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Exchange Magazine September 2013: Incubator
with Urgency
Exchange Magazine recently crafted an in-depth and informative article that showcases how the Accelerator Centre (AC) came to be the celebrated incubator it is today. Editor Jon Rohr spoke with Tim Ellis, our CEO, and Mike Stork, our Chair of the Board of Directors, to capture their personal insights. Below is an exceprt of the article:
Written by Jon Rohr
[Tim] Ellis says Waterloo Region has unique partnership between organizations, with excellent collaboration between like-minded colleagues and community groups. The area has created a unique model, one that is sustainable and focused on innovation for commercial success.
Ellis has worked at the Waterloo Accelerator Centre, located in the David Johnston Research + Technology Park, since 2008, and became CEO in 2012. The AC is known as an incubator facility, one designed to speed an entrepreneur's development time, accelerating the potential for commercialization. Ellis refers to the AC as "a club house for entrepreneurs to gather." Many influential community groups had to get on the same page to come up with the strategy. The AC evolved in an academic world - perhaps predictable, since two of North America's leading institutions [University of Waterloo and Wilfred Laurier University] lie within blocks of each other.
Ellis indicates that the "goal was to actually put some structure around the program". Operating virtually until 2006, "there was really no structure, no process behind the mentoring and coaching was done without scorecards". The technology community rallied behind the program and sought to extend the program's reach. It "was an environment where if someone needed help, there would be some help available." Additionally, the environment was exciting but "there was nobody holding anybody accountable"; when the AC came to be, academic accountability came to order. "It differentiates us from most other incubators around the world" says Ellis.
"When these companies come in, one of the criteria we ask ourselves is, are they coachable?" says Mike Stork, Chair of the Accelerator Centre Board of Directors. Stork is also a Governor at the University of Waterloo, a successful entrepreneur, angel investor, and philanthropist. "A really key factor for success" is that if someone comes to the AC, "and they expect to benefit, but can't be influenced by the mentors and other residents, then they really shouldn't be here." The score card system Stork refers to applies to all companies in the program. They are measured on a number of different scales. This encourages realistic goal setting and accountability that is reviewed on a quarterly basis.
Each company is measured on a number of parameters, which account for the uniqueness of the company. When it's time to graduate, mentors and investors look for "a check on the upper right hand box for all the different elements being scored." Stork, who was instrumental in the formation of the AC, was one of the first mentors. As an investor from the very first cohort, he states that ultimately, "the purpose is that the companies that are graduating from the Accelerator Centre, are more likely than not to succeed."
To read the full article, please visit Exchange Magazine online here.
Source:
Exchange Magazine, Vol 30 No 8, September 13th
Feature Story, Technology and Manufacturing Section
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