Measuring Efficiency and Productivity Growth of New Technology-Based Firms in Business Incubators: The Portuguese Case Study of Madan Parque

Business incubators can play a major role in helping to turn a business idea into a technology-based organization that is economically efficient. However, there is a shortage in the literature regarding the efficiency evaluation and productivity evolution of the new technology-based firms (NTBFs) in...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: A. Grilo, J. Santos
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hindawi Limited 2015-01-01
Series:The Scientific World Journal
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/936252
Description
Summary:Business incubators can play a major role in helping to turn a business idea into a technology-based organization that is economically efficient. However, there is a shortage in the literature regarding the efficiency evaluation and productivity evolution of the new technology-based firms (NTBFs) in the incubation scope. This study develops a model based on the data envelopment analysis (DEA) methodology, which allows the incubated NTBFs to evaluate and improve the efficiency of their management. Moreover, the Malmquist index is used to examine productivity change. The index is decomposed into multiple components to give insights into the root sources of productivity change. The proposed model was applied in a case study with 13 NTBFs incubated. From that study, we conclude that inefficient firms invest excessively in research and development (R&D), and, on average, firms have a productivity growth in the period of study.
ISSN:2356-6140
1537-744X