The jazz jam session improvisation model of stakeholder engagement in entrepreneurial ecosystems

Research on entrepreneurial ecosystems has seen significant growth in the last decade, with a focus on the key elements of entrepreneurial ecosystem (EE) structure, stakeholders, and interactions between them. However, the literature linking these three elements within the entrepreneurial ecosystem has yet to reach a consensus regarding how interactions between stakeholders occur within the ecosystem and beyond. We apply the jazz jam session model used by jazz musicians for improvisation to demonstrate that within a given structure of improvisation, stakeholders may improve their level and intensity of engagement, increasing the quality of the entire entrepreneurial ecosystem. The jazz jam session model explains how and why the interactions can matter and how to organize them effectively between stakeholders.