Introduction: Why Entrepreneurship?

The European Union suffers from an innovation deficit, which must be remedied if the EU is to improve the quality of life of its citizens and remain competitive in the global marketplace. We explain why productive entrepreneurship is a way towards restoring inclusive, innovative, and sustainable growth in Europe before presenting the theoretical framework of the experimentally organized economy, a perspective stressing the collaborative nature of productive entrepreneurial venturing. The perspective helps us outline an entrepreneurial reform strategy, which acknowledges the substantial cross-country differences across the union. Since each EU member state has evolved its particular bundle of institutions, many of which are complementary to one another, a one-size-fits-all approach to reforming institutions is likely to fail. Finally, we summarize the six reform areas which will be addressed in subsequent chapters, and formulate six guiding principles—neutrality, transparency, moderation, contestability, legality, and justifiability—for developing tailored reform strategies for the European Union, its member states, and regions.