I was contracted to design and implement a needs and stakeholder assessment of the Jordanian Entrepreneurship Ecosystem for an international client who was awarded the EU contract to develop and implement the Jordanian Action for the Development of Enterprises (JADE) Project. These slides represent a summary of my research, findings, and recommendations as presented to an audience in early 2018.

1. Jordanian
Entrepreneurship
Ecosystem
AN ASSESSMENT OF INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY AND CREATIVE SECTORS FOR THE
JORDANIAN ACTION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF ENTERPRISES (JADE) PROJECT
OCTOBER 2017
ATALA CONSULTING WWW.JENNIFERATALA.COM

2. Introduction to the JADE Project
u The Jordanian Action for the Development of Enterprises (JADE) Project is a
3-year project awarded by the EU to Leaders International, the first tech
accelerator in Palestine whose first regional office is in Amman, Jordan.
u JADE seeks to achieve two goals: (1) To advance innovative technology
and creative startups in Jordan with capacity building and financing
activities in partnership with local incubators and accelerators; and (2) To
support economic growth initiatives for Jordanian small and medium
enterprises in traditional industries.
u Innovative technology includes fintech, content development, hardware
technology. Creative industries targeted include fashion, design, film, music.
u Atala Consulting was hired by Leaders on a 15-day assignment from
September-October 2017 to (a) map, (b) assess, and (c) provide
recommendations for partnership and activities for the first goal.
u JADE officially launched on October 23, 2017 in Amman, Jordan
© Atala Consulting, 2017

3. Mapping & Assessment Methodology
u Atala Consulting connected to over 100 stakeholders in the Jordanian
entrepreneurship ecosystem in less than a week, including all active
incubators and accelerators, key support institutions (e.g., donors,
government, universities, NGOs), and thought leaders.
u Utilizing a standard social science research methods, a jointly-developed
interview tool, and online survey, individual interviews, a focus group, and
online survey were deployed to gather data amongst a stratified sample of
respondents.
u Primary research was bolstered by desk research. Methods of
communication with the network included in-person meetings, email, and
Skype calls.
© Atala Consulting, 2017
25 Individual
Interviews
7 Focus Group
Participants
13 Survey
Respondents

4. GDP Growth
Ø Current = 2.3% (World Bank 2017 estimate)
Ø Pre-Financial Crises = 6.5% (2000-2009 average)
Ø Government 2017 Goal – 4.9%
Ø Top contributing sectors: government services,
finance, manufacturing
Ø Why a lower GDP growth rate?
• Refugee influx (655,000 registered)
• Border closures with Iraq, Syria -> less
tourism, trade
CURRENT FISCAL REFORMS
Ø Streamline non-priority current spending
Ø 2016 IMF-GOJ Extended Fund Facility
Agreement of $723m USD
Ø Increased taxes from certain sectors, unclear
regulations
Ø Tax and trade incentives at industrial parks
© Atala Consulting, 2017
Snapshot: Macro-Economic &
Business Enabling Environment
jhj
JOB CREATION
Ø Unemployment rate: 15.25% (2016) vs 12.5% (2010) of
which 25% youth.
Ø Poverty rate: estimated 20% (2016) vs 14.4% (2010)
Ø How is Jordan planning to address this?
• Increased focus on SME growth and startups
• Increased government funding to the digital and
innovative technology economies
Jordan’s rankings across 11 indicators, Doing Business Report 2017

5. Mapping 1: Incubators & Accelerators
6 Incubators
u Goal: Incubate ideas, work with
founders to build teams and develop
minimal viable product (MVP)
u Program length 6 mo-1 year
u Mostly in partnership with university
departments and labs, supported by
government or donor funding
u ICT and Hardware-focused
u Small grant awards to entrepreneurs
u Basket of mentorship and business
services (e.g., legal) provided
u Amman-based, with new initiatives in
Irbid and Karak (2018)
u Goal: Accelerate startup’s growth and
business planning after incubation to
prepare for investment
u Program length 3-6 months
u Partnerships with telecommunication
companies, investment funds.
u ICT-focused, with new programs for
creative industries
u Seed funding awarded
u Basket of mentorship and business
services (e.g., marketing) provided
u Amman-based
© Atala Consulting, 2017
The startup ecosystem began to grow in
2010, with the establishment of new
institutions along the growth value chain
from idea-stage to venture-fund backing.
4 Accelerators

6. Mapping 2: Support Institutions
Entrepreneur
Government
Institutions
Investment
Funds
NGOs
Chambers
of
Commerce
Universities
Co-Working
Spaces
International
Donors
Angel
Investors
© Atala Consulting, 2017
The team met with and researched 26
support institutions from 8 categories.
Initiatives led by these institutions range from
pre-university age STEM, entrepreneurship
education and capacity building efforts for
“high-impact” entrepreneurs positioned for
rapid growth. Historically, ICT was the main
focus, with the recent inclusion of ”FabLabs”
and ”MakersLabs” for both innovative
technology and creative industries.

7. Data Analysis 1: Overall Takeaways
Categories of
Feedback
• Access to
finance
• Access to talent
• Business acumen
• Business
enabling
environment
Cross-Cutting
Themes
• Jordanian
culture
• Educational
readiness
• Geo-political
instability
Dichotomies
• Human capital
education &
empowerment
vs achieving
startup “exit”
• Jordan as
primary market
vs Dubai-focus,
Jordan as
“kitchen”
© Atala Consulting, 2017

8. Data Analysis 2:
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
u Adequate funding at incubator and
accelerator stages
u World Bank-Central Bank of Jordan
$100m USD fund to launch late 2017
with focus on SMEs
u Well-established capacity-building
and education initiatives from early
age through young adult for STEM,
creative sectors
u Improved regulatory environment
since 2012 for infrastructure, market
efficiency, and business innovation
indicators
Weaknesses
u Two funding gaps: (1) post-seed /
pre-VC at $100K-$1m USD; (2) post-
Series A / pre-private equity at over
$2m USD
u Hard skills taught at university level
do not match current private-sector
or startup needs
u Soft skills for project management
and communication (e.g., pitching)
lacking
u Specialized mentorship needed at
later stages of product development
u High taxation; prohibitions for certain
tech advancements (e.g., AI)
© Atala Consulting, 2017

9. Data Analysis 3:
Opportunities & Threats
Opportunities
u Source and educate new Jordanian
angel investors
u Linkages with startups & SMEs to
larger firms’ supply chain
u Increased funding for prototyping at
university level
u Leveraging skills from Syrian refugees
u Involving returned Jordanian
Diaspora as co-founders, investors
u Development of a central database
of stakeholders and resources for
creative industries
Threats
u Increased regional political stability,
leading to worsened refugee crisis,
societal backlash, withdrawal of
foreign investment, and/or physical
safety concerns
u Over-reliance on donor-funded
projects without building in income
generating options to allow for
sustainability
u Slow movement from government to
address transparency and high-tax
issues
u Loss of talent to hubs in Dubai, San
Francisco
© Atala Consulting, 2017

10. Select Recommendations
Innovative Technology
u Angels Outreach & Mobilization
• Source new angels from traditional
industries.
• Educate new angels in target sectors, how
to support riskier, earlier stage ventures.
• Employ innovative financing models
(hybrid; equity-investment crowdfunding).
u Targeted Skills Training
• Partner with private sector, advanced
stage startups, universities to provide agile,
targeted training to recent graduates in
hard skills needed in the marketplace.
u Supply-Chain Development
• Establish relationships with key, large firms
and explore opportunities for startups to sell
their products / services at specific stages
along the supply-chain
Creative Industries
u Central, Interactive Resource
• Develop an online interactive resource to
provide mapping of relevant stakeholders,
available resources (e.g., financial,
educational), freelance and full-time jobs
portal, etc.
u Focus on Film
• The Jordanian Royal Film Commission goes
beyond its traditional role to provide grants
and trainings. Partner with universities & RFC
to provide targeted trainings and explore
connection between technology and film,
e.g., through storytelling.
u Replicate Amman Design Week
• Partner with Oasis500, Dash Ventures to lead
development of a “Week” dedicated to
other creative sectors. Formally integrate
business advisory and financial services.
© Atala Consulting, 2017

11. Next Steps
Further develop
relationships and learning
across target creative
sectors to expand
awareness, develop
partnerships, and design
interventions.
Co-create activities in
partnership with local
efforts at nascent
development stages, e.g.,
angels outreach with
Beyond Capital; incubation
outside of Amman with TTI;
acceleration of creative
industry startups with
Oasis500.
Stay abreast of regular
changes in policy and
regulations, particularly
those affecting tax policy
and venture capital
funding, which are currently
in flux.
© Atala Consulting, 2017

12. Post Script
This written presentation is based on a 55-page report I produced and delivered to my client to
inform their project design and partnership development for a Jordanian Enterprise Development
Project. For a verbal presentation, I would have much less text on the slides so as not to distract the
audience. The report was well-received by both my client and their donor, the European Union (EU),
leading my client to offer me a full-time position or more consulting work.

13. Thank You! ‫ﺷ‬‫ﻜ‬‫ﺮ‬‫ا‬!
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT JENNIFER ATALA AT
JENNIFER@JENNIFERATALA.COM