02
d'Octubre
de
2015
Act.
02
d'Octubre
de
2015
In an interview with VIAempresa, businessman and commentator AlbertRiba insists that "there are now almost more incubators than entrepreneurs." This statement shows how in recent years concepts revolving around the entrepreneurial ecosystem have proliferated to the point that they have now become commonplace: incubators, accelerators, coworking spaces... Services that help to put business ideas into practice and develop them. However, what do these options have in common and what differentiates them? In a week in which entrepreneurship has been in the news with Barcelona Startup Week, we review the different options open to entrepreneurs with a new idea.
"Entrepreneurs come to an incubator with a great idea"
Simón Lee, co-founder and director general of Incubio, says that "an incubator is for when you develop a business from nothing, and it should not be confused with a business start-up centre." Lee highlights the fact that "Incubio's function is to go from a pre-buiness phase, in which nothing has yet been set up (in a business start-up centre you already have a certificate of incorporation), to the point of having a team, a product, a lot of training and a registered company." Thus, in summary, "the initial aim is to raise the first sales and to show market potential."
Incubio, which specialises in Big Data projects, brings together the ideas in "a period of complete uncertainty. The entrepreneurs come with a great idea, and here they set up a team in a natural manner until it is established and attains some insight into the market," he adds. In fact, he says that "it is much more difficult to create a good team than creating a product." According to Lee, to get the project on track the team has to have talent in three areas: marketing and sales, product design and engineering.
As projects in an incubator are at their most uncertain stage, Simón Lee warns that "you have to be ready to deal with any sort of problem." In his case, specialising in Big Data, he says "often you switch around so much that you end up with an offline sales model and so you do not generate so much value." According to Lee, "if the project switches over to an area you did not expect, perhaps the team cannot help so much."
On the other hand, and continuing to detail the most common obstacles, he provocatively insists: "Entrepreneurs sometimes get too much public funding." The fact is finding oneself in an initial stage with funding that surpasses the needs of the moment can end in "distracting you from the objective and losing your way."
"Some 98.4% of the projects we receive do not get into Wayra"
When talking about accelerators, there are two names that come up straight away. Wayra, Telefónica's corporate accelerator; and Conector, co-founded by the entrepreneur and business angel Carlos Blanco, and which specialises in digital projects.
JuliánVinué, director of Wayra, says that "we invest in projects from outside the company but that have some relationship with the company's business." He points out that "the acceleration time is limited and we keep hold of a percentage of the company." Wayra has accepted projects such as First V1sion or Geenapp.
"We invest 40,000 euros in each company and provide them with clients who are already clients of Telefonica", says Vinué. Yet, what does an accelerator do exactly? According to ElisabethMartínez, co-founder and director of Conector, "we accept external projects, those that seem most interesting, and they spend a limited time receiving training that helps them to start selling or selling more much more quickly."
Martíenz adds that "we take a share in the projects, but they are not ours, as they are in an incubator." In Conector's case, moreover, they put a lot of emphasis on mentoring, creating "a board close to the entrepreneur."
"What makes us different are the mentors. Each project has four or five with whom one-on-one monthly meetings are held. Each of them is a specialist in a different area and they regularly meet," says the head of Conector.
However, Elisabeth Martínez makes it clear that "Conector does not provide funds. First you have to show your ideas and then we will see who wants to invest in you. If you need money from the get go, you won't find it at Conector".
In Wayra's case, Vinué points out that "some 98.4% of the projects we receive do not get accepted." This shows the difficulty in accessing such a competitive area. "You often hear the star phrase 'we are convinced that we are the new...' the last thing we need is that you aren't! But you have to convince us of it," says Vinué. The Wayra executive also says that "every two weeks, companies in the accelerator present their kpi's to the rest to see if they have achieved their objectives or not." It is a case of extreme competition at a high rate, which is precisely what accelerating a business is about.
"We do not want are Michael Jacksons or Beatles, we create Spice Girls"
Perhaps one concept that is the least well-known in this area is that of the BusinessBuilder. An example is BCN Accelerator. TonGuardiet, its founder and CEO, says that their job is "to create an entrepreneurial culture within the company through a spin-off." Thus, they identify "what the company can contribute and what we can contribute."
Guardiet adds that the whole process is set out and detailed. "There are six stages of go/no go, which have to be overcome in order to keep the project alive." Among other things, he highlights that the initiative includes the incorporation of "a seasoned interim director general with plenty of experience, a consultant and a coach. It is a complete sprint for 12 months."
The head of BCN Accelerator says "if an entrepreneur comes to us with an idea, we tell them to first find a company in that area that can be developed." First and foremost, he says, a Business Builder "is a solution somewhere between working with third parties and the business world."
Guardiet insists on the fact that "we have a document with the whole process and launching stages in which everything is set out clearly." And he strikingly remarks that "we set up Spice Girls, we do not want Michael Jacksons who think they are solo stars, nor Beatles with groups of friends who all have the same profile." In fact, he adds "nor is Gollum our profile; those who have a treasure that they do not want to explain. We want a group made ad hoc for this project."
"In coworking the least important thing is the space, what is important is the 'co'"
Maite Moreno, founder and CEO of Monday Happy Monday, recognises that "the borders are vague when it comes to evaluating these types of areas." However, in the case of a coworking space, she makes it clear that "the least important thing is the space. The most important thing is the cooperation in a community made up of freelancers and a start-up".
In coworking, the aim is to "make a dynamic community so that everyone is clear about what they have to do in the project. What they do not want is to work alone." Nevertheless, coworking spaces increasingly offer new services. Moreno dispels any doubts by insisting that "this is not an incubator nor an accelerator, it is a community where things happen to connect people so that they can work together."
Thus, she explains that they have designed a series of values for working in this ecosystem. "The star value is cooperation. There is no room for egos here, and there is no place for people who do not want to share," she concludes.
"Entrepreneurs come to an incubator with a great idea"
Simón Lee, co-founder and director general of Incubio, says that "an incubator is for when you develop a business from nothing, and it should not be confused with a business start-up centre." Lee highlights the fact that "Incubio's function is to go from a pre-buiness phase, in which nothing has yet been set up (in a business start-up centre you already have a certificate of incorporation), to the point of having a team, a product, a lot of training and a registered company." Thus, in summary, "the initial aim is to raise the first sales and to show market potential."
Incubio, which specialises in Big Data projects, brings together the ideas in "a period of complete uncertainty. The entrepreneurs come with a great idea, and here they set up a team in a natural manner until it is established and attains some insight into the market," he adds. In fact, he says that "it is much more difficult to create a good team than creating a product." According to Lee, to get the project on track the team has to have talent in three areas: marketing and sales, product design and engineering.
As projects in an incubator are at their most uncertain stage, Simón Lee warns that "you have to be ready to deal with any sort of problem." In his case, specialising in Big Data, he says "often you switch around so much that you end up with an offline sales model and so you do not generate so much value." According to Lee, "if the project switches over to an area you did not expect, perhaps the team cannot help so much."
On the other hand, and continuing to detail the most common obstacles, he provocatively insists: "Entrepreneurs sometimes get too much public funding." The fact is finding oneself in an initial stage with funding that surpasses the needs of the moment can end in "distracting you from the objective and losing your way."
"Some 98.4% of the projects we receive do not get into Wayra"
When talking about accelerators, there are two names that come up straight away. Wayra, Telefónica's corporate accelerator; and Conector, co-founded by the entrepreneur and business angel Carlos Blanco, and which specialises in digital projects.
JuliánVinué, director of Wayra, says that "we invest in projects from outside the company but that have some relationship with the company's business." He points out that "the acceleration time is limited and we keep hold of a percentage of the company." Wayra has accepted projects such as First V1sion or Geenapp.
"We invest 40,000 euros in each company and provide them with clients who are already clients of Telefonica", says Vinué. Yet, what does an accelerator do exactly? According to ElisabethMartínez, co-founder and director of Conector, "we accept external projects, those that seem most interesting, and they spend a limited time receiving training that helps them to start selling or selling more much more quickly."
Martíenz adds that "we take a share in the projects, but they are not ours, as they are in an incubator." In Conector's case, moreover, they put a lot of emphasis on mentoring, creating "a board close to the entrepreneur."
"What makes us different are the mentors. Each project has four or five with whom one-on-one monthly meetings are held. Each of them is a specialist in a different area and they regularly meet," says the head of Conector.
However, Elisabeth Martínez makes it clear that "Conector does not provide funds. First you have to show your ideas and then we will see who wants to invest in you. If you need money from the get go, you won't find it at Conector".
In Wayra's case, Vinué points out that "some 98.4% of the projects we receive do not get accepted." This shows the difficulty in accessing such a competitive area. "You often hear the star phrase 'we are convinced that we are the new...' the last thing we need is that you aren't! But you have to convince us of it," says Vinué. The Wayra executive also says that "every two weeks, companies in the accelerator present their kpi's to the rest to see if they have achieved their objectives or not." It is a case of extreme competition at a high rate, which is precisely what accelerating a business is about.
"We do not want are Michael Jacksons or Beatles, we create Spice Girls"
Perhaps one concept that is the least well-known in this area is that of the BusinessBuilder. An example is BCN Accelerator. TonGuardiet, its founder and CEO, says that their job is "to create an entrepreneurial culture within the company through a spin-off." Thus, they identify "what the company can contribute and what we can contribute."
Guardiet adds that the whole process is set out and detailed. "There are six stages of go/no go, which have to be overcome in order to keep the project alive." Among other things, he highlights that the initiative includes the incorporation of "a seasoned interim director general with plenty of experience, a consultant and a coach. It is a complete sprint for 12 months."
The head of BCN Accelerator says "if an entrepreneur comes to us with an idea, we tell them to first find a company in that area that can be developed." First and foremost, he says, a Business Builder "is a solution somewhere between working with third parties and the business world."
Guardiet insists on the fact that "we have a document with the whole process and launching stages in which everything is set out clearly." And he strikingly remarks that "we set up Spice Girls, we do not want Michael Jacksons who think they are solo stars, nor Beatles with groups of friends who all have the same profile." In fact, he adds "nor is Gollum our profile; those who have a treasure that they do not want to explain. We want a group made ad hoc for this project."
"In coworking the least important thing is the space, what is important is the 'co'"
Maite Moreno, founder and CEO of Monday Happy Monday, recognises that "the borders are vague when it comes to evaluating these types of areas." However, in the case of a coworking space, she makes it clear that "the least important thing is the space. The most important thing is the cooperation in a community made up of freelancers and a start-up".
In coworking, the aim is to "make a dynamic community so that everyone is clear about what they have to do in the project. What they do not want is to work alone." Nevertheless, coworking spaces increasingly offer new services. Moreno dispels any doubts by insisting that "this is not an incubator nor an accelerator, it is a community where things happen to connect people so that they can work together."
Thus, she explains that they have designed a series of values for working in this ecosystem. "The star value is cooperation. There is no room for egos here, and there is no place for people who do not want to share," she concludes.