Establishing the Enterprise Europe Network

The Enterprise Europe Network was launched by the European Commission in 2008 in order to establish a “no wrong door” approach for businesses, bringing together business support organisations with different specialisations. As a result, two previous EU networks, the European Information Centres and the Innovation Relay Centres were encouraged to form regional consortia and issue public tenders describing how they would integrate their services. This book explores issues related to knowledge sharing in establishing the Enterprise Europe Network, based on a case study of the regional consortium of South East England. The book is based on qualitative interviews with each consortium partner and a representative from the European Commission. Drawing on theories of social constructivist institutionalism and organisational network theory, the analysis sheds light on the complexity of multilevel governance and the issues that arise when the EU-approach to regional policy is implemented in practice. It should be especially relevant for policy-makers and practitioners engaged in regional development, and for people interested in organisational change and the forming of networks.