Using Communities of Practice for Entrepreneurial Learning

Abstract

Start-ups engage in entrepreneurial learning throughout their existence. Although the process is highly complex and difficult, they benefit from support offered by incubator. Elements of incubator support are able to create a positive environment with certain requirements that contribute to interorganisational learning and acquisition of knowledge. However, incubators need a tool that is able to embed the learning mechanisms that make learning more effective. Communities of Practice can be used as such tool. Therefore incubator should initiate a CoP. Yet that is not as simple as we wish for. Communities of Practice evolve and disband out of necessity of the members rather than being formed and started (Liedka, 1999). Therefore initiating a community of practice is a process of understanding the members and their needs. Incubator not only influences this process, they also define the rules and the boundaries for the CoP. This research investigates the elements that are important for Entrepreneurial Learning of ICT start-ups. These elements serve as a base for the components of CoPs that should be introduced during the design by the incubator.