Natalie Novick

Presented at the Startup Nations Summit, Tallinn, Estonia
November 22, 2017

How do we know what makes a great entrepreneurial ecosystem, and how do we measure it? As technology has developed, the tools for entrepreneurship has changed with it. As an increasingly large portion of the economy has come to depend on the digital economy, policymakers have struggled to attract and support this new generation of entrepreneurs. Existing economic incentives and support provided by local and federal governments have gone unused. Cities and communities have long looked toward successful models like Silicon Valley for a road map to discern the ingredients required to produce great startup ecosystem. While this model has not been replicated, it is not necessary to. In today’s digital economy, one size, or one model does not fit all. Most have relied on quantitative metrics to evaluate their startup ecosystems, but these measures miss some of the key qualitative aspects that are key to understanding how your ecosystem supports entrepreneurial activities. Every community has the potential to be a great startup ecosystem, if they can recognize and build upon their existing strengths.