Montgomery County
Montgomery County: Setting the pace in the
INNOVATION ECONOMY BY BILL HOLLERAN
A
national leader in fostering business innovation for more than 30 years, Montgomery County is poised to continue its leadership role in the decades ahead. “The future economy is the innovation economy,” said Steve Silverman, director of the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development (MCDED). “It’s no longer about large manufacturing plants or huge companies locating in the Washington, D.C. area. In Montgomery County, we want to cultivate the next MedImmune and Human Genome Sciences. We are aiming to do that by supporting start-up companies.” The county has an exceptionally strong innovation track record on which to build, according to Kristina Ellis, MCDED’s communications manager. “Whether it’s strategic planning, zoning, land development or incubator facilities, Montgomery County has been ahead of the innovation curve for more than three decades,” she said. According to Ellis, the county’s early innovation efforts were focused on the life sciences because of the presence of federal scientific and technical agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and National Institute of Standards and Technology. “We realized that the scientists and researchers working in federal labs were going to come out of these agencies to create their own businesses and bring products to the market,” said Ellis. “In terms of workforce talents and skills, the life sciences had by far the most to offer.” But Ellis points out that the current focus of the county’s innovation programs and activities has broadened beyond bioscience to include information technology (IT) and professional services.
A Network for Business Innovation
The nexus for business innovation in Montgomery County is the MCDED-operated network of incubator facilities. Known as the Business Innovation Network, it was founded in 1999 with the opening of the 50,000-square-foot Shady Grove Innovation Center. Recently expanded by 10,000 square feet, the Shady Grove incubator supports 46 companies, according to John Korpela, director of the MCDED Business Innovation Network. In the 13 years since, MCDED has added four more business incubators—Silver Spring, Wheaton, Rockville and Germantown—offering flexible, modern office and lab space coupled with on-site
“The future economy is the innovation economy... In Montgomery County, we want to cultivate the next MedImmune and Human Genome Sciences.” - Steve Silverman, director, Montgomery County Department of Economic Development
legal, accounting, banking, intellectual property and other business support services. “We have 38 wet labs and 250 offices at all five facilities, totaling 150,000 square feet,” said Korpela. “At last check with the National Business Incubation Association in 2011, we are the largest program in the country with 139 companies in residence.” According to Silverman, a partnership agreement with the state of Maryland and NIST “should result in a (sixth) incubator housed in the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence, adjacent to NIST.”This new facility, says Silverman, will provide incubator space for early-stage cybersecurity companies. Since its inception, says Korpela, the Business Innovation Network has worked with more than 250 teams of entrepreneurs and graduated about 115 companies. “Ninety percent of these companies have stayed in the county, moved into commercial office space and hired more people,” he said.
Incubator Success Story
LiveHealthier, founded in 2005 by president and CEO Mary Moslander, is a global provider of health management programs tailored to individuals and customized to corporations. The Bethesda-based company is a 2010 graduate of the Business Innovation Network. The county’s incubator program, said Moslander, “absolutely has been a critical component of the success of our 7-year-old company.”When Moslander moved into the Shady Grove Innovation Center in 2005, “it was just me and my idea in 200 square feet.” Moslander’s company later moved to the Rockville center, and altogether, she says, was in the incubator program for around five years.
Innovative Businesses 10 June 2012
According to Moslander, graduating from the incubator program meant her company was “well funded, with a good revenue stream, and able to take on a commercial lease and create jobs.” Initially, the company moved into 3,200 square feet of commercial space at Bethesda Metro Center. “We have grown so quickly,” she said, “that we just signed a seven-year lease to move in June into 15,000 square feet,” also in downtown Bethesda. “The incubator allows an entrepreneur to focus on his or her business model and target market,” said Moslander. “You can put your head down and concentrate on building your business. Also, since you are in a community of like-minded entrepreneurs, you can find opportunities for synergy.” Start-up companies in the incubator program also benefit from the financial resources provided by the MCDED staff who, Moslander said, “have been there as entrepreneurs.” For example, says Moslander, she learned that the county has small loan and grant programs for start-up companies.
Beyond Incubators
Montgomery County’s next step in providing business innovation impetus, said Ellis, “is to focus on technology transfer, which means helping the earlystage companies in our incubators and elsewhere in the county get their products to market.” According to Ellis, this involves “dealing with intellectual property issues, hooking up firms with the correct business information sources, finding partnerships and collaborating with our universities and federal agencies to move things along.” A monthly Tech Transfer Speakers Series featuring top local business leaders in biotech, IT and professional services “helps get the word out,” said Ellis. The Business Innovation Network also conducts more than 100 “Lunch and Learn” seminars and training sessions each year for its client companies on a wide spectrum of topics, as well as CEO roundtables and networking events—all at no cost to the attendees. In addition, says Ellis, MCDED is reaching out to find more procurement opportunities for emerging businesses with federal agencies and big companies located in the county. Looking to the future, “Montgomery County will remain in the forefront of the business innovation economy. When it comes to getting start-up companies off the ground, this is a partnership role government can and should play,” said Silverman.