Summary

This book looks at entrepreneurship and innovation as ways out of the economic crisis in Europe and other regions, and examines the main theoretical issues and practices related to this analysis. The volume addresses such questions as: From an institutional perspective, how do economic crisis conditions affect different types of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship? Is it useful for public policymakers and entrepreneurs to understand the basic characteristics of entrepreneurial activity, relations between the institutional environment and entrepreneurship and among entrepreneurship, innovation and social change? Featuring case studies from several industries and countries, and a variety of methodological, theoretical, and empirical approaches, the authors build a compelling narrative on the dynamics of entrepreneurship and innovation as drivers of economic growth and organizational renewal. They demonstrate that the strategic and operational relationships that entrepreneurship creates within and outside the enterprise are a fundamental route for leading and mobilizing economic and social resources that permit innovation at the organizational level and in relationships with suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders - in turn, enabling technological innovation, creating new revenue streams through new productive activities and new demand, and ultimately facilitating emergence from economic crisis. The authors consider social, gender, and generational aspects of entrepreneurship, as well as the institutional conditions necessary to promote entrepreneurial activity.