springboard

Noun

• a beginning from which an enterprise is launched
  • he uses other people's ideas as a springboard for his own
    
  • reality provides the jumping-off point for his illusions
    
  • the point of departure of international comparison cannot be an institution but must be the function it carries out
    

• a flexible board for jumping upward

Related words

• Synonyms: 
  jumping-off point , point of departure