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How much reality is behind the Silicon Valley myth? Prof. Dr. Ted Baker and Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Friederike Welter shed light on why the supposed success model is not easily transferable - and which myths play a role in this.

Does Europe really only need more "growth champions"? Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Friederike Welter calls for a stronger focus on innovative SMEs and less bureaucracy to make the European single market more attractive.

Rethinking entrepreneurship: In her keynote speech at Aalto University, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Friederike Welter emphasizes why entrepreneurship research should look beyond conventional models - for a more realistic and diverse understanding of entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurship takes place in many different ways. Accordingly, according to Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Friederike Welter, entrepreneurship researchers should broaden their view and look beyond the conventional standard models. "This kind of approach helps both politicians and society to view and value entrepreneurship more realistically," explained the Siegen professor during her keynote speech at the workshop "Small Acts, Big Changes: Connecting Everyday and Social Entrepreneurship" at the Aalto University School of Business (Finland) at the beginning of October. She then took part in the editorial panel.

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In the opinion of Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Friederike Welter, the European Commission's funding initiatives should not only target fast-growing companies, but should also focus on innovative SMEs in general. "Some entrepreneurs don't even want their company to grow quickly. Nevertheless, these companies can be very successful," she explained during the panel "The Start up Strategy an Innovation Act: What else to spur and retain innovative Firms in strategic Technologies?" at the 10th European Conference on Corporate R&D and Innovation in Seville (Spain) at the end of September.

At the same time, she recommended making the European single market even more attractive for companies by adopting a more trust-based approach to bureaucracy. She referred to the UK, where the importance of the regulatory system as a dynamic competitive factor in the international location and innovation competition has been at the center of the economic policy discourse for some time instead of small-scale bureaucracy.