A Business Acceleration Program Supporting Cross-Border Enterprises: A Comparative Study

Abstract

Acceleration programs can have an effect on business advancement prospects by offering access to mentors and information, capacity building, connections and networks with corporates and startups, all of which contribute to increasing the chances of entrepreneurial success. This study explores the effectiveness of an acceleration program, implemented in the cross-border region of Greece–Albania, where there are limited similar business support initiatives. The survey conducted among participants in the acceleration program aimed at identifying key elements that can contribute to shaping entrepreneurial potential in the cross-border region offering preliminary insight to policy makers in designing relevant business support measures. There is common consensus among both cross-border populations that the acceleration program has helped them develop their business ideas. The study reveals the different types of business weaknesses the acceleration program helped to address in the two populations and key criteria perceived to be contributing to business development. However, acceleration programs effectiveness is affected not only by criteria internal to business and the markets but also by the entrepreneurial ecosystem conditions pertaining. In this respect, business acceleration program designs should be tailored to address particularities in the entrepreneurial environment so as to be effective and contribute to business growth.

A Dynamic Analysis to Examine Regional Development in the Context of a Digitally Enabled Regional Innovation System: The Case of Western and Central Macedonia (Greece)

“…To improve the model's relevance and prediction ability, realtime data and more dynamic policy variables should be added. A deeper understanding of the strategic planning of regional innovation systems may be gained by examining the long-term effects of smart technologies on district socioeconomic variables and higheffect indicators, including advanced business models [46,47], innovative entrepreneurship types [48], smart education [49], and public welfare within the framework of the Regional Innovation Systems.…”

Business Acceleration Program Pada Pelaku Industri Pengolahan Bambu Skala Usaha Mikro, Kecil, Dan Menengah (Umkm) Di Selaawi, Garut

“…Program pendampingan untuk akselerasi bisnis dinilai dapat menjadi jalan keluar bagaimana pelaku usaha mampu bertahan menghadapi pandemi sekaligus mengembangkan bisnisnya menjadi lebih baik. Program akselerasi dapat berdampak pada prospek kemajuan bisnis dengan menawarkan akses kepada mentor dan informasi, peningkatan kapasitas, koneksi, dan jaringan yang semuanya berkontribusi pada peningkatan peluang keberhasilan wirausaha (Giourka et al, 2021).…”

Worldwide Innovation and Technology Environments: Research and Future Trends Involving Open Innovation

“…The development of open innovation in innovation environments also contributes to public policies, creating a competitive identity for countries and potentiating the development of emerging technologies [70,71]. Innovation environments also help in the process of disseminating the culture of open innovation [72], thus promoting business acceleration [73] and also increasing the productivity of the academic research [74][75][76], since these environments have specific knowledge and tools for the development and application of research.…”