The BIOS Business Incubator supports the development of small and medium sized enterprises by providing them with office space and production facilities and other business-related services in the most critical development phases. These activities also play a broader part in the economic development of the region by increasing employment through private sector development.

Building on various networking and knowledge-sharing activities, the BIOS Business Incubator, together with the Centers for Entrepreneurship of Osijek and Pakrac, and the Technology Development Center of Osijek, organized the 2nd International Conference on "Knowledge Based Competitive Entrepreneurship", which took place in September 2008. Building on the outcomes of the 1st international conference held in 2007, the goals of this year's conference were to:

• present existing projects arond the theme of fostering entrepreneurial competitiveness
• showcase successful entrepreneurs and their projects
• share successful examples of knowledge transfer into entrepreneurial projects
• demonstrate examples of cooperation between local authorities and entrepreneurs.

A central element of the conference was a roundtable meeting among 14 mayors on the role of business incubation in economic development. Main conclusions resulting from this roundtable discussion as well as the conference in general affirm the:  

• Importance of network creation among enterprises, public enterprises, households, elementary and high schools;
• Need to introduce new courses in high schools that mirror investor and SME needs;
• Importance of having formal networks of SMEs and institutions that are willing and able to support broader economic development;
• View that business incubation is about: people, process, partnerships, profit and prosperity;
• Importance of engaging with the private sector, focusing on the growth of entrepreneurs and innovators;
• Notion that "knowledge" as a strategic national asset;
• Implementation of Technology Transfer through an ideal process with the following milestones: identify a need; source the technology; assess the technology; acquire the technology; develop commercialization plan and implement the technology; manage, scale the technology; exit the technology;
• Need to focus on technology transfer from the science community to companies;
• Success of Entrepreneurship and Innovation through Incubation and Clustering;
• Need for clarity about the future needs of communities and economies.
  

To access all the conference presentation, please download the Conference Presentations Book by clicking here (.pdf file, 16.81 MB).

For further information about the conference, please contact Igor Medić, BIOS Business Incubator Manager, by e-mail at igor.medic@gmail.com.