Strategic development of a university business incubator for MSME support using an ANP–SWOT approach: A study from Indonesia

Abstract

Background: Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are essential to Indonesia’s economy but face limitations in legal compliance, managerial capability, digital readiness and market access. University-based business incubators address these gaps through training, mentoring and networking.
Aim: This study identifies strategic priorities for developing the Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta (UNY) Business Incubator using an integrated analytical network process (ANP) and strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) framework.
Setting: The study was conducted at the UNY Business Incubator, active since 2012 and supporting student and non-student MSMEs, during March 2025 to November 2025.
Methods: A mixed exploratory design combined focus group discussions, semi-structured interviews, expert judgements and document analysis. SWOT elements were identified through thematic analysis and modelled using ANP. Pairwise comparisons were processed using Super Decisions, while geometric mean aggregation and Kendall’s W were calculated using Microsoft Excel 2019 to assess rater agreement.
Results: Four strategic priorities emerged: strengthening business management capacity; enhancing legal support and product certification; improving marketing consultation and market access; and expanding digital and hybrid incubation platforms. Key constraints include limited human resources, infrastructure gaps and inconsistent programme continuity.
Conclusion: The findings provide an empirical basis for full ANP quantitative modelling to prioritise strategies and highlight networking, legal support and digitalisation as foundations for MSME incubation.
Contribution: This study contributes an ANP–SWOT framework that can support strategic development of university business incubators in emerging economies.