How do business accelerator programs measure their own success?

Abstract

Purpose – Accelerators are a mechanism to provide support to early-stage businesses.However, most of the existing literature focuses on the effect that accelerator programs haveon participating startups. This study examines the success metrics that are used by businessaccelerators to measure their own success.Design/Methodology – The research question was divided into six objectives, which were studied through a literature review of existing articles on the topic and a qualitative approach based on semi-structured interviews.Findings – This study reveals the importance of an accelerator’s mission in approaching its customers. A variety of key performance indicators (KPIs) were investigated and analyzed using the SMART criteria. The post-acceleration phase is also important for maintaining communication with startups and tracking their progress in the market. Root-cause analysis helps the benefits of the program. The surrounding ecosystem is influenced by the program’s output. However, there are current challenges and obstacles that prevent program managersfrom measuring their success. Finally, this study contributes suggestions for potential improvements in performance tracking in the future.Research limitations/implications – This paper is limited to interviews with acceleratorprograms in Europe, primarily in Austria and in Germany. The study’s results are subject to the opinions of the program managers who were interviewed. Future research should include additional interviews that cover a wider variety of accelerator types and countries.Originality/value – The article adds value to the existing literature on success metrics and opens the possibility of developing a proper framework for tracking accelerator performance.Keywords Incubators, Entrepreneurship, Startups, Ecosystem, Investors