When the going gets tough, do the tough get going? The pre-entry work experience of founders and high-tech start-up survival during an industry crisis

2010 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 626-647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca Grilli
Keyword(s):  
Work Experience ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Specific Work ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Technology Services ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Econometric Analyses ◽  
Start Ups ◽  
Boom Period

This article explores the possibility that under an intensely negative industry-specific shock, the positive relationship between the human capital of founders and the survival prospects of start-up businesses may actually be negative. Starting from a theoretical perspective to derive testable hypotheses, the study examines a sample of 179 Italian start-ups operating in the information and communication technology services market created during the boom period from 1995 to early 2000. Econometric analyses provide evidence that, during an intense industry crisis (that is, early 2000 to 2003) entrepreneurs with a substantial amount of prior work experience may pursue an exit strategy. This also highlights the importance of distinguishing between different types of work experience and different exit routes: founding teams with highly specific work experience show a higher probability of pursuing mergers and acquisitions (M&A), while a higher level of generic work experience is found to be more conducive to firm closure.

Esperienza lavorativa dei fondatori e sopravvivenza delle giovani imprese high-tech in mercati in crisi

2009 ◽  
pp. 41-61
Author(s):  
Luca Grilli
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Work Experience ◽  
Firm Survival ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Specific Work ◽  
Alternative Employment ◽  
Start Up ◽  
The One ◽  
The Impact

- This article adds new insights into the relationship between the founders' human capital and the survival prospects of start-up businesses. The impact of founders' human capital on firm survival is controversial. On the one hand, more experienced and skilled individuals are likely to create start-up businesses with a high chance of survival; on the other hand, their opportunity costs to run the firm may be high given the potential returns for investing their efforts in alternative employment opportunities. Analysing a sample of 179 Italian start-up companies created during 1995-early 2000 and operating in the ICT services markets, this study provides evidence that, in intense industry crises (early 2000-2003), highly work-experienced entrepreneurs may pursue an exit strategy, highlighting the importance of distinguishing between different types of work experience and different exit routes. In particular, founding teams with highly specific work experience show higher probability of following the M&A route, while a higher level of generic work experience is more conducive to closure. Keywords: high-tech entrepreneurship; young firm survival; founders' human capital Parole chiave: imprenditorialitŕ high-tech; sopravvivenza di giovani imprese; capitale umano degli imprenditori Jel Classification: L26 - L86

scholarly journals Business ideas in start-ups

2020 ◽  
Vol 83 ◽  
pp. 01063
Author(s):  
Štefan Slávik
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Legal Protection ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Development Cycle ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Start Ups

Start-up is a modern entrepreneurship form designed to realize original business ideas, mostly based on new technologies and the Internet. It evolves in the development cycle, which is determined by the business idea development cycle and the financing cycle. The purpose of the paper is to describe and analyse the business idea. The business idea is characterized by its content, circumstances of its origin, degree of originality and evidence of this originality. Start-ups are dominated by business ideas based on the application of information and communication technologies, the business idea is most often created by combining professional and business experience, but its originality is from the international point of view only average and the level of legal protection is quite rare.

The Silicon Peaches

2021 ◽  
pp. 31-42
Author(s):  
Dan Breznitz
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Silicon Valley ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Multiple Time ◽  
Rapid Rise ◽  
Time Points ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Multiple Time Points ◽  
Start Ups

This chapter acknowledges that, for many regions, the idea of attracting cutting-edge tech start-ups is almost irresistible. Seemingly every community aspires to become the next Silicon Valley. But is that feasible? This chapter make these lessons concrete by elaborating on the rapid rise and, even faster and deeper, decline of America’s first Silicon Valley—Cleveland, Ohio. It then shows the near impossibility of trying to become the next Silicon Valley by analyzing the mysterious failure of Atlanta, Georgia—a city that diligently followed all the advice ever given to an aspiring new start-up hub, but somehow was always left only with the “potential.” We will see how at multiple time-points Atlanta’s companies were the leading innovators with the best products in the newest information and communication technologies (ICT), only to falter and be taken over by Silicon Valley companies without leaving any apparent impact on the region. It then brings in social-network research and the concept of embeddedness to explain why trying to recreate a Silicon Valley is a doomed (and expensive) enterprise.

Characteristics and Determinants of New Start-ups in Gujarat, India

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
Ajay Kumar ◽  
Bhim Jyoti
Keyword(s):  
Sample Size ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
New Products ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
The Body ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Annual Sale ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Start Ups

Purpose: This study examines the relationship of socio-economic characteristics of start-ups with their size in Gujarat, India. It also assesses the determinants affecting the annual sale of start-ups. Methods: It includes primary information based on a survey of 120 founders of start-ups. Linear and semi-log linear regression models have been applied to assess the determinants of start-ups. Probit regression models have been considered to assess the factors affecting the annual sale of the start-ups. Results: Stage of start-up, the participation of founders in conferences, educational qualification, and new products launched by start-ups, professional connections of founders, source of funding, and support from incubator/accelerator/supporting organizations are found crucial determinants of start-up size in Gujarat. The annual sales of the start-ups are positively associated with stage of start-up, support from a mentor, team members, founder's academic qualification, and collaboration with national or international organizations, unskilled workers. Implications: Technology transfer and commercialization, development of new products, government regulations, the requirement of costumers, free rights for entrepreneurs, appropriate financial support for new entrepreneurs, transparency and clarity in government policies, the establishment of high-tech start-ups, and development of digital infrastructure, increase in R&D spending in research academia, and association of research institutions with entrepreneurs would be conducive to create an appropriate start-ups ecosystem and to reduce regional development disparities across Indian states. Subsequently, it would be helpful to increase sustainable development in India.  Originality: This study has used primary information of 120 founders of start-ups to assess the determinants, and the factors affecting annual sales of start-ups using the regression model in, Gujrat, India. Thus, it has an empirical contribution to the body of knowledge. Limitations: This study could not provide rational justifications on most factors that show an insignificant impact on start-ups due to the small sample size. Further research, therefore, may be considered to identify the association of start-up size with the variables using a large sample size in India.  

scholarly journals Entrepreneurial Experience and Performance: From the Aspect of Sustainable Growth of Enterprises

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (18) ◽  
pp. 7351
Author(s):  
Huatao Peng ◽  
Chen Zhou ◽  
Yang Liu
Keyword(s):  
Work Experience ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Dynamic Environment ◽  
Sustainable Growth ◽  
Future Research ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Entrepreneurial Performance ◽  
Entrepreneurial Experience ◽  
Start Up ◽  
The Relationship

In the uncertain entrepreneurial ecosystem, scholarly knowledge is bounded by the sustainable growth of entrepreneurial enterprises. Moreover, there is a lack of consensus in academic circles on the relationship between entrepreneurial experience and entrepreneurial performance. In adopting the meta-analysis method, we found a significant relationship between entrepreneurial experience and entrepreneurial performance based on an investigation of 45 independent samples (N = 18,752). We also examined theoretically derived moderators of this relationship referring to firm age, industry condition and experience type to test whether the moderating effects can explain the inconsistent research results on the relationship between entrepreneurial experience and entrepreneurial performance. The relationship was stronger for the high-tech industry than for low-tech industry, for the early business stage than for late business stage and for start-up experience compared to management experience, work experience and industry experience. Our research findings are meaningful for practitioners to achieve sustainable growth by better preserving and coordinating entrepreneurial experience in a dynamic environment. Further, these findings are also important for future research to analyze the factors triggering the heterogeneity of entrepreneurial experience and to investigate the extent to which the start-up experience is more capable of promoting entrepreneurial performance.

Human Resource Blueprints in Irish High-Tech Start-up Firms

2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-121
Author(s):  
Mary A. Keating ◽  
Mariabrisa Olivares
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Study ◽  
Human Resources ◽  
Human Resource ◽  
Human Resources Management ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Entrepreneurial Firms ◽  
Resources Management ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Start Ups

Focusing on Irish high-tech start-ups, this paper reports on the results of an empirical study of organization building by entrepreneurial firms, specifically in relation to human resource practices. The research findings are benchmarked with findings from SPEC, the Stanford Project of Emerging Companies (Baron and Hannan, 2002). Human resources management and entrepreneurial research have rarely been combined in the literature and there is no distinct body of work in the area of human resource management in entrepreneurial firms.

Financial Statement and Projection Preparation in Start-Up Ventures

2009 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gavin Cassar
Keyword(s):  
Information Economics ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Financial Statement ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Economic Significance ◽  
Sales Forecasts ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Fundamental Uncertainty ◽  
Start Ups ◽  
Funding Level

ABSTRACT: Using a representative sample of entrepreneurs who are in the process of starting a business, this study investigates the determinants of the preparation of financial statements and projections in start-up ventures. Consistent with predictions from information economics and contracting, I find that the use of outside funding, level of competition, and venture scale are positively associated with the intended frequency of financial statement preparation. However, comparing the economic significance of alternative influences suggests that the benefit of reducing competitive and fundamental uncertainty is more influential in explaining variations in intentions to prepare financial statements. Further, I find the determinants of preparation frequency vary among different financial statements; for instance, cash statements are more important for start-ups with products in earlier stages of development and with greater competition. In contrast to financial statements, the preparation of projections such as formal financial projections and regular sales forecasts by start-ups is positively associated with the importance of intangible investments such as patents, research and development, and with start-ups in high-tech industries.

scholarly journals Comparing Bootstrapping High-Tech Start-Up Companies in the West and in a Transition Country

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-14
Author(s):  
Dragana Popovic Renella ◽  
Vojin Senk ◽  
Fuada Stankovic
Keyword(s):  
Essential Feature ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Information Feedback ◽  
Industrialized Countries ◽  
Transition Country ◽  
The West ◽  
Start Up ◽  
The One ◽  
Start Ups

This is a study of the process of the development of high-tech start-up companies through the mechanisms of bootstrapping in two extremely different environments: the one of highly industrialized countries, such as USA and Switzerland; the other of Serbia, which is a post-communist transition country with particular difficulties. The research method is the analysis of case studies. One case study of US and two of Swiss start-ups build the base for the analysis. All three cases show common patterns: from the very beginning, these companies sell R&D services in their fields of expertise; and using the cash from these early sales, and the information feedback from cooperation with the early customers, they develop their resources and, eventually, also their own high-tech products. The essential feature of this process is the selling of R&D services and the first products in the neighborhoods. Then also two cases of high-tech start-ups from Serbia are analyzed. Both Serbian start-ups are founded in partnership with small high-tech companies from highly industrialized countries (Switzerland and Germany). The Western partners use their reputations and contacts to enable the early sales of the Serbian start-ups in the industrialized countries. This is crucial for the Serbian start-ups, because they have no domestic market for R&D services. Apart of this element, all other essential patterns of the Serbian cases are very similar to those of the Western cases.

Enterprise survival in the high-tech community: persuasion and power in board decisions

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronit Yitshaki ◽  
Eli Gimmon ◽  
Susanna Khavul
Keyword(s):  
High Tech ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Board Size ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Long Term Survival ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Board Processes ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Start Ups

Purpose This study aims to examine the extent to which board size, the use of power by venture capital investors and entrepreneurs’ interpersonal tactics such as persuasion to sway board decisions, influence the long-term survival of start-ups. Design/methodology/approach This study used a mixed-methods approach. The quantitative part is based on data collected from 179 chief executive officers (CEOs) of high-tech start-ups community financed by venture capitalists (VCs) in Israel of which 59 did not survive. To achieve a better understanding of these findings, semi-structured interviews with 12 entrepreneurs were conducted. Findings Smaller boards were positively associated with venture survival. The use of power by VC investors positively influenced start-up survival. CEO persuasion had a negative effect on venture survival; however, its interaction with board size suggests that it had a lesser effect on very small boards. Practical implications Although investors’ control over decision-making contributes to long-term survival, entrepreneurs should be aware of the possible detrimental effects of exercising a high level of persuasion in board processes. The findings also suggest that a small board size is preferable for start-up survival. Originality/value Exploring the effect of board processes on venture survival is considered complex. A unique sample of high-technology start-ups consisting of both surviving and failed start-ups was analyzed to explore the effects of persuasion and power in board processes.

scholarly journals Start-Up Nation

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 350-388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Fraiberg
Keyword(s):  
Technical Communication ◽  
High Tech ◽  
High Tech Industry ◽  
Methodological Nationalism ◽  
Start Up ◽  
The World ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
Actor Networks ◽  
Coworking Spaces ◽  
Start Ups

This study focuses on start-up entrepreneurs on the move—in coordination with an array of other actors—as they weave and are woven into transnational networks. Central to this study is a shift from activity to mobility systems. Building on technical communication scholarship, the frame integrates actor networks and activity theory knotworks. Disrupting workplace and national container models (methodological nationalism), the analysis is grounded in a study of Israeli start-up entrepreneurs. Dubbed the Start-Up Nation, Israel contains more start-ups per capita than any other country in the world, with its high-tech industry made up of a dense ecosystem of conferences, accelerators, meetups, social media, and coworking spaces. Tracing actants’ trajectories across this social field, the author argues for a conceptualization of entrepreneurs as knotworkers who mobilize genres, modes, languages, and spaces.

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