HEInnovate is a self-reflection tool for Higher Education Institutions who wish to explore their innovative potential. It guides you through a process of identification, prioritisation and action planning in eight key areas. The self-assessment is available in all EU languages.
HEInnovate is not a benchmarking tool. It diagnoses areas of strength and weaknesss, opens up discussion on the entrepreneurial/innovative nature of your institution and allows you to compare and contrast evolution over time. You can have instant access to your results, learning materials and a pool of experts. HEInnovate can be used by all types of higher education institutions. It is free, confidential and open to anyone to use. Read more.
NEW: To further support Higher Education Institutions in their entrepreneurial development, seven profiles and corresponding sets of recommendations are now available for actions toward more innovative institutions! Read more
HEInnovate is an initiative of the European Commission launched in 2013 in partnership with the OECD. As a concept, it is embedded in numerous EU policy initiatives and funding programmes. Read more.
Entrepreneurial leadership and accountable governance are crucial to developing an entrepreneurial and innovative culture within an HEI. Such leadership defines entrepreneurship as a strategic priority and takes entrepreneurial and innovative practices from one-off experiment to an integrated approach that is core to how the HEI undertakes teaching, research and knowledge exchange.
The organisational capacity of an HEI drives its ability to deliver on its entrepreneurial strategy. If an HEI is committed to carrying out entrepreneurial activities to support its strategic objectives, then key resources such as people, funding and investments, expertise and knowledge, reward and incentive systems need to be in place to sustain and grow its capacity for entrepreneurship and innovation.
and Learning
Entrepreneurial teaching and learning involves exploring pedagogies, practices and flexible learning pathways to stimulate entrepreneurial mindsets in an inclusive and sustainable way. While the idea of creating a start-up remains a powerful and versatile pedagogical tool, entrepreneurship education is not just learning about how to transform an idea into a sustainable business. It is also about being exposed to entrepreneurial experiences and acquiring the skills and competences for developing an entrepreneurial mindset and equipping students to be able to contribute to addressing challenging issues such as sustainability and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
HEIs can help students, graduates and staff consider starting a business as a career option. At the outset it is important to help individuals reflect on the commercial, social, environmental, and lifestyle objectives related to their entrepreneurial aspirations and intentions. For those who decide to proceed to start a business, or other type of venture, targeted assistance can then be offered in generating, evaluating and acting upon the idea, building the skills necessary for successful entrepreneurship, and importantly finding relevant team members and getting access to appropriate finance and effective networks. In offering such support, an HEI should ideally act as part of a wider business support ecosystem rather than operating in isolation.
and Capability
HEIs are already deploying digital technologies, however the uptake and integration varies among and within institutions. HEIs should make the most out of the opportunities presented by digital transformation and consider digital technologies as a key enabler of innovation and entrepreneurship. An HEI’s digital capability is defined as the ability to integrate, optimise and transform digital technologies to support innovation and entrepreneurship.
and Networks
An entrepreneurial and innovative HEI proactively connects with its ecosystem (intended as an array of interlinked actors pooling skills and resources to pursue a common goal) to deliver social, cultural and economic benefits. The capacity to connect with entrepreneurial ecosystems and networks represents an important catalyst for organisational innovation in the HEI. It also helps the advancement of teaching and research, and transforms the HEI into an important actor in regional development and issues related to territorial cohesion.
A sustainable entrepreneurial HEI integrates the international into the design and delivery of education, research, and knowledge exchange by introducing new questions, approaches and alternative ways of thinking. Through considering international societal challenges, including the UN SDGs, the entrepreneurial HEI is also better equipped to support its ecosystem.
Entrepreneurial and innovative higher education institutions need to understand the impact of the changes they bring about. The entrepreneurial HEI combines institutional self-perception, external reflection and an evidence-based approach. An HEI that monitors the impact of all activities connected to the entrepreneurial and innovation agenda generates valuable information and data to be used to improve its own performance. Metrics should span beyond spin-off creation, the volume and quality of intellectual property generation and research income generation. Assessment activities should focus also on graduate entrepreneurship, skills and competence development, teaching and learning outcomes, talent retention, contribution to global, national and local economic development or the impact of the institution’s broader entrepreneurial agenda.
The steps below guide you through the features and content of HEInnovate. By clicking on the carousel figures, you will gain an overview of how to use HEInnovate for an individual or group self-assessment. . You can explore how to organise your HEInnovate workshops and join various HEInnovate events and webinars. You will know more about the new Action cards with recommendations based on entrepreneurial profiles. You can also read about available resources and other initiatives related to HEInnovate.
self-assessment
completion
Explore the eight dimensions of HEInnovate by completing the self-assessment. The self-assessment tool has the simple purpose of helping higher education institutions identify their current situation, respecting the local and national environments, and from that, agreeing on potential areas for action. Under eight dimensions, there are 38 statements to consider in relation to your institution. You can choose whether you want to complete all eight dimensions or focus only on a few selected areas.
HEInnovate has a group function, it is a highly versatile feature which allows people with different roles to compare their results and use them to generate discussion, dialogue and strategies for change.
The group function of HEInnovate is the best way for higher education institutions to use HEInnovate for institutional change. Once registered, any user can set up a group and invite colleagues and relevant internal and external stakeholders to complete the self-assessment as part of their group.
The HEInnovate self-assessment tool works best if it is used as part of a process for HEIs who are exploring their entrepreneurial and innovative potential rather than in isolation. Workshops are an important part of the process as they provide an opportunity for those involved to discuss and prioritise actions for the future.
You can find additional information on how to organise your workshop among the Training Materials, including an HEInnovate Training Manual with suggestions for draft workshop agendas, whom to invite and format for the workshops; presentations about HEInnovate, workshop guides and an action sheet.
You can also seek advice to the organisation of your workshop by contacting the HEInnovate Team or the members of the HEInnovate expert team.
Explore the HEInnovate resources. The website provides access to relevant resources for further improvement and inspiration. The resources include:
- Case studies on institutional practices along the eight dimensions of HEInnovate.
- User stories about the different experiences of HEIs undertaking the HEInnovate assessment.
- Guidance notes linked to the individual HEInnovate statements to gain ideas and guidance on how to further your institutions practices and approaches along the different statements.
- Country reviews, prepared by the OECD using HEInnovate.
The HEInnovate action cards provide HEIs specific recommendations based on their entrepreneurial profile. Each HEI can assign itself to one of seven profiles that best suits its entrepreneurial development and its institutional strength. The Action cards put forward relevant and actionable recommendations for short-, medium- and long-term implementation tailored to each institutional profile along the dimensions of HEInnovate. The 56 action cards and accompanying instruction materials can be downloaded and are best used in a workshop setting.
and webinars
Sign up to our news and newsletter to receive notifications about the latest articles and upcoming events. We are also running a series of webinars, which usually take place at 5pm CET/CEST on the last Thursday of the month. The webinars engage invited speakers in discussions and experience sharing around topics of relevance to the current discourse in the field of higher education, with a special focus on innovation and entrepreneurship.
Here you can learn more about:
- The EIT HEI Capacity Building Initiative, and
- The Entrepreneurial Potential and Innovation Competences (EPIC) course assessment tool
in numbers
You can view and download case studies that showcase different institutional approaches and practices along the eight dimensions of HEInnovate,
and user stories about the experiences of various HEIs undertaking the HEInnovate assessment.
- Case studies
The European Bioeconomy University (EBU) is an alliance of eight higher education institutions (HEIs) with a dedicated focus on the bioeconomy. The institutions are from different European countries: Austria, France, Germany, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. The bioeconomy is that part of the economy that is concerned with the production and manufacturing of biological resources or with providing related services. In the project Fostering Entrepreneurship for the Bioeconomy (FOEBE) from 2020 to 2023, the EBU trained Master students from bioeconomy study programmes in...
- Case studies
Business incubators have long been integral to higher education, fostering strong connections between universities and regional business sectors. This comparative case study, part of the HEInnovate initiative, explores the establishment and operation of incubators to support entrepreneurs and innovators in collaboration with higher education institutions (HEIs). The study examines the University College of Borås, TecnoCampus Catalonia/Reimagine Textile, and Foundry Powered by International Fashion Academy (IFA) Paris, utilising public sources and interviews with HEI representatives. The case...
The expert group is an important driving force behind taking HEInnovate forward.
In this section you can read the profiles of our experts and contact them.
Ester Bernadó is committed to higher education and life-long learning. She has held several positions in the university such as International Coordinator, Director of Bachelor’s Programs, Director of a Research Group in Data Mining, and Coordinator...
Adina first attended an HEInnovate workshop and training in August 2015, given the initial interest of Babeș-Bolyai University in assessing and subsequently developing internationalisation. Adina since became a member of the HEInnovate expert group...
Annmarie is the Programme Director and a Business Studies Lecturer at the Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ireland. She is a member of the EU HEInnovate Expert Facilitators Group and has broad experience with using HEInnovate. She implemented the...
Milena Stoycheva is the CEO of JA Bulgaria and The Edge: R&BD and Visiting Professor with the EIT Digital Master School in I&E (Innovation and Entrepreneurship). Entrepreneur and educator, she is passionate about the importance of education and the...
Zsuzsa is the project manager of HEInnovate overseeing the daily running and continuous development of HEInnovate. Zsuzsa and her team have been supporting the take up of HEInnovate through the mobilisation of the expert network, the development of...
Alessio is a Full Professor of Agribusiness, Rural Development and Branding at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment of the University of Pisa. His professional experience includes coordinating several Erasmus+ funded projects ( The...
Ana has a Phd in Business and Economics, with a thesis about Operational risk in banking and focussed on internal and audit control for years. She moved on to the entrepreneurship world when she started to be part of the Global Entrepreneurship...
Nadine is the founder of BCS Consultancy Services, a consultancy company specialising in advice and expertise on EU policies and EU programmes in higher education. Nadine advises on higher education strategic developments, leadership and governance...
An enthusiastic user of HEInnovate, Barbara Gabriel has already implemented it twice in the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Aveiro with two distinct target groups. HEInnovate is the catalyst for change and for several...
Suncica Oberman Peterka is Associate Dean for Environmental Cooperation, Projects and International Cooperation at the Faculty of Economics in Osijek, J.J. Strossmayer University in Osijek, Croatia. She is a full professor and teaches various courses...
Paul has been engaged with HEInnovate since its conception and has supported its growth and development including the development of the training materials during the past five years. He has undertaken institutional reviews using the HEInnovate...
Rebecca has been a core member of the HEInnovate Team since the inception of the initiative. She has worked with the European Commission and the members of the expert group to design the self-assessment tool and maintain its relevance. Rebecca is a...
Since 2013 Steve is manager of the student-entrepreneurship centre DO! (Durf Ondernemen) at Ghent University. Where he is active both as business coach for student-entrepreneurs and as challenger of entrepreneurial thinking within Ghent University...
Fiona has over 20 years of experience of innovation and enterprise, in industry and in higher education. Her expertise enables her to play a vital connecting role between academia and business within entrepreneurial ecosystems. Prior to her current...
Klaus is passionate about entrepreneurship and believes that an entrepreneurial society will create a better world. As Universities play a key role in educating young people to think more entrepreneurial, HEInnovate is a fantastic tool for all...
Strategist, innovation and science manager, teacher, researcher, mentor and entrepreneur. He is the Executive Director of the Center for Business Innovation at Porto Business School, University of Porto and Professor of Entrepreneurship and...
Istvan is a member of the HEInnovate expert group and he contributed as the national expert to the HEInnovate Hungary review. Istvan has been working on the development of the entrepreneurial culture of higher education institutions (HEIs) for years...
Mikkel is an international consultant supporting organisations developing their entrepreneurial potential and societal impact. Mikkel has led the implementation of the EIT Climate-KIC entrepreneurship programmes across the Nordic countries developing...
Oto Hudec has a background in statistical and evaluation methods and has almost 20 years of experience in the management of education and development at the Faculty of Economics. At the same time, he also works as a head of the Institute of Regional...
Pedro has significant experience in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, including teaching and management roles played at the University of Coimbra, after having completed his PhD at MIT. He has participated in several HEInnovate Expert Meetings...
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The European Commission is currently conducting an interim evaluation of the progress in putting in place and developing the European Education Area (EEA). The evaluation involves a number of consultations to gather feedback of a variety of stakeholders (including non-EU citizens). This Open Public...
We are happy to announce that we will hold a two-day long physical training session in May 2024 to provide information and advice on how to make the most of HEInnovate. The training is run in cooperation with the European Commission. The training session is aimed at participants who are interested...
The European Commission has launched an assessment of the instruments, deliverables, results and impact of its university-business cooperation initiatives. Here you can find an official letter from the European Commission endorsing this study and providing further information about its importance...