2016 iLAB INCUBATOR APPLICATION AND POLICIES
Mission
The incubator at the W.L. Lyons Brown III Innovation Laboratory (iLab) supports the development and
growth of promising seed- and early-stage business ventures. While the iLab Incubator primarily
serves University students and faculty, it is open to promising start-ups in the larger Charlottesville
community. The iLab Incubator has been designed to address three objectives:
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Foster the formation and development of start-up businesses to cash flow breakeven or
significant, third-party investment support;
Educate participants about the process of new-venture development in order to improve their
potential for future entrepreneurial success; and
Create an entrepreneurial community to give students and participants the experience of
learning through mutual support, a process critical for successful entrepreneurship.
The iLab Incubator resides within the Batten Institute of Entrepreneurship at the University of
Virginia’s Darden School of Business and draws on the larger University community and alumni base
to provide a deep pool of resources to participating companies. The facility provides office space,
allowing access to onsite mentoring, service providers, industry expertise, and regular programs in
support of the business development exercise. Financial support is also available through a grant
program.
Admission to the iLab Incubator
Admission to the Incubator is at the discretion of the Selection Committee coordinated through the
offices of the Batten Institute. The admission process involves an application from which candidates
are selected to present their businesses or concepts to a committee for final selection to the
program. Those invited into the Incubator are selected to participate in one of four categories.
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Standard Program
Coaching and Mentoring Program
Project-Based Program
Guest Residency Program (as space is available)
The Standard Program is a high-touch experience designed to jumpstart the business and give
entrepreneurs an opportunity to prove their business models. It consists of a 10 week summer
accelerator, preceded in the spring with a law clinic and one day Venture Design/Customer Discovery
workshop. Participants are required to be in residence at the iLab Incubator during the 10 week
accelerator program and to attend certain workshops, speakers, and learning team events. Selected
participants receive weekly coaching, office space, full use of the facilities, and access to the full
complement of programming offered by the iLab. Additionally, participants receive a $5,000 grant in
support of their business operations. Participants in this category are expected to attend scheduled
learning team, speaker, and coaching/mentoring programming during the academic year.
The Coaching and Mentoring Program is designed for companies that have already participated in
the Standard Program or have proven their business model and are generating, or close to
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generating, product-based revenue. Members of the Selection Committee will help identify suitable
applicants for this program from those applying. Participants will be assigned a coach/mentor with
whom they will be expected to meet on a twice monthly basis. They will receive office space and are
encouraged to make use of all the resources of the facility, especially professional networks, but they
are not required to attend workshops or other events. Participants in this group, particularly if they
previously participated in the iLab, may assist with Learning Team events.
The Project-Based Program is meant for researchers at the University whose work is considered to
have business potential. These research projects are generally considered to have the potential to be
translational and have been well vetted by academic peers. Participation in the iLab Incubator is
designed to help researchers acquire business development skills, define their product offering, and
develop a business model. Participants will be expected to attend twice monthly coaching/mentoring
meetings as well as speakers and workshops.
The Guest Residency Program is offered only during the academic year. Guest residents are invited to
apply at any time based on space availability, but may need to vacate during the summer accelerator
program. Guest residents will have office space and are invited to attend speaker presentations and
workshops. They will not have access to coaches/mentors, Entrepreneurs in Residence, or other
support functions. Participants in this category will be selected for the strength of their businesses,
commitment to space usage and the ability to foster community engagement within the iLab.
For all programs, admission criteria include the following:
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A high-quality and viable business plan/concept
Commitment to exploring and/or pursuing an entrepreneurial career path
High-quality research in developing the business/concept case
Ability and willingness to add to the education and collaborative experience among
participants
A business whose values match those of the Institution
Application
Applications can be up to, but no more than 10 pages NOT including the Gantt Chart. Applications
longer than 10 pages will not be reviewed.
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All candidates must submit a description of the business or concept that includes the following
information:
a. A one-page summary, outlining the premise of the business or concept, the problem it solves,
the customer(s) it serves, the market and the plan to bring the product to the marketplace,
the management team, and the estimated financial requirements to cash flow breakeven.
b. An Operating Plan outlining the objectives/milestones that the business must address in order
to begin creating value. The Operating Plan may be a feasibility study for the business concept
or an operating plan for the development of the business or implementation of an existing
plan, but in all cases, it must be focused on decision or value creation objectives.
A Gantt Chart reflecting the Operating Plan and objectives for the business.
a. An example Gantt chart is supplied as a reference.
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b. A clear description of the objectives for the summer period should be laid out on a weekly
basis.
An assessment of how participation in the Incubator is expected to benefit the development of
the business/concept. Please identify critical milestones you need to reach, which might be
unattainable without the resources of the Incubator program, with particular focus on the 10
week accelerator period.
A description of the management team.
Document format: Please ensure all pages are numbered and the document is saved and in the
following format: LastName.Venture.IncubatorYear(i.e., Smith.QualityControl.Incubator2013). We
prefer all documents to be in one combined PDF, but Gantt charts can be sent in the Excel version, if
necessary. Name and save your Gantt chart as LastName.Venture.GanttChart.
Documents should be in no less than 12 point font with a 1 inch margin. Documents that do not
conform to this requirement will not be read.
Program Participation
Selected participants are expected to participate fully in the programming associated with their
designated category.
During the 10 week accelerator portion of the Standard Program, participants are expected to devote
their time to their company and to have no other employment. Participants are expected to be in
residence at the iLab Incubator offices during the normal work week during this 10 week period and
to attend all official iLab Incubator functions, including but not limited to speaker presentations, pitch
sessions, and related meetings. Active participation in iLab Incubator events is required as a crucial
part of fostering a collaborative entrepreneurial community. Off-site meetings, sales calls, and market
research directly related to the development of the business are encouraged, but not at the expense
of iLab Incubator programs.
If the development of your business requires extensive travel during the summer, and you are a
candidate for the Standard Program, we recommend that you apply another year when the travel
demands of the business may be less.
Advisory Boards
Advisory Boards are seen as a value add proposition for all companies in the iLab Incubator. Advisory
Boards help entrepreneurs develop expertise and provide a network crucial to the success of a
business. If appropriate, the Director and members of the Batten team can work with participants to
help identify advisors with relevant experience and skill sets, but the final responsibility for
establishing a working Advisory Board resides with the company. It is strongly advised that all
companies develop Advisory Boards.
Physical Facilities and Infrastructure
All official iLab Incubator activities are expected to take place at the Incubator facilities at the Darden
School of Business. Opportunities to meet in related University or community facilities will be
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ascertained and arranged at appropriate times. The resources of the iLab Incubator include office
space, color and black-white printers, binding, Internet access, a 3-D printer, and use of a commercial
license to Solid Works design software. Participants must supply their own computer hardware and
software and should not use a Darden/UVA e-mail account or servers for their business/company
correspondence or a Darden/UVA physical address as their corporate business address.
Public Relations and Communication with the Media
All participants are required to coordinate public communications with the iLab Director and
Darden’s Vice President of Marketing and Communications, based on the University of Virginia’s
public Page 5 of 5 communication policies and procedures. Participants in the iLab Incubator should
not directly solicit media attention, place articles, or seek publicity about their ventures if they have
any reason to believe that the nature of the conversation or their business or business plan may be
viewed as controversial by the general populace. It is important to remember that media is interested
in optimizing story lines to attract attention, and conveying a message becomes a two-way
proposition.
The iLab Incubator will endeavor to provide access to professional resources in public relations,
media, and market communications. Participants are encouraged to work with such resources in
crafting their public messages about their businesses and participation in the Incubator program.
Employment Status
Participants in the iLab Incubator are neither employees nor agents of the University of Virginia,
Darden School of Business, or Darden Foundation. Participants are considered entrepreneurs, and
self-employed for legal and tax purposes. Participants agree to hold the University, the Darden
School, and Darden Foundation harmless and/or to indemnify them for any losses, damages, and/or
expenses incurred as a result of a participant’s violation of policies and procedures.
Services
In addition to public relations and media resources, the iLab Incubator may be able to help direct
participants to a variety of service providers, including accounting and legal services, in support of
their business development needs. All participants are encouraged to avail themselves of these
services to comply with business formation, financial accounting, and tax reporting purposes. The
iLab Incubator anticipates being able to assist in identifying resources to help with product
development across a spectrum of industries.
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