E-Platforms for University-Based Entrepreneurial Ecosystems Development

Abstract

As economic co-ordination becomes increasingly globalized the key interactions among firms in specific industry clusters become regionalized. University-based entrepreneurial ecosystems are believed to be a compromise to foster entrepreneurship and economic development in a regional context. The modern university-based entrepreneurial ecosystems are mainly based on informational flows and e-platforms. However, the process of how the ecosystems come into being, how university-based ecosystems can be nurtured has not been researched enough at present. This article contributes to the field by recommending a framework enabling this process through the development of e-platforms as a regional development model. The network theory perspective is used as an analytical approach to determine how the mechanism works in the entrepreneurial ecosystem and how it contributes to regional competitive advantage through knowledge transfer and innovation. An in-depth interview method with a semi-structured questionnaire, a literature review, and a statistical analysis are used as research methods. The study context is the Vitebsk region, which is located in the northern part of Belarus.