Impact of stakeholders and collaborative innovation on value creation of incubated start-ups: The case of Romanian business incubators

Business incubators nowadays offer many opportunities for collaborative innovation. However, the impact of collaborative innovation on value creation of incubated start-ups remains understudied, especially in emerging European countries. Our research focuses on the impact of stakeholders and collaborative innovation activities on the value creation of incubated start-ups. Our survey of entrepreneurs from incubated start-ups in Romania shows that relationships with stakeholders can be positive or negative depending on the type of stakeholders. It also shows that collaborative innovation activities have a positive impact on innovation but none could be found on competitiveness. Additional interviews with managers of business incubators suggest that the negative impact of secondary stakeholders may come from the Romanian national context which is characterized by an institutional void. These results enrich our knowledge on stakeholders, collaborative innovation and entrepreneurship. They lead to recommendations for entrepreneurs, incubators and public authorities. JEL Codes: O30, O32, O55