Mapping entrepreneurship support organisations: An examination of the ‘cluttered landscape’ critique

Hruskova, M., Mason, C. and Herzog, S. (2022) Mapping entrepreneurship support organisations: An examination of the ‘cluttered landscape’ critique. Local Economy, 37(7), pp. 541-563. (doi: 10.1177/02690942231173655)

Abstract

Entrepreneurship support organisations (ESOs) support entrepreneurs with the provision of knowledge, resources, and training. They are a popular economic development tool for promoting entrepreneurial activity. However, the large number of ESOs has led to criticisms of oversaturation. We investigate this claim by analysing the ESOs in the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Glasgow, Scotland. We draw on publicly available documentary data to map the ESOs landscape and adopt the organisational thickness lens to analyse and interpret our findings from a holistic perspective. Although the literature largely presents ESOs as homogenous, we find a large number of heterogeneous ESOs that provide a wide range of support activities which can cater to different needs. However, they do not clearly target a specific segment of entrepreneurs which makes it difficult for the clients to differentiate between them and find the most suitable ESO. This is likely the explanation for the perception of a ‘cluttered landscape’ with too many players. Considering that entrepreneurs draw on different support providers over the course of their entrepreneurial journey, a key implication of our study is that the issue of clutter is likely to improve with greater segmentation rather than reducing the number of ESOs.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This study was supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (grant reference number ES/J500136/1.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Herzog, Sarah and Mason, Professor Colin
• Authors: Hruskova, M., Mason, C., and Herzog, S.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Management
• Journal Name: Local Economy
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• ISSN: 0269-0942
• ISSN (Online): 1470-9325
• Published Online: 24 May 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © The Author(s) 2023
• First Published: First published in Local Economy 37(7):541-563
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons license

Project Code	Award No	Project Name	Principal Investigator	Funder's Name	Funder Ref	Lead Dept
190423		ESRC Doctoral Training Centre 2011...	Mary Beth Kneafsey	Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)	ES/J500136/1	Research and Innovation Services