Doctor Honoris Causa Inaugural Lecture of Esteban Lafuente

The University of Pécs awards the title of Doctor et Professor Honoris Causa to Prof. Dr. Esteban Lafuente in recognition of his outstanding scientific achievements and his more than two decades of professional collaboration with the Faculty of Business and Economics. Professor Lafuente is currently a professor at the School of Business of the Costa Rica Institute of Technology (ITCR) and previously served as a faculty member at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC Barcelona Tech).

His cooperation with the University of Pécs began through joint research and publications based on the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) and the Global Entrepreneurship Index. The collaboration reached a new milestone in 2017 when, together with Professor László Szerb, he co-founded the Global Competitiveness Project (GCP), which examines the competitiveness of small businesses in an international context. The project currently involves researchers from more than ten countries and serves as an important platform for international scientific cooperation.

Based on the data collected within the GCP project, numerous joint publications have been produced in leading international academic journals. Among these, a study published in the Q1-ranked Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development stands out, as well as a special issue of Competitiveness Review, which featured contributions from several researchers of the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Pécs. These collaborations have significantly strengthened the international visibility of the faculty’s research.

Esteban Lafuente has also actively contributed to the support of the doctoral programs at the University of Pécs by serving as an external reviewer for PhD dissertations and by participating regularly in conferences and workshops organized by the faculty. As a visiting researcher, he has spent several periods at the Faculty of Business and Economics, further strengthening international research cooperation.

Throughout his academic career, Professor Lafuente has published in numerous prestigious journals, including Research Policy, Small Business Economics, British Journal of Management, and the Journal of Business Research. His work has received more than 6,600 citations on Google Scholar, with an h-index of 41, reflecting his significant international scientific impact.

Professor Lafuente’s research has made an important contribution to the understanding of entrepreneurial ecosystems and the competitiveness of small businesses. In recognition of his scientific achievements and his long-standing contribution to the University of Pécs, he has been awarded the title of Doctor et Professor Honoris Causa.