Abstract:

The early stages of the startup process (pre-entry, market entry) often lack the utilization of boards, but assembling an active board at these stages can be highly beneficial in addressing key issues such as setting realistic goals, anticipating potential problems, maintaining commitment, leveraging proven experience, and defining a well-defined market niche, with the board's expertise and oversight playing a crucial role in guiding the startup towards success. According to Kuratko and Hodgetts (1995), successful market entry requires careful management of five critical factors: the uniqueness of the venture, availability of product and customers, size of investment, and projected growth in sales and profits. While day-to-day operational issues may not involve the board of directors, active boards play a crucial role in strategic planning, securing necessary capital, and guiding growth-oriented ventures towards achieving objectives and accessing critical resources. Finding and assembling a board for early-stage startups can be challenging due to limited networks, uncertain value proposition, resource constraints, time commitment issues, and the need for strategic alignment. This paper explores a pilot initiative known as the Board Sprint, which took place between September and December 2022 at LAB University of Applied Sciences in Finland. The primary objective of the pilot was to facilitate the growth of three startup companies by assisting them in recruiting suitable board members. The participants in the pilot consisted of five board members affiliated with a professional board member association, LAB employees who possessed prior experience in board membership, and employees from a regional business development company. The outcomes of the pilot were varied: while some companies chose to continue working with the newly formed boards, one company opted to cease its operations entirely, and another decided to prioritize team building before revisiting board development at a later stage. These findings hold significant managerial implications, indicating that higher education institutions can play a pivotal role in connecting stakeholders during the initial stages of board formation.

Keywords:

University-Industry cooperation, startups, experiments, SMEs.