O'Reilly, Noel M. (2019) The entrepreneurial university in Ireland - from rhetoric to reality. A phenomenological study of the evolution of the entrepreneurial capabilities of universities. PhD thesis, National University of Ireland Maynooth.

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Abstract

The role of the university has evolved from teaching and research to include the ‘third mission’ of knowledge transfer and beyond to the creation of ‘entrepreneurship capital’ which can have a positive socioeconomic impact on national economies (Audretsch & Keilbach, 2005). The modern ‘entrepreneurial university’ is now expected to fulfil the three roles of teaching, research and entrepreneurship simultaneously. This research brings to bear a qualitative, phenomenological research methodology using semi structured interviews to understanding both the lived experience and, indeed, the attitudes of senior university leadership across the island of Ireland to the entrepreneurial university paradigm. Executive team members, often at the level of President, in third level institutions were interviewed. The aims of this research are twofold. Firstly, the research looks to explore how these leaders interpret the concept of entrepreneurship within the entrepreneurial university paradigm: how or, indeed, whether it is woven into their institutional strategy and with what effect. Secondly, strategic management theory, specifically dynamic capabilities theory (Teece et al., 1997), has been chosen as a theoretical lens to consider mission and strategy within the entrepreneurial university. The findings of this research have yielded rich and original insights which have contributed to the development of a new theoretical model of the Entrepreneurial University in Ireland. This contribution is significant, not just in advancing theory, but equally, in terms of guiding senior management of universities as they plan their next steps in their journey to deliver the third mission.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Design Innovation
Item ID:	12564
Depositing User:	IR eTheses
Date Deposited:	09 Mar 2020 17:15
URI:
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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