An Empirical Study on the Factors Affecting the Start-up Ecosystem

Nowadays, interest in start-ups has increased due to their significant contribution to the economy. This study aims to investigate the factors affecting the start-up ecosystem. Additionally, it answers the research question as to whether people of different age groups would look at the start-up ecosystem factors in different ways. The study has used the quantitative analysis method. Out of a total of 120 samples collected through an online survey using a random sampling technique from different parts of Oman, 113 were used in the final analysis. The study has found that the main obstacles the start-up companies encounter during the early phases of their business include financial support, marketing help, professional networking, government incentives, government regulations, and investors’ willingness. Among all the major obstacles reported were the financial support (19%) and the marketing support (18%), while the least were the government incentives (15%) and the investors’ willingness (15%). The age group 19 and below, and 38-43 considered financial and marketing help as the most important factors for start-up companies. While the age groups 20-25 and 32-37 considered marketing help, the age group 26-31 years considered the government regulations and policies and investors’ willingness the most important factors. The participants of age groups 44-49 looked at the need for marketing, finance, and professional networks as the most important factors for start-up companies. Hence, policymakers need to develop mechanisms to provide financial and marketing support to start-up companies to succeed. Additionally, policymakers should not forget that different age groups have different resource requirements for their start-ups.