Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource forma... more Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource formation as processes that foster the emergence of new business ventures, through both the lens of the individual entrepreneur and corporate venturing. Although we observe that research is vibrant in these traditional areas, we also argue that the continued revitalization of the field of entrepreneurship can be fostered through examining opportunities for research in areas such as industry change and competition, inter‐organizational cooperation (which has proliferated more recently), university‐sponsored entrepreneurship, venture finance, institutional differences that foster entrepreneurship (primarily between different countries), and appropriability regime differences (including legal and regulatory frameworks) that foster entrepreneurial activities and profit appropriation. Besides pointing scholars to new promising directions, we argue for more attention to the transformational role of...
This research explores the relationship between strategic learning capability-a fi rm's proficien... more This research explores the relationship between strategic learning capability-a fi rm's proficiency at generating, and then acting on, strategic knowledge-and entrepreneurial orientation (EO). While theory posits the inevitably of building strategic learning capability from behaving entrepreneurially, there is little empirical research to validate this proposition and even less understanding of how and why EO contributes to strategic learning capability. Empirical results from 110 manufacturing fi rms confi rm the direct effect of EO on strategic learning capability, and support is found for three constructs-structural organicity, market responsiveness, and strategy formation mode-that fully mediate the EO-strategic learning capability relationship.
40 SA Zahm & JG Covin strategy reflects a firm's choice of technologies,... more 40 SA Zahm & JG Covin strategy reflects a firm's choice of technologies, preference for technological leadership (being first to the market) or followership (being a later entrant to the market with the technology), R&D spending, and capital spending intended to maintain or upgrade a ...
Empirical research has not consistently identified antecedents for predicting post-acquisition pe... more Empirical research has not consistently identified antecedents for predicting post-acquisition performance. We employ meta-analytic techniques to empirically assess the impact of the most commonly researched antecedent variables on post-acquisition performance. We find robust results indicating that, on average and across the most commonly studied variables, acquiring firms' performance does not positively change as a function of their acquisition activity, and is negatively affected to a modest extent. More importantly, our results indicate that unidentified variables may explain significant variance in post-acquisition performance, suggesting the need for additional theory development and changes to M&A research methods.
IPO underpricing is inherently related to both wealth retention and wealth creation. This paper r... more IPO underpricing is inherently related to both wealth retention and wealth creation. This paper reviews the relationship between IPO underpricing and wealth, then presents the results of an empirical study of the impact of CEO founder status (i.e., is the CEO also the founder?) on IPO underpricing. Results based on data collected from 368 IPO-stage new ventures suggest that founder management has a positive impact on IPO underpricing, and that the founder management-underpricing relationship is moderated by (a) the IPO market share of the investment banker employed and (b) the proportion of insiders on the IPO firm's board of directors.
Abstract This field study explores the nature of entrepreneurial strategy making (ESM) and its re... more Abstract This field study explores the nature of entrepreneurial strategy making (ESM) and its relationship with strategy, environment and performance. In the first phase, we assess the independence of entrepreneurially oriented strategy-making processes through factor ...
Founders create their organizations, yet are often expected to eventually become liabilities to t... more Founders create their organizations, yet are often expected to eventually become liabilities to these same organizations. Past empirical research on the relationship between CEO founder status (i.e., is the CEO also the founder?) and firm performance has yielded inconsistent results. This study of 94 founder-and nonfounder-managed firms finds that founder management has no main effect on stock returns over a 3-year holding period, but that firm size and firm age moderate the CEO founder status-firm performance relationship.
1986). and identification of the impact of the interaction of strategy and industry structure on ... more 1986). and identification of the impact of the interaction of strategy and industry structure on new venture performance offers additional evidence of the need for an integrative research approach.
A firm's technological knowledge base is the foundation on which internal product and process inn... more A firm's technological knowledge base is the foundation on which internal product and process innovations are generated. However, technological knowledge is not accumulated solely through internal learning processes. Increasingly, firms are turning to external sources in the technology supply chain to acquire the technological knowledge they need to introduce product and process innovations. Thus, the successful structuring and executing of partnerships with external ''technology source'' organizations is often critical to competitive success in technologically dynamic environments. This study uses situated learning theory as a basis for explaining how factors inherent to the knowledge acquisition context may affect the successful transference of technological knowledge from universities to their industry partners. Data collected via a survey instrument from 104 industry managers were used to explore the effects of various organizational knowledge interface factors on knowledge acquisition success in university-industry alliances. The organizational knowledge interface factors hypothesized to affect knowledge acquisition success in the current research include partner trust, partner familiarity, technology familiarity, alliance experience, formal collaboration teams, and technology experts' communications. Results indicate that partner trust predicts the successful acquisition of tacit knowledge but not explicit knowledge. Both forms of knowledge are predicted by partner familiarity and communications between the partners' technology experts. These findings suggest three principal managerial implications. First, although the development of a trusting relationship between the knowledge source and knowledge-seeking parties is generally advisable, firms that seek to acquire explicit technological knowledge from their alliance partners may successfully do so without having made significant time and energy investments designed to assure themselves that they can trust those partners. The relative observability and verifiability of explicit knowledge relative to tacit knowledge may enable knowledge-seeking parties to have greater confidence that knowledge has been acquired when partner trust is in question or has not been deliberately developed. A second implication is that, other things being equal, a knowledge-seeking party's interests may be best served through repeated exposures to particular alliance partners, particularly if those exposures facilitate mutual understandings on relevant processrelated matters. A third managerial implication is that ongoing, broad-based communications between the partners' technology experts should be used to effect technology transfer. A key quality of the organizational knowledge interface that promotes the successful acquisition of technological knowledge, both tacit and explicit, is multipoint, real-time contact between the technology experts of the partner organizations. Such communications potentially enable the knowledge-seeking party to directly access desired information through the most knowledgeable individuals on an as-needed basis.
Manufacturing capabilities have often been shown to predict various indicators of firm performanc... more Manufacturing capabilities have often been shown to predict various indicators of firm performance. However, the association between manufacturing capabilities and firm performance has seldom been studied in the context of high technology new ventures. Using a sample of 167 UK-based, high technology manufacturing ventures, the current study examines the relationship between manufacturing capabilities (in particular, those contributing to low operating costs and product quality) and venture performance. Additionally, the moderating effects of the ventures' alliance portfolios and environmental contexts on the capability-performance relationships are explored. Results indicate that venture performance (as reflected in sales growth, ROS, and ROA) is significantly predicted by manufacturing capabilities that promote low operating costs and product quality. Further, the data generally support the hypothesized moderating effects of two alliance diversity variables (alliance partner diversity and alliance geographic diversity) and two environmental context variables (environmental dynamism and environmental munificence) on the capability-performance relationships. Overall, the study supports the premise that the value of manufacturing capabilities (i.e., the strength of the capability-performance relationship) among high technology ventures is contingent upon the alliance and environmental contexts within which those ventures operate. Specifically, alliance partner diversity, alliance geographic diversity, and environmental munificence enhance the value of manufacturing capabilities that promote low operating costs. Alliance partner diversity, environmental munificence, and environmental stability enhance the value of manufacturing capabilities that promote product quality. The study's theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
This article describes a study of the impact of strategic mission on the relationships between fi... more This article describes a study of the impact of strategic mission on the relationships between firm performance and selected strategic, structural, and tactical variables. Moderated regression analysis and subgroup analysis were used to analyse data collected from 9 1 advanced technology manufacturing companies. Results indicate that firms with build-oriented strategic missions, relative to those with more hold-and harvest-oriented strategic missions, performed better when they: (1) adopted entrepreneurial strategic postures; (2) had organic organization structures; (3) offered relatively low product prices; (4) employed relatively large sales forces; (5) offered relatively generous customer credit; and (6) offered relatively broad product lines. On the other hand, firms with hold-and harvestoriented strategic missions, relative to those with more build-oriented strategic missions, performed better when they emphasized R&D activity geared toward the development and refinement of existing products. Strategic mission did not moderate the effectiveness of the firms' advertising expenditures or their new product development activity.
This study examined the influence of organization structure on the relationship between top manag... more This study examined the influence of organization structure on the relationship between top management's entrepreneurial orientation and financial performance, Moderated regression analysis was used to analyse data collected from 80 business organizations. The findings suggest that an entrepreneurial top management style has a positive effect on the performance of organically-structured firms and a negative effect on the performance of mechanistically-structured firms.
Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource forma... more Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource formation as processes that foster the emergence of new business ventures, through both the lens of the individual entrepreneur and corporate venturing. Although we observe that research is vibrant in these traditional areas, we also argue that the continued revitalization of the field of entrepreneurship can be fostered through examining opportunities for research in areas such as industry change and competition, inter-organizational cooperation (which has proliferated more recently), university-sponsored entrepreneurship, venture finance, institutional differences that foster entrepreneurship (primarily between different countries), and appropriability regime differences (including legal and regulatory frameworks) that foster entrepreneurial activities and profit appropriation. Besides pointing scholars to new promising directions, we argue for more attention to the transformational role of entrepreneurship itself by issuing a call for more multi-level research efforts that connect the micro-and macro-foundations of entrepreneurship and explore the revitalization-related uncertainties such as the cost of creating an entrepreneurial orientation and whether there is an optimal level.
R&D investments contribute to the development of firm technology resources, and the possession of... more R&D investments contribute to the development of firm technology resources, and the possession of such resources often increases a firm's attractiveness as a potential acquisition target. However, the value ascribed to a firm's technology resources by would-be acquirers may be moderated by its industry's environmental characteristics. Using data from 2886 firms, we find that investments in R&D predict acquisition likelihood and that R&D investments are most strongly associated with acquisition of firms under conditions of high environmental munificence and dynamism. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.
This paper describes a study of the effects of a company's organi- zation structure and envi... more This paper describes a study of the effects of a company's organi- zation structure and environmenta! context on the relationship between that company's dominant strategy formation pattern and its sales growth rate. Data collected,from 112 manufacturing firms operating ...
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view i... more If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help file. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please ...
Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource forma... more Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource formation as processes that foster the emergence of new business ventures, through both the lens of the individual entrepreneur and corporate venturing. Although we observe that research is vibrant in these traditional areas, we also argue that the continued revitalization of the field of entrepreneurship can be fostered through examining opportunities for research in areas such as industry change and competition, inter‐organizational cooperation (which has proliferated more recently), university‐sponsored entrepreneurship, venture finance, institutional differences that foster entrepreneurship (primarily between different countries), and appropriability regime differences (including legal and regulatory frameworks) that foster entrepreneurial activities and profit appropriation. Besides pointing scholars to new promising directions, we argue for more attention to the transformational role of...
This research explores the relationship between strategic learning capability-a fi rm's proficien... more This research explores the relationship between strategic learning capability-a fi rm's proficiency at generating, and then acting on, strategic knowledge-and entrepreneurial orientation (EO). While theory posits the inevitably of building strategic learning capability from behaving entrepreneurially, there is little empirical research to validate this proposition and even less understanding of how and why EO contributes to strategic learning capability. Empirical results from 110 manufacturing fi rms confi rm the direct effect of EO on strategic learning capability, and support is found for three constructs-structural organicity, market responsiveness, and strategy formation mode-that fully mediate the EO-strategic learning capability relationship.
40 SA Zahm & JG Covin strategy reflects a firm's choice of technologies,... more 40 SA Zahm & JG Covin strategy reflects a firm's choice of technologies, preference for technological leadership (being first to the market) or followership (being a later entrant to the market with the technology), R&D spending, and capital spending intended to maintain or upgrade a ...
Empirical research has not consistently identified antecedents for predicting post-acquisition pe... more Empirical research has not consistently identified antecedents for predicting post-acquisition performance. We employ meta-analytic techniques to empirically assess the impact of the most commonly researched antecedent variables on post-acquisition performance. We find robust results indicating that, on average and across the most commonly studied variables, acquiring firms' performance does not positively change as a function of their acquisition activity, and is negatively affected to a modest extent. More importantly, our results indicate that unidentified variables may explain significant variance in post-acquisition performance, suggesting the need for additional theory development and changes to M&A research methods.
IPO underpricing is inherently related to both wealth retention and wealth creation. This paper r... more IPO underpricing is inherently related to both wealth retention and wealth creation. This paper reviews the relationship between IPO underpricing and wealth, then presents the results of an empirical study of the impact of CEO founder status (i.e., is the CEO also the founder?) on IPO underpricing. Results based on data collected from 368 IPO-stage new ventures suggest that founder management has a positive impact on IPO underpricing, and that the founder management-underpricing relationship is moderated by (a) the IPO market share of the investment banker employed and (b) the proportion of insiders on the IPO firm's board of directors.
Abstract This field study explores the nature of entrepreneurial strategy making (ESM) and its re... more Abstract This field study explores the nature of entrepreneurial strategy making (ESM) and its relationship with strategy, environment and performance. In the first phase, we assess the independence of entrepreneurially oriented strategy-making processes through factor ...
Founders create their organizations, yet are often expected to eventually become liabilities to t... more Founders create their organizations, yet are often expected to eventually become liabilities to these same organizations. Past empirical research on the relationship between CEO founder status (i.e., is the CEO also the founder?) and firm performance has yielded inconsistent results. This study of 94 founder-and nonfounder-managed firms finds that founder management has no main effect on stock returns over a 3-year holding period, but that firm size and firm age moderate the CEO founder status-firm performance relationship.
1986). and identification of the impact of the interaction of strategy and industry structure on ... more 1986). and identification of the impact of the interaction of strategy and industry structure on new venture performance offers additional evidence of the need for an integrative research approach.
A firm's technological knowledge base is the foundation on which internal product and process inn... more A firm's technological knowledge base is the foundation on which internal product and process innovations are generated. However, technological knowledge is not accumulated solely through internal learning processes. Increasingly, firms are turning to external sources in the technology supply chain to acquire the technological knowledge they need to introduce product and process innovations. Thus, the successful structuring and executing of partnerships with external ''technology source'' organizations is often critical to competitive success in technologically dynamic environments. This study uses situated learning theory as a basis for explaining how factors inherent to the knowledge acquisition context may affect the successful transference of technological knowledge from universities to their industry partners. Data collected via a survey instrument from 104 industry managers were used to explore the effects of various organizational knowledge interface factors on knowledge acquisition success in university-industry alliances. The organizational knowledge interface factors hypothesized to affect knowledge acquisition success in the current research include partner trust, partner familiarity, technology familiarity, alliance experience, formal collaboration teams, and technology experts' communications. Results indicate that partner trust predicts the successful acquisition of tacit knowledge but not explicit knowledge. Both forms of knowledge are predicted by partner familiarity and communications between the partners' technology experts. These findings suggest three principal managerial implications. First, although the development of a trusting relationship between the knowledge source and knowledge-seeking parties is generally advisable, firms that seek to acquire explicit technological knowledge from their alliance partners may successfully do so without having made significant time and energy investments designed to assure themselves that they can trust those partners. The relative observability and verifiability of explicit knowledge relative to tacit knowledge may enable knowledge-seeking parties to have greater confidence that knowledge has been acquired when partner trust is in question or has not been deliberately developed. A second implication is that, other things being equal, a knowledge-seeking party's interests may be best served through repeated exposures to particular alliance partners, particularly if those exposures facilitate mutual understandings on relevant processrelated matters. A third managerial implication is that ongoing, broad-based communications between the partners' technology experts should be used to effect technology transfer. A key quality of the organizational knowledge interface that promotes the successful acquisition of technological knowledge, both tacit and explicit, is multipoint, real-time contact between the technology experts of the partner organizations. Such communications potentially enable the knowledge-seeking party to directly access desired information through the most knowledgeable individuals on an as-needed basis.
Manufacturing capabilities have often been shown to predict various indicators of firm performanc... more Manufacturing capabilities have often been shown to predict various indicators of firm performance. However, the association between manufacturing capabilities and firm performance has seldom been studied in the context of high technology new ventures. Using a sample of 167 UK-based, high technology manufacturing ventures, the current study examines the relationship between manufacturing capabilities (in particular, those contributing to low operating costs and product quality) and venture performance. Additionally, the moderating effects of the ventures' alliance portfolios and environmental contexts on the capability-performance relationships are explored. Results indicate that venture performance (as reflected in sales growth, ROS, and ROA) is significantly predicted by manufacturing capabilities that promote low operating costs and product quality. Further, the data generally support the hypothesized moderating effects of two alliance diversity variables (alliance partner diversity and alliance geographic diversity) and two environmental context variables (environmental dynamism and environmental munificence) on the capability-performance relationships. Overall, the study supports the premise that the value of manufacturing capabilities (i.e., the strength of the capability-performance relationship) among high technology ventures is contingent upon the alliance and environmental contexts within which those ventures operate. Specifically, alliance partner diversity, alliance geographic diversity, and environmental munificence enhance the value of manufacturing capabilities that promote low operating costs. Alliance partner diversity, environmental munificence, and environmental stability enhance the value of manufacturing capabilities that promote product quality. The study's theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
This article describes a study of the impact of strategic mission on the relationships between fi... more This article describes a study of the impact of strategic mission on the relationships between firm performance and selected strategic, structural, and tactical variables. Moderated regression analysis and subgroup analysis were used to analyse data collected from 9 1 advanced technology manufacturing companies. Results indicate that firms with build-oriented strategic missions, relative to those with more hold-and harvest-oriented strategic missions, performed better when they: (1) adopted entrepreneurial strategic postures; (2) had organic organization structures; (3) offered relatively low product prices; (4) employed relatively large sales forces; (5) offered relatively generous customer credit; and (6) offered relatively broad product lines. On the other hand, firms with hold-and harvestoriented strategic missions, relative to those with more build-oriented strategic missions, performed better when they emphasized R&D activity geared toward the development and refinement of existing products. Strategic mission did not moderate the effectiveness of the firms' advertising expenditures or their new product development activity.
This study examined the influence of organization structure on the relationship between top manag... more This study examined the influence of organization structure on the relationship between top management's entrepreneurial orientation and financial performance, Moderated regression analysis was used to analyse data collected from 80 business organizations. The findings suggest that an entrepreneurial top management style has a positive effect on the performance of organically-structured firms and a negative effect on the performance of mechanistically-structured firms.
Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource forma... more Entrepreneurship research has traditionally focused on opportunity recognition and resource formation as processes that foster the emergence of new business ventures, through both the lens of the individual entrepreneur and corporate venturing. Although we observe that research is vibrant in these traditional areas, we also argue that the continued revitalization of the field of entrepreneurship can be fostered through examining opportunities for research in areas such as industry change and competition, inter-organizational cooperation (which has proliferated more recently), university-sponsored entrepreneurship, venture finance, institutional differences that foster entrepreneurship (primarily between different countries), and appropriability regime differences (including legal and regulatory frameworks) that foster entrepreneurial activities and profit appropriation. Besides pointing scholars to new promising directions, we argue for more attention to the transformational role of entrepreneurship itself by issuing a call for more multi-level research efforts that connect the micro-and macro-foundations of entrepreneurship and explore the revitalization-related uncertainties such as the cost of creating an entrepreneurial orientation and whether there is an optimal level.
R&D investments contribute to the development of firm technology resources, and the possession of... more R&D investments contribute to the development of firm technology resources, and the possession of such resources often increases a firm's attractiveness as a potential acquisition target. However, the value ascribed to a firm's technology resources by would-be acquirers may be moderated by its industry's environmental characteristics. Using data from 2886 firms, we find that investments in R&D predict acquisition likelihood and that R&D investments are most strongly associated with acquisition of firms under conditions of high environmental munificence and dynamism. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.
This paper describes a study of the effects of a company's organi- zation structure and envi... more This paper describes a study of the effects of a company's organi- zation structure and environmenta! context on the relationship between that company's dominant strategy formation pattern and its sales growth rate. Data collected,from 112 manufacturing firms operating ...
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view i... more If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help file. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please ...
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Papers by Jeffrey Covin