nep-ent New Economics Papers
on Entrepreneurship
Issue of 2017‒03‒26
twelve papers chosen by
Marcus Dejardin
Université de Namur

  1. Diverging Paths of Entrepreneurship in post-Transformation Countries. A comparative view By Bruno Dallago
  2. The shaky start of the UK Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) in Comparison to the US Small Business Innovation Research Programme (SBIR) By Emma Tredgett; Alex Coad
  3. On the Failure of Scientific Research: An Analysis of SBIR Projects Funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health By Andersen, Martin; Bray, Jeremy; Link, Albert
  4. Entrepreneurship policies and the development of regional innovation systems: theory, policy and practice By Helen Lawton Smith
  5. Grenoble–GIANT Territorial Innovation Models By Laurent Scaringella; Jean-Jacques Chanaron
  6. Sticks or Carrots? Comparing Effectiveness of Government Shadow Economy Policies in Russia By Alexander Libman; Janis N. Kluge
  7. Graduation and sell-out strategies in the Alternative Investment Market By Valérie Revest; Alessandro Sapio
  8. The Influence of Management's Work-Life Balance on the Organizational Behavior of Employees in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises -Empirical Analysis Focusing on Spillover and Crossover Effects- By Mitsutoshi Hirano; Atsushi Yogo
  9. Networking and cooperation practices in the Italian tourism business By Valeri, Marco
  10. One tenth of new entrepreneurial activity in Finland is multicultural By Pajarinen, Mika; Rouvinen, Petri
  11. He Pāpori Hinonga Whakamoe: Exploring Contributions to the Indigenous Social Enterprise Network in New Zealand By Cowie, Janelle
  12. Mittelstandsfinanzierung: Rahmenbedingungen, Status Quo und Entwicklung By Daube, Carl Heinz; Dobernig, Harald; Becker, Marco; Peskes, Markus

  1. By: Bruno Dallago (Dipartimento di Economia e Management, University of Trento)
    Abstract: This paper considers the findings of academic studies and research on entrepreneurship and looks at what explains the evolution of entrepreneurship in post-transformation countries. Posttransformation countries include Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and other former socialist countries in Europe and former Soviet Asia. The paper shows that there are differences between these countries, even those integrated in the European Union (EU), and the most developed countries of Western Europe and North America. Perhaps less obvious, differences are significant and growing between the countries that are now integrated in the European Union and those that follow a different path. The paper shows that these differences are only in part of policy nature and tend to acquire systemic nature and have great influence over the features and role of entrepreneurship. The paper stresses the importance of entrepreneurship for former transformation countries and shows that the features and role of entrepreneurship and the entrepreneur are not invariant to the context where they arise and act. This is true in general, but is particularly so in the case of systemic change and is largely dependent on the quality of institutions. The study of entrepreneurship is important to highlight similarities and assess and explain differences and divergence among countries.
    Keywords: entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, institutions, post-transformation, transformation, Central and Eastern Europe, Commonwealth of Independent States Selection Bias, Russia
    Date: 2017–03
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kyo:wpaper:968&r=ent
  2. By: Emma Tredgett (Department of Management, Birkbeck College University of London); Alex Coad (SPRU, Freeman Centre, University of Sussex)
    Abstract: In this paper a comparison is made between data on the US Small Business Innovation Research programme (SBIR) and UK Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) (Tredgett & Coad 2013). Quantitative data on the first three years of the UK SBRI (2009 – 2013) was compared to data on the first three years of the US SBIR (1983 – 1987) from the US Small Business Administration. The data includes numbers of competitions, applicants and money spent on research contracts. Some key differences in implementation of the two initiatives are identified and discussed in relation to the quantitative data. Quantitative data shows that while the US SBIR had steady growth, the UK SBRI has had a shaky start. Possible explanations for these results are suggested. Further work to strengthen the data and improve the validity of the evaluation is then outlined.
    Date: 2015–06
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:img:manwps:10&r=ent
  3. By: Andersen, Martin (University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Department of Economics); Bray, Jeremy (University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Department of Economics); Link, Albert (University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Department of Economics)
    Abstract: The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program is the primary source of public funding in the United States for research by small firms on new technologies, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is a major contributor to that funding agenda. Although previous research has explored the determinants of research success for NIH SBIR projects, little is known about the determinants of project failure. This paper provides important, new evidence on the characteristics of NIH SBIR projects that fail. Specifically, we find that firms that have a founder with a business background are less likely to have their funded projects fail. We also find, after controlling for the endogenous nature of woman-owned firms, that such firms are also less likely to fail.
    Keywords: technology; innovation; R&D; small firms; SBIR; NIH
    JEL: O31 O32 O33 O38
    Date: 2017–03–15
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:uncgec:2017_002&r=ent
  4. By: Helen Lawton Smith (Birkbeck, University of London. Oxfordshire Economic Observatory, Oxford University)
    Date: 2017–02
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:img:wpaper:36&r=ent
  5. By: Laurent Scaringella (ESC Rennes School of Business - ESC Rennes School of Business); Jean-Jacques Chanaron (CNRS (French National Center for Scientific Research) - UCBL - Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, GEM - Grenoble Ecole de Management - Grenoble École de Management (GEM))
    Abstract: Over the past decades, the EU heavily invested in Research Infrastructures (RI). What are the expected returns of such investments? In the present article we address the question of returns on public funds/public infrastructures. We consider the role of RI and universities from an economic, social, and entrepreneurial perspective from various Territorial Innovation Models (TIMs): Italian industrial districts, innovative milieus, regional innovation systems, new industrial spaces, and regional clusters. We conducted our empirical study on Grenoble Isère Alpes Nanotechnologies (GIANT), which is composed of large scientific instruments, universities, and engineering and management schools. Our microeconomic methodology measured the socioeconomic and entrepreneurial effects of GIANT with respect to budget, employment, and spin-off generation. We contribute to the existing body of knowledge on TIMs by comparing the long-term investments to the generation of wealth, the creation of employment, and the development of start-ups; adding new insights to the debate opposing positive and negative impacts empirical studies; and offering recommendations for the use of public resources. In our discussion, we compare the GIANT model as a very localized RI-university club to the Grenoble model as localized cluster.
    Keywords: Return on investment,Socioeconomic impact,Start-up,University,Research infrastructure,Territorial Innovation Models
    Date: 2016–05–26
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:gemptp:hal-01472878&r=ent
  6. By: Alexander Libman (Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich and ICSID, National Research University Higher School of Economics); Janis N. Kluge
    Abstract: Which incentives have the strongest impact on the size of the shadow economy? Is it about government’s pressure against entrepreneurs operating in this sector, or is it about the benefits of legality? The goal of this paper is to explicitly contrast the role of sticks (court repressiveness) and carrots (financial aid to small and medium-sized firms) as factors determining the size of the shadow economy, using the case of the Russian taxi market. It uses a unique dataset of taxi licensing data from regional transport departments and indicators for taxi market demand to estimate the extent of informal business. When controlling for market demand, it finds a strong and robust positive effect of sanctions on the size of the official market, with higher repressiveness leading to a smaller shadow economy. In contrast, the effect of carrots was insignificant. The results suggest that the effectiveness of carrot policies is compromised when entrepreneurs operate informally to avoid dealing with corrupt bureaucrats and have low trust in the government.
    Keywords: shadow economy; bureaucracy; corruption; development policy
    JEL: D73 D78 O17
    Date: 2017–03
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ost:wpaper:364&r=ent
  7. By: Valérie Revest; Alessandro Sapio (-)
    Abstract: Why have thousand companies listed on junior stock markets such as the Alternative Investment Market (AIM)? The controversial evidence on survival and productivity growth of the AIM-listed companies, together with the recent increase in post-IPO sales worldwide suggest that growth motives are far less essential than the attainment of entrepreneurial exit opportunities. Insights on the strategic motivations behind stock market quotation are provided in this article by comparing the characteristics of AIM-listed companies involved in two trajectories, namely graduation and post-IPO company sales. Estimates of discrete choice and duration models outline the relationship between the probabilities of AIM-listed companies to be acquired or to graduate to the LSE main market and their size, age, and sector between 1995 and 2009. The results show that the AIM has mainly acted as a “show room” for the sale of its larger and older companies, especially after the Internet bubble: companies in high-tech sectors featured prominently among graduates in the late Nineties, but not among takeovers. As such, the AIM has not been a facilitator for young and small innovative firms, or it has mainly attracted those wishing to retain independence.
    Keywords: Technology-based small firms, Alternative Investment Market, acquisitions, graduations
    Date: 2016–11–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crj:dpaper:4_2016&r=ent
  8. By: Mitsutoshi Hirano (Graduate School of Business Administration, Kobe University); Atsushi Yogo (Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Okayama University)
    Abstract: This study investigates the crossover effect of work-life balance (WLB) in the relationship between the management of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their employees. SMEs are smaller in scale and have fewer employees than large enterprises, resulting in a close relationship between management and employees. In SMEs, it is easier for employees to observe the daily behavior of the management. Therefore, if management's WLB satisfaction is high, the positive attitude of the management will be transmitted to the employees, and it is thought that this will improve employee WLB satisfaction and motivation. In this study, business managers (90 people) in Osaka Prefecture and the matched data of employees (1,054 people) were used for analysis. The results showed that the management's WLB satisfaction level had an influence on the degree of work engagement of both male and female employees. However, a crossover effect between management and employees' WLB satisfaction while observed in men, was not observed in women. It is suggested that the fixed ideas and paternalism of male management toward female employees may work to suppress the crossover effect on women.
    Keywords: work-life balance (WLB); spillover effect; crossover effect; work engagement; small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
    Date: 2017–03
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kbb:dpaper:2017-04&r=ent
  9. By: Valeri, Marco
    Abstract: The aim of the paper is to study the factors influencing the development of networked collaboration between small and medium-sized businesses in the Italian tourist industry. These businesses are obliged to choose networking when faced with difficulties of growth and the need to improve their offer for increasingly discerning customers. The paper aims to add to the recent studies on the management and governance of small and medium- sized tourism businesses, and to pinpoint new development processes to deal with the notable difficulties that the sector is subjected to. A survey was carried out by administering a questionnaire to a sample of Italian travel agencies and tour operators, specialising in incoming and outgoing activities. The sample consisted of 2,200 enterprises (or 70% of the total operating in Italy) and was addressed only to small or medium-sized businesses (with less than 250 employees and a turnover less than 40 million euros a year). The narrowness of the sample analysed constitutes a limit to the work, and eventual future studies should try to analyse all tourism companies with a view to discovering new business opportunities, relieve critical situations and above all, call attention to appropriate issues of governance.
    Keywords: Small and medium-sized enterprises, innovation, competitive advantage
    JEL: L83 M1 O1
    Date: 2015–11–14
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:77465&r=ent
  10. By: Pajarinen, Mika; Rouvinen, Petri
    Abstract: In this brief, we study the cultural dimension of new entrepreneurial activity in Finland. One in ten nascent entrepreneurs in Finland consider themselves to possess (also) a non-Finnish background. The ventures of these multicultural entrepreneurs are more networked and more likely to locate within the Helsinki metropolitan region than other, non-multicultural, ventures. In terms of firm survival and growth, these two groups of ventures are largely similar.
    Date: 2017–03–17
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rif:briefs:55&r=ent
  11. By: Cowie, Janelle
    Abstract: There is a misalignment between Māori Social Entrepreneurs believe social enterprise to be and the interpretation of Māori values from the support services perspective. Without the knowledge of why Māori choose social enterprise, and the inherent values system that operates within these models support services will continue to only partially understand the core motivations. For Māori, social enterprise is not explicitly phrased, it is implicit and a lived experience. The social values of their organisation has multiple layers beyond the direct social impact of their core activity. It generates income for their whanāu, improving the oranga of the wider community (at hapu or Iwi level), creates a positive self-determination movement, and reinforces cultural survival. This report explores contributions to the indigenous social enterprise network in New Zealand. It provides valuable information for Māori Social Entrepreneurs and the support services. Phase One focused on the value systems and motivations behind why Māori choose a social enterprise model. The second phase which interviewed employees from Māori Women’s Development Inc, Ākina Foundation, Te Puni Kōkiri, and Nga Tai O Te Awa whose organisations support social enterprise endeavours and challenged their perspective of Māori social enterprise. This marriage of the two groups highlighted several discrepancies in their understanding and knowledge of Māori social enterprise. The research leads to four key findings recommendations for the sector. It also presents opportunities to broaden the reach of current research, and extend the knowledge on the topic with quantifiable data methods. Māori Social Entrepreneurs biggest internal struggle is a trade-off between social and economic value. There is a complete comprehension of the weighted currency of a for profit model over a social enterprise or non-profit model. Economic drivers are strong but conceptually, and often in practice, energy is invested in the social merit of their individual endeavours. Phase One participants placed emphasis on generating income as a core driver, but not for it’s pure economicvalue; to enable them to fund their purpose and increase the wellbeing of their community, as opposed to creating profit. Their organisations are legitimised at a moral level, and their operating models reflect this. Urban Māori Social Entrepreneurs are being underrepresented in current support service capacity. They feel isolated despite the physical access to support services involved in this research and other mainstream services. Mainstream services operate in urban areas, but for accessibility and cultural incompatibility reasons, these services are failing Māori Social Entrepreneurs. Effort by Phase Two participants highlighted a concerted focus on regional areas. This has created a gap, where urban, Māori Social Entrepreneurs have been overlooked. This is especially relevant to the male participants of Phase One, who have also been challenged by traditional support networks such as the Iwi and their concept of what role tech start-ups have in the cultural survival and wellbeing of their people. There is an opportunity for support services to develop cultural models and mentorship to enable capabilities further within urban centres. Developing the language must be a core focus for the sector, and is not a mutually exclusive task. The ambiguity of definition and scope presents an opportunity for Māori to contribute to the shaping of the language. They can develop a culturally specific model, and language on their own terms. Social enterprise has an undeniable positive impact on both the New Zealand economy and welfare of the population. This has the potential of building cultural tenacity in a new hybrid sector, post Treaty settlement New Zealand.
    Keywords: Social, Enterprise, Māori,
    Date: 2016
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:vuw:vuwmba:6138&r=ent
  12. By: Daube, Carl Heinz; Dobernig, Harald; Becker, Marco; Peskes, Markus
    Abstract: Small and midcap companies are the backbone of the German economy with respect to employment, contribution to GDP, tax payments, share at world market, innovation – to mention just a few. Hence, it is important that economic and political conditions are favorable for small and midsize enterprises. The article takes a closer look at the funding conditions for companies of the non-financial sector using data starting 2002 analyzing the usage of bank loans and turnover. The statistical outcome suggests that there is often a strong correlation between bank loans and turnover. However, it also suggests the traditional funding from banks is becoming less important and direct funding instruments using capital markets becoming more important.
    Keywords: Mittelstand,Mittelstandsfinanzierung
    JEL: F0
    Date: 2017
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esprep:156177&r=ent

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