Configurations of knowledge-intensive entrepreneurial ecosystems

Abstract

The dominant discourse on Entrepreneurial Ecosystems (EE) remains focused on the profile of a handful of successful locations. This has hindered a deeper comprehension of the economic mechanisms that shape evolutionary trends in entrepreneurial activity and how they operate in distinct places. We propose that EE have regularities, but they can also assume different configurations, i.e., varying combinations of influential dimensions. Through fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis, we address this issue with data from the State of São Paulo, Brazil. This research focuses on five EE dimensions: Science & Technology, Human Capital, Market Dynamics, Business Dynamics, and Infrastructure. Findings point at the heterogeneous nature of EE distributed in three different paths. While configurations’ vary in terms of causal conditions, research universities, knowledge-intensive jobs and wider credit operations are core-causal conditions. Proximity to the main economic hub appears as a key differentiator among ecosystems.

Keywords

• Entrepreneurial ecosystems
• knowledge-intensive entrepreneurship
• qualitative comparative analysis
• configurations
• geography of innovation