Identifying the effective factors in creating entrepreneurial regional ecosystem: The case of Islamic Azad Universities in Isfahan province

The entrepreneurial ecosystem, including actors and related factors, creates productive entrepreneurship in a specific territory. Among these actors, universities can play an important role in the knowledge-based economy; therefore, they could be a factor in the dynamism of the regional economy. The purpose of this descriptive survey was to investigate the effective academic factors in making a regional entrepreneurial ecosystem. To this end, 306 faculty members were randomly selected from Islamic Azad Universities in Isfahan province. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. Its face validity was confirmed by the research supervisor, and two experts. Applying Cronbach's alpha, the reliability was found to be 0.812. In order to test the research hypotheses, data analysis in LISREL software environment was performed by applying structural equation model tests, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and one-sample t-test. The findings of confirmatory factor analysis showed that the identified main factors and components were cultural factors including promoting entrepreneurial culture, entrepreneurship education, skill training; underlying factors including human capital, knowledge production, knowledge transfer, knowledge commercialization; and structural factors including networking, growth centers and technology transfer offices, and spin-offs, which were considered as effective variables in creating a regional entrepreneurial ecosystem. Using One Sample T-Test, the individuals' views on the impact of factors in making a regional entrepreneurial ecosystem were examined. In total, effective academic factors had a significant effect on creating a regional entrepreneurial ecosystem. Finally, based on the results of this study suggestions and recommendations for further research have been proposed.