HQ BAM: Why HQ Raleigh won a $100,000 NC IDEA grant

HQ Raleigh really has been more than a shared office space project from its launch nearly three years ago. Networking, mentoring, more. A community. Recent expansion is taking the HQ Raleigh concept to other markets. And now with a $100,000 grant from NC IDEA, HQ Raleigh is embarking on a new incubation effort called HQ BAM. So what is it?

BAM stands for Business Accelerator Model, HQ Raleigh tells WRAL TechWire, and executives note that they are “excited” about landing the grant as well as what BAM will mean for its growing community.

In response to questions from The Skinny about the HQ program, Thom Ruhe, CEO of NC IDEA, explained why BAM was one of the nine recipients of Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Partner grants totaling nearly $1.2 million that were announced Thursday.

HQ Raleigh – $100,000 for HQ BAM, a multi-faceted incubation effort for entrepreneurs across the state

Q. What is BAM exactly?

A. The HQ BAM effort is specifically focused on equipping the most promising companies emerging from HQ’s Incubation & Acceleration efforts with the sales infrastructure, operational capacity, and financial wherewithal to increase sales exponentially, successfully ramp up operations to accommodate growth, and manage cash flow.

In other words, to help them “cross the chasm.”

The program is intended to develop founders into “professional” leadership and guide their companies toward growth and success. This element of the HQ BAM Program does not yet exist, and a significant portion of the NC IDEA grant will be used to fund its development.

This support includes:

Connecting scaling companies with a comprehensive back-office support system including legal, accounting, HR, CRM support through a network of HQ partners;
Leveraging HQ’s corporate and entrepreneurial network to generate strategic sales leads;
Providing focused consultative support on lead generation, CRM management, cash flow and budgeting, and human resource management;
Establishment of efficient, effective business processes appropriate for scaling companies without imposing unnecessary bureaucracy;
HR/Talent Management to put in place the appropriate job descriptions, recruiting, hiring, evaluation and career development processes to aid in attracting, developing and retaining talent, including management development for lower level teams;
Leadership development for senior team members;
Product portfolio management to develop and manage a product line to provide additional value to existing customers and grow the accessible market for existing products;
Develop and implement an effective and efficient sourcing/procurement system for the materials needed to run and grow a rapidly scaling enterprise;
Develop and implement an effective logistics and fulfillment system for delivering value to customers;
Develop and implement the necessary IT infrastructure to support the present and future needs of the firm;
Develop and implement a robust customer service and retention system; and
Develop and implement a strategic planning system to manage and drive future growth.