UVC Partners surveyed medium-sized companies about their startup collaborations. Established companies primarily expect expertise and innovation from the young companies. When the collaboration fails, they usually blame the startups.
The venture capital investor UVC Partners has a total of nine medium-sized companies from the network of UnternehmerTUM about their startup activities. Seven companies are already collaborating with external startups, and all others are planning startup collaborations. Five companies are pursuing internal startup projects that could be spun off in the future.
Despite the small sample size, the survey provides some interesting insights. The study authors asked about the reasons for the failure of collaborations between companies and startups. From the perspective of the SMEs, the mistakes mostly lay with the collaborating startup: The established companies criticized a lack of product-market fit, an immature, early-stage startup, and a lack of technological performance. Excessive prices and excessive costs were also criticized. On their own side, the respondents see insufficient internal capacity as the main reason for the failure of startup collaborations.
Innovative technologies are the most important driver for startup collaborations
The respondents primarily hope that their collaboration with startups will accelerate innovation and provide access to new technologies. Startups that bring innovation to the company's product range are therefore particularly sought after. Medium-sized companies, on the other hand, are less likely to expect to generate short- or medium-term profits from joint projects.
When asked which startup strengths they considered most relevant, the most frequently cited technologies to which the company currently lacks access were followed by clear technological differentiation, potential revenue growth for the medium-sized company, an intuitive user interface or an outstanding user experience, a strong customer focus of the team, timely project start and completion, and potential efficiency improvements within the company. Dr. Anne Kreile, Investment Associate at UVC Partners and project leader of the study, says:
"The study demonstrates the high innovation potential of startups for future-oriented technology corporations and medium-sized companies and shows that, from the companies' perspective, startups can differentiate themselves particularly through strong technology, proven product-market fit, and intuitive product design."
