Stellenwert und Bedeutung von Innovationsnetzwerken fuer Unternehmensgruendungen

The main focus of this paper is on the examination of the role and importance of innovation networks in the decision to found a firm and after entry to the market has taken place. For newly-founded firms from business sectors with high innovation intensity, the implications resulting from the involvement of ‚start-ups‘ in a network of innovation are more closely analyzed. The examinations show, on the one hand, that contact to innovation networks has a positive effect on the decision-making behaviour of those wishing to found a firm. The empirical analysis, on the other hand, underline the fact that membership of a network plays an important role after entry to the market has taken place. By exploiting external resources, ‚start-ups‘ can expand internally available R&D capacities and reduce (financial) restrictions on resource provision. This makes it possible to a notable extent to realize synergy effects and learn strategies for the commercial exploitation of innovation efforts. Finally, multivariate estimations show that network membership has a statistically highly significant effect - measured by turnover or the development of the number of employees - on the growth and market success of newly-founded firms.