Knowledge‐intensive entrepreneurship in manufacturing and creative industries: Same, same, but different

Abstract

To date, there is little empirical evidence on the specificities and commonalities of entrepreneurship in the creative industries relative to other sectors. This paper explores this issue by comparing knowledge‐intensive entrepreneurship (KIE) in the manufacturing and creative industries by examining their differences and similarities. Given the lack of prior studies, our comparison is exploratory and based on descriptive statistics. We use survey data that comes from a large‐scale Eurupean Union research project (AEGIS) which studied KIE firms across 10 countries and a diverse set of industries. Our analysis shows that KIE firms in creative industries resemble those in manufacturing in several dimensions, but also that there are some pronounced differences, such as (i) a higher level of knowledge intensity of KIE firms in creative industries, with higher educational attainment of both founders and employees; (ii) that personal financing plays a much larger role in creative industries; (iii) KIE in creative industries focuses more on service innovations, but introduces radical innovations to a lesser extent; and (iv) they remain smaller in terms of number of employees and turnover, but are more profitable than KIE in manufacturing relative to their size. We end the paper by pointing out directions for future research, based on our exploratory results.

Knowledge Transfer in the Cultural and Creative Sector: Institutional Aspects and Perspectives from Actors in Selected Atlantic Regions

“…Such a factor ties directly to the informal and territorially bounded nature of the CCS in ways similar to other industries, such as manufacturing and high-technology industries (Boschma 2005;Lopes 2001), but with specific consequences on the level of product and service commercialization (Holden 2015). Many of these companies exhibit styles of entrepreneurial management heavily dependent on a "charismatic leader", who guides the company towards a specific "vision", with market sustainability plans being sometimes replaced by mechanisms of demand creation (Comunian et al 2014;Heidemann Lassen et al 2018;Zukauskaite 2012). Such informal ties tend in fact to influence the way that information circulates in such creative millieux, leading symbolic and reputational-based knowledge to play a bigger role than formalized knowledge ).…”

“…Such informal ties tend in fact to influence the way that information circulates in such creative millieux, leading symbolic and reputational-based knowledge to play a bigger role than formalized knowledge ). Many of these actors lack entrepreneurial and business training, increasing the difficulty in managing market interactions (Comunian et al 2015;Heidemann Lassen et al 2018;Mateus and Associados 2013). This happens in part because business models and motivations, which can go beyond the economic, are not duly recognized support structures, such as incubators and similar bodies (Hearn et al 2004;Zukauskaite 2012).…”

“…Linkages can include not only co-involvement in associations, participation in incubators, spin-offs, collaboration in patents, designs or trademarks, as well as more simple forms of engagement such as co-participation in activities or development of joint projects (Pinto 2012). Furthermore, other forms of connection which can be considered-as they have synergistic effects with the former-include collaboration on the level of shared staff, the existence of CCS workers and participants with higher education degree, amongst others (Comunian et al 2014;Heidemann Lassen et al 2018;Zukauskaite 2012).…”

Knowledge-Intensive Entrepreneurship and S3: Conceptualizing Strategies for Sustainability

“…The onset of research advocating transformative innovation policy and sustainable development reinforces this view. This is because KIE conceptualizes entrepreneurial activity with the potential to make social impact regardless of whether it materializes in high-tech, low-tech, service-dominated, or creative industries [1][2][3]. The resilience of the concept is arguably a crucial asset to the overall need for adaptability to local context that is present in smart specialization policy making, since S3 argues for many specific types of entrepreneurial action, but it is less clear conceptually what types of ventures should act, and how.…”

The process of creation in creative industries

“…More recently it has focused on the management of these industries by emphasizing the balance of the tension between art and management and the resolution of the ambiguity associated with creative activities (Banks, Calvey, Owen, & Russell, 2002;Caniëls & Rietzschel, 2015;Hemlin & Olsson, 2011;Mietzner & Kamprath, 2013;Round & Styhre, 2017;Styhre & Gluch, 2009). Very recent research addressed the specificity of entrepreneurship in creative industries without, however, focusing on the entrepreneurial process itself (Lassen, McKelvey, & Ljungberg, 2018).…”