Abstract
An important area of research is to answer the fundamental question of what can be done to support innovation and entrepreneurship in universities to fulfil the objectives of knowledge economy. In this paper, the authors report findings from two interpretive in-depth case studies from US and UK Universities in different higher education system settings. The paper is designed to address innovation and entrepreneurship activities at three levels, (Individual, Organizational, and Eco System Levels), and is intended to explore the main pillars of entrepreneurship policies, namely entrepreneurship education, venture capital support and intellectual property facilities. The findings that are extrapolated from the analysis of the two case studies are presented. The findings have addressed the key aspects of support systems for innovation and entrepreneurship, and have been outlined in the form of lessons learnt from the initiatives of exemplar US and UK universities in supporting innovation and advancing entrepreneurial practices. The paper will contribute to two discourses: (1) Addressing the relationship between support systems for innovation and entrepreneurship and the universities policies and practices (2) Lessons for University leaders to assist the development and implementation of effective entrepreneurial policies.