ICEIRD 2012 - 5th International Conference for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Regional Development (ICEIRD 2012)

ICEIRD 2012

5th International Conference for Entrepreneurship,

Innovation and Regional Development

Regional Development for Unleashing Growth Throughout Southeastern Europe

The International Conference for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Regional Development (ICEIRD) Consortium was formally established in 2008. It is a multi - disciplinary and cross-sectoral network crossing several streams of theory and practice, namely entrepreneurship, innovation, regional economic development and information systems. The ICEIRD Consortium was set-up with members from institutions jointly researching and collaborating in strategising/organising the annual ICEIRD conference and managing joint projects focused on the theory, policy and practice of entrepreneurship and innovation in particular as it pertains to information technologies.

One of the higher concern features of the so-called European Innovation Paradox is the divide between academic research and policy-making, between thinkers and doers. The ICEIRD can become an authoritative reference in bridging this gap by developing analysis in the field of innovation and regional policy, based on high-level academic research, but without neglecting the lessons learnt by policy makers and professionals in the field. Thus establishing experiential feedback learning loops and cross fertilization among two communities which have lived too far away from each other for far too long, and in the European Union in particular.

Scope of the Conference

With acceleration of technological development and adoption and greater market competition, innovation is a prerequisite for enterprise survival. Innovation activity encompasses both manufacturing and service sectors. The objective of the conference is to gather together decision makers (government, ministries and state agencies), innovation experts (universities, research and development centers, technology transfer centers, start-up centres) and practitioners (SMEs, business incubators and business support organisations) to generate discussion and exchange on the potential of entrepreneurship promotion and innovation to national and regional competitiveness.