The local agglomeration of nanotechnology innovative activities in Grenoble (France) and Albany (USA): The role of leaders on change and the influence of technolog

This doctoral dissertation will shed light on the role of individuals in the gradual structuration of nanotechnology emerging field. We suggest that individuals acting as institutional and cognitive-oriented entrepreneurs enable to materialize "potential" networks by connecting various stakeholders and by articulating dispersed bodies of knowledge. We suggest that the resulting model enables to accelerate nanotechnology innovation through the building and the co-location of cognitive platforms that target various application fields. Our thesis aims at understanding the role of individual action in the emergence of new organizational forms associated with innovative activities in nanotechnology-related industries.;Our thesis suggests a conceptual framework to address the variations in institutional arrangements induced by nanotechnology. By considering the strength of institutional forces and the role of individual actions and organizational behavior, our contribution seeks to reconcile technological and institutional determinism, and voluntarism. The integration of micro and macro level factors into our analysis enables to shed light on the process underlying the emergence of two centers specialized in nanotechnology.;Our contribution indicates that nanotechnology fosters the emergence of a new type of entrepreneurial endeavor which relies on the combination of various bodies of competences. Cognitive-oriented entrepreneurship brings a new dimension to the study of technological change by focusing on the combination of competences in addition to the combination of products and processes.