Projectification and Partnering: An Amalgamated Approach for New Venture Creation in an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

Abstract

The creation of a new venture is at the heart of entrepreneurship. Chinese governments at different levels are proactive in promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem (EE) and fostering new venture creation (NVC). However, it is still far from clear how governments as focal actors in the EE affect and regulate the process and pattern of NVC. This study borrows from the theory of temporary organization and conducts a comparative case study of two entrepreneurial projects in the Hangzhou Dream Town EE. This study proposes an integrated conceptual framework to illustrate NVC in two dimensions of projectification (the process of NVC) and partnering (a pattern of NVC) and specifies that the main role of local governments is as a sponsor, feeder, and endorser in that order. The three functional roles enable local governments to catalyze the creation of new ventures through projectification and partnering. Our study not only contributes to the literature on entrepreneurship, governance theory, and the theory of temporary organization but also provides an actionable approach for governments to foster new ventures, especially in transition economics such as China.

From the wall of the industry to the soul of society: a review and multi-level analysis on projectification

“…Projectification has been studied in varied contexts, such as entrepreneurship (Auschra et al, 2019;Li et al, 2020), public sector organizations (Godenhjelm et al, 2015), conservation of traditional rural biotopes (Cwikla and Jalocha, 2015;Raatikainen, 2018), health care (Glasdam et al, 2015;Marten and Sullivan, 2020;Penkler et al, 2020), pharmaceutical companies (Biedenbach, 2011), media broadcast (Clegg and Burdon, 2021) and in performing arts (Lindgren and Packendorff, 2007). From a geographic perspective, studies also examined the regional influences of projectification in European (Dornisch, 2002;Mukhtar-Landgren and Fred, 2019;Schoper et al, 2018) and in African countries (Bardosh, 2015;Marten and Sullivan, 2020) and as a crucial element to promote and coordinate collective innovation strategies in high-growth emerging countries (Clegg and Burdon, 2021;Midler, 2019a).…”

“…Broader perspectives describe it as a major transformation in organizations, leading to an extended reliance on temporary structures (Aubry and Lenfle, 2012;Fred, 2020;Li et al, 2020;Munck af Rosensch€ old, 2019;Munck af Rosensch€ old and Wolf, 2017;Raatikainen, 2018;Winch, 2014). It is also described as the redefinition of employees' tasks and roles, with the replacement of repetitive activities (Jałocha, 2019;Dollinger, 2020); a new conceptualization of work and time (Dollinger, 2020); the adoption of a project-thinking or a project logic (Perger, 2016;M€ uller et al, 2019;Fred, 2020); a production practice based on project work (Prouska and Kapsali, 2021); and a transition from functional to project organizations (Ingason et al, 2019).…”

“…Projectification is also discussed according to its goals: organization of work (Ingason et al, 2019;Maylor and Turkulainen, 2019;Munck af Rosensch€ old, 2019;Schoper et al, 2018); flexibility (Cerne and Jansson, 2019); renewal (Jałocha et al, 2019), optimization and efficiency (Lundin, 2016;Dollinger, 2020); new venture creation (Li et al, 2020); goal fulfillment in team work (Auschra et al, 2019); competitive advantage enhancement (Maylor et al, 2006;Munck af Rosensch€ old and Wolf, 2017); and problem-solving improvement (Jałocha, 2019;Fred, 2020).…”

International Trade in the High-Tech Sector—Support or Obstacle to Start-Up Processes at the Macro Level in European Union Countries?

“…The entrepreneurial ecosystem is also perceived as a geographical space of co-located organizations of different kinds, such as start-ups, established companies, experienced entrepreneurs, research universities and organizations, and the networks between them [56]. A spatial concentration of established companies and institutions, by transforming the local environment, fosters the market entrance of start-ups [57]. A healthy entrepreneurial ecosystem can support the capacity to marginalize the effects of high start-up rates independently from their quality [33].…”

“…There are several kinds of institutions that create the innovation and conditions for knowledge creation, diffusion, and commercialization in entrepreneurial ecosystems. In these contexts, the role of such organizations as universities and other research organizations [56,58], technology centers and research institutions, science and technological parks, university spin-off companies [59], and local governments [57] are the most often analyzed. However, the institutional support of banks and financial institutions in providing finances, as well as law firms to protect intellectual property rights, are also highlighted [60].…”