Incentives to Promote Entrepreneurship in Greece: Results based on the ‘New Innovative Entrepreneurship’ Program

摘要

This paper examines a national case of providing incentives, which aims at promoting entrepreneurship and enhancing innovation. This national case concerns the case of Greece and the analysis is based on the participation of the Greek, existing and prospective, entrepreneurs and their project proposals in the ‘New innovative entrepreneurship’ program, which was launched in 2011. The analysis is based on the examination of a sample of 439 projects-proposals submitted by existing and prospective Greek entrepreneurs. Typically, the program under consideration provided incentives in the form of grants to promote entrepreneurship in Greece and was seen as a main driver for the upgrading of the country's production structure and its redirection towards high added-value goods and services. The research findings show that half of projects are related to the manufacturing sector. Overall, however, the majority of projects concern the activities of information technology and its applications, while emerging sectors seem to be those of ‘scientific research and development’ and ‘architectural and engineering activities; technical testing and analysis’. In addition, nearly half of projects concern start-ups and very small and small new firms located in the region of Attica. Results also show that only the 16.9% of projects use the banking system as a complementary financing source. The 27.3% of projects has rights of intellectual property ownership related to the innovation introduced at the level of the Greek territory. The majority of the Greek entrepreneurs intend to introduce a new or significantly improved product or service in the market based on their innovative idea, aiming at diversifying and improving the quality of their products and/or services. Last but not least it seems that the Greek entrepreneurs have as main target the increase of their profitability and the further strengthening of their competitive position in the market.