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Innovation of Startups, the Key to Unlocking Post-Crisis Sustainable Growth in Romanian Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

Author

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  • Oana Bărbulescu

    (Faculty of Economic Sciences and Business Administration, Transilvania University of Brașov, 500036 Brașov, Romania)

  • Alina Simona Tecău

    (Faculty of Economic Sciences and Business Administration, Transilvania University of Brașov, 500036 Brașov, Romania)

  • Daniel Munteanu

    (Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Transilvania University of Brașov, 500036 Brașov, Romania)

  • Cristinel Petrişor Constantin

    (Faculty of Economic Sciences and Business Administration, Transilvania University of Brașov, 500036 Brașov, Romania)

Abstract

This paper aims at identifying the entrepreneurial opportunities for establishing innovative startups during and post COVID-19 crisis. To reach this goal, we conducted an exploratory study based on semi-structured interviews with 168 students who intend to involve themselves in entrepreneurship in their future career. The research started from the debates in literature regarding the huge negative impact of the COVID-19 crisis on economic development, which can jeopardize the achievement of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The research findings confirm the results of other studies regarding the vulnerability of startups during crises, the reason why they have to refocus on innovative businesses, especially based on information and communication technology (ICT). Such businesses are considered incentives of sustainable development. Other ideas highlighted the importance of social entrepreneurship for the management of startups. It means that startups should develop strong relationships with employees but also with other stakeholders, like companies in the same industry, the public sector, academia, and citizens. In addition, changing the business culture aiming at developing green business could be an inexpensive solution for developing a sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem. These empirical results have implications for both business and the academic environment, which should cooperate in order to overcome the crisis. Such an approach could be used in the long run in order to manage other crises and to develop sustainable business.

Suggested Citation

  • Oana Bărbulescu & Alina Simona Tecău & Daniel Munteanu & Cristinel Petrişor Constantin, 2021. "Innovation of Startups, the Key to Unlocking Post-Crisis Sustainable Growth in Romanian Entrepreneurial Ecosystem," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-16, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:2:p:671-:d:479023
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    2. Rodrigo Espinoza-Sánchez & Carlos Salvador Peña-Casillas & José Luis Cornejo-Ortega, 2022. "Impact of the 4 Helix Model on the Sustainability of Tourism Social Entrepreneurships in Jalisco and Nayarit, Mexico," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-18, January.
    3. Tiberiu Foris & Alina Simona Tecău & Camelia-Cristina Dragomir & Diana Foris, 2022. "The Start-Up Manager in Times of Crisis: Challenges and Solutions for Increasing the Resilience of Companies and Sustainable Reconstruction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-20, July.
    4. Bartosz Wachnik & Aleksandra Krupa & Krzysztof Santarek, 2022. "A Comparative Analysis of the Acquisition Transaction of Management Information Systems through Virtual and Face-to-Face Negotiations—The Perspective of Green IT Industry in Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-12, August.
    5. Moonju Nam & Taegeon Song & Dasran Kim & Kukjin Jang & Jinsick Kim & Byeongsoo Koo & Jooyeoun Lee & Myoungsug Chung, 2023. "Effects of Content Characteristics and Improvement in User Satisfaction on the Reuse of Home Fitness Application," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-13, May.
    6. Nguyen, Minh-Hoang & Vuong, Quan-Hoang & Ho, Manh-Toan & Le, Tam-Tri, 2021. "Mindsponge mechanism," OSF Preprints zpvmk, Center for Open Science.
    7. Temitayo Shenkoya & Kyung Yun Hwang & Eul Hyun Sung, 2023. "Student Startup: Understanding the Role of the University in Making Startups Profitable Through University—Industry Collaboration," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, September.
    8. Nguyen, Minh-Hoang, 2023. "Investigating urban residents' involvement in biodiversity conservation in protected areas: Empirical evidence from Vietnam," Thesis Commons z2hjv, Center for Open Science.
    9. Michał Bańka & Mariusz Salwin & Maria Kukurba & Szymon Rychlik & Joanna Kłos & Monika Sychowicz, 2022. "Start-Up Accelerators and Their Impact on Sustainability: Literature Analysis and Case Studies from the Energy Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-30, October.
    10. Nguyen, Minh-Hoang & Ho, Manh-Toan & Le, Tri Tam & Huyen, Nguyen Thanh Thanh & Nguyen, Hong-Kong T., 2021. "On the working of the mindsponge concept and the bayesvl R package," OSF Preprints jhg7b, Center for Open Science.
    11. Sanjay Chaudhary & Puneet Kaur & Hind Alofaysan & Jantje Halberstadt & Amandeep Dhir, 2023. "Connecting the dots? Entrepreneurial ecosystems and sustainable entrepreneurship as pathways to sustainability," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(8), pages 5935-5951, December.
    12. repec:thr:techub:10019:y:2021:i:1:p:311-323 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Domicián Máté & Ni Made Estiyanti & Adam Novotny, 2024. "How to support innovative small firms? Bibliometric analysis and visualization of start-up incubation," Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 13(1), pages 1-26, December.
    14. Piotr Kordel & Radosław Wolniak, 2021. "Technology Entrepreneurship and the Performance of Enterprises in the Conditions of Covid-19 Pandemic: The Fuzzy Set Analysis of Waste to Energy Enterprises in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-22, June.

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