The emerging role of university spin-off companies in developing regional entrepreneurial university ecosystems: The case of Andalusia

Abstract

To understand the role of University-focused Venture Capital firms (UVCs) in developing Entrepreneurial Universities. Design/methodology/approach We followed the approach of regional entrepreneurial university ecosystems and analysed interview data from twenty University Spin-Off companies (USOs) and knowledge intermediaries, including UVCs. Findings Based on regional, network, and knowledge spillover perspectives, our study reveals the emerging role of UVCs in sustaining dynamic relationships between universities and USOs in the ecosystem, thus developing the entrepreneurial nature. Research limitations/implications This is an exploratory study that investigates the different ways of approaching academic entrepreneurship promotion involving UVCs and other knowledge intermediaries. The sample can be considered small, so a larger number of observations coming from more regions and countries might improve the generalization of its results. Practical implications Policymakers should bear in mind that UVCs can have a proactive role at the centre of an entrepreneurial university ecosystem. The identification of the ongoing interactions Technological Forecasting & Social Change 2 between USOs and UVCs have a significant role in reconnecting USOs with Universities, thus providing further opportunities for university IP commercialisation. Originality/value We explain a long cycle or boomerang effect, as a metaphoricial way of explaining how USOs keep their relationships with universities, by using UVCs support as strategic tool, long after they have started, which thus sustains the entrepreneurial university ecosystem over time.

The Entrepreneurial University: How to Develop the Entrepreneurial Orientation of Academia

“…Consistent with the academic literature that has studied the transformation of universities from a simple knowledge diffusion organization to an intermediary in the entrepreneurial commercialization process of science and technology (Chen and Lin 2017), a strong relationship exists between university and ecosystem. The entrepreneurial university is able to promote academic success through entrepreneurship and create a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem (Fuster et al 2019;Siegel and Wright 2015). However, the context in which the entrepreneurial university fits is very important because it acts as a multiplier for the creation of an entrepreneurial ecosystem (Carayannis et al 2016).…”

Doctoral education in the entrepreneurial university : enhanced employability?

“…However, what mostly distinguishes an entrepreneurial university from other types of universities is its strategy and its efforts put into commercializing research results (Urbano & Guerrero, 2013;Uyarra, 2010) and into providing a favourable context for academic entrepreneurship initiatives (Heinnovate, 2015;Perkmann et al, 2013). Such an institutional support can take many forms, from entrepreneurship education (Bischoff, Volkmann, & Audretsch, 2018;Guenther & Wagner, 2008;Heinonen & Hytti, 2010) to coaching and physical support in incubators, through patent expert advice in TTOs (Technology Transfer Offices) (Fuster, Padilla-Meléndez, Lockett, & Del-Águila-Obra, 2019;Klofsten, Jones-Evans, & Schärberg, 1999). In addition, the university can provide a framework for more informal support, through networking and informal knowledge transfer for instance (Albats, Alexander, Cunningham, & Miller, 2018;Bischoff et al, 2018;Perkmann et al, 2013;Perkmann & Walsh, 2007).…”

“…To begin with, the entrepreneurial university is before all a university, which means that its main missions are education and research for the large majority of them. But what has come in addition to these two missions is the so-called 'Third Mission' (Pinheiro & Stensaker, 2014), mainly defined as the valorisation of research results outside academia (Caggiano et al, 2017) (Albats et al, 2018;Harrison & Leitch, 2010), support to faculty and student entrepreneurship through incubators and TTOs (Fuster et al, 2019;Klofsten et al, 1999). This can also take the form of synergies, formal or informal, between the three missions (OECD and European Commission, 2012): for example, involving students in research projects, industrial professionals in teaching, or conducting multi-sectoral collaborative projects (Dooley & Kirk, 2007).…”

Untitled

“…A modern strand of an entrepreneurial research defines entrepreneurial universities, around which the EEs evolve, as key elements in promoting regional economic growth [Fuster et al, 2019;Guerrero et al, 2016]. Accompanying this development, spin-off entrepreneurship, patenting, licensing and other activities of knowledge and technology transfer from universities to the private sector have attracted con-siderable scholarly attention [Astebro, Bazzazian, 2011;Gianiodis et al, 2016;Meissner, Shmatko, 2017;Perkmann et al, 2013;Rothaermel et al, 2007].…”