Women tech entrepreneurs in Ecuador: Knowledge barriers, network gaps, and systemic dynamics
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Author(s)Fausto Vinicio Calderon PinedaLink to ORCID Index: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5425-1057
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Ana Maria Ortega-AlvarezLink to ORCID Index: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0288-3209
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DOIhttp://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.24(3).2026.05
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Article InfoVolume 24 2026, Issue #3, pp. 68–83
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Type of the article: Research Article
Abstract
Although Ecuador has a high rate of women’s business ownership, only a small proportion of these enterprises operate within the technology sector. This study aims to examine women’s technological entrepreneurship in Ecuador using a qualitative phenomenological approach. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 female entrepreneurs between September and October 2025. The findings revealed recurring themes in participants’ experiences, including gender inequality, bureaucratic obstacles, conservative social attitudes, and limited access to professional networks. Despite these challenges, the entrepreneurs emphasize that they possess considerable resilience and innovation, adapting to emerging technologies and building strategic support networks. Participants also highlighted the importance of inclusive public policies to address these barriers and promote a more equitable and sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem for women in the technology sector. Although the study focuses on a single country, its findings provide valuable insights into the current state of women’s technological entrepreneurship and highlight the significant role of the institutional and social environment in shaping the development of such ventures.
Acknowledgment
We would like to thank the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, CENTRUM, our families, and colleagues for their support throughout this process.
- Keywords
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JEL Classification (Paper profile tab)L26, O32, J16
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References61
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Tables3
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Figures2
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- Figure 1. Categories and patterns identified in the emic perception analysis
- Figure 2. Heat map of co-occurrence between categories of women entrepreneurs
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- Table 1. Description of sociodemographic variables
- Table 2. Experience: Quotes from interviewees
- Table A1. Script used in individual interviews
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From knowledge creation to commercialization performance: Non-linear effects on green and digital energy start-ups
Milena Kirilova Filipova ,
Olha Рrokopenko ,
Petra Krišková ,
Dmytro Halynskyi
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/kpm.10(2).2026.08
Knowledge and Performance Management Volume 10, 2026 Issue #2 pp. 122-142 Views: 119 Downloads: 40 TO CITE АНОТАЦІЯType of the article: Research Article
The conversion of knowledge into organizational and market performance is a central challenge for innovation-driven economies. This study examines how innovation activity and its commercialization shape the entrepreneurial performance of knowledge ecosystems, using green and digital energy start-ups as an empirical context. The aim is to investigate the non-linear relationships among knowledge creation, knowledge commercialization, and start-up development, with particular attention to whether mismatches between innovation activity and market uptake generate diminishing returns or imitation-driven entrepreneurial dynamics. The analysis is based on a balanced panel of 37 countries over the period 2018–2023, comprising 222 country-year observations. The methodology applies TWFE with DK standard errors, complemented by quadratic specifications, turning-point analysis, and lagged models. The findings reveal an inverted U-shaped relationship between innovation commercialization and start-up activity, confirmed by negative, significant squared terms for sales of new-to-market and new-to-firm innovations in green start-ups (β2 = −0.1588) and digital start-ups (β2 = −0.1462), with turning points at 0.1428 and 0.0021, respectively. Funding dynamics demonstrate threshold effects: product innovation has a U-shaped relationship with early-stage digital funding (β2 = 2.0630), while process innovation strengthens later-stage funding for green (β2 = 1.8100) and digital start-ups (β2 = 1.8434). The knowledge commercialization gap positively affects digital start-ups (β = 0.1111), suggesting that uncommercialized knowledge may stimulate market entry. Lagged results confirm temporal effects, with past innovation commercialization reducing digital start-up activity (β = −0.2483). Knowledge creation alone does not ensure performance growth; sustainable start-up development requires effective knowledge-to-market conversion.
