Singapore SME Innovation Support Schemes - PRO INNO Europe

Document ID: IPF 12-012 

VINNOVA Dno: 2009-04589 

Singapore SME Innovation Support 

Schemes 

Final Report on IPF Review visit to Singapore 

May 2012

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www.proinno-europe.eu/partnering-forum

Summary 

This report describes the results of the research and study visit which was conducted to investigate 

aspects of the SME innovation support in Singapore as part of workpackage 5 activities. 

As outlined in the body of the report the study found several approaches used by 

Spring Singapore, the agency in charge of the development of indigenous Singapore enterprises, 

which were considered good practices and which could be considered for transfer to 

a European context. The report describes the Enterprise One scheme, which is considered 

good practice in the delivery of basic information and advice to a very large number of SMEs. 

This programme which consists of a web-portal, hotlines and a network of advice centres is 

aimed at providing a single portal and point of access for SMEs to access basic information 

and advice services provided by large number of different government agencies. The report 

also describes the approach used in Singapore to the support of youth entrepreneurship, 

where Spring Singapore run programmes to support the development of entrepreneurship 

education programmes in schools and funding programmes to support start-up companies 

established by young entrepreneurs. 

Dissemination level: 

The dissemination level set for this report is PP i.e. restricted to program participants 

(incl. the Commission Services). 

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This report was prepared by: 

Terence O’Donnell, Enterprise Ireland, Kate Yarrington, Technology Strategy Board, UK 

Contact details: 

Enterprise Ireland, 

Rossa Avenue, Bishopstown, 

Cork, Ireland 

Phone: +353 21 4800236 

e-mail: terence.odonnell@enterprise-ireland.com 

Disclaimer 

The views expressed in this report are those of the author and the Peer Review Team. 

They do not necessarily reflect the opinion or position of the European Commission and 

in no way commit the involved organisations. 

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1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 7 

2 Singapore Policy Mix, Objectives and Delivery ........................................................... 7 

2.1 Main Actors in the Innovation Support System .............................................................. 9 

2.1.1 SPRING Singapore ............................................................................................................ 10 

2.1.2 A*Star .............................................................................................................................. 10 

2.1.3 Exploit Technologies Pte Ltd (ETPL) ................................................................................. 10 

2.1.4 Singapore Economic Development Board ....................................................................... 10 

2.1.5 IE Singapore ..................................................................................................................... 10 

3 Spring Singapore SME support schemes ................................................................... 11 

3.1 Youth Entrepreneurship Promotion ............................................................................ 12 

3.1.1 Young Entrepreneurs Scheme for Schools: Yes!Schools ................................................. 13 

3.1.2 Ideas.inc Business Challenge ........................................................................................... 14 

3.1.3 Young Entrepreneurs Scheme for Start-ups (YES! Start-ups) .......................................... 14 

3.2 Service Delivery: The EnterpriseOne Approach ............................................................ 15 

3.2.1 Operation of the System.................................................................................................. 16 

3.2.2 Features ........................................................................................................................... 17 

3.2.3 Results and Impact .......................................................................................................... 18 

3.2.4 Success Factors & Lessons Learned ................................................................................. 18 

4 A*Star SME Support Schemes .................................................................................. 19 

4.1.1 Exploit Technologies ........................................................................................................ 21 

5 Good Practices & Transferability .............................................................................. 23 

5.1 Integrated Approach to Youth Entrepreneurship ......................................................... 23 

5.1.1 Transferability .................................................................................................................. 24 

5.2 EntepriseOne Approach .............................................................................................. 24 

5.2.1 Transferability .................................................................................................................. 25 

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1 Introduction 

The Inno Partnering Forum (IPF) is concerned with identifying and learning from best 

practice in SME innovation support programmes in Europe and around the world. Specifically 

Workpackage 5 within the project was to identify countries and programmes 

outside of Europe with the potential to supply examples of good practice. An initial 

phase of desk research identified a number of countries and SME innovation support 

programmes within those countries which could potentially be considered good practice. 

A second phase of the work focused on conducting more detailed research on a 

short list of identified programmes including a review or study visit to countries of particular 

interest. The third phase of the work involved the analysis and formulation of 

possible new measures based on the programmes and practices identified during the 

study visits. 

Singapore was identified as a country of interest as it is among the top 10 innovation 

performers in the world, with a very strong focus on developing a knowledge and innovation 

based economy. Over the past 10 years or more it has developed a very strong 

innovation support system. 

The study visit to Singapore was organised as a follow on visit to the visit to South Korea. 

Of particular interest to the IPF in Singapore were the activities of Spring Singapore, 

the agency responsible for the development of local industry and in particular 

SMEs and A*Star the agency for Science, Technology and Research. 

Of particular interest to the IPF is the operation of the EnterpriseOne service which is 

managed by Spring Singapore and their schemes for support of entrepreneurship. For 

example they run several schemes aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship from an early 

age such as the Young Entrepreneurs Scheme for Start-ups and the Young Entrepreneur 

Scheme for Schools. 

2 Singapore Policy Mix, Objectives and Delivery 

Singapore is a Southeast Asian country with a population of 5 million (just a little larger 

than Finland), of which 42% are non-natives. It is a leading financial centre with the 

fastest growing economy and highest per capita GDP in the world. (GDP growth of 

17.9% in 2010) and is in the top 10 of innovating countries. Figure 1 shows an overview 

of the development of the Singapore economy over the past 50 years. The economy has 

developed from being a labour intensive one in the 1960s to being knowledge and innovation 

based economy in the 2000s. Singapore has no natural resources; the economy 

has largely being built on the importation of raw materials and the export of finished 

goods. It is very much an export based economy with the main exports being in Electronics, 

Chemicals and services. 

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Figure 1: Growth and Development of the Singapore economy over the past 50 years. 

Singapore has been very successful in attracting Foreign Direct Investment, with currently 

more than 3000 Multi National Corporations (MNC) located in Singapore. SMEs 

are also a very important part of the economy as they account for 99% of the total enterprises, 

60% of employment with a value added contribution of 46% (2007). 

From 1990 onwards there has been a very active push by the government to make Singapore 

into a knowledge intensive economy which has been very successful. Between 

1990 and 2009, Singapore’s GDP has grown by 3.7 times and R&D expenditure has 

grown from being 1% of GDP to a present figure of 2.3% of GDP. The approach to policy 

development in Singapore could be characterised as being holistic with very much a 

“planned capitalism” system. The government has invested in and owns a share of many 

large companies which are closely related to the Singapore economy through its investment 

company Temasek Holdings. 

The development of Science, Technology and Innovation is planned according to a series 

of Five year plans. The current 5 year plan, termed Research, Innovation, Enterprise 

2015 (RIE2015), runs from 2011 to 2015 and promises a S$16.1 billion (approximately 

€9.8 billion ) investment in R&D over the 5 years. This represents a 20% increase 

in funding over the previous 5 year plan. 

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The RIE2015 has six main thrusts; 

o Investment in basic science as the basis for future innovations 

o Attracting and developing scientific talent to locate in Singapore 

o Greater emphasis on competitive funding as a means to select the best ideas 

o Fostering of greater synergy between public and private enterprises. 

o A greater focus on research with economic outcomes 

o Strengthened support for technology commercialisation 

2.1 Main Actors in the Innovation Support System 

The diagram in Figure 2 illustrates the main actors and their position in the Singapore 

RD&I framework. Public funding for industrial RD&I comes mainly through the Ministry 

of Trade and Industry. It funds 10 Statutory Boards, including SPRING Singapore 

(Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board) and A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology 

and Research). Other agencies include the Economic Development Board, which 

formulates and executes strategy for growing the Singapore economy, and International 

Enterprise Singapore which helps Singapore-based companies expand overseas. 

Figure 2: The R&D Framework in Singapore 

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2.1.1 SPRING Singapore 

http://www.spring.gov.sg 

SPRING Singapore is the enterprise development agency responsible for helping Singapore 

enterprises grow. They assist enterprises though financing, capability and management 

development, technology and innovation, and with accessing new markets. 

SPRING is also the national standards and accreditation body. 

2.1.2 A*Star 

http://www.a-star.edu.sg/ 

The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) is the lead agency for fostering 

scientific research and talent in Singapore. A*STAR has 7 research institutes in 

the biomedical sciences area and 7 research institutes in the physical sciences and engineering 

area and employs over 2,300 researchers. Most of the research centres are located 

in Biopolis and Fusionopolis campuses which accommodate the biomedical institutes 

and science and engineering institutes respectively. A*Star’s focus is very much on 

industrially relevant research and it supports Singapore's key economic clusters by 

providing intellectual, human and industrial capital to industrial partners. 

2.1.3 Exploit Technologies Pte Ltd (ETPL) 

http://www.exploit-tech.com 

ETPL is the marketing and commercialisation arm of A*STAR which manages the intellectual 

property portfolio of A*STAR’s research institutes and centres. It promotes the 

institutes’ research capabilities and facilitates the transfer of A*STAR’s technologies to 

industry. Its aim is to ensure that new IP generated by A*Stars researchers is exploited 

to produce tangible products and services. 

2.1.4 Singapore Economic Development Board 

http://www.sedb.com 

The Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) is the government agency concerned 

with planning and executing strategies to enhance Singapore's position as a 

global business centre. Its activities include Attracting Foreign Investment, Growing 

Industry Verticals by helping expand existing industry into new growth areas and enhancing 

the Business Environment by working with other government agencies to ensure 

that infrastructure and public services are conducive to a successful business environment. 

2.1.5 IE Singapore 

http://www.iesingapore.gov.sg 

International Enterprise (IE) Singapore is the government agency driving Singapore's 

external economy. The agency is concerned with the overseas growth of Singaporebased 

companies and promotes international trade. IE assists Singapore-based companies 

in their international expansion through providing what is referred to as their "3C" 

framework of assistance (Connections, Competency and Capital). They also operate a 

global network in over 35 locations spanning many emerging markets. They also anchor 

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global trading companies in Singapore and position the country as a base to expand into 

the region in partnership with Singapore-based companies. 

3 Spring Singapore SME support schemes 

(SPRING Singapore, 2010 budget S$90 million, approximately €54 million ) 

Spring’s main role is in assisting the development and growth of Singapore’s indigenous 

companies . It therefore runs programmes aimed mostly at entrepreneurs, start-ups and 

SMEs. For its programmes aimed at SMEs Spring Singapore divides it offerings into Capability 

Programmes and Financing Programmes. 

The Capability Programmes are aimed at the development of SME competencies for long 

term growth. They include such things as business mentorship, management development 

for CEOs, technical assistance programmes, marketing programmes etc. 

The programmes aimed specifically at Technology Innovation include the following; 

• Innovation Voucher Scheme : This is similar to the Innovation Voucher schemes run 

by many Europe, whereby an SME can apply for a voucher worth S$5000 (€3000 ), 

which can be redeemed for knowledge related advice and services from knowledge 

providers. From mid 2012 the innovation voucher scheme is to be extended to cover 

advice and services in productivity, HR development and financial management, in 

addition to technical advice and services. 

• Technology Enterprise Commercialisation Scheme : This scheme, which is running 

since 2008, aims to facilitate the growth of technologically innovative global enterprises 

through the provision of early stage funding for R&D aimed at commercialisation 

of proprietary technology. The scheme has a focus on post graduates in Universities 

who have a scalable business model, but which is riskier and further away from 

the market. The scheme uses two stages of funding, a Proof of Concept Phase and a 

Proof of Value Phase. The proof of concept is aimed at start-ups or researchers from 

public R&D organisations, to demonstrate the technical/scientific viability of a technology. 

Costs are funded 100% up to a maximum of S$250,000 (€150,000). In this 

case, although the grant can initially be to the university, a start-up company must be 

formed before the end of the project. The Proof of Value Phase is aimed at start-ups to 

do further R&D on successful POC projects. This phase should lead to a first working 

prototype and is funded at 85% up to S$500,000 (€300,000) per project. Applicants 

are required to demonstrate proof of interest from a potential customer or third party 

investor. In 2010 23 new projects were supported, with a cumulative on-going support 

for 77 projects. 

• Technology Innovation Programme : This is a range of funding programmes aimed 

at supporting the cost of technology innovation in local Singapore companies. It has 

three main components: 

o Funding for SMEs or consortia which consist of at least half SMEs, to undertake 

projects which involve the application of technology to develop or 

improve products, processes or business models. Typically projects are 

50% funded, unless the project is a consortium project which has benefit 

beyond the consortium members, in which case it can qualify for 70% 

funding. 

o Centres of Innovation which are centres established in the polytechnics or 

research institutes, offering sector specific technology consultancy and 

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advice. At the moment there are 5 such centres in Food Innovation, Precision 

Engineering, Marine and Offshore Technology, Electronics, and Environment 

and Water. 

o A programme aimed at seconding technical experts into companies to help 

build the in-house capabilities of the company. Funding can cover up to 

70% of the costs for a maximum of two years. This programme is run 

jointly with A*Star, typically the technical experts come from A*Star and 

the funding is provided by SPRING. 

Under its Financing programme, SPRING works closely with financial institutions to aid 

SMEs in accessing finance. The financing programmes include schemes for matching 

entrepreneurs to funding sources, loan insurance schemes, and provision of loans and 

micro-loans. 

Deal Flow Connection, which is an online service which facilities the matching of entrepreneurs 

with financing. The intention of the service is to provide a platform where entrepreneurs 

and SMEs seeking funding can get in contact with intermediaries and financing 

sources (government, venture funds, private investors, financial institutions). 

The Deal flow portal is run by DP Information Group (DP Info), Singapore's leading 

credit and business information bureau. SMEs pay a registration fee of $50 per year to 

access the portal. 

Under the loan Insurance Scheme, the government will pay 50% of the insurance premium 

required to insure a company’s loans against default risks. The loans and micro 

loan schemes are run by participating financial institutions and banks. 

In addition to the above Spring Singapore also has more specific supports aimed at the 

development of innovative start-ups so that they grow into globally competitive companies. 

The programmes for start-ups include; 

• Business Angel Funds : Spring co-invests with Angel investors in early stage companies 

through an equity based finance scheme. 

• SPRING Start-up Enterprise Development Scheme (SPRING SEEDS): Spring invests in 

start-ups though an equity based co-financing model. Spring will invest up to $1 million 

on the condition of matching investment from other private investors. The investment 

is handled and managed by a wholly owned subsidiary, SPRING SEEDS Capital. 

• Technology Enterprise Commercialisation Scheme (TECS) : Described above. 

3.1 Youth Entrepreneurship Promotion 

SPRING Singapore has a particular emphasis on the promotion and development of entreneurship 

among young people and run two programmes specifically aimed at this, 

the Young Entrepreneurs Scheme for Start-ups (YES! Start-ups) and the Young Entrepreneurs 

Scheme for Schools. 

Singapore has had a focus on the development of youth entrepreneurship since 2004 

when it introduced its Entrepreneurship Talent Development Fund which was meant to 

be a “learning by doing” support programme aimed at raising the next generation of Singapore’s 

entrepreneurs. The aims of the programme were to increase awareness of entrepreneurship 

in both students and educators, inspire youths to be innovative and 

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equip them with entrepreneurial mindset and skills. This programme gave a grant of 

maximum S$50,000 (€30,000) per student to start a business venture. The grant had to 

be matched S$1 from the business venture itself and S$1 from the student’s school. Although 

the original programme had a budget of $25 million for 5 years, the take-up on 

the programme was relatively low and by the end of the programme in 2010 only $1.76 

million had been paid out. Nevertheless the programme supported 48 student ventures, 

and 122 students. 13 of these ventures were still in business, with a combined total of 

94 employees and greater than $10 million revenues. 

SPRING explains the lack of take up of the scheme as been largely due to the reluctance 

of the schools to fund the ventures, as this was not part of their core activities. Moreover 

although the programme supplied funding to student entrepreneurs it did not focus 

enough on igniting the initial interest in entrepreneurship. The programme was redesigned 

in 2008, so as to incorporate more promotion, awareness raising and mentoring 

initiatives in addition to the funding. This resulted in an emphasis on four different aspects, 

namely, Initiation to Entrepreneurship, Development of Ideas, Commercialisation 

of ideas, all underpinned by a National Promotion Effort. SPRING either directly runs or 

sponsors programmes which deal with all these aspects of youth entrepreneurship. 

For example, the Yes!Schools programme (see section 3.1.1), which is directly administered 

by SPRING, provides funding and mentoring to schools to run entrepreneurship 

education programmes. This is an example of a programme aimed at introducing students 

to entrepreneurship though education. An example of a programme aimed at the 

development of entrepreneurial ideas is the Ideas.inc. Business Challenge which is run 

by Nanyang Technical University, but sponsored by SPRING Singapore, which provides 

funding and mentoring to turn an idea into a business (see section 3.1.2). The 

YES!Startups programme, run by SPRING (see section 3.1.3) then provides the funding 

to actually support students to start a business. These programmes are all complemented 

by a national promotion effort. 

3.1.1 Young Entrepreneurs Scheme for Schools: Yes!Schools 

The YES!Schools is a relatively new scheme, started in October 2008 which provides 

schools with grants of up to $100,000 to put in place a comprehensive structured entrepreneurship 

learning programme. Schools can apply for support to design entrepreneurship 

training programmes all the way from primary schools (9 – 12 year olds) to 

universities. There are different learning outcomes defined and expected from the programmes 

in the different age groups and it is expected that the programmes adopt a holistic 

approach, which cover all aspects of entrepreneurship (e.g. character development, 

relationship managements, and business and technical skills). 

YES!Schools is available to polytechnics, institutes of technical education, junior colleges, 

centralised institutes and secondary schools. Schools submit their project proposals to 

SPRING, who evaluate the proposals based on aspects such as Entrepreneurship and 

innovative elements, Holistic approach, Hands-on (experiential) learning component, 

Reach of project, and the use of Mentors. 

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There is very much a focus on supporting school programmes which have a hands on 

element involved. As of November 2011 the scheme had supported 100 schools, benefiting 

25,000 students. The scheme also does promotion activities such as producing a 

quarterly newsletter. 

3.1.2 Ideas.inc Business Challenge 

http://ideasincsg.com/ 

The Idea.inc Business Challenge is an example of a programme which helps turn student 

ideas into business concepts by combing developmental workshops, expert mentoring, 

and funding with the elements of a competition. This is a new programme, which is 

running in 2011/2012 and is run by Nanyang Technical University and aimed mainly at 

University students less than 26 years of age. Students are initially invited to submit a 

business idea to apply for the programme. After this they can attend workshops which 

are aimed at developing skills in business planning, marketing, intellectual property and 

accounting. After attending the workshops the applicants must submit an executive 

summary of their business idea on-line. These submissions are judged by a panel and 40 

quarter finalists are chosen to pitch their business idea before the panel. From these 15 

semi-finalists are picked. Each semi-finalist is awarded S$15,000 (€9000) to complete a 

proof of concept, which involves registering a company and conducting feasibility studies 

and market research and developing a prototype. This phase is also supported by 

business skills workshops given by expert mentors. Out of the semi-finalists 6 final 

teams are chosen and these are awarded S$50,000 (€30,000) for commercialisation. Out 

of these 6, 3 are finally chosen and awarded a prize money of S$100,000 (€60,000). 

3.1.3 Young Entrepreneurs Scheme for Start-ups (YES! Start-ups) 

The YES! Start-ups programme provides funding support of up to S$50,000 (€30,000) 

for youths to set up their innovative start-up. Spring will provide 4:1 matching funding 

up to the maximum of $50,000. The other funding may come from self-financing, 

schools, or third party sources. The funding is supplied as a grant. Applicants must be 

below 26 years of age and be a first time entrepreneur. The company must be incorporated 

for less than 6 months, be engaged in high growth activities and be based in Singapore. 

From the government perspective the programme is regarded more as an educational 

programme in entrepreneurship than one designed to build companies – it is more of a 

“learn by doing” programme. The mindset behind the scheme is that the investment is 

more of an investment in education than in business development, i.e. there is not a 

strong expectation that significant numbers of successful companies will be born. 

Nevertheless the programme seems quite successful. Since November 2008, 127 startup 

companies, involving 182 youths, have been awarded a total of S$6.32 million. These 

start-ups have generated approximately 160 new jobs, and have raised more than S$8 

million in investment from third parties. The typical age profile of the students is in the 

21 – 22 years age group, where they are in their 2 nd or 3 rd year in university. Interesting 

however, the students do not generally get any time out from their studies to start the 

business. 

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SPRING evaluates the proposals mostly internally, with a focus on the selection criteria, 

based on the innovation – i.e. the USP, the revenue model, the market demand and the 

management team. All applicants are interviewed. The progress of successful candidates 

is tracked for 24 months after receiving the grant. Although quantitative data was not 

presented it was stated that the failure rate was about 10% after 3 years. 

It is also worth noting that the young entrepreneur development programmes of Spring 

are complimented by several programmes run by the Universities. Many of the universities 

also have incubators which further support the programme. 

An example is the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Enterprise Incubator, which 

in addition to the usual mentoring, networking activities, runs an internationalisation 

programme which provides start-ups an opportunity to gain access into global networks. 

For example the programme provides hot-desk and networking opportunities in 

Silicon Valley for promising start-ups. Experienced mentors and/or overseas business 

development managers work with these start-ups to help them establish links. The NUS 

also runs an overseas college programme, which places students in overseas start-ups 

for 9 months . This programme typically places 30 – 40 students per year in start-ups in 

Silicon Valley for example. This programme does not have a direct involvement from 

SPRING, other than assistance in the network building. It was stated that a very high 

proportion of such students go on to start companies themselves. 

3.2 Service Delivery: The EnterpriseOne Approach 

www.business.gov.sg 

EnterpriseOne is an aspect of a support delivery system established and managed by 

SPRING in order to provide a ‘one stop shop’ for SMEs needing to access government 

support. The EnterpriseOne scheme is very much focussed on providing an information 

and basic advice service to a very large number of micro-enterprises. As background 

Enterprises in Singapore can be segmented into: 

• Micro-enterprises: Loosely defined as those with less than 10 employees and less 

than S$1 million turnover, of which there are approximately 123,000 in Singapore. 

• SMEs: Less than 200 employees and S$100, million turnover, of which there are 

approximately 31,000. 

• Large Companies: Of which there are approximately 1,600. 

EnterpriseOne was developed in response to the call in the early 2000s for a dedicated, 

one stop shop support service for SMEs, so that businesses did not waste time chasing 

different government agencies for support. The EnterpriseOne portal, which was set up 

in 2006, was intended to provide an online, self-help, information resource for SMEs, 

complemented by a hotline service. The mindset behind the approach is that there 

should be “no wrong door” for SMEs wanting to access government services and EnterpriseOne 

should represent the big main front door. 

EnterpriseOne stands for ’One Network for Enterprises’ and is a website bringing together 

a range of information, services and support for Singaporean business, including 

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usiness loans; grants; tax incentives and equity financing, from 30 different government 

ministries and public organisations. The service aims to be the first point of contact 

for SMEs. It aims to help local enterprises, start-ups, and aspiring entrepreneurs, as 

well as foreigners setting up businesses in Singapore. One of the main purposes is to 

provide basic support to a very large number of clients in an efficient way and hence to 

allow SPRING to reach out to a wider range of SMEs. 

EnterpriseOne is the interface between the Ministry of Trade and Industry/SPRING and 

Singaporean businesses. It is linked to the SPRING and the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s 

websites. EnterpriseOne is managed by SPRING, and SPRING has flexibility in deciding 

how the portal works and is operated. 

The Website is supported by a network of 5 enterprise development centres (EDC), 

which offer further, basic, non-customised business and financial advisory services. These 

EDCs are set up as a partnership with industry associations and Chambers of Commerce. 

The 5 EDC are run by, the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, the Singapore 

Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Singapore Indian Chamber of 

Commerce and Industry, the Singapore Malay Chamber of Commerce and Industry and 

the Singapore Manufacturers Association. They provide a channel for SMEs to obtain 

professional advice on business upgrading, expansion, etc. Each EDC has a team of business 

consultants to provide legal, financial, management and business services. Each 

Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) is staffed by an average of 4 Business Advisors, of 

which 3 or 4 are degree holders. Most staff have consultancy experience either in business 

and/or operational management. The EDCs give 1 – 2 hours free business advice to 

companies, which is typically fairly basic advice on business and financial aspects. First 

level advisory services at the EDCs are free, including financing, HR, branding, marketing, 

IT and advice on availability and applying for government schemes and grants. EDCs 

may charge for more in-depth consultation. 

EnterpriseOne is a whole-of-government initiative. Initial funding came from the Ministry 

of Finance; thereafter recurrent costs to operate the portal are funded by SPRING. 

3.2.1 Operation of the System 

EnterpriseOne essentially provides 3 levels of service, the website, the hotline and the 

EDCs. There are 3 officers managing the EnterpriseOne portal (i.e. content updates, new 

content development, implementation of new toolkits and features). A further 5 SPRING 

officers man the hotline call centre operations. The majority of these are diploma graduates. 

Officers are trained to diagnose SME’s needs and answer telephone and email queries. 

For more complicated or case-specific enquiries officers escalate cases to relevant 

experts or agencies, and monitor the responses. The call centre receives an average 

1200 to 1300 queries per month. Each Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) is staffed 

by an average of 4 Business Advisors, most of which have consultancy experience either 

in business and/or operational management. The entire EnterpriseOne service is therefore 

provided with approximately 30 staff. 

It is not compulsory for other agencies to have information on EnterpriseOne but many 

do find it useful to publish their regulations, assistance schemes and programmes on the 

site because the site has a good hit rate and the target audience of enterprises and entrepreneurs 

is similar to that of the agencies. 

PAGE 16 


Contact Points in the various agencies liaise between the various government agencies 

and EnterpriseOne. Their key task is to keep the information on EnterpriseOne updated; 

however the updating of information to the site is performed by the EnterpriseOne 

webmaster. The site functions as a linked site rather than a true one-stop-shop because 

Government agencies already had their own websites and had already developed many 

useful e-services to serve enterprises. It was considered to be unfeasible to implement a 

true ’one-stop-shop’ integrating all the e-services . 

3.2.2 Features 

• Ability to do a ’quickfind’ search where the user is asked 4 questions and results show 

schemes that are relevant, with links to a webpage within EnterpriseOne, with a 

summary of the scheme, how to apply, and basic eligibility criteria. The following features 

can be accessed via the ’quickfind’ search: 

o Customised funding options 

o Customised Government assistance 

o Market statistics released by Government agencies 

o Business-related Government e-services 

o Relevant licences and permits 

• The user can then follow a link from the summary page to an external website belonging 

to the government department or agency offering the scheme or programme. Once 

on the government site however it is generally necessary to telephone a contact at the 

agency and print out forms and post or email them to the relevant agency’s fund manager. 

The due diligence process alone can then take 2-3 months. 

• More than 150 ’How To’ guides, checklists and flow charts are published on the site. 

• The entire Frequently Asked Question database has been uploaded and can be 

searched by typing in a question. 

• EnterpriseOne has on-line applications for over 80 business licences from 17 government 

agencies through the Online Business Licensing Service whereby businesses can 

apply for their licences at any time and anywhere. Part of the application form is integrated 

and there is no need for businesses to re-submit generic data. 

• There is a Productivity@Work micro-site which aims to raise awareness on productivity 

issues and encourage SMEs to increase productivity. 

• The site exists in English and Chinese languages, with the Chinese version being maintained 

by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of commerce. 

Overall the main advantage of this system is the breadth of advice and links that a search 

can return, and the simple on-line questionnaires which filter results to ensure only relevant 

results are returned. For example, a search on ’quick find’ and ’funding options’ 

takes the user through 4 questions and returns a list of options which include information 

on different loans (including family loans), information on a SPRING Microloan 

Programme, advice on how to apply for loans, and other government assistance which 

can include links to the Tax Exemption for Startup scheme. These links then take the 

user to a webpage on the EnterpriseOne site, which is useful in that it gives a simple 

guide to eligibility. This then usefully links to the SPRING site or Inland Revenue site (in 

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the examples above) where the user can find out more and download application forms 

(in some cases applications can be filled out online). 

It is important to note however that EntepriseOne is not a full e-delivery service, but 

more of an information portal and access point for SMEs. For many actual applications 

to programmes there is still a need to complete paper applications. There may also remain 

the difficulty in determining which of the many programmes is suitable, although 

this information can probably be provided by the hotline or EDC. 

3.2.3 Results and Impact 

In terms of access rate for the service, in 2011, there were 96,000 unique vistors/month, 

980,000 page views per month and 7.9 million hits per month. The number of unique 

visits to the website increased 3 fold from 2006 and 2011. 

An evaluation was carried out in 2010, under the ’Government to Business (G2B) perception 

survey’. This showed that customer satisfaction and awareness has been increasing 

year on year since the start of the service. Satisfaction with the overall quality 

of the website increased from 62% in 2007 to 82% in 2010. Awareness increased from 

39% in 2007 to 50% in 2010. In addition 96% of businesses who contacted the EnterpriseOne 

helpdesk indicated that they were satisfied with the service. 95% of EDC customers 

rated the service at least ’satisfied’ and more than 75% rated the service ’good’ 

or ’excellent’, in a 5 point scale from ’very poor’ to ’excellent’. The site has won several 

awards within Singapore including the gold medal in the Singapore Government’s first 

ever public service award for innovation in public services . 

3.2.4 Success Factors & Lessons Learned 

It is considered by EnterpriseOne representatives that the key reasons EnterpriseOne is 

successful is that it provides, fast 24/7 access to government services and information 

with easy access to help though several channels, email, calling or visiting a centre. In 

addition the content of the site is rich and deep, covering a wide range of topics aggregated 

from different government agencies. 

A critical success factor is to have a strong top-down mandate from the ministry in order 

to make the approach work and ensure proactive co-operation from all the agencies involved. 

It is also important to have a strong on ongoing commitment to funding of the 

operation in order to keep it going as the information needs constant, monitoring, updating 

and revision in response to feedback in order to keep it relevant. 

Co-ordination of multiple partner agencies towards the common goal can give rise to 

tensions because agencies tend to have a single agency mindset. To make this work it is 

therefore very important to identify and involve the right stakeholders and have a well 

defined and effective governance structure. The work process has to be clearly defined 

and communication has to be open and regular. The EnterpriseOne initiative has a steering 

committee which meets every quarter, however operationally there is ongoing day 

to day contact among the contact people responsible in each agency. 

It can be a challenge to integrate such a wide range of information from a technology , 

content and process perspective with limited resources. Making use of available and 

proven technology is important to get the system up and running relatively quickly. It is 

critical of course to get the right people working as an effective team. 

PAGE 18 


The service has a “For the Customer, By the Customer” attitude with a “no wrong door” 

mindset driving the interaction with customers. Great care was taken from the outset to 

write the website in a language which was simple, concise and easy to understand from 

the SME’s perspective, i.e. to present the information in a way in which SMEs might relate 

to as opposed to way in which it might be structured within an agency. When putting 

the portal together the top concerns and needs of SMEs were gathered through telephone 

surveys, focus groups and interviews with more than 300 SMEs. This survey 

was initiated in 2004 and the site was launched in 2006. As a result the organisation of 

the information is based on what SMEs want, rather than an agency-specific approach. 

4 A*Star SME Support Schemes 

A*Star is Singapore’s main government agency, with the role of fostering and conducting 

world class research which is industrially relevant. A*Star operates 14 research institutes, 

7 in the biomedical area under the Biomedical Research Council (BMRC) and 7 in 

Science and Engineering under the Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC). 

Under the five year plan, A*Star has a budget of approximately S$6.4 billion (over the 

course of the 5 years). In terms of staff A*Star has a “community” of 4,085; of which 223 

work in A*STAR headquarters and the other 3,862 consist of scientists and researchers, 

technical and non-technical staff, and industry development and commercialization 

staff. 

Over the past 10 year A*Star has had very significant capital investment in the building 

of two research hubs, Biopolis for the Biomedical Research and Fusionopolis for the Science 

and Engineering hub which are located 600 metres apart. These campuses house 

the A*Star Research Institutes and consortia, co-located with private sector research 

labs and companies. The idea is that the public and private sector labs can thus share 

infrastructure such as equipment, core scientific services and conference facilities. The 

co-location of the research institutes with industry and in adjacent campuses has been 

planned with the concept of spurring interdisciplinary research and collaboration between 

researchers and industry. 

A*Star has a very strong emphasis on supporting and interacting with industry as part of 

its core mission. This interaction takes the form of setting-up and participating in Consortia 

typically aimed as pre-competitive research, joint one to one R&D collaborations 

with industry, provision of lab space within the research institutes and providing technology 

and Business incubation. The latter is handled though Exploit Technologies, the 

marketing and commercialisation arm of A*Star, described further below. In 2009 

A*Star participated in 1200 industry projects and had approximately S$166 million 

(€100 million) in industry funding. A*Star has also been instrumental in attracting and 

setting up large scale industry collaboration projects such as the A*Star Aerospace Programme 

or Roche’s Translational Medicine Hub. These collaborations bring together 

large industry partners, A*STAR’s research institutes and local SMEs in a consortium to 

collaborate on pre-competitive projects. 

A*Star also places a considerable emphasis on both attracting overseas research talent 

and on placing Singapore students in short term research placements overseas, with 

PAGE 19 


several programmes aimed at this. In addition it is generally encouraging of staff transfers 

with industry. 

Traditionally researchers in A*Star have been 100% funded in their work, however recently 

(under the new 5 year plan) there are moves towards making more of the funding 

available on a competitive basis. For example since 2010 the Industrial Alignment Fund 

has been introduced under which 30% of a researchers funding depends on them having 

a definite interaction with industry. This Industry Alignment Fund is a S$1.35 billion 

fund which is jointly administered by A*Star and EDB, the broad aim of which is to get 

more economic returns for the investment in research by ensuring that researchers 

have definite industry collaboration. For example the bioscience RIs budget has been 

cut to approximately 70% of its previous budgets (to approximately $1.3 billion over 5 

years) and they must compete for the other 30% though the IAF. The establishment of 

the IAF seems to have had a bigger impact on the Biosciences Institutes than the Science 

and Engineering institutes i . 

A*Star research institutes and researchers are measured on (all equally important) (1) 

training research scientists (2) intellectual capital produced, i.e. publications and patents 

(3) industrial Capital produced, i.e. working with industry and licenses. 

Although much of the support offered by A*Star does not necessarily have a bias towards 

any particular industry type such as SMEs or large companies or start-ups, A*Star 

does have several programmes which are aimed specifically at supporting SMEs. ( 

http://www.a-star.edu.sg/Industry/Overview/tabid/171/Default.aspx) ; These include; 

• Technology for Enterprise Capability Upgrading (T-Up): This programme is aimed at 

helping enterprises identify critical technologies and build in-house R&D capabilities. 

It essentially allows SMEs to engage/second research scientists from the research institutes 

to identify and implement R&D projects for up to 2 years. The programme is 

run in collaboration with SPRING Singapore and the Economic Development Board. 

The company can directly approach the research institute to identify a researcher. The 

A*Star Research Institutes match the SME request with a suitable researcher. The SME 

can make an application to SPRING, seeking funding to cover the secondment of the 

researcher (see the Technology Innovation Programme run by SPRING). To date, since 

its launch in 2003, 340 research scientists have been seconded to local companies. 

• Operations and Technology Roadmapping : Under this programme A*Star’s research 

institutes work with local companies to help them use roadmapping to identify technology 

that will improve their future product or service offering. The technology 

roadmapping is performed through 5 facilitated and customised workshops, developed 

by the companies key staff in collaboration with A*Star staff. 

• Technical Advisor Scheme: Senior scientists from A*Star can advise companies on 

technology matters. Under this programme the company can get for free, the services 

of a technical advisor for half a day per month. Consulting time beyond this must be 

paid for. 

• Facility Sharing Programme: A collaborative programme between A*Star and Spring 

Singapore which allows companies to gain access to equipment and facilities in the research 

institutes. 

PAGE 20 


The study visit also included a visit to one of the A*Star research institutes, - the Singapore 

Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTECH), which was not based at the Fusionopolis 

Campus, but rather at the Nanyang Technical University. SIMTECH specialises 

in the development of manufacturing technology underpinning a wide range of areas 

such as electronics, semiconductors, precision engineering, medtech, aerospace, automotive, 

marine, etc. 

The research institute takes a very active role in putting projects together with industry, 

and especially between large companies, A*Star and small companies. They seem to 

have a small group of people dedicated to this task, who try to put together projects 

which may involve several areas and researchers within the institute. The typical approach 

is to attempt to analyse the value chain for an industry, by talking with larger 

companies, understanding their needs and then communicating these needs to smaller 

companies perhaps through workshops. For example one of the main areas of operation 

for SIMTEC is in serving the local precision engineering companies, who are typically 

subcontractors to the larger multinational companies. It appears that SPRING and EDB 

have “ad-hoc” funding schemes which can be used to fund the industry participation in 

this type of activity. In terms of licenses SIMTECH generate about 20 – 30 royalty bearing 

licenses to industry per year. They also send about 20 people per year to work in 

industry. 

4.1.1 Exploit Technologies 

Exploit Technologies is essentially the technology transfer arm of A*Star. It was founded 

in 2002 with the aim of providing the link between A*Star researchers and industry and 

actively promoting the commercialisation of technologies developed by researchers. 

Exploit is set up as a limited company and has the sole and exclusive right to license 

A*Star technology, although ownership of the IP is retained by A*Star. 

Exploit’s activities go somewhat beyond the activities of the traditional technology 

transfer office in the areas of Intellectual Property Management, in that it has the discretion 

to provide gap funding for incubation and commercialisation of technologies, so 

that they can be turned into licenses or spin-offs. 

In its traditional IP management role Exploit provides prior art searches, patentability 

evaluation, filing and prosecution of IP applications, and maintenance of the IP. Exploit 

will also help in conducting the due diligence on technology disclosures, including identification 

of the specifications required by industry. 

Exploit also provides Technology and Commercial Intelligence, which includes the 

evaluation of the commercial potential of IP, identifying if it is suitable for further commercialisation 

funding though its GAP funding programme, and providing direction in 

terms of insights into emerging markets and applications to ensure that technologies 

are tuned to suit industry needs. 

In the area of Technology Incubation, Exploit works closely with companies to determine 

appropriate technical specifications and then directs the technology disclosures 

towards satisfying these. GAP funding of up to S$1 million (€600,000) can be provided 

to researchers to further develop the technology to being commercial ready over a peri- 

PAGE 21 


od of 3 to 12 months. Companies are given the option to license the technology if the 

development project is successful. Essentially Exploit is taking the risk of proving the 

technology to a commercial ready state. This can be particularly beneficial if the potential 

licensees are SMEs as they are generally not ready to take on the commercialisation 

of a technology unless it is proven. 

Exploit also operates a business incubation process, which attempts to identify new 

technologies at an early stage in the research and direct the development of these with 

commercialisation firmly in mind. These are likely to be technologies which can have 

multiple and cross-disciplinary applications and have the potential to grow into new 

industrial sectors. These are referred to as flagship projects and Exploit can provide 

S$3 – 5 million (€1.8 - 3milliom) to fund the business incubation of these technologies. 

Researchers can submit a proposal to Exploit for this flagship funding. 

Exploit also work closely with large multinational companies to translate technologies 

into application, through a research collaboration agreement. In this case the company 

would license the technology from A*Star. Exploit maintains and advertises (through 

Tech Alerts and RSS feeds) a database of A*Star technologies which are ready for commercialisation. 

Exploit has a standard license agreement which it provides online, and licensing agreements 

can be concluded in a matter of weeks if companies agree to these standard 

terms. Exclusive or non-exclusive licenses can be granted, however exclusive licenses 

might only be granted in cases where technology requires substantial development, or 

investment. Exclusive licenses might typically be restricted to specific fields of use, geographic 

areas, and/or time periods. The right to further develop the technology is usually 

retained by Exploit and typically there is no exclusive access granted to any further 

future A*Star developments of the technology. 

Exploit looks at the IP portfolio and examines it for commercial opportunities. In doing 

this it doesn’t have a particular bias towards the creation of spin-outs or serving SMEs as 

opposed to large companies as it needs to be aware of its mission to serve all industry 

through the licensing of IP. Licensing seems to be the more usual route for commercial 

exploitation, with spin-offs being the more unusual. Licensing terms to industry are generally 

flexible. In terms of the number of licenses more go to SMEs than large companies, 

however in terms of the value of licenses large companies account for the greatest share. 

Licensing is looked at in a flexible manner where the goal is very much financial benefit 

to Singapore as opposed to benefit to any one research institute or organisation and Exploit 

would be conscious that there must be a balance struck in this regard. 

Exploit currently manages a portfolio of over 3000 active patents, have granted over 

250 licenses, and have a portfolio of 24 spin-off companies. The estimated business revenues 

arising from the A*Star licensed technologies is S$500 million (€300 million). The 

total market value created though A*Star start-ups amounts to more than S$100 million 

(€60 million). 

PAGE 22 


5 Good Practices & Transferability 

The IPF has a focus on learning from best practice in SME innovation support. In the discussion 

of good practices below we focus on those practices which could be implemented 

by innovation agencies and which focus on SMEs and entrepreneurs. In particular 

two of the topics covered by the study visit, namely the focus on youth entrepreneurship 

and the EnterpriseOne approach to service delivery are considered as good practices 

and discussed further below. 

The A*Star research institutes and Exploit are not further discussed in terms of good 

practices below. Although these are a hugely important part of the innovation system in 

Singapore their detailed study is beyond the scope of this report, which is focuses on 

learning for innovation agencies. There are potentially many good practices in the 

A*Star approach as they demonstrate a very strong focus on working closely with industry. 

In particular the commercialisation activities of Exploit goes beyond the traditional 

technology transfer activities and could be compared to the commercialisation programmes 

run by many innovation agencies, however clearly it is very context specific, 

dealing, as it does with the commercialisation of the output from the very large, state 

funded research institute system. 

5.1 Integrated Approach to Youth Entrepreneurship 

The approach to the support of Youth Entrepreneurship in Singapore is found to be a 

good practice. The good practice is more the integrated approach adopted, which attempts 

to address not only the funding sources but also the educational and awareness 

raising. A recent study on the barriers to youth entrepreneurship ii concluded that the 

barriers include Social and cultural attitudes, lack of entrepreneurship education, access 

to finance, administrative and regulatory frameworks and lack of business assistance 

and support. The approach in Singapore seems to address most of these barriers, with a 

national effort aimed at awareness raising and promoting entrepreneurship among the 

youth, supported by education programmes, and special youth start-up funding 

schemes. It seems to have been an important part of the learning process in Singapore 

that any approach has to be comprehensive and address not just one aspect, such as 

funding, but also the aspects related to stimulation of entrepreneurship and development 

of ideas through education, learning by doing, mentorship, etc. 

The YES Schools programme funded by SPRING is open to all schools from primary 

schools up so that the cultural attitude to entrepreneurship can be addressed at a very 

early stage in education. Another good practice is the emphasis on the “learn by doing” 

as part of the selection courses. This learning by doing aspect of the education has been 

highlighted as being particularly important iv . The dedicated funding scheme for young 

entrepreneur’s start-ups is also a good practice, as it supports the education element to 

be turned into dedicated funding, which according to SPRING still maintains an educational 

mindset in terms of expectations from the programme. 

The focus on Youth Entrepreneurship is obviously important for Singapore, because as 

small country it needs to maximise the sources for successful start-ups and growth 

companies. Internationally the promotion of youth entrepreneurship is recognised as 

PAGE 23 


eing an important approach to the reduction of youth unemployment, and integration 

of youth into the labour force. Moreover it can capitalise on the latent entrepreneurship 

which is considered to exist in the youth in many countries. It can also capitalise on the 

fact that young entrepreneurs can sometimes be more tuned in to new trends and new 

opportunities. In addition a recent report on the impact of entrepreneurship education 

by the European Commission found that enterprises founded by alumni of entrepreneurial 

education courses could be characterised as being more innovative, ambitious 

and having high growth. Such programmes may also help in changing the cultural attitudes 

to entrepreneurship, i.e. seeing entrepreneurship as a viable career option. For 

example a recent study iii on entrepreneurship attitudes in Europe indicates that 45% of 

EU citizens would prefer to be self-employed (although there is wide variation across 

countries) compared to 55% in the USA and 71% in China. The study also indicated that 

the perception of the impact of school education on entrepreneurship was considerably 

higher in the US and China than in Europe. 

5.1.1 Transferability 

In principle there is no difficulty in transferring such a policy approach and indeed the 

approach used in Singapore is of relevance in a European context as many member 

states already recognise the importance of entrepreneurship education with several 

countries recently implementing dedicated strategies iv . It is also well recognised in Europe 

that there is a need to stimulate entrepreneurship in young people with this being 

a part of the EU 2020 strategy. There already exists many schemes in Europe targeting 

youth entrepreneurship, the Erasmus Young Entrepreneur programme, the activities of 

the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), the Young Entrepreneur 

Programme for postgraduate and postdoctoral students in the UK, and the Education 

Networks Enterprise in the Netherlands, being just some examples. Although most European 

countries have some form of Entrepreneurship education at primary and secondary 

level iv very few seem to focus on the practical “learn by doing” approach which 

is emphasised in the Singapore YES!Schools programme. 

The Singapore approach, which seems to be characterised by a co-ordinated effort to 

address different aspects, probably requires a top-down will to address all the barriers 

mentioned above. Addressing regulatory and legal framework issues may also be necessary. 

For example in Singapore the age at which you can start a company was revised 

downwards from 21 to 18 in 2009. Another important consideration in this respect is 

perhaps bankruptcy legislation. If failure of the business is not an unexpected outcome 

then national rules relating to bankruptcy, etc. must not be such as to attach a significant 

stigma to failure – otherwise the point of the programme is defeated v . 

5.2 EntepriseOne Approach 

The overall concept of the EnterpriseOne approach can be considered a good practice in 

terms of integrated service delivery of basic information and advice to a very broad client 

base. What is perhaps most important as a good practice is that it attempts to provide 

a single first point of contact for SMEs into the public support system. It is a good 

example of a delivery system set-up to cater to the basic need for non-customised advice 

and guidance required by the large number of SMEs and micro-enterprises. An important 

aspect of the provision of such systems is the need to achieve some balance between 

the on-line provision of standard information and the more customised support 

PAGE 24 


which can be given by human interaction. EnterpriseOne achieves this though the use of 

the hotlines and the enterprise development centres. Moreover EnterpriseOne seems 

to have been designed with the client, - i.e. the SME firmly in mind, i.e. the focus is on the 

presentation of the information in a manner which is expected by the SMEs as opposed 

to the manner in which the information might be organised within an agency. 

There is quite a significant depth of information available though the website, with “how 

to” guides, case studies, links to news and events under a topic, toolkits (to help SMEs in 

aspect such as customer service, design, human resources, marketing, etc.). Also impressive 

is the way in which the website attempts to co-ordinate and provide access to the 

information from a relatively large number of agencies. 

5.2.1 Transferability 

The concept of providing an information portal and first access point to public services 

is entirely transferable. Indeed the EnterpriseOne approach of providing an information 

front end, applied on top of existing information from a different agencies, is in some 

ways easier to set-up than a fully integrated e-service delivery. Nevertheless there are 

important barrier to successfully implementing such as system. The learning from Singapore 

is that it requires a significant top-down push to make such a system work and to 

ensure that all agencies co-operate effectively in keeping the information up to date and 

relevant. 

The resources required in larger countries may also be considerable, e.g. in Singapore 

the service with hotlines and EDC is provided by approximately 30 staff, serving a client 

base of approximately 150,000 companies. The back-up by hotline is an important aspect, 

although transfer to larger countries might involve significant investment to make 

such a hotline effectively complement the on-line service with more detailed/customised 

help and information. 

Transferring the service to a different context, particularly a country which has a complex 

pre-existing support system (i.e. numerous different agencies which do not necessarily 

collaborate), would be challenging due to the need for constant updating of information, 

which requires excellent relationships between contacts at agencies and the 

EnterpriseOne team, as well as a top down or strategic agreement to work together. 

There are similarities between EnterpriseOne and some of the US websites such as 

Grants.Gov. In considering implementation of an EnterpriseOne type service in such a 

country it would be worth considering also transferring the collaboration protocols developed 

by Grants.Gov etc. 1 

i ”Singapore’s Salad days are over” Nature 468, 731, December 2010, 

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v468/n7325/full/468731a.html 

ii Stimulating Youth Entrepreneurship: Barriers and Incentives to enterprise start-ups by Young People, 

Ulrich Schoof, SEED Working Paper No. 76, International Labour Office, Geneva, 2006. 

1 Covered in more detail in IPF ‘First Stage Review Report’. 

PAGE 25 


iii Entrepreneurship in the EU and beyond, Flash Eurobarometer Series #283, European Commission, 

December 2009. 

iv Entrepreneurship Education at School in Europe,. Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency 

(EACEA P9 Eurydice and Policy Support) March 2012 http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/education/eurydice 

v The Performance and Prospects of European Venture Capital, Roger Kelly, European Investment Fund, 

Working Paper 2011/09, 

http://www.eif.org/news_centre/publications/eif_wp_2011_009_EU_Venture.pdf 

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Singapore SME Innovation Support Schemes - PRO INNO Europe

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