In Pursuit of Cluster Organizations: A Growth Strategy for Regional Economies

The strategic and economic importance of the role of cluster organizations is growing. Clusters are considered a key factor for sustainable economic growth as they raise the competitive advantages and innovative strengths of regional economies and firms (Ketels et al., 2012; Sölvell and Williams, 2013). Although cluster policies vary considerably across regions and countries, most cluster programs within the European Union pay dedicated attention to the funding of cluster organizations (Lämmer-Gamp et al., 2012). Despite limited knowledge concerning the function and heterogeneous nature of cluster organizations (Lindqvist, 2009; Ebbekink and Lagendijk, 2013) they are a crucial factor in regional policy-making and long-term economic development (Porter, 2000; Ketels et al., 2012). The main objective of this study is to identify determinants justifying the regional variation in the number of cluster organizations hosted in life sciences sectors across 15 EU-member states. Employing cluster organization data at a NUTS-2 regional level and the European Cluster Observatory’s Regional Ecosystem Scoreboard a conceptual model was built with assumptions based on the national systems of innovation approach. Evidence is found that the quality of the knowledge basis and skills within a region is positively related to the number of cluster organizations the region hosts, whilst the level of the demand is negatively related. Also, results from the robustness test provide evidence that a mix of entrepreneurial attitudes, activities and aspirations and the relationship of these factors and economic development is not as straight forward as thought. Further research should focus on making findings from this research more generalizable.