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Incubator Tool Library

A collection of vetted tools and resources to help impact incubators run smarter, scale bigger, and better support their entrepreneurs.

Pollinate Impact Tool Library

Welcome to your shortcut to the good stuff.

When we say “tool”, we mean anything that helps incubators thrive—software, templates, handbooks, or any resource that lets you level up your game. We’ve curated the best for impact incubators across the Global South, so skip the search, grab what you need, and get back to making magic happen. 

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Impact Measurement & Management for the SDGs

The course was designed around the fundamental elements of the SDG Impact Standards, the only management standards that embed sustainability at the core of an organization in the holistic way intended by the creators of the SDGs. The course demonstrates how the SDG Impact Standards help organizations align with responsible business principles, other standards, and best practices in impact management.

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Trainings & Capacity Building

Organization: DUKE

Accubate

Accubate is a cloud-native enterprise-grade innovation management platform which offers an advanced suite of features every step of the way from ideation through to implementation.

  • Category: Scaling & Growth
  • Type: Technology Platforms / Software

Organization: Cunomial

Babele

Babele is the online platform to manage your mission-driven innovation ecosystems & effectively engage stakeholders

  • Category: Scaling & Growth
  • Type: Technology Platforms / Software

Organization: Babele

Angel Networks in Emerging Markets: A Guide for Development Institutions

Even as these ecosystem-building efforts generate progress, accessing sufficient
financial capital remains a critical challenge for entrepreneurs at this early, high-
risk stage. Increasing the flow of private capital into early stage enterprises to help
them bridge the pioneer gap is a key pillar of PACE’s work to drive broader economic
development in emerging markets. This guide was commissioned by PACE to identify
specific leverage points for USAID and other development institutions to support an
instrumental source of early-stage capital – local angel investor networks.

  • Category: Donor & Investor Relations
  • Type: Handbooks

Organization: SEAD @ DUKE & CASE

Decoding the ABCs of Effective Enterprise Acceleration: 10 Lessons from SEAD

  • 1 Views

Like learning a new language, scaling an enterprise is full of unknowns, imperfect attempts and lessons for the future. Enterprise accelerators often serve as translators between their participants and the outside world. In doing so, accelerators must decipher between what they assume will be effective and what the enterprises they serve want and need. How can enterprise accelerators crack the code?

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Best Practices & Lessons Learned

Organization: SEAD @ DUKE & CASE

ESO Mapping Fatigue In Kenya

Are we experiencing ‘Mapping Fatigue’ with the BIG question being what is the mapping end game?. Is it just a question of counting heads or is there a bigger play in terms of informing policy or identifying gaps?

  • Category: Pipeline Sourcing & Selection
  • Type: Media Resources

Organization: Victor Otieno Agolla

Social Investment Toolkit

In 8 modules, the toolkit guides entrepreneurs on each step of the way, from how to define your social mission to creating a compelling investor pitch. It also shows entrepreneurs how social investors think and what they are looking for. There is also a social investment readiness test to help entrepreneurs work out which areas to focus on.

  • Category: Financial Sustainability
  • Type: Toolkits

Organization: Social Investment Toolkit

Financial Sustainability of Startup Incubators

  • 1 Views

The primary objective of this report is to
outline various revenue streams (not to be conflated with funding sources) accessible to
startup incubators and recommend a revenue mix which ensures that the incubator remains
focused on its core activities related to provision of entrepreneurial support to its incubatee
startups.

  • Category: Financial Sustainability
  • Type: Research

Organization: Atal Innovation Mission & Niti Aayog

Best Practices for Designing Inclusive Programs & Support

This resource is a collection of both the key challenges and the best practices that have been effective in addressing the common challenges faced by ESOs globally in designing inclusive programs to support the diverse entrepreneurs in the ecosystem.

  • Category: Enterprise Support & Portfolio Management
  • Type: Best Practices & Lessons Learned

Organization: Pollinate Impact

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The Incubation Toolkit for Africa

  • 23 Views

The Incubation Programme Toolkit for Africa is a free, practical guide designed specifically for hubs, incubators, and ecosystem builders across Africa. It helps them design, implement, and improve incubation initiatives that deliver measurable business outcomes and stronger support for early-stage startups.

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Toolkits

Organization: FATE Foundation

How to Measure the Gender Impact of Investments: Using the 2X Challenge Indicators in Alignment with IRIS+

  • 9 Views

A guidance resource for incubators, accelerators, and investors to measure and report gender impact using the 2X Challenge criteria, aligned with IRIS+ indicators.

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Handbooks

Organization: GIIN

Gender Toolkit

  • 6 Views

Gender Toolkit is a free, practical online resource designed to help investors, companies and other stakeholders integrate gender-smart approaches into their processes and decisions. It offers guidance, tools, templates and sector-specific insights to support gender-inclusive strategies and investments — with the ultimate aim of advancing women’s economic empowerment and gender equality

  • Category: Enterprise Support & Portfolio Management
  • Type: Toolkits

Organization: British International Investment

A framework to Drive Impact

  • 4 Views

This explains how your Theory of Change can be an effective framework to drive impact. The video also highlights three points to keep in mind when creating your theory of change.

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Media Resources

Organization: DUKE

Igniting Innovation: A comprehensive handbook for incubators and accelerators

  • 2 Views

Standardized templates and guidelines can greatly assist these entities in establishing a
governance structure, defining eligibility criteria, developing application
processes, and creating agreements with startups in a consistent and
efficient manner. By adopting these resources, incubators can improve
operational efficiency, reduce the risk of non-compliance, and align their
operations with industry standards and best practices. Pg. 377 onwards

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Handbooks

Organization: Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting (GOIC)

Lab to Market Commercialization Playbook

  • 5 Views

This resource covers the entire commercialization process in one place with highly practical tools, tips, and resources Include general and stage-specific guidance, and pertains to any university or research institution and any technology/sector, with a focus on energy & mobility

  • Category: Enterprise Support & Portfolio Management
  • Type: Handbooks

Organization: William Davidson Institute at University of Michigan

A Practitioner’s Guide to Effective Blended Finance Solutions for Social Enterprises

  • 4 Views
  • Category: Enterprise Support & Portfolio Management
  • Type: Research

Organization: Villgro

INCUBATION FUND MANAGEMENT: Investment Playbook for Startup Incubators

  • 6 Views

This playbook offers suggestive guidelines for early-stage incubators that have recently begun receiving seed grants from governments and other sources. While broadly relevant to all incubators managing an Incubation Fund, this guide would be most useful for incubators and incubation managers with limited prior experience in fund deployment and management.

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Handbooks

Organization: MeitY Startup Hub

The Circular Venture Blueprint: A Guide for ESOs

  • 3 Views

Supporting circular economy ventures calls for approaches that differ from traditional entrepreneurship support. These ventures often follow distinct growth paths, need specialised market connections, and create value in ways that mainstream metrics don’t capture.

  • Category: Incubator Design
  • Type: Handbooks

Organization: Circular Economy Innovation Cluster

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