The Academic Spinoff Theory of the Firm

This paper reviews the key theories of the firm and considers their relevance to studying and understanding academic spinoffs as a special case of firms. The theory of the firm is an important aspect in entrepreneurship literature, as without clear understanding of the parameters influencing firm's behaviour, it remains difficult to predict its decisions to secure sustainable growth and ensure development of the economy overall. The paper considers the contribution of transaction cost theory, managerial theory, resource-based view, knowledge-based view, and dynamic capabilities, to the understanding of the academic spinoff. In essence, these theoretical explanations lend multiple perspectives that offer a greater insight into the academic spinoff firm by illuminating the issues of its boundaries, entrepreneurs, resources, knowledge, and networks. It is concluded that understanding academic spinoffs requires acknowledging this theoretical plurality. In response to this challenge, the paper proposes the Academic Spinoff Theory of the Firm.

The Role of Social and Institutional Contexts in Social Innovations of Spanish Academic Spinoffs

Social innovations developed by academic spinoffs (ASOs) are acquiring an ever-increasing relevance in the literature on academic entrepreneurship. Previous studies have considered the importance of the social and institutional contexts of entrepreneurial ecosystems for the development of these innovations, although a greater depth of analysis is required in this field of study. This research analyzes the influence of the frequency of contact with agents of social and institutional contexts of the entrepreneurial ecosystem on the social innovations of ASOs. From a sample of 173 Spanish ASOs, the results indicate that frequent contact with government and academic support units improves this type of innovation of ASOs. Regarding social context, an increase in the frequency of contact with customers, suppliers, and competitors favors the development of social innovation. However, frequent contact with venture capital firms inhibits the development of this type of innovation.

The Entrepreneurial Ecosystem: Actors and Performance in Different Stages of Evolution of Academic Spinoffs

The importance of entrepreneurial ecosystems is accentuated in the academic entrepreneurship context since academic spinoffs (ASOs) must rely on actors from the ecosystem to access resources they lack in order to improve their performance. This study analyzes the impact that actors from social and institutional (university and nonuniversity) contexts in the entrepreneurial ecosystem have on ASO performance in the stage of creation and initial development and in the stage of consolidation. From a sample of 118 ASOs in the initial stage and 47 ASOs in the consolidation stage, the results indicate that social and institutional contexts improve the performance of ASOs in both phases of development, although the relevance of each context varies with the stage. In the creation and initial development stage, the institutional context affects the ASOs’ performance to a greater extent, while the influence of the social context is less strong. Science parks from the institutional context are the most relevant actors in this phase. In the consolidation phase, social context is the most relevant for improving the performance of ASOs, with the venture capitalist being the actor that exerts more influence. With respect to the institutional context, performance is only affected by the nonuniversity context in this stage.

The effect of entrepreneurial origin on firms’ performance: the case of Portuguese academic spinoffs

We investigate the role of entrepreneurial origin on firms’ performance by comparing academic spinoff firms with their non-academic counterparts. Academic spinoffs grow through resources accumulation and internationalization; yet they do not translate these advantages into productivity gains. The access to upstream complementary resources appears to play a chief role in explaining the academic spinoffs’ superior performance. Academic spinoffs are contributing to economic development by creating new jobs, but their relevance as a source of sustained economic value is limited so far.