Thao Ly Bui Tran, a 2008 visiting scholar at Lally’s Severino Center for Technological Entrepreneurship, serves as the program manager for the newly-opened Saigon Hi-Tech Business Incubator (SHBI) in her native Vietnam. The SHBI’s primary focus is to train Vietnamese entrepreneurs in business administration, and to provide working facilities, IT services, and consulting and training assistance.
Ms. Bui Tran had a three-month visiting scholarship at Lally to study the high-tech incubator model at Rensselaer, the oldest university-based incubator in the U.S. She returned to Vietnam in January 2009 and worked with the SHBI director to implement the business plan that she and Lally Professor Pier Abetti had developed to establish and manage SHBI’s incubation program.
In fall 2009, SHBI moved to a modern 15,000 square foot facility in the Saigon High-tech Park. By November 2009, the incubator had three companies as tenants, and had established an Advisory Council with experienced entrepreneurs and economists.
For overseas entrepreneurs, SHBI provides training and assistance in strategy and management support for doing business in Vietnam. SHBI's overall mission is to facilitate interaction and networking between the business community and local professionals.
Asked what specifically about her Lally experience she finds particularly helpful in her new role, Bui Tran says it was her mentor’s motto that resonates with her the most. “Professor Pier Abetti told me, ‘Start small, grow fast, learn along the way.’"
Vietnam is one of world's fastest growing economies, with a GDP increase of 7.5 percent between 2000 and 2007. Manufacturing, IT and high-tech industries form a large and fast-growing part of the country's national economy.
Read more about Thao Ly Bui Tran at Lally.
