My secondment in Grenoble was simply fantastic. I moved from Lecce (Italy), NAICA s.c., to Grenoble (France) and I stayed here in the month of May 2022 for carrying out the task T1.1, included in the work package WP1, of the EM4FIT European project. I was received in the Grenoble École de Management (GEM) and warmly welcomed by many people such as professors and students.
With respect to the WP1 “Institutional and Environmental Determinants of Entrepreneurial Management”, I worked on the project activity T1.1 “Literature Review” by also providing, at the end of the analysis, the deliverable D1.1 “Literature reviews on institutional and environmental determinants of entrepreneurial management”. The focus of the activity was on identifying both the institutional and environmental determinant factors that impact on the life of new entrepreneurial ventures, in particular during the early and setting stages. Specifically, I investigated the factors belonging to the institutional-view and the environmental-view that affect the performance of start-ups. For this reason, a systematic literature review was carried out on the topic of entrepreneurship ecosystems. Entrepreneurship is a concept that is strongly aligned with the new ventures creation, including start-ups. The life of a new business can be affected by a set of conditions that can boost or slow down its development. Therefore, several elements need to be evaluated by entrepreneurs when they intend to launch a new venture and plan to survive in a complex market. The literature review allowed for building a knowledge base of reference upon which developing an innovative framework composed of a set of propositions. The provided propositions include both positive and negative elements that can impact on start-ups’ performance. This framework represents a valuable starting point for supporting the following activities of the EM4FIT project.
The other side of the coin is about the contribution to my personal experience. The secondment gave me the opportunity for improving my experience, my knowledge and my network, by also appreciating many tips as take away. The integration and interconnection between different views, i.e. institutions and environments, and the entrepreneurship allowed for understanding under different viewpoints how entrepreneurs can plan their strategies for ensuring the survival of a business. Strategic entrepreneurship allows the development of a macro-micro perspective about business activities and performance. The secondment also allowed for improving my personal entrepreneurial attitude by considering the importance of local institutions, government and communities. Indeed, by interacting with GEM university and people, having vertical skills on business management and entrepreneurship, it was possible to better understand the entrepreneurial ecosystems. Another relevant element is represented by the connection between institutions and industry, such as the case of NAICA s.c. and GEM university. This type of connections allows for switching from the theoretical side to the commercialization purpose of innovations. In this context, both actors exchange value, in terms of knowledge, resources and technologies, by achieving a mutual benefit. Furthermore, the secondment allowed me to create new relationships, both personal and business links, to extend the network of contacts to exploit in potential future opportunities and collaborations, to compare and to apply my expertise within a different context, and to approach to a different culture and entrepreneurial education.
If I had to recommend this type of experience to other people, I would not hesitate to do that.
Vito Del Vecchio, NAICA s.c.