Can universities play an active role in fostering entrepreneurship in emerging ecosystems? A case study of the University of São Paulo

Abstract

The present study aims to identify patterns and roles that can be played by research universities in emerging entrepreneurship ecosystems. Its methodology is based on a case study of the University of Sao Paulo, analysing three startups born inside the university and the characteristics of its development processes. As a conclusion, we identify strategies to deal with bottlenecks and enhancers of an emerging entrepreneurship ecosystem, as well as patterns on how a university can stimulate entrepreneurship in a context of regional constraints - such as: 1) building interfaces between academic environments; 2) applying processes such as customer development using university capabilities; 3) empowering grassroots movements for entrepreneurship.