Citation
Schaeffer, P.R. (2022), "Book review", Innovation & Management Review, Vol. 19 No. 1, pp. 84-85. https://doi.org/10.1108/INMR-02-2022-181
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2021, Paola Rücker Schaeffer
License
Published in Innovation & Management Review. Published by Emerald Publishing Limited . This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence maybe seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode.
Startups and innovation ecosystems in emerging markets: a Brazilian perspective
Edited by Moacir de Miranda Oliveira Jr., Fernanda Ribeiro Cahen and Felipe Mendes Borini
Review DOI
Knowledge or technology-intensive entrepreneurship is key for generating economic and social development, which goes beyond solely economic growth. The importance of entrepreneurship for the generation of jobs, income, competitiveness and innovation capabilities brought the topic to the center stage either in terms of public policies or as an object of academic research. Based on these features, the book explores the behavior of high-tech startups and aspects of the innovation ecosystems in which these startups are embedded.
By adopting both micro and macro perspectives–highlighting the relevance of myriad agents of the ecosystem, the book fills a gap in research on emerging countries. Studies on entrepreneurship are mostly concentrated in developed countries, but the prominence of countries like China and Brazil in the generation of unicorns and startups with influence in international markets is undeniable.
The book chapters adopt different research methods. Qualitative studies based on case studies and in-depth interviews, as well as surveys that explore quantitative results, were carried out to provide a complete discussion about the experiences of Brazilian startups regarding innovation, sustainability, funding, level of education and work experience of the entrepreneur, and their efforts for entering international markets. Regarding innovation ecosystems, the authors seek to analyze the role of business incubators, technology parks, acceleration programs and university entrepreneurship in the country.
Chapter 1 introduces the book and provides an overview of the chapters and frameworks. Chapter 2 investigates the role of knowledge and technology transfer from universities and research centers to startups located in technology-based incubators (TBIs) and their impact on the launch of new products. Chapter 3 seeks to understand the drivers of the internationalization process of product-based and digital startups. The relationship between the entrepreneurs' background and product innovation is addressed in chapter 4 given that knowing this relation in detail can contribute to a better selection process carried out by incubators. Chapter 5 brings important managerial contributions when analyzing the main funding sources used by Brazilian startups in different stages of their life cycle.
Chapter 6 opens the second part of the book by focusing on innovation ecosystems. This chapter, like chapter 2, also explores the product development process (PDP) of high-tech startups, but the focus of the discussion is how technology parks contribute to this process. Chapter 7 aims to identify the key players and the specific aspects of the TBIs management, with special attention to the strategies adopted by these actors. Chapter 8 also has as its object of analysis the TBIs. The authors analyze the adoption of sustainability practices and indicators in incubators. Given that the adoption of practices and assessments that take into account social and environmental responsibility or sustainable development is still incipient in incubators, this chapter presents important suggestions to be considered by managers of incubators and incubated companies. Chapter 9 focuses on government acceleration programs in Brazil. Chapters 10 and 11 share a common objective towards university entrepreneurship ecosystems. In turn, Chapter 10 focuses on the grassroots movements, while Chapter 11 presents cases of university spin-offs trying to identify the factors that influence their performance and growth.
In addition to empirical examples, the book takes up important historical events such as formulating public policies and creating institutions to support entrepreneurship that contributed to the promotion of startups and the formation of innovation ecosystems in Brazil. As a result of the discussions undertaken, the authors bring theoretical contributions such as the proposal of two frameworks, the first centered on startups' capacities and the second on the elements and actors of ecosystems, as well as contributions for managers of technology-based incubators and technology parks, in addition to suggestions for policymakers. Finally, despite the promising results presented mainly by the state of São Paulo, it is pointed out several challenges to be overcome at the national level, which will not only allow the maturation of innovation ecosystems but also to reach higher levels of high-tech entrepreneurship as already observed in developed countries.