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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to involve the differences in the entrepreneurial intentions of student at higher education institutions (HEIs) in the Portuguese regions (mainland and insular). Design/methodology/approach – Applying a sample of 594 valid responses, the authors analyzed the data according to linear regression models. Findings – The results convey how HEI students generally do not intend to become entrepreneurs in both the mainland and the insular regions. Although HEI students broadly do not aim to launch their own businesses, the results show that students in mainland regions feel they have the skills to start a business and drive it to success. In insular regions, students feel encouraged by their friends and family to set up their own business. When comparing insular and mainland regions, the results demonstrate how in insular regions, there is a greater probability that HEI students become entrepreneurs than in the mainland regions. Furthermore, entrepreneurial intentions in the mainland regions develop in terms of “opportunities” while driven by necessity in the insular regions. Practical implications – This furthermore makes recommendations to regional governments and to HEIs in order to enable better encouragement of entrepreneurship in academia. Originality/value – This study is original and innovative due to its comparison of the entrepreneurial intentions prevailing in mainland and insular regions and may propose new highlights to the academic scientific literature.

Purpose Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have become increasingly important in national and international markets because they contribute to the development of local and national economies. SMEs often face serious challenges when competing with multinational companies. The purpose of this paper is to develop a method for assessing SMEs’ competitiveness. Design/methodology/approach Based on a constructivist epistemology, this study makes an integrated use of cognitive mapping and the measuring attractiveness by a categorical-based evaluation technique (MACBETH). To this end, face-to-face sessions were conducted with a panel of entrepreneurs and senior managers who deal with the challenges of maintaining SME competitiveness every day. The proposed assessment system was tested and validated by the panel members. Findings The methodological processes adopted in this study provide promising results for decision makers seeking to identify the most competitive SMEs. Specifically, the results emphasize, among other points, the importance of innovation and the human dimension to gaining competitive advantages. Research limitations/implications The evaluation system developed in this study is extremely versatile and confirms the usefulness of integrating cognitive mapping and MACBETH to facilitate evaluations of SME competitiveness. However, due to its idiosyncratic and process-oriented nature, generalizations need to be done with caution. Practical implications The proposed method can be valuable to researchers seeking to develop mechanisms for evaluating SMEs’ entrepreneurial performance and include specialized know-how and sensemaking in organizational decision-making processes. Originality/value The integrated use of cognitive maps and MACBETH contributes to a better understanding of how to assess SMEs’ competitiveness. No prior work reporting the use of this dual methodology in this study context has been found.