Are technology business incubators fulfilling their objectives? a study of the tbi's performance located in Brazil

Abstract

Technology business incubators (TBI) are considered an alternative for promoting entrepreneurship, innovation, employment and income generation, the maintenance of companies and consequently, local and regional development. However, despite the high number of incubators and investment made, the initiatives to assess the results of incubators are limited; little is known about the success of these in supporting the creation and development of new businesses. Within this context, this research analyzed the performance of technology business incubators located in Brazil. According to the proposed objectives, this research is of an exploratory, descriptive and analytical nature, in a quantitative approach that used a survey as a research strategy, obtaining a sample of 97 incubators researched, in a universe of 112 technology business incubators. Through the data analysis, it can be concluded, according to the results presented by the TBI surveyed, that these are beneath the fulfillment of the objectives that they propose so that they are not contributing effectively to the local and regional development. Thus, it is suggested that the TBI's managers reflect on the real reasons why the researched organizations are not achieving the purposes that justify their existence.