Keywords: incubation, marketing, networking, soft landing

An innovative private sector inward investment/soft landing programme that builds on the strengths of a Science Park and the intensity of the incubation model. The service is complemented by external service providers that share the Science Park ethos, adding value to the Science Park delivery and enabling the Science Park to access high quality inward investors.

The problem is that inward investment/soft landing activities are expensive if done properly, offering very little return. No Science Park has the resources to travel abroad constantly to market their inward investment activity but this is key to attract the right quality companies. Many Science Parks rely on referrals from national or local government funded inward investment activities or networks but they can be of relatively low quality either because they are out of sector or companies referred lack growth ambition. In the absence of government funding for such activities soft landing/inward investment activities have diminished in the Science Park community as returns are at best in the long term. To ensure a meaningful inward investment activity of Science Parks, Warwick Science Park in cooperation with its partners has devised the UK Market Access Program. It is a successful private sector inward investment programme using little resources offering foreign owned businesses a range of practical services (partly delivered by the Science Park including incubation offices and partly delivered by private sector organisations). A discounted office in the Science Park for a period of 1 year (and access to other office space UK wide (e.g via UK Science Park networks or local councils) A discounted market research/market development activity by the Science Parks technical marketing team. A 50% discounted company formation service (external). A discounted back office and financial administration service (external). A specialist recruitment service (external). A sales lead generation service (external) Other useful services include facilitated bank account opening, logistics, mobile phones, car leasing, etc. The ethos behind the programme is to develop a network of companies with the right skills and drive to offer practical support to companies needing the support. The return for the Science Park and its partners is the attraction of new tenants that would otherwise not have found out about the Science Park as well as help with the conversion of other foreign owned companies approaching the Science Park directly. It also generates consultancy income for the Science Park business support team as well as its private sector partners. The process is: 1) Design and deliver workshop abroad 2) Offer central point of contact for interested inward investors 3) Organise UK market visit 4) Validation of business/market proposition and eligibility check 5) Engagement (delivery of required services, brokerage of introductions to useful contacts 6) Develop long term relationship to capture requirements and identify potential problems 7) Monitor

The UK Market Access Program is unique and the most successful private sector inward investment programme that is self-sufficient and independent from government funding (although it has the potential to attract government funding). UKMAP has successfully built a network of core delivery companies as well as associate partners that add value to the support delivery of the Science Park. It also helps the Science Park access their networks and benefit from the delivery of seminars abroad which in turn taps networks of other influential companies abroad. As such, UKMAP deliver around 12 workshops abroad annually. The return for the Science Park and its partners is the attraction of new tenants that would otherwise not have found out about the Science Park as well as help with the conversion of other foreign owned companies approaching the Science Park directly. It also generates consultancy income for the Science Park business support team as well as its private sector partners. While the financial return is important, UKMAP improves the quality of inward investors which other programmes lack. UKMAP seemingly has been copied by other orgnanisations over the years but none of which have successfully replicated the ethos of the programme of being helpful, impartial and ensuring the delivery of a high quality service.

Altogether the programme has helped over 250 businesses form and over 150 physically locate in the UK. This underpins the ability of the team to offer a resourceful service, minimising risk for companies wishing to enter the UK market. UKMAP has achieved this with very little resources. Part of the beneficiaries of the service located their business at Warwick Science Park and another part located their business elsewhere in the UK, supported by UKMAP. New businesses pay taxes and create employment in the UK. The impact for the Science Park is in form of long term paying tenants as well as consultancy income for its business support team. Some of the companies supported by the programme include the company Weltec (Germany), RCD Advanced (France), Dancopter (Denmark), Leannova Engineering (Sweden), Schnabl Stecktechnik (Austria) or PelicanCorp (Australia). Many other successful companies have been attracted to the Science Park and elsewhere into the UK. Today the Science Park has a 25% share of foreign owned companies as tenants which is partly down to the success of the UK Market Access Program.

The main users of the service are foreign owned tech based companies with high growth potential. Other beneficiaries are the Science Park and its partners and local government in terms of tax payers and employment generation.

Dirk Schaefer (University of Warwick Science Park Limited) and Martin Williams of the company EBS Ltd.