Abstract
BSOs are large research organizations established purposefully to address fundamental and complex scientific research challenges that cannot be addressed in isolation by individual universities, research institutes, or even government agencies. Unlike universities and other national research institutes, BSOs are unique scientific organizations by virtue of their sheer size, level of complexity, and uncertainty with respect to the outcomes of research and development. BSOs involve large networks of suppliers and collaborators in science, government, and business, constituting a complex system with permeable boundaries that offer opportunities for technology transfer, knowledge accumulation, and business creation. Hence, BSOs are influential players within complex systems of innovation, learning, and business creation. Despite their important role for national and international economies as well as society at large, our current understanding of their management and impact is underdeveloped in both theory and practice. We know less about the challenges and opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship in a context of changing economic, technological, and societal environments that arise in the broader ecosystem surrounding BSOs. To address this void of research, we made this special issue to focus on innovation and entrepreneurship around BSOs to create a richer foundation for future conceptual and empirical research on science management and innovation. The work included in this special issue offers some new insights regarding innovation and entrepreneurship in the context of BSOs. To embed these individual findings into existing research, we provide a comprehensive overview regarding innovation involving BSOs capturing the full picture of the fundamental issues in this regard. Thus, this introduction of the special issue offers an overview on the innovation ecosystem around BSOs as a common reference point for the fundamental mechanisms of innovation in relation to BSOs and relevant stakeholders.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 102523 |
| Journal | Technovation |
| Volume | 116 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2022 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The impact of public research on the economy and society has long been a central concern for scholars, managers, and policy makers (Cohen et al., 2002; Kokko et al., 2015; Maroto et al., 2016; Mazzucato, 2013), and the research about the distinct effects of Big Science Organizations (BSOs) has prevailed since the early 2000s. BSOs are large research organizations established purposefully to address fundamental and complex scientific research challenges that cannot be addressed in isolation by individual universities, research institutes, or even government agencies. Unlike universities and other national research institutes, BSOs are unique scientific organizations by virtue of their sheer size, level of complexity, and uncertainty with respect to the outcomes of research and development. Several examples of BSOs, such as the Stanford Linear Accelerator (SLAC), the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), European Spallation Source (ESS), European XFEL, MAX IV, the Francis Crick Institute, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Culman Centre for Fusion Energy, etc., have shown their importance in technological breakthroughs and advancement of knowledge. What is more, BSOs involve large networks of suppliers and collaborators in science, government, and business, constituting a complex system with permeable boundaries that offer opportunities for technology transfer, knowledge accumulation, and business creation (Kollmer and Dowling, 2004; Link et al., 2007). Hence, BSOs are influential players within complex systems of innovation, learning, and business creation. Despite their important role for national and international economies as well as society at large, our current understanding of their management and impact is underdeveloped in both theory and practice.Funding organizations (including risk capital): A BSO's innovation ecosystem needs substantial funding as its backbone. This includes international government funding for example from the EU (e.g., Horizon Europe, European Institute of Innovation and Technology, EU Regional Development Fund), national public funding, industry funding, private foundations, and venture capital (VC). VC finance plays an important role for innovation and entrepreneurship by investing in start-ups with high growth potential (Popov and Roosenboom, 2013). VC investment also facilitates the growth of start-ups (e.g., Audretsch and Lehmann, 2004; Colombo and Grilli, 2010). However, the role of VC financing for innovation and entrepreneurship based on technologies generated from and in collaboration with BSOs is not directly studied in extant research.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors
Keywords
- Big Science
- Entrepreneurship
- Innovation ecosystem