The concept pre-incubation in theory and practice

Abstract

The concept of business pre-incubation is described in a residual way in the literature. The few articles defining what business pre-incubation is describe it as a service that enables an entrepreneur to test his or her business idea in real market conditions. The aim of this article will be to try to define and structure the concept of pre-incubation by pointing out its basic features, as well as to identify good practices for corporations that would decide to create a corporate incubator along the lines of the one described below. The objectives of the article will be achieved through an analysis of a pre-incubation project carried out at the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022. The analysis will be carried out from the point of view of its participant, and through information from the organisers of this project in order to maintain a multi-faceted and broad view of the problematic of the concept of pre-incubation. By analysing existing definitions, listing the basic characteristics of pre-incubation and placing them in a real-life example, the conceptual and theoretical gap that exists in the science of about innovation, and the practical features of such a model of cooperation from the point of view of enterprises will be indicated.