What matters for innovative startup growth? A study on local, firm-specific, and founder-specific factors

Frame of the research: While several studies have focused on the creation of innovative startups, less attention has been devoted to the drivers of growth for these startups. Purpose of the paper: This study investigates the drivers of growth in innovative startups by jointly considering factors at different levels: local, firm-specific, and founder-specific. Methodology: The study analyzes 701 innovative Italian startups and tests the research hypotheses using multiple regression analysis. Findings: The findings reveal a positive association between the number of incubators in a province and the growth of innovative startups. Additionally, a highly educated workforce is positively related to startup growth. Furthermore, the prevalence of young individuals in the entrepreneurial team is associated with higher growth, while entrepreneurs’ gender does not lead to significantly different growth rates, suggesting that the slower growth observed in women-led startups in previous studies does not characterize women-led innovative startups. Research limits: The research has limitations, as it analyzes growth over a relatively short period and focuses solely on the Italian context. Further research is encouraged to examine drivers of long-term growth and to investigate the growth of innovative startups in different national contexts. Practical implications: The study highlights the importance of supporting the establishment ofincubators, as they contribute to the development ofan entrepreneurial ecosystem that fosters the growth of new ventures. Additionally, findings suggest that policymakers should support young entrepreneurship, as firms created by this group tend to grow faster than others. Originality of the paper: The study adopts a multilevel perspective by jointly analyzing factors at three levels - local, firm-specific, and individual - to respond to the call for research on startup growth drivers that considers factors of diverse natures.