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Economic Adversity and Entrepreneurship-led Growth: Lessons from the Indian Software Sector

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  • Suma Athreye

Abstract

It is commonly believed that the business environment in developing countries does not allow productive technology-based entrepreneurship to flourish. In this paper, we draw on the experience of Indian software firms where entrepreneurial growth has belied these predictions. This paper argues that the business models chosen by Indian firms were those that best aligned the country's abundant labour resources and advantages to global demand.

Suggested Citation

  • Suma Athreye, 2010. "Economic Adversity and Entrepreneurship-led Growth: Lessons from the Indian Software Sector," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2010-004, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2010-004
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    File URL: https://www.wider.unu.edu/sites/default/files/wp2010-04.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. David J. TEECE, 2008. "Profiting from technological innovation: Implications for integration, collaboration, licensing and public policy," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: The Transfer And Licensing Of Know-How And Intellectual Property Understanding the Multinational Enterprise in the Modern World, chapter 5, pages 67-87, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    2. Suma S. Athreye, 2005. "The Indian software industry and its evolving service capability," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 14(3), pages 393-418, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Wim Naudé, 2009. "Out with the Sleaze, in with the Ease: Insufficient for Entrepreneurial Development?," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2009-01, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    2. Pankaj Sharma & Srinivasa B. S. Nookala & Anubhav Sharma, 2012. "India's National and Regional Innovation Systems: Challenges, Opportunities and Recommendations for Policy Makers," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(6), pages 517-537, August.
    3. Asmita Goswami & K. Narayanan, 2023. "Productivity and Exports: An Industry-Level Analysis of the Service Sector in India," Millennial Asia, , vol. 14(3), pages 379-405, September.
    4. Knut Blind & Tim Pohlmann & Florian Ramel & Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, 2014. "The Egyptian Information Technology Sector and the Role of Intellectual Property: Economic Assessment and Recommendations," WIPO Economic Research Working Papers 18, World Intellectual Property Organization - Economics and Statistics Division.
    5. Akcomak, Semih & Stoneman, Paul, 2010. "How novel is social capital: Three cases from the British history that reflect social capital," MERIT Working Papers 2010-015, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Economic development; Industrial organization (Economic theory); Information technology; Technological innovations;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • L86 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Information and Internet Services; Computer Software
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General
    • O32 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Management of Technological Innovation and R&D
    • O34 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Intellectual Property and Intellectual Capital
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy

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