Mission statements and performance: an exploratory study of science parks

Abstract

Science parks play an important role in the promotion of innovation. Their objective is to act as a bridge between universities and industry with the support of public administrations. However, the specific role of a science park might vary depending on the geographical setting. For that reason, the mission statement of science parks can greatly differ from one another. The original contribution of this study stems from investigating the relationship between strategic managerial choices (how science parks define their mission statement) and their performance. A qualitative approach is used and is based on a sample of 20 Spanish science parks. Our results demonstrate the importance of concentrating on a few relevant components, namely, customers, product offer, geographic scope, investors and society.