The International Entrepreneurship Forum (IEF) was founded in October 2000 and is currently located at the Centre for Entrepreneurship Research at the University of Essex.

The IEF is an informal network of academics, policy makers and practitioners, who are brought together to discuss and interact with each other on issues related to entrepreneurship research, education and training.

During the past 10 years IEF has organised highly successful, refereed international conferences in different countries of Europe, Asia and the Middle East covering various aspects of entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development. One of the most satisfying outcomes of all the events has been the identification of new interest, scholarship and insight into entrepreneurial activity, across different countries, demonstrating the value of learning in an international arena of thought and practice. This outcome informs the themes and topics chosen for each conference.