Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice

In examining the global landscape, it is clear that some cultures produce many more entrepreneurs than others. To explore this phenomenon, we take a cognitive perspective because it is assumed that the way one thinks has a significant impact on the intention to start a new business. Through the development of this model we clarify why some Individuals across different cultures tend to be more prolific in starting new ventures than others both Inside and outside the home country. In illustrating the model, the Chinese population and their high propensity to start new businesses when they migrate to new countries are discussed. Implications for competitive advantage and other areas of cross-cultural research are made.

This research presents the summary findings on six case studies of successful, venture capital investments in new technology-based firms in four European countries. In all cases, the enterprises had been financed by specialist, early-stage, and technology-focused venture funds which had exited the investments at a significant economic return. The exceptional competence and track records of the founder managers, and their defensible product position in growing markets, each appeared to be a common feature across the individual case studies. The paper also questions the unitary nature of the entrepreneurial process, arguing for entrepreneurial resources to be seen as an eclectically sourced stock.

This study examined the antecedents and outcomes of the internationalization of 61 new high-potential ventures in the U.S. The results indicate that internationalization is directly related to the use of product differentiation as a source of competitive advantage, the international work experience of the board of directors, and size at the point of the IPO. The use of low cost, product differentiation, or innovation as a source of competitive advantage, and size at the point of the IPO were directly related to sales growth in the two-year period following the IPO. Finally, the level of Internationalization at the time of the IPO is positively related to earnings two years later.