Measuring entrepreneurial ecosystems

In recent decades the concept of the entrepreneurial ecosystem has received increasing attention from researchers and policymakers. Thus far, they have reached consensus on the relevance of entrepreneurial ecosystems in influencing entrepreneurial activity at the local level. However, there are still gaps in how entrepreneurial ecosystems are defined and conceptualized; and, most of all, in how they can be measured. Closing these gaps is essential if we want to explain the key features of entrepreneurial ecosystems; how they connect with expected outcomes in terms of entrepreneurial activity; and ultimately, their links with innovation and growth. In this chapter, we measure the entrepreneurial ecosystem at the Italian Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics Level 3 provincial level for the 2000-18 period. By using comparable metrics of entrepreneurial ecosystems, we provide useful insights to better understand how entrepreneurial ecosystems originate, evolve and foster entrepreneurial activities at the local level. Indeed, we provide evidence of some degree of persistence in the general level of entrepreneurial ecosystems across provinces and the strong significance of entrepreneurial ecosystems in characterizing resilience at the local level.