University spin-offs: a case study on their characterization, challenges and entrepreneurship ecosystem

University has moved away from the ‘ivory tower’ conceptualization that characterized it as an isolated and inexpugnable knowledge fortress. On the contrary, universities fully participate today of a system, acting the main agent for the dissemination of knowledge and technological change, but permeating its borders to be in full contact with its context. Academic literature, noting these transformations, has coined the term ‘entrepreneurial university’, to refer to this institution that interacts with private companies and other economic agents, exploiting entrepreneurship opportunities, and thus contributing to economic and social development. Within the context of the ‘entrepreneurial university’, this work focuses on business initiatives arising from academic R&D activities. For this purpose, the research provides a comparative study and a multiple case study based on in-depth interviews with the founding leaders of six firms constituted as spin-offs from the Public University of Navarra (henceforward, UPNA) and other agents related. The objective is to determine a characterization for these types of firms, with the aim of contributing to the literature regarding the phenomenon of university spin-offs and its idiosyncrasy. In turn, this work intends also to identify the main challenges faced by these firms, and to carry out an exploratory study on how the entrepreneurship ecosystem –promoted by the University- helps in overcoming these challenges. In this sense, the results of the analysis highlight the difficulties regarding the need to combine practices to explore disruptive technologies with the need to guarantee a sustainable model for the exploitation of the products developed by these spin-offs. Therefore, this study concludes that the main challenge for university spin-offs is ambidexterity. In addition, it elaborates on the relevance of the support instruments provided by the ecosystem, which intend to complement the initial deficiencies of university spin-offs in matters of management and commercial strategy. This insight is undoubtedly useful for practitioners, researches and policy makers alike.