Innovative technology companies tend to be high growth businesses. But they are often prone to rapid change, both in terms of what they do, and how they are organised.

This can give rise to particular management challenges. For example, rapid growth can mean that a high priority is given to investment, marketing, or recruitment.

Also, there are premises to find, accountants to hire and business networks to join, not to mention the ongoing challenges of sales and cashflow. For the less than superhuman, navigating these concerns means taking advice and getting some outside help.

Since the late 1980s, there has been a rapid increase in the business support industry' which aims to meet this demand.

Through Government-funded agencies such as Business Link, rebranded professional service firms - lawyers, accounts and patent agents - science parks, business angel networks and enterprise-oriented universities, an abundance of assistance is now available to the technology entrepreneur, compared to 20 years ago.

With more than 1,500 technology firms and the highest concentration of high-tech employment in Europe, the buzz' of the technology economy of Oxfordshire is a valuable asset.

Providing the right context for technology companies to grow means having the right physical, social and economic framework in place. However, it is important that we measure success not in terms of the amount of business support that is available to the technology entrepreneur, but how well demand is being met.

If we look at aggregate demand for business support we can begin to understand how Oxfordshire as a whole supports the growth of technology firms.

This analysis is important, not only to obtain an assessment of our economic infrastructure, but also to highlight where the gaps are in business support, from both the public and private sector.

As part of our ongoing work to understand and encourage the growth of Oxfordshire's technology economy, The Oxford Trust has recently completed an in-depth consultation exercise with technology businesses in the county, supported by Business Link and Oxfordshire County Council.

We asked respondents what their business priorities are, what business support they have used and what further help they would value.

The topics people talked about included finding appropriate premises, recruiting and developing people, securing financial investment, using professional services or joining the right business networks.

The businesses surveyed identified several strengths of the business support infrastructure in Oxfordshire.

These include the availability of flexible workspace, skilled labour, business networking opportunities, angel finance and professional services.

However, the survey also highlighted what businesses thought were gaps in business support.

For example, several respondents said there was an abundance of business networks in the county but what they wanted was higher quality and more structured business networking.

Others talked about the need for an efficient way to find technical information and acknowledged scientific experts.

Many firms said they would pay for a grant application service and help with strategy or market research, but they weren't sure where to look.

However, although there appears to be a demand for new products and services, one important conclusion highlighted in the report is that there are already many initiatives in Oxfordshire aimed at addressing the shortfalls identified by businesses.

This indicates that, in addition to finding new ways to meet the demand for business support, improving communication about what already exists could significantly boost the effectiveness of business support programmes.

For copies of the report, or to find out more about the practical initiatives, The Oxford Trust is launching at Science Oxford in response to this research.

Key findings - Oxfordshire's strengths l Business incubators l Highly qualified workforce l Pervasive business networks l Business angel investment l Professional services Key findings - unmet demand l More structured, peer networking l Network of technical experts and information l Grant information and application service l Strategy consulting services l Marketing/market research services Contact Rob Eyre on 01865 728953 This page is complied by the Oxford Trust, www.oxtrust.org.uk