Evaluation of Entrepreneurial and Innovative Universities in Turkey Based on Grounded Theory and A Model Proposal

In recent years, we have frequently come across the current term of “Entrepreneurial University”. As in every sphere of life, innovativeness has also enabled universities to turn into actors that have gradually become important centers for the regions within which they developed. When examining the development of universities, it will be seen that last generation universities are entrepreneurial and innovative universities. This has led students and academics to encourage the using of information, that is, the transfer of knowledge and technology, as well as the thinking of entrepreneurship. In this context, enterprises originating from entrepreneurial universities have evolved into an important mechanism in the transfer of information and technology and the solution of the problems of the society. Since this model of university entrepreneurship in universities size in Turkey in 2012, it has gained significant momentum. As a requirement of competition, state authorities have serious expectations in this area, while giving importance to the role of the universities in this area, as well as offering considerable incentives and support in the field of university entrepreneurship. Universities recently have been seen to highlight entrepreneurial and innovative university features in their marketing activities. But what does it mean to be an enterprising and innovative university? How entrepreneurial and innovative is the university can be measured and evaluated. In this context, TUBITAK is implementing an index that lists the entrepreneurial and innovative aspects of universities each year. The aim of the present study was to present a theoretical structure that could provide basis for the design of a tool that measures the entrepreneurial and innovative characteristics of universities in Turkey based on grounded theory. Accordingly, a qualitative and quantitative modelling was carried out regarding the environmental conditions, input and output activities of entrepreneurial and innovative universities based on the data obtained as the result of the extensive interviews with the official experts of the universities listed in the 2017 Innovative and Entrepreneurial Universities Index in Turkey. Face to face interviews were conducted with 26 academic and administrative staff members who were experts in their fields at 15 universities from 7 regions in Turkey selected from this index through purposive sampling and maximum variation. As the result of a five-step inductive content analysis, a theoretical structure consisting of 3 themes as Strategic Entrepreneurial Orientation, Potential Activation and Development and Projects and Commercialization, and 14 categories belonging to these themes was achieved. The presented theoretical model was grounded on sustainability through its process and smart approach, student-centered, social interactive, and was based on the principle of balanced evaluation of input and output activities. That there are no previous studies on how the entrepreneurial university paradigm works in Turkey and how this aspect of universities can be measured and evaluated makes this study critically important. It is possible to state that the results of this study will bring forward a radical paradigm shift in university entrepreneurship. Suggestions were developed together with discussion questions and mature comments were presented within the scope of the study.