Smart money: funding innovation projects

Fig_5_10The lack of track record, the ambiguity and the specificity of most innovation projects mean that innovation managers should consider alternative specialized sources of financing, such as informal and professional investors, to (co-)invest in the development of their opportunity.

Fig_5_11Innovation managers and entrepreneurs looking for specialized outside (co-)investors must identify, target and engage effectively the right type of financial stakeholders, based on available offers, expectations and potential value-added.

Fig_5_12

Innovation managers and entrepreneurs can in some cases leverage the value-added and support of venture capitalists as (co-)investors, provided they master the business model of these specialized investors, their selection criteria and their negotiation process.

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Sources of financing: why cash is costly

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Navigating the innovation financing fauna: financial stakeholders

Keywords: business angel, crowdfunding, FFF (friends, fools and family), investment funds, seed investing

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Professional innovation investors: Venture Capitalists

Keywords: bargaining, deal making, due diligence, syndication, venture capital

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(c) Prof. Benoit Gailly, Louvain School of Management

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