INNOVATION ACCELERATORS AS ENTREPRENEURIAL AND INTERDISCIPLINARY ENGINES: THE PORTUGUESE CASE

Today's competition is tough, due especially to emergent information systems (IS) and information technology (IT) support. Managers must continuously cope with challenges to keep their businesses innovative and sustainable. They take most of their decisions based on considerable amounts of data. An important step is to employ strategies based on open innovation: partnerships with people who know the technology better, or how to conceive or run a certain activity, product or process. All these issues and potentials have been explored and supported in the so-called innovation accelerators or 'boot camps', either for launching new businesses or supporting their IT/IS platforms. These initiatives are based on a dynamic entrepreneurial and interdisciplinary ambience, which introduces the candidates (mainly start-ups, spin-offs) to consultants, investors, managers, designers, innovators, etc. This study determines where Portugal stands in terms of innovation in general, open innovation (cooperative or firm-based), venture capital adherence and innovation sustainability. It then discusses the results of some Portuguese innovation accelerators (such as 'Beta-i' and 'Cria') from the point of view of target sectors/markets and the sustainability of accelerated firms over time.