KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY FORUM VII
Technology Absorption by Innovative Small and Medium Enterprises
Fostering high-tech start-ups for regional
transformation:
tangible to intangible factors
Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
© Donato Iacobucci
Ancona, Italy - June 17-19, 2008
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Presentation outline
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Policy in context: the Marche region
The role and place of tangible factors
From tangible to intangible factors
Lessons and recommendations
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
High-tech startups
• What are they?
– new companies that have evolved from
universities and research centers, as a result of a
technology transfer process from research to the
commercialization of products or services
• Why promote them?
– they create jobs for highly educated people
– they facilitate entry into high growth sectors
– they transform the regional economy
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Policy in context
• The role of technology start-ups (and
regional policy to sustain them) varies
according to context
• In this presentation I refer to the
experience of the Marche region
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
From agriculture to industry
Percentage of employees by sector in the Marche region
1951
1971
1991
Agriculture
60.2
25.3
7.8
Industry
21.9
40.8
41.7
Services
17.8
33.8
50.5
Source: Industry census
Over 40 years the Marche has gone from an
agricultural area, to one of the most highly
industrialized regions in Italy and Europe
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Manufacturing LLS by firm size
“The Third Italy”
Features of the model:
• fast growth during the ’60s and
’70s
• prevalence of small and medium
sized firms (high rates of
entrepreneurship)
• high degree of
internationalization (export)
• spread of activity across the
territory, reducing population
migration and urban congestion
Small firms
Medium-sized firms
Large firms
Non-manufacturing areas
© Donato Iacobucci
Source: ISTAT
Università Politecnica delle Marche
The industry model
LLS in 2001
Textiles and clothing
Leather and footwear
Furniture
Musical instruments and goldsmithing
Food
Mechanical equipment and machinery
Primary metal industry
Coke, oil refining industry
Transportation equipment
Paper, printing and publishing
Non-manufacturing areas
Small-sized firms
Industrialization
based mainly on
the
agglomeration of
small firms in
industrial
districts
Medium-sized firms
Large firms
Non-manufacturing areas
Source: Industry census
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Industry specialization
The manufacturing industry is dominated by traditional
industries and small firms
The average size of manufacturing firms in 2001 was 9.2
employees
Employees by industry in 2001
Food
Textile and Clothing
Leather and Footwear
Wood and Furniture
Mechanics
Other sectors
Source: Industry census
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
The new challenges
• Diversifying the industrial structure from
traditional industries to high-tech activities
• Changing the innovation model from “innovation
without research” to “R&D based activities”
High-tech start-ups
are critical to both objectives
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
The first attempt:
building a tangible infrastructure
The 1990s
• EU, national and regional funds used to build a
network of business innovation centers (3
EuroBICs) and a technology park (TecnoMarche)
• They had almost no effects on the development
of high-tech firms or high-tech clusters in the
region
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Why was this?
• No close relationships with research centers
(universities)
• Location: they were located in less
developed areas of the region
• Sequence: it was too early to build the
‘tangible infrastructure’ for high-tech startups
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
The second attempt:
reconsidering the role of the university
At the beginning of this decade our university redefined its
Mission
Talent:
Technology:
Territory:
attract and educate the best people
excellence in research and technology transfer
serve the needs of firms in the region
and its
Name
from “Università di Ancona” to
Università Politecnica delle Marche
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Technology transfer
• To foster TT activity UPM created an industrial
liaison office and launched a series of projects and
activities in this area
• Main aims:
– Foster relations with industrial firms in the region
– Promote spin-offs in high-tech sectors
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Some of the ILO projects
• Talent for competitiveness
– PhD programs co-financed (50% UPM – 50% firms)
• Database of competences
– People, projects, research structures
• Supporting spin-offs from research
– Support for development of a business plan
– Minority shares in initial capital
– Use of university facilities (in the incubation phase)
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Spin-off promoted, 2001-2207
Name
Activity
Nautes
Knowledge management software
A.MI.CA.
Innovative building materials
ArieLAB
Telecommunication systems
Arteis
Measurement and diagnostoc technology
CEDAR Solutions
CAD-CAM in printed circuits production
BINT
Biotechnology
EcoTechSystems
Environmental technology
INGEGNA
Industrial automation in the footwear sector
L.I.V.E.
Models for intangible factors
Oce.AN
Artificial breeding of tropical fish
P.C.Q.
Technical controls in building constructions
S.I.B.E.
Bio-energy
SeiTec
Building protection against earthquakes
Smart Space Solutions
Security and domotica – NOT ENGLISH
STRATEGIE
Refrigeration technology
Thermal TIDE
Innovative building materials
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Time for a new phase...
Supporting take-off
UPM is aware of the need to provide support for
spin-offs to sustain their development
– Projects with local governments to create incubators
and technology parks for the location of spin-offs and
high-tech firms
– Agreements with financial institutions to facilitate the
raising of capital
• Specific bank loans
• Regional government support measures
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Lessons from experience
• Providing tangible factors (technology parks,
incubators, financial aids) is not a sufficient
condition for technology startups
• The development of tangible factors must
follow rather than precede the early
development of the phenomenon
• Other factors are required in the early phases
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Intangible factors
to foster high-tech start-ups
• Induce universities to play a proactive role in
technology transfer activities
• Promote an entrepreneurial culture within
research institutions (universities)
• Identify regional strengths in terms of research
capabilities and possible relationships with
business activity
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
Promoting an entrepreneurial culture
• Stimulate highly educated people to
embrace an entrepreneurial career
– Legitimation (it is an interesting and respected
career path) and feasibility proof (someone like
me has succeeded)
• Actions
– courses on entrepreneurship and business plan
– nurturing activity of young entrepreneurs by
academics
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche
From tangible to intangible factors
• Policy based on intangible factors is more
complex than policy based on tangible factors
• Problems:
– Requires ‘visionary’ leaders in local institutions
– Requires coordination between institutions
– Requires changes in organizations and in people’s
behavior
– Requires focus and selection
– Outcomes not easily observable in the short period
© Donato Iacobucci
Università Politecnica delle Marche