Innovation Pulse - Assessment and Monitoring of the Performance of the Startup and Innovation Ecosystem of the Republic of Serbia - Inno Pulse

Project duration: January 2025 – December 2025

Call/Program/Scheme: Program for the Improvement of Innovation Activities in the Republic of Serbia

Client / Financier: Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation

Participating institutions: Institute of Economic Sciences, Belgrade

Principal investigator (PI): Dr. Lazar Živković, Institute of Economic Sciences, Belgrade

The role of IEN in the project: IEN is a lead institution

IEN project team (manager/coordinator, team members):

dr Lazar Živković (Principal investigator)
dr Dijana Štrbac
dr Sonja Đuričin
dr Isidora Beraha
dr Nikola Vasilić

Description:

Serbia currently lacks an integrated and evidence-based system for monitoring and evaluating the performance of its startup and innovation ecosystem, which limits the ability to design effective policies and identify key development challenges and opportunities. The project Inno Pulse aims to establish a reliable and sustainable framework for continuous performance tracking and policy support. The main goal of the project is to develop a composite index (Inno Pulse) and a methodological framework that will enable systematic assessment of the innovation ecosystem. The project is primarily intended for the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation, as well as other public institutions, innovation support organizations, and the business sector, providing them with actionable insights for evidence-based decision-making.

The approach combines desk research, stakeholder mapping, and the development of survey instruments, followed by large-scale data collection (survey of at least 500 firms and 30+ stakeholder interviews). The project delivers a robust methodology, a comprehensive dataset, the Inno Pulse index, and a final report with policy recommendations. Immediate benefits include improved understanding of ecosystem performance and stronger analytical support for policy design. In the long term, the project will enable continuous monitoring and contribute to a more coordinated, data-driven and competitive innovation ecosystem in Serbia.

Keywords: innovation ecosystem, innovation policy, startup performance, composite index (Inno Pulse), evidence-based policy

Innovation Pulse of the Republic of Serbia