Resumo: This field study interviewed consultants, innovation habitats managers and executives to identify key entrepreneurship hardships and the relevance of venture capital for startups. This study focused on the actors experiences throughout the process and the support needs of the hosted companies in the incubator. As a result, it was identified suitable research and development arrangements as well as the differential roles played by financial supporters to overcome the entrepreneurial hardships. Most cited hardships by the startups are: poor management, insufficient operational funding, unknown brand, lack of market knowledge and distance from innovative clients. A positive finding is that the process of looking for financial support fostered the new startups to improve their planning in a more consistent way.
