Framing Open Innovation in Start-Ups’ Incubators: A Complexity Theory Perspective
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Background
2.1. Open Innovation and Complexity Theory
2.2. The Start-Ups’ Incubator as an Open Innovation Environment
3. Methodology
- General description: aims and mission of the incubator, main features, and stakeholders (including organizations supporting funding);
- Practices and tools to foster collaborative innovation paths; related importance according to incubator’s aims.
4. Results
5. Discussion
- Physical infrastructure: principles of emergence, autonomy, and interdependence
- Access to funding streams: principles of autonomy and interdependence
- Experts/Entrepreneurs networking: all complexity principles identified
- Education/workshops: principles of variety and autonomy
- Mentorship and advice: principles of autonomy and nonlinear interaction
6. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Incubator A | Incubator B | Incubator C | Incubator D | Incubator E | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year of foundation | 2008 | 2005 | 2005 | 1999 | 2000 |
Number of employees | 15 | 8 | 400 | 20 | 20 |
Number of tenant start-ups | 190 | 30 | 64 | 161 | 113 |
Property (private/public) | Public | Public | Private | Public | Public |
Location/infrastructure | Inside technological park | Inside technological park | Affiliated with a university | Inside university | Inside university |
Main objectives | Mentoring | Mentoring, networking for financing | Venturing | Networking, Researching | Networking, Researching |
Period of incubation | 3 years | 5 years | 3 months | 3 years | 3 years |
Scope (pre/post-incubation) | Pre- and post-incubation | No | No | Post-incubation | Post-incubation |
SERVICES | Incubator A | Incubator B | Incubator C | Incubator D | Incubator E |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Physical infrastructure |
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Access to funding streams |
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Experts/Entrepreneurs networking |
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Education/workshops |
| ▪ Business planning courses and seminars and advice on how to develop a business plan |
| n.a. |
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Mentorship and advice |
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COMPLEXITY PRINCIPLES | |||||
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SERVICES | Emergence | Nonlinear interaction | Interdependence | Variety | Autonomy |
Provision of office and co-working space | ▪ Shared facilities |
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Access to funding streams |
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Experts/Entrepreneurs networking |
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Mentorship and advice |
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Education/workshops |
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© 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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Battistella, C.; De Toni, A.F.; Pessot, E. Framing Open Innovation in Start-Ups’ Incubators: A Complexity Theory Perspective. J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2018, 4, 33. https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc4030033
Battistella C, De Toni AF, Pessot E. Framing Open Innovation in Start-Ups’ Incubators: A Complexity Theory Perspective. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity. 2018; 4(3):33. https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc4030033
Chicago/Turabian StyleBattistella, Cinzia, Alberto F. De Toni, and Elena Pessot. 2018. "Framing Open Innovation in Start-Ups’ Incubators: A Complexity Theory Perspective" Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity 4, no. 3: 33. https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc4030033