Assessment of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Ecosystem

Building upon prior work for the New Economy Initiative (NEI), Mass Economics updated and then expanded the existing database of entrepreneurship support organizations (ESOs) to include innovation support organizations (ISOs) in the entire Detroit CSA. Informed by qualitative and quantitative research and a survey of ISOs and ESOs – designed and analyzed by Mass Economics and project partners – staff categorized the organizations and their offerings and evaluated greater Detroit’s ecosystem over time – identifying strengths and gaps by stage of innovation, business stage, functions and services provided, industry, geography, and type (ESO vs. ISO). As part of the effort, the project team identified and mapped the unique service areas of the surveyed organizations and also created detailed network maps to elucidate connectivity, centrality, and key nodes within the ecosystem. Mass Economics’ findings were summarized in a comprehensive report delivered to NEI in late 2018, which was integrated with project partners’ contributions in a report released by NEI in 2019.

The final report can be found at this link: https://neweconomyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/NEI-Community-of-Opportunity-Report-SCREEN-9-09-19.pdf