Innovation Should Reflect Local Strengths

In the creation of a good technology ecosystem, the imitation of the Silicon Valley approach should not be taken by Mike Walkinshaw, who is both an entrepreneur and investor. With the increased enthusiasm in the start-up culture, Walkinshaw urges governments, firms, and investors to be careful in looking at Silicon Valley as the sole model to imitate. Instead, he says that each region should create its innovation ecosystem, which would have considered the uniqueness of the region.

By Walkinshaw, although Silicon Valley has been noted for innovation and success of start-ups, there are certain features that are unique about it such that they cannot be replicated elsewhere.

 

One Model Does Not Fit Every Region

The rise of Silicon Valley took place over the years, thanks to factors such as world-class universities, access to venture capital, entrepreneurs with experience, government backing, and a risky culture. According to Walkinshaw, this has happened naturally over the years, and it will be hard to replicate it in other places with different economic situations and different social setups.

Rather than trying to replicate Silicon Valley, he argued that the policymakers should seek out the industries where there exists a competitive advantage for their region. This could be any industry like manufacturing, healthcare, agriculture, renewable energy, or artificial intelligence.

Supporting Local Entrepreneurs Matters Most

According to Walkinshaw, helping local entrepreneurs must be the primary goal of all governments and investors. Local entrepreneurs know everything about problems faced in their community and, therefore, are likely to have a solution to those problems. By making funds and other resources easily accessible for local entrepreneurs, the government and investors will help foster entrepreneurial ecosystems which address local issues.

In addition, Walkinshaw stressed the need for partnerships among universities, research institutions, firms, and government entities. Partnership can speed up the process of innovation and ensure that new technologies bring economic benefits to the region.

Creating Sustainable Innovation Ecosystems

Innovation for Walkinshaw consists in the development of sustainable ecosystems instead of following another hype-startup idea. In this case, long-term thinking and entrepreneurial policies will become more useful compared with trying to copy Silicon Valley's fast growth culture.

What is important to remember is that different regions could be successful globally through solving their local issues. Companies that are based on the knowledge of the region will develop products that are interesting not only there but also worldwide.

Looking Beyond Silicon Valley

The message from Walkinshaw provides a good reminder that innovation has a number of roads to follow. Although Silicon Valley is certainly one of the centers for development in terms of technologies, it cannot be seen as the sole model for success. There are other factors which make innovation possible and which can be used as the basis of such a system.

There is no need to follow the path of Silicon Valley precisely, but there is an urgent need to develop one’s own competencies, foster entrepreneurship and develop partnerships to ensure a sustainable innovation process.