoretical contribution to the field. Additionally, the study proposes a comprehensive stakeholder-based framework proposed for measuring incubator efficacy.
 
Publisher AOSIS Publishing
 
Contributor
Date 2024-03-29
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — Qualitative Research; Semi-structured Interviews
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/sajesbm.v16i1.776
 
Source The Southern African Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management; Vol 16, No 1 (2024); 14 pages 2071-3185 2522-7343
 
Language eng
 
Relation
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:

https://sajesbm.co.za/index.php/sajesbm/article/view/776/997 https://sajesbm.co.za/index.php/sajesbm/article/view/776/998 https://sajesbm.co.za/index.php/sajesbm/article/view/776/999 https://sajesbm.co.za/index.php/sajesbm/article/view/776/1000
 
Coverage South Africa — —
Rights Copyright (c) 2024 Rowan Lyle Mould, Menisha Moos https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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