Fast growing firms in a slow growth economy : institutional conditions for innovation Preface and acknowledgements 1. Introduction: innovation beyond national systems fragility: institutional bricolage for SMEs growth D. Lauto G. Pittino and F. Visintin Part I the context 2. Entrepreneurship and technological clusters. the influence of contextual factors on the birth and growth of new businesses T. Pucci and L. Zanni 3. Tie formation through venture concept development in emerging innovative start ups A. Comacchio S. Bonesso and V. Finotto 4. Micro context and institutional entrepreneurship: multiple case studies and innovative start ups D. Giacomini C. Muzzi S. Albertini Part II the actors 5. Innovative start ups and growth factors G. Antonelli A. Berni and S. Consiglio 6. Family firms as the incubators of new ventures: a transgenerational perspective M. Brumana T. Minola L. Cassia D. Gamba and P. Pressiani 7. Evolution of university spinoffs business model. C.e. De Marco and A. Piccaluga 8. reassembling the social in entrepreneurial innovation and academic entrepreneurship studies: the amphibious scientists phenomenon F. Crisci and P.a.m. Mazzurana Part III the strategy 9. Learning from critical internationalisation events. insights from two fast growing Italian SMEs C. Dossena A. Francesconi G. Magnani A. Onetti A. Pisoni M. Talaia and A. Zucchella 10. Spin offs and social capital: contingent social networking towards growth B. Masiello F. Izzo M. Pezzillo Iacono and M. Martinez 11. Business model evolution and the drivers of the growth of high tech new ventures A. Tracogna G. Bortoluzzi and B. Balboni 12. Quasi successful and quasi failing academic spin offs: the role of technological and commercial alliances P. Gubitta A. Tognazzo D. Campagnolo and M. Gianecchini. Europe needs more innovative companies that grow quickly and end up big. This book examines SME growth innovation and success to suggest that fast growing firms could offer a major contribution to the recovery of a European economy. The contributors examine 11 case studies from Italian firms breaking the book up into three parts: context actors and strategy. The topics discussed include entrepreneurship and technological clusters innovative start ups and growth factors and family firms as the incubators of new ventures. Students and scholars of entrepreneurship and other related disciplines will find this book to be of interest. It will also be of use to practitioners in the field working with and alongside SMEs