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Membership lifecycle

Eligibility requirements

• Be a knowledge-based technology enterprise, developing or commercialising innovative new products or services
• Be incorporated less than five years
• Be a privately held growth orientated, for profit company with no more than 25 full time employees
• Be amenable to advice from our selected business and technical advisory panel
• Agree to advise GCIC's CEO of any location change for a minimum of five years after graduation
• Agree to participate in surveys while in the Program, and for five years after graduation. These surveys are necessary for GCIC stakeholder reporting and internal review purposes to collect general financial, sales and employment information in order to determine the effectiveness of the incubator and the information will not be published or made public in any manner which would identify specific information about any individual company

Acceptance procedures

Applicants must submit:

• A completed application form
• A business plan or executive summary which includes a description of the company's current and/or planned products and services
• Market strategy and sales plan
• Description of the management team
• A three year financial projection
• Full disclosure of potential lawsuits involving employees for violation of previous non competition employment agreements or other legal matters affecting the company, its Directors or its executive team

After preliminary reviews of the above, the applicant company will be required to present to a Review Panel. The Panel, at its own discretion, will recommend or not recommend admission.

Entrance criteria

A company will be admitted to membership based on the following:

• The promise of its business opportunity
• The existence of a definable market for its potential products/services/technology
• The submission of a Business Plan or executive summary outlining a market strategy and a three year financial projection
• The company must be growth orientated
• The company agrees to work with GCIC's executive team to identify its business development needs and appropriate milestones to be reached to ensure successful graduation from the Program
• The company must be willing to accept mentoring and must meet with assigned mentors, a minimum of once every six months
• The company must provide baseline business data as requested by the CEO of GCIC
• The company agrees to claim affiliation with GCIC only as a member of its Program
• The use of the GCIC incubator program, name or logo is strictly prohibited without the written consent of GCIC's CEO
• The company must inform the CEO of GCIC of material changes related to management, personnel, structure, research, business plan, financial status and internal operations
• A life science company must have advanced approval for any clinical trials and must operate in accordance with the Queensland Code of Ethical Practices
• All companies must abide by the policies and protocols of the GCIC Service Agreement
• The company must provide proof of its financial ability to pay the necessary membership charges
• Companies which meet all of the above entrance criteria without requiring dedicated workspace in the facility may enter the Program as Virtual members

Termination of participation in the program

GCIC reserves the right to rescind a company's right to participate in the Program. For conduct deemed illegal or detrimental to the Program as a whole, termination is effective immediately. For unsatisfactory performance or non-payment of GCIC membership fees and associated charges a company will receive written notice of an intent to terminate, including potential probationary periods and remediations. Decisons to terminate may be appealed to the GCIC Board of Directors as the final arbitrator.

Exit and Graduation

GCIC provides temporary assistance and space to new and developing technology-based businesses. After a member company has become a successful independent business, that no longer needs the assistance of GCIC, the company will graduate from the facility. GCIC has the right to modify the occupancy period and determine exit and graduation criteria for admitted companies. Companies admitted to the facility must use their best efforts to meet exit criteria in order to successfully graduate from GCIC membership. An agreed upon process outlined in the Service Agreement will track the company's progress after graduation.

GCIC has the following rights associated with the determination and evaluation of successful and unsuccessful exit criteria for member companies.

GCIC has the right to:

• Direct client companies to vacate the premises and terminate all ties with GCIC at any time [unsuccessful exit]
• Reserve final approval for successful exit from the premises of GCIC through graduation
• Periodically review member/client companies and modify occupancy periods based on the following:
  • The company's past compliance with the terms of the Service Agreement
  • The company's future performance potential in terms of employment generation and general success
  • The company's preparation and presentation of an operating plan and cash flow projection to chart future objectives and performance targets
  • The demand for space and the company's potential compared to competing demands and availability of space in the facility
  • The company's need for and use of services provided by GCIC
  • The company's ability to stand on its own in a commercial environment/facility
  • The company's relationship with other businesses in the incubator facility
  • Companies admitted to GCIC will use their best efforts to meet graduation criteria established by the company management and GCIC's CEO. Graduation criteria is similar to both residential or virtual members , with the exception of use/review of workspace usage and availability.

Periodically each company will be reviewed by the company management and the GCIC CEO or GCIC executive team member. The intent of this review is to analyse the company's past performance and predict the company's future needs and growth potential in terms of the following characteristics. These characteristics will typically be considered during determination of graduation criteria and evaluation:

• A balanced and experienced management team
• Funding to carry the company through 6-12 month's of operations and financial stability as demonstrated vis a vis a significant outside investment or a long term investor commitment to the company
• Qualified demonstrable market need for the Member’s product/technology/service
• The need for and use of the services provided by GCIC
• The presence of a well thought out operating plan

Graduation criteria

In addition to meeting the exit criteria outlined above, companies admitted to GCIC will use their best efforts to meet graduation criteria established by the company management and GCIC's CEO. Whether an on site company or an off site virtual company, GCIC graduation criteria are detailed below:

• Periodically each company will be reviewed by the company management and the GCIC CEO. The intent of this review is to analyse the company's past performance and predict the company's future needs and growth potential in terms of the following characteristics:
  • A balanced and experienced management team
  • Funding to carry the company through 6-12 month's of operations and financial stability as demonstrated vis a vis a significant outside investment or a long term investor commitment to the company
  • A significant product sales backlog indicating a customer need
  • The need for and use of the services provided by GCIC
  • The presence of a well though out operating plan

Length of programs at GCIC

The length of stay in the GCIC incubator program is generally two years but can vary depending on a company's specific operational situation. Extensions will be considered on case by case basis.

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Disclaimer: GCIC makes no representation or warranties, express or implied, to clients or owners with regard to the services or that the services will result in, or cause clients' business ventures to succeed or achieve any specific objectives. The Disclaimer is communicated in more detail in the Service Agreement between GCIC and the member/client company.