Entrepreneurship, local community and industrialization: a peculiar intermediation

Some French big firms carry out a voluntary and continuous action (called industrialization action) which aims at supporting entrepreneurial projects located in their local environments. The big firm operates then as an intermediary in local entrepreneurship. This means that it organizes an internal process of selection and assessment of entrepreneurial projects stemming from its local environment. One important consequence for the selected and supported local entrepreneur is to have an easier access to standard venture capital and loans. The selected projects are close to the big firm industrial field, but the business operations of both parts keep separated. Even if it supports an entrepreneur, the big firm should not get organically linked with him, so as to encourage and strengthen the entrepreneur responsibility. This does not prevent the big firm from giving technical advice if needed.