Ricerc@Sapienza

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the relationship between the entrepreneurial
universities activities and the local economic growth through an empirical
analysis. In order to assess how entrepreneurial universities could play a primary role in
creating an entrepreneurial culture, three-pillar activities of Italian higher institutions
have been measured and correlated to specific economic variables at the local level.
Starting from the concept of a learning region and using findings of the research, the
final aim of the study was to introduce the concept of local intellectual capital and, in
this perspective, to appreciate the function of entrepreneurial universities in fostering
and enhancing the intangible resources of a territory. Therefore, through the analysis of
research findings, entrepreneurial universities are considered as acquiring a crucial
function as intermediaries that are able to manage and enhance local intellectual capital
and to make possible the learning region growth. University managers have to comprehend
the relevance of the surrounding environment and of developing an entrepreneurial
mindset for the outliving of their institution; at the same time, governments need
to design focused policies giving higher priority to nurturing local entrepreneurs,
promoting successful entrepreneurial role models and removing bureaucratic impediments
to start-ups and business-like initiatives.