CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

There are recent experiences for fostering technologicalbusiness clusters in Argentina, universities, along with other local andregional institutions, have played a major role, aiming to develop a criticalnumber of technology-based firms rooted to the territory. These experienceshave had different institutional models, showing idiosyncratic trajectories,and different outcomes. This article discusses the opportunities and challengesfor technological cluster development from firm-university collaborationnetworks. Based on a theoretical framework developed by (Boschma, 2005) we analyze different types of proximitiesbetween actors in those networks and the proximity between local and nationaltechnological policies, regarding the balance between top-down and bottom-uppolicies encouraging high-tech business clustersformation in Argentina. We compare three cases ofincipient S&T clusters based on firm-university networks, located indifferent regions in Argentina, with an important leading role of publicuniversities. They are: a biotech-firm incubated by a regional university inSanta Fe city; the development of a software business cluster in Tandil amedium-sized city, located at the province of Buenos Aires, and apublic-private partnership for innovation in bio-nanotechnology, in the MetropolitanArea of Buenos Aires. The three cases had beenthe outcome of initial local and national S&T policy support, which enabledUniversity-firms relationship. Although, this common feature resulted indifferent institutional arrangements depending on technology, institutional,social and organizational previous trajectories.

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