The role of growth accelerators in integrated product development

IoT products have a high degree of complexity. This can put a lot of pressure on product development, but in product development the challenges do not always lie in the technology. Growth accelerator BOM, Brabant Development Agency, can help companies with this process and will during a lecture at E&A 2019 delve deeper into the theme 'integrated product development'.

Pepijn Herman is a business developer at BOM. He explains the function and the use of a growth accelerator like BOM: “Scaling a business model, or the growth of a company, is a challenging process in which an organization undergoes major changes. There is also often a need for outside capital to make this growth possible. BOM provides support for companies in Brabant with a clear need for growth. We do this by coaching the entrepreneur and via investments.”

“As a business developer, I am responsible for guiding mainly early-stage companies,” says Herman. “These companies have not yet reached a solid enough level of business case to be interesting for private equity parties. Companies that BOM sees potential in can be intensively guided towards investment. My job is both scouting in the market and helping companies hands-on.”

Growth Accelerator

BOM was founded in 1983 by the Province of Noord-Brabant and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate. Both parties are still the shareholders. In BOM's vision, Brabant has everything it takes to perform at a global level: economically, technologically and socially. Partly by providing capital, BOM can fulfil its role as a growth accelerator.

Various tech companies have now grown into solid parties in electronics, partly thanks to the support of BOM. Herman mentions Heliox, Epyon and Sioux, among others.

During his lecture, Herman will delve deeper into the subject of integral product development. He says: “In this day and age, developing a ‘smart’ product has become much more complex as soon as connectivity is involved. This requires a different way of thinking and has an impact on product development companies. Think of the complexity, for example: it is impossible to develop everything yourself. That is why you have to use what is already there.”

Would you like to attend this lecture? Register for free for a visit to E&A 2019.