NETWORK CAPACITY‐BUILDING IN HIGH‐TECH SECTORS: OPENING THE BLACK BOX OF CLUSTER FACILITATION POLICY

Abstract

Countries increasingly bring in facilitators for managing high‐tech networks. Facilitators are broadly defined as experts who take on a central position in the network with the goal of connecting various stakeholder groups. They also receive public funding and pose as a communication link between stakeholders and government. However, the use of facilitators challenges government to identify their benefits. Based on three case studies and interviews in biotechnology networks, the article opens up the black box of facilitation. It addresses the evaluation challenges by establishing a conceptual framework based on collaborative and absorptive capacity‐building theory to identify the elements relevant to facilitation. The analysis of Chicago (USA), Medicon Valley (Denmark/Sweden), and Singapore shows that facilitators not only create capacity‐enhancing elements within networks, they also occur in varying forms, including a government‐ and stakeholder‐funded model in European countries, an independent model in North America, and a government‐financed model in Asia.

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