Caracterización de las Spin-Off universitarias como mecanismo de transferencia de tecnología a través de un análisis clúster

In recent year the entrepreneurship of new technology based firms in universities, particularly University Spin-Off, has become one of the most effective mechanisms for technology and research results transfer from academic research centers to the productive sector. As a result of this, there are increasing studies on the typology of enterprises as they play an important role in innovation processes, employment generation and, thus, their contribution to socio-economic development. This paper focuses on defining and characterizing this typology of the enterprise in order to provide a framework and to establish a useful basis for designing support policies for entrepreneurship in universities, and for promoting Spin-Off as a mechanism through which university results may be commercialized. A cluster analysis is used to confirm if it is possible to classify University Spin-Off into groups according to some differential characteristics, as well as to identify some behaviors and special features that make them an interesting subject in the socioeconomic context. The results of cluster analysis established three groups of University Spin-Off, with a classification based on its life cycle. Moreover, this research includes a definition of University Spin-Off that characterizes these enterprises and finds consensus among the many existing definitions for future studies.