BUS604: Innovation and Sustainability

CCS operational models have two main categories: interactive environments (the essence of the space where the community is formed), and services.

Interactive Environments

This study identified seven types of interactive environments: 

1. coworking space, 
2. accelerator, 
3. maker space, 
4. community space, 
5. incubator, 
6. fab lab, and 
7. hackerspace (Exhibit 2.5). 

Typically, these types of interactive environments are not mutually exclusive: The majority of the CCSs featured here represent more than one type. The most common interactive environment is the coworking space, followed by community space, incubator, maker space, accelerator, and fab lab. The rarest type represented is the hackerspace.

In this study, maker spaces, community spaces, and incubators are equally common interactive environments in both general and thematic spaces, as are accelerators; however, coworking spaces, fab labs, and hackerspaces are more common among thematic spaces. CCSs that identify themselves as community spaces contribute to urban regeneration and entrepreneurial communities building, as do the majority of hackerspaces.

All of the accelerators analyzed in this study are privately owned, and half of them receive private donations as part of their funding; only incubators and fab labs use a funding model based on "pure" subsidies. And hybrid revenue models are more typical for places designated as accelerators and incubators. 

Box 2.2. How CCSs Connect Industry and Start-ups and Allow Absorption of Innovation by the Local Economy

Creative community spaces connect industry and start-ups through different services and mechanisms. These connections vary, ranging from designing the space to naturally allow collisions among industry staff and start-ups to developing events for cross-collaboration (for example, hackathons or open innovation competitions) to more hands-on approaches, such as mentoring and acceleration programs for start-ups by local industry, which can lead to acquisition or recruitment of talent.

CCSs have developed creative services for these industry-entrepreneur links. iF in Santiago hosts grassroots innovative community, entrepreneurs, and established companies in the same building, mixing spaces that result in natural mingling and collisions. 

The Factory in Berlin designed its space so that established companies, such as Lufthansa, could host their innovation teams in the same space as the start-ups supported by the accelerator program. Company staff and entrepreneurs must share the same common spaces, such as the kitchen, resulting in natural fraternization and cross-fertilization of culture and ideas. NUMA in Paris offers an intrapreneur support program for companies that want to develop internal innovation capabilities. 

Steel House in Rockland connects entrepreneurs and local industries (particularly the fishing industry) to co- design and test solutions to industry challenges, prototyping and testing new products jointly. Harlem Biospace provides a similar connection with New York's health industry, including tailored mentorship programs for the program's entrepreneurs from industry. MassRobotics in Boston also acts as an active link between the program's entrepreneurs and industry to design demand-based solutions by start-ups.

a. Collisions are random encounters with people one would normally not meet. The theory of collisions argues that these encounters bring new ideas, perspectives, and value for creating opportunities and innovation. The more collisions individuals have with people with different ideas, the more creative and innovative these individuals may become. Hence, the potential for collisions stimulates innovation and entrepreneurial opportunities.

Exhibit 2.5. Types of Interactive Environments 

• Coworking Space: A membership-based workspace that allows diverse groups of freelancers, remote workers, and other independent professionals to work together in a shared setting. Coworking spaces aim to help those with common values develop potential synergies.
• Accelerator: A space that provides later-stage start-ups with access to mentorship and a larger network to further develop their business ideas over an intensive and limited time frame of a few weeks to months. Often, the start-ups give equity in return for mentorship and small seed investment. 
• Maker Space: A space for creative production in art, science, and engineering where people of all ages and career paths integrate digital and physical technologies to learn technical skills and create new products.
• Community Space: A space that is designed to be inclusive of all members of a community, often providing learning activities and a space to recreate and exchange ideas.
• Incubator: A space designed for early stage start-ups that provides a shared space as well as access to mentors and a variety of services (e.g., business literacy programs, market research, marketing assistance, business coaching, etc.).
• Fab Lab: A space that specializes in digital fabrication (a type of manufacturing that uses computer-controlled machines), which includes a range of additive manufacturing technologies, with 3-D printing being the most common.
• HackerSpace: A space that is operated by a community of like-minded individuals, often with a strong interest in technology, science, and digital fabrication, with an aim to provide a ground for collaboration and socialization for the members of the community
  

Services

Creative community spaces provide a wide range of services that complement the initial interactive environment, allowing for financially sustainable development (Exhibit 2.6). Not every space offers the same services, with some more common in - and suited to - certain environments than others. The most common type of service revolves around providing event space for external actors, followed by training and mentorship offerings, with acceleration being the least common type in the sample - only half of the CCSs offer this type of service. Table 2.2 illustrates the operational models of the 13 featured CCSs. 

Exhibit 2.6. Types of Services

1. Mentorship: Offering access and pairing with professional counseling and advisory to individuals and business that correspond with specific needs, including either industry-specific or general advisory
2. Connections to Funding: Offering access to a network of potential financial providers and support in various forms of grants, loans, and/or seed money
3. Event Space: Extending a space in which thematic and business events are held for the space's community and in some instances the larger community. A space for individuals and business to host their own events and gatherings
4. Training: Customized and general access to learning opportunities pertaining to business development and specific technical skills adhering to given industries 
5. Acceleration: Intensive access to mentorship and resources (capital, technology, hardware) to boost startup business growth within limited periods of time
6. Access to Tools: Access to hardware, software, or techniques, such as industry-specific equipment

Table 2.2 Operational Models