1. iDISC
Toolkit
ATTACHMENT – Business Plan Model for Incubators
Executive Summary
The Executive Summary is the essence of the Business Plan. It is a condensed version that
should interest the reader in the contents of the Plan, providing a fairly solid understanding
of what will be set out in detail in the body of the document.
Although it appears at the start of the Business Plan, the Executive Summary should be
drawn up only after the entire document has been analyzed and written, in order to avoid a
superficial approach.
The Executive Summary should have a businesslike tone, in order to prompt immediate
interest in the reader, who can be drawn in through the concept, the rate of return, or even
the style with which the ideas are presented.
A suggested format for this Summary is the presentation of the Business Plan by sections,
in order to get across the basic ideas, and the highlights of each of them, focusing on each
of the function areas.
Description of the Incubator
This item should give a brief overview of the incubator, explaining how it was established
and its current stage (already in operation, being planned or implemented); what are its
objectives; what is the type of incubator (technology-based, traditional sector, mixed, art,
social, etc); what are its main activities.
Attempts should be made to answer the following questions: what clients does it intend to
service (target market); where is it located; what is its area of support? Other important
aspects in this section are related defining the:
• Vision of the future;
• Mission of the incubator – the raison d’être of an organization. A good Mission
Statement should answer the following questions: what does it do? How does it do it?
Why, for whom, where? With what social accountability;
• Current organization chart and human resources structure;
• Available facilities and equipment;
• Development partnerships and experience;
• Marketing partnerships and experience;
• Annual revenues of the incubator (specify whether they are its own or third parties).
Note: These topics should be covered briefly, as they will be set out in greater detail further
on.
Products and Services
In order to be effective, an incubator needs to offer services that endow the companies it
supports with a keener competitive edge. Consequently, plenty of attention should be
devoted to this topic.

2. iDISC
Toolkit
The characteristics of the services should be described clearly and simply, listing all the
services offered by the incubator and their applications.
The value of its services should be underscored – what are its exclusive intangible benefits
or characteristics – in order to demonstrate the potential of the incubator and the benefits
that it offers, as entrepreneurs are frequently unable to focus on benefits that are not
tangible.
Also describe the innovative models or services that the incubator intends to introduce in
the future.
Marketing Plan
The Marketing Plan should explain how the incubator intends to handle and react to market
conditions in order to generate resources and ensure the continuity of its services.
The market challenge is one of the most difficult to deal with, in order to ensure the success
of a business, and things are no different for an enterprise incubator.
Consequently, it is important to analyze whether or not there is a real market demand for
the services offered by the incubator, as well as defining its market share according to the
regional vocation. Otherwise, not all the talent and money in the world will manage to make
this incubator successful.
According to Meeder in Forging the Incubator – How to Design and Implement a Feasibility
Study for Business Incubation Program, NBIA Publications (1993), after gathering all the
information that allows you to identify sources of potential clients as well as assesses
market demand for management assistance services, you are ready to consider several
other important questions as you prepare your market plan:
ü “Have you prepared a written market strategy? The written document will serve to
communicate the strategy to others who can assist in the implementation of the plan and
it helps you to maintain constant attention to this management responsibility.
ü How can you position yourself, your staff and board to initiate marketing and sales
activities rather than just to react to opportunities for promoting your program? Too often,
managers react to marketing and sales opportunities rather than pro-actively create
those opportunities. Your marketing plan should include methods for you to regularly
initiate marketing and sales opportunities.
ü Do you plan to escrow/allocate funds for marketing and sales activities? It is important to
put resources behind the plan. Often, marketing and sales activities are
undercapitalized. Some managers wait until they have some extra money before they
invest in marketing and sales. It rare to have extra money.
ü Do you use the word “incubator” as the primary descriptor to prospective tenants? It may
be better initially to emphasize the service aspects of the program and the facility
features and let the entrepreneur learn about the concept of incubation after they are
enrolled in your program.

3. iDISC
Toolkit
ü Do you split your potential customers into vertical segments to help target special
features of your program to customers? This is a method often employed by marketing
consultants to attempt to identify common characteristics among a group of potential
customers, then create and match features of a product or service to those
characteristics.
ü Do you have plans to establish a “track system” to guide your staff and board through
the correct process of presenting the facilities and services of your program to
prospective client companies? The most successful sales organizations have standard
routines that everyone – from maintenance to board chairman – masters. This
standardization allows everyone to be comfortable with selling and to be consistent in
presenting important information.
ü Do you have a clear statement of how you are distinguished from your competitors?
You need to know your competitors and how to quickly describe why you are different
than your competitors.
ü Are you planning to become an active member in your state and national incubation
associations? This industry is relatively new. The developments within this industry are
occurring at a rather fast pace. The best way to keep up with this change is through
these associations.
ü Will your marketing materials focus primarily on what just happened vs. what is planned
to happen? It is much more effective to focus on what just happened that you consider
being newsworthy and including the reasons why your program was directly responsible
for helping to cause the event.
ü Will your incubation program staff and service providers have regular planning sessions
to focus on new services for our existing clients and to plan activities that demonstrate
your services to prospective clients? This type of proactive approach to marketing your
program’s services is an important component of any marketing plan.
ü Will you actively use your client’s successes to market to target groups? The most
effective marketing message is a positive message from a satisfied customer”.
Some steps for drawing up the Marketing Plan are:
Step One: Incubator Positioning
This means how the incubator is positioned in terms of the market. For instance: does it
always work with a Greenfield policy when launching new models?
Step Two: Define the market situation
Describe its macro-environment:
Outside influences are factors over which the incubator has little or no control, such as
sector regulations, production resources, technological changes and clients. By describing
these influences, it should explain the nature and source of the influence concisely, together
with the potential impact and the resulting risks or opportunities, as well as the way in which
the enterprise can handle these influences.
• The Market
• Market Trends
• Opportunities / Threats
• Significant Outside Factors

4. iDISC
Toolkit
When defining the market it is important to:
• Survey up-to-date data
• Try to define the size of the market, even it only approximately
• Segment this market according to the business
• Strive to base the analysis on the environment closest to the incubator: its
competitors, clients and suppliers.
Example: Data provided by the Small Business Bureau (SEBRAE), the Brazilian Institute for
Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the Trade Federation (Fecomercio), etc.
Ensure that you have answered the following question as fully as possible:
What is my market?
Step Three: Enterprise Status
Describe its microenvironment:
The analysis of the microenvironment consists of studying the internal influences – weak
and strong points that directly affect the performance of the incubator and that it can control.
It is important to visualize them and then analyze the potential of the strong points and seek
alternatives for working on the weak points. Consequently, the following should be noted:
• Its Strengths (Strong Points);
• Its Weaknesses (Weak Points);
• Its Competitive Advantages;
• Significant In-House Factors.
When describing the enterprise, the following factors are important:
• Frankness;
• Clearness;
• Commitment to reality and what is possible.
Ensure that you reply fully to the following questions:
Who are we?
How are we?
Step Four: Define its Objectives
• Define it objective(s) in a clear and straightforward manner;
• When defining the objective, it is important to:
o Clearly explain its support by all those involved in its organization;
o Focus on its market objective (clients, suppliers and competitors);
o List them by order of priority and rank them on a time basis (separating out the
short, medium and long-term objectives).
Examples of Objectives:

5. iDISC
Toolkit
• Contribute to generating jobs;
• Encourage the development of new technologies;
• Increase the number of enterprises serviced.
Ensure that you reply fully to the following question:
What are we going to do?
Step Five: Define its strategies
• Define the strategies for attaining the objectives proposed through its Marketing Mix;
• The answers to the following questions outline these strategies:
o Am I going to extend my services? Modify them? Add more value?
o Am I going to lower prices? Keep them unchanged? Increase them?
o Am I going to extend my area of operations? Will I reduce it? Seek
partnerships?
o When am I going to run promotions? What type of promotion? What is the
message? Will I take part in fairs and events? What about advertising?
• When defining strategies, it is important to:
o Focus on the client, meaning the enterprises and their development;
o Establish the strategies in a clear and straightforward manner.
Step Six: Marketing Mix
• Product (for an incubator, what services will be offered)
• Price – this indicates the fees charged by the incubators (royalties and fees to cover
the basic cost) to underwrite the services supplied;
• Area – this aspect is not fully applicable, as it covers channels of distribution and the
areas in which the incubator operates. As the incubator does not sell products, there
is no distribution structure, and its area of operation consists of the entrepreneurs in
region where it functions.
• Promotion – what are the promotional strategies (website, promotional material,
service portfolios, site visits, bulletins, participation in fairs and events, etc.)
Step Seven: Strategic Analysis
The strategies should be defined in order to maximize the strong points, work on the weak
points, take full advantage of opportunities and neutralize threats.
Operating Plan
This item should describe the work methods used for the functioning and operationalization
of the activities of the incubator. It is important to mention the following main points:
• Selection process – present the approval criteria, the project prospecting
mechanisms; the selection process; phases; etc.;
• Rules for the incubation period – specify the length of incubation, as well as possible
extension periods; performance indicators for the incubator and the enterprises; etc.;

6. iDISC
Toolkit
• Oversight and assessment of the enterprises – describe how the assisted enterprises
are monitored, presenting the tools used and the frequency with which this
undertaken, etc.;
• Legal relationship with the enterprises – present how the link between the incubator
and supported enterprises is formally established;
• Fund-raising mechanisms – specify the sources of funds for bringing the activities
into operation and the types of uptake;
Incubator Actions and Targets Plans
This section should decide on the targets (quantified objectives) and set deadlines. This
stage is of much importance for monitoring the results achieved by the incubator and
possibly correcting any distortions or poorly-defined strategies.
It is a good idea to define three-year targets, updated every twelve months.
Financial Plan
The financial section will present projections on the financial performance of the incubator
that may well become the most important parameters for assessing its sustainability ratings,
if properly drawn up, serving as guidelines for seeking the resources needed to underpin the
proper functioning of the Program.
It is advisable to draw up projections for more than one scenario, even if only one of them is
included in the formal plan. One projection should be drawn up based on a business-as-
usual scenario, another should present the best-case situation, with another giving the
worst-case scenario.
As most of the incubators do not have their own legal status, but are rather linked to their
sponsor institutions (foundations, associations, etc) and own no assets, the equity balance
sheet is optional. However, it is suggested that should a detailed cash-flow forecast should
be prepared.
According to DORNELAS1 the incubators should present detailed cash-flow planning,
focusing their efforts on understanding and managing this flow. As there are many different
sources of funds, this planning should include not only indications of how the funds will be
used, but also where they will be sought.
Another suitable tool is the Statement of Sources and the Uses that lists the origin of the
funds and the purpose for which they are intended. The projection showing the generation
of revenues by the incubator itself should not be forgotten, brought in through the services
1
DORNELAS, José Carlos Assis, Planejando Incubadoras de Empresas: Como Desenvolver um Plano de
Negócios para Incubadoras. Rio de Janeiro: Campus, 2002. (Planning Business Incubators: How to develop a
Business Plan)
2 MEEDER, Robert. Forging the incubator – How to Design and Implement a Feasibility Study for Business
Incubation Program, NBIA, 1993.

7. iDISC
Toolkit
that it offers, while striving to reduce its dependence on outside funds as much as possible,
working towards self-sustainability. Some model tables are presented below:
Specification Quantity Unit Value TOTAL
Laboratories and workshops
Audiovisual resources
Retrofitting the space
Office desks
Typist chairs
Director chairs
Boardroom chairs
Fax machine
Printers
Computers
Round Boardroom table
Steel filing cabinets
Basic office materials
Software
Telephone switchboard
Leased photocopy machine
Others
TOTAL
Table 1 - Investments in Facilities, Equipment and Furniture
Amount
Source
Year I Year II Year III Total
IN-HOUSE RESOURCES
Basic Costs Fee
Royalties paid by the
enterprises
Capacity-building events and
courses
Subtotal
THIRD PARTY REVENUES
***
Sponsor entity
Sebrae tenders
Other sources
Subtotal
OVERALL TOTAL
Table 2 - Forecast Revenues

8. iDISC
Toolkit
Amount
Function
Month Year
Manager
Business Management Assistant
Communications Assistant
Communications Trainee
Administration Trainee
TOTAL
Table 3 - Expenditures on Staff
Total
Description Activity
Per Year
Participation in events on incubator
1 – Incubator Course on Marketing Strategies, Negotiating
and Sales (staff)
Other training sessions
SUBTOTAL
Course on Finance
Course on Marketing
2 – Resident Business Management Course
Enterprises (entrepreneurs)
Course on Sales Price
Course on Sales and Negotiating Techniques
SUBTOTAL
TOTAL
Table 4 - Expenditures on Training

9. iDISC
Toolkit
Description Year I Year II Year III
Revenues
Own Revenues
Third Party Revenues
Subtotal
Investment Expenditures
Training
Furniture, Equipment and Consumption Material
Staff
Marketing Expenses
Subtotal
Balance (1-2)
Self-Sustainability
Table 5 – Consolidated
Management and Organization
The success of an incubator is linked closely to its staff and an effective organization
structure. Consequently, its team should consist of professionals with managerial abilities,
dynamic, flexible and endowed with networking skills.
This topic should define the personality of the incubator and outline its form of management:
describing the decision-taking process, and explaining whether decisions will be taken on a
participative or centralized basis. Additionally, other points should be covered such as:
• Management Team – the professional experience of the individuals should be
presented whose actions play a decisive role in the success or failure of the
incubator, as they will perform crucial roles in its operation. It is not enough for them
to be brilliant and motivated, but they must also be able to turn plans into reality and
must have the skills required for implementation. This topic should highlight the
incubator managers and assistants.
• Organization Chart – the links and the share-out of responsibility should be
presented within the organization.
• Policy and strategy – the staff selection, training and remuneration policies should be
explained, outlining the philosophy guiding the organization and placement of staff, in
order to allow a better understanding of the incubator style.