Supporting Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Higher Education in Italy
Universities’ entrepreneurship and innovative practices are burgeoning all over Italy. Some of these practices resonate at the international level while others have a local impact. Italian higher education faces some important challenges and actions need to be taken to unleash its full potential. Promoting the entrepreneurial and innovation agenda can help Italy improve the overall performance of the higher education system, and of individual universities, in all regions. The government has started providing a strategic support to engagement, which could catalyse Italy’s innovation capacity, human capital endowment, and well-being.
This review illustrates policy actions promoting the entrepreneurial and innovative activities in the Italian Higher Education System, and focuses on 11 case study universities. It discusses strategies and practices adopted by Italian higher education institutions to innovate, engage, and generate value for the society and the economy. This review is part of a series of national reports implementing the HEinnovate framework. HEinnovate is a guiding framework that the OECD and the European Commission have developed to promote the “entrepreneurial and innovation agenda” in higher education.
Knowledge exchange and collaboration in Italy
Knowledge exchange between higher education institutions (HEIs) and other stakeholders is an important catalyst for innovation, the advancement of teaching and research, and local development. It is a continuous and bidirectional process, which includes the stimulation and direct application and exploitation of knowledge for the benefit of the social, cultural and economic development of society. This chapter begins with an introduction discussing theoretical aspects of knowledge exchange – including university-industry collaborations – followed by a section describing the Italian case and discussing challenges and opportunities. Importantly, the chapter benefits from information gathered in a stakeholder workshop held at the University of Milan “Bicocca” in May 2019. Policy recommendations conclude the chapter.
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