The Impact of Technology-based Clusters on Regional Development: The Case of the Grand Poitiers Futuroscope Technopole

• Main Authors: Carlos Scheel, Daniel D. Bretones
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidad del Rosario 2012-06-01
• Series: Universidad y Empresa
• Subjects: tecnopolo Futuroscope, clusters de alta tecnología, estrategias regionales de innovación, polos de base tecnológica, ciudades innovadoras.
• Online Access: http://revistas.urosario.edu.co/index.php/empresa/article/view/1866

Several well-recognized cities in the world have leaped to outstanding levels of economicand social development leveraged by specific breakthrough drivers. For the region ofPoitou-Charentes in France, the presence of the Futuroscope Amusement Park in the cityof Poitiers has become a significant tourist attraction that now produces a dilemma. Is thisinfrastructure sufficient for assembling the “Grand Poitiers Technopole” as a successfulhigh-technology cluster? To reach the conditions to assemble this high-tech cluster, theregion must have the potential to articulate, manage and govern aggressive innovationstrategies. Following the results of a study of several innovative cities around the globe, basic enablingmechanisms were found that have broken with the conventional growth paradigms withatypical breakthrough innovations, and have now achieved world-class disrupting performances,a global branding and status as successful poles of technological innovation. Theresults obtained show the features of the existing technopole as the ones to enhance inorder to have a world-class positioning for the region.