Ohio University Innovation Center wins major award of excellence from InBIA

Ohio University’s business incubator, the Innovation Center, has received another major award of excellence from the International Business Innovation Association, or InBIA.

At its annual conference in Atlanta, Ga., in early July, InBIA named the Innovation Center the 2022 Entrepreneurial Support Organization (ESO) of the Year Award in the rural category. With more than 2,200 members across 62 nations, InBIA is the leading global industry organization.

“Ohio University takes very seriously our mission to facilitate economic growth in the region we serve. We are grateful to be acknowledged for our service to Athens County and the region and we are proud of all that Stacy Strauss and her staff continue to achieve.” President Hugh Sherman said.

Each year, InBIA honors ESOs that exemplify the best of the industry that make important contributions through their products, services, programs, best practices, and initiatives. The ESO of the Year Award honors ESOs that have developed and implemented best-in-class practices that impactfully and successfully serve their clients and accomplish their mission. The Innovation Center also won the Rural ESO of the Year Award in 2016 and 2019,as well as taking home InBIA’s highest honor, the Randall M. Whaley Incubator of the Year Award, in 2019.

“We thank InBIA for recognizing the Innovation Center’s work to provide top-notch business development services, connections to resources and newly renovated facilities to tech and tech-enabled startups which, all combined, foster tangible economic development through entrepreneurial support in our region,” said Stacy Strauss, director of the Innovation Center. “That said, the people also deserving recognition are the passionate and dedicated founders and client company staff who work tirelessly and with dogged determination to ensure their company grows and prospers as well as our collegial and collaborative partners throughout the region.”   

The Innovation Center offers customized business development assistance including executive coaching, regulatory guidance, market research, talent acquisition assistance, vendor discounts and much more. Its 36,000-square-foot facility features 10 biotechnology labs, 30 offices, and approximately $1 million of biotech and life science equipment and prototype development equipment. The business incubator also offers a virtual membership option to support entrepreneurs and startups who may not need a dedicated space.

In 2021 alone, the Innovation Center supported 249 jobs that generated an estimated $18 million in employee compensation and $49.7 million in economic output in Athens County, according to a new economic impact report.

The Innovation Center is part of the Ohio University Research Division. More information about the Innovation Center can be found on their website.

InBIA is the leading global industry organization. InBIA is the largest member-based entrepreneurial support network in the world and is a leading resource for building thriving entrepreneurial ecosystems through sustainable entrepreneurial programs across a wide scope of industries and disciplines.