Science and Technology Parks: Missions, Functions and Roles in high-tech Firms operating in emerging countries

Abstract

Given the vital role of Science and Technology (S&T) Parks in SME development, this article aims to study function, missions and roles of these parks in developing Iranian SMEs. For those entrepreneurs and SMEs focused on commercializing science, these parks provide essential information and advice, as well as proper equipment and services to set the ground for growth and development and an effective and independent presence in today’s competitive market. In the first phase, literature reviewed and the functions of S&T Parks in previous research extracted. Then, the extracted missions were distributed among the experts in the form of Delphi questionnaire. Finally, after three rounds of Delphi questionnaire, the missions were finalized and the functions of each mission were operationally described based on the opinions of experts.