Innovative Business Generation Program: Experience of the Innovation Habitats Network of Southwest and South Paraná

Abstract

This report presents the experience of the Innovative Business Generation Program conducted by the Innovation Habitats Network of Southwest and South Paraná, Brazil. The collaborative initiative aims to transform ideas into businesses, focusing on agribusiness, information technology, and industry sectors. Launched in 2021 and currently ongoing, the program involves 24 innovation habitats and more than 60 partner institutions, articulated with the Southwest Paraná Regional Innovation System and legally established Municipal Innovation Councils. The methodology combines the diagnosis of real demands, carried out with companies and cooperatives, with a structured journey of ideation, validation, and implementation of innovative projects. The model prioritizes the development of entrepreneurial skills, the attraction of diverse profiles, and the connection of projects to incubation and acceleration processes. Between 2021 and 2024, 48 ideation events were held, involving 2,487 participants and generating 476 ideas, of which 116 advanced to pre-incubation and 41 entered incubators. The report discusses challenges related to problem validation, the conversion of projects into formal companies, and the diversity of entrepreneurial profiles, highlighting lessons learned and the program’s contribution to strengthening the regional innovation ecosystem.