Exploring the black box of early-stage entrepreneurial planning: Hermeneutical insights from case research

Researchers are engaged in a major debate on the value of business planning in new venture creation. Findings of prior empirical research have been fragmented and contradictory. This does not surprise given that despite the lack of an understanding of the nature of planning in the entrepreneurial context, most of these studies employed survey methodology to test the impact of planning on performance. This thesis seeks to deepen our understanding of entrepreneurial planning by drawing on qualitative case research. Theories from narrow streams of literature were combined to develop a holistic theoretical framework that was used to collect and analyse data from four cases. Results show that in contrast to the methods employed in previous studies, the presence of a business plan is a poor proxy for measuring the extent to which the entrepreneurs in the four cases studied plan. Rather, planning in these cases occurs on various levels with different types of formal and informal outcomes, depending on a range of antecedents such as the industry in which the new venture is operating. The understanding and theoretical framework developed in this thesis can be used to create better measures in quantitative studies and ultimately contribute to the question of whether and how entrepreneurs should plan

Growth trajectories of the established companies : effectuation and causation in focus

Business growth is one of the key topics of today’s entrepreneurship research. The majority of the publications related to the growth entrepreneurship focus on exploring growth among new companies, and the public economic debate targets high expectations for growth entrepreneurship by new companies and startups. Established companies are generating growth, but their potential seems marginalized in an economical discussion. It is important to consider both new and established companies when expecting new growth from companies. The main objective of this research is to enhance our understanding of the determinants that cause a growth surge among established companies after some years of consolidation. Are these companies adapting to the situation and responding to the demands of the market with their resources (effectuation), or do they follow previously determined plans and proceed toward set goals (causation). The findings indicate the usage of both effectuation and causation logics, between which effectuation appears the dominant approach. This dissertation contributes by building a model showing that causation and Chandler’s (2011) dimensions of effectuation do have an impact on firm-level innovativeness and ultimately business growth. The developed model shows that interaction between flexibility and growth is positive and significant. This study strengthens the recent findings that effectuation and causation can work simultaneously in the same company. Moreover, the results show that effectuation research has moved on from the nascent to an intermediate stage of development, and has already taken the first steps toward the mature stage, where a growing number of scholars are currently engaging in quantitative field research to study the phenomenon in its real environment.Kasvuyrittäjyys on noussut viime vuosina yrittäjyystutkimuksen yhdeksi tärkeimmäksi osa-alueeksi. Valtaosa kasvuyrittäjyyteen liittyvistä julkaisuista keskittyy uusien ja aloittavien yritysten kasvun tutkimiseen, myös julkinen keskustelu lataa kovia kasvuodotuksia nimenomaan uusille yrityksille ja startupeille. Vakiintuneet yrityksetkin tuottavat kasvua, mutta niiden potentiaali pääsee usein unohtumaan talouskeskustelussa. Tämän tutkimuksen päätavoite on lisätä ymmärrystä tekijöistä, joiden seurauksena vakiintuneet yritykset lähtevät kasvu-uralle tasaisen kehitysvaiheen jälkeen. Tarkennettuna, tapahtuuko kasvupyrähdys toimimalla tilanteen ja kysynnän mukaisesti ja vastaamalla markkinoiden vaatimuksiin olemassa olevilla resursseilla, vai onko kasvu pikemminkin seurausta tehtyjen strategisten suunnitelmien noudattamisesta. Tulokset osoittavat sekä tilanteen mukaisen toiminnan logiikan toteuttamisen että strategian noudattamisen vaikuttavan näiden yritysten kasvuun. Hallitsevana logiikkana tutkituissa pk-yrityksissä näyttäisi esiintyvän tilanteen mukainen toiminta. Tämän väitöskirjan osuus tieteelliseen keskusteluun on rakennettu malli, joka osoittaa, että strategian noudattaminen ja joustavuus vaikuttavat yrityksen innovaatiotoimintaan ja sen myötä liiketoiminnan kasvuun. Toinen kehitetty malli osoittaa, että joustavuuden ja yrityskasvun välinen vuorovaikutus on myönteinen ja merkittävä. Tämä tutkimus vahvistaa viimeaikaisia havaintoja siitä, että tilanteen mukainen toiminta ja suunnitelmallisuus voivat toimia samanaikaisesti samassa yrityksessä. Lisäksi tulokset osoittavat, että tilanteen mukaisen toiminnan (effectuation) tutkimus on tutkimussuuntauksena siirtynyt alkukehitysvaiheesta välivaiheeseen ja ottanut jo ensimmäiset askeleet kohti kypsää tutkimusvaihetta, jossa tutkimukselle ominaisia tunnustekijöitä ovat kvantitatiiviset tutkitusmenetelmät ja ilmiön tutkiminen todellisessa tapahtumaympäristössä.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Innovative entrepreneurship

The textbook is prepared by a team of authors who are participants of the international TEMPUS Project «ICo-op». The textbook contains materials for studying of key components of modern innovative entrepreneurship: organization forms of innovative enterprise, methods to HR management and practical applications of creative thinking, forms and strategy of bussines – planning, innovation management in enterprise, management & protection of intellectual property and formation of the risk management approaches. For students and teachers of Universities and for entrepreneurs-innovators

Innovative entrepreneurship

The textbook is prepared by a team of authors who are participants of the international TEMPUS Project «ICo-op». The textbook contains materials for studying of key components of modern innovative entrepreneurship: organization forms of innovative enterprise, methods to HR management and practical applications of creative thinking, forms and strategy of bussines – planning, innovation management in enterprise, management & protection of intellectual property and formation of the risk management approaches. For students and teachers of Universities and for entrepreneurs-innovators

An action research approach to develop a framework for the development of dot-com ventures for SMEs

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel UniversityInternet adoption and e-business has been of particular interest amongst researchers and practitioners, however, most of the studies focus on large organisations and only recently there has been a shift of interest to e-commerce/business adoption by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with little or no reference to dot-com initiatives. It is well documented that SMEs have significant and different challenges in comparison to large organisations in the brick and mortar domain. Therefore, investments in the e-business domain (such as dot-com start-ups) present even more challenges to SMEs. Consequently, this research offers an in-depth study of the start-up process of a dot-com company by examining the stages, phases, and components that are key for this process. The empirical contexts of this research are three projects with three different SMEs that have actively participated in the creation of a new dot-com venture. These were analysed using an action research approach with interpretative and qualitative analysis. The main component of the action research approach covers a longitudinal study (2 years) divided in four cycles, followed by two case studies used for the evaluation of the findings of this research. These results of all research cycles, which in turn, can be considered the contributions to theory and practice of this research, can be seen in two ways: the development of a start-up framework for SMEs, and a Business Information Database (BID) that supports the implementation of the framework. The framework is designed to visualise, from a strategic perspective, the stages that an organisation have to go through in order to initiate a new dot-com venture. Is proved that organisations have, directly or indirectly, followed specific steps related to the phases described in the framework. Hence new entrepreneurs can use the phases of the framework to facilitate and ease their start-up process looking at the main features of each phase. The BID was constructed under two premises: a) to structure the main documents and corresponding building blocks used in industry and in the proposed framework, such as the Strategic Plan, Business Model, Business Plan, and Business Case, and b) to identify the relationships among the building blocks of all the aforementioned documents. The BID and related documents can be used to identify how a particular piece of information (e.g. building block) affects other aspects of the dot-com initiative. The BID can be also be used as an independent artefact to assist organisations through the structure of the business documents in the start-up process, even if the organisation is not following a specific framework. Hence the BID itself can assist entrepreneurs to start-up firm without the need to have an overarching framework. Last but not least, practical recommendations are offered to practitioners and stakeholders interested in developing new ventures within the dot-com domain

Do strategic alliances add value?: an empirical examination at industry and firm levels in European banking

Strategic alliances are a prevalent form of business organization. The critical characteristics of strategic alliances are detailed using Coase (1937) and the resulting definition tested through primary research and the alternative form, the infrastructure alliance posited. The thesis examines whether strategic alliances add value in the European banking sector through four types of analysis at two levels of engagement - a 23 historical review (at industry level); a review of over 400 papers in the academic literature; a questionnaire survey (at firm level) and in-depth interviews (at firm level). Bankers high pre-existing propensity to enter into strategic alliances is determined and three lifecycles, and the underpinning, conditions identified - Clubs and Consortium Banks, Bankassurance and the Virtual bank - the latter involving a fundamental change in Coase (1937) enabled by the underpinning technology. Bankers were found to be followers of potential business steams and the strategic alliance was one form of market entry. The questionnaire research, however, identified European bankers prefer to enter into alliances (as opposed to own branch or M&A) only in countries which had the appropriate supporting conditions such as definable, enforceable and terminable contracts, the provision of accounting information, stable governments and economic freedom. Direct discussions with senior bankers resulted in a number of valuable insights into the conceiving, forming, organizing evolving and dissolving of alliances. Further research into the infrastructure alliance, including 'oscillation' between infrastructure and strategic forms is proposed. The Co-Evolution Model of Strategic Alliances is proposed and taxonomy consisting of parallel co-evolution, convergent coevolution, divergent co-evolution and the subsidiary taxonomy of differential parallel coevolution, differential convergent co-evolution and differential divergent co-evolution detailed and further research suggested. Strategic alliances are found to add value in European banking but this value is contingent on the strength of the business stream, the global, national and industry conditions and the nature of managerial decisions and drive

Strategies for Improving Technology Startup Capital

Funding is one of the most critical resources high potential technology startup (HPTS) ventures need to achieve success. Some startup founders lack access to capital, a critical resource for HPTS founders to create value for customers and capture value for their organizations. Capital constraints can hinder business performance, endanger growth and the ability to grow and scale into the global markets. This multiple case study explored the strategies HPTS firms used to access capital to grow and scale into global markets. Mishra\u27s venture capital investment model and Blank\u27s customer development model served as the conceptual framework for this study. Data were collected from semistructured face-to-face interviews, direct observations, member checking, and a reflective journal. Participants were selected using a purposive sampling of 5 founders from the Silicon Valley of California, who were involved in equity finance decisions in the last 5 years. Yin\u27s 5-step data analysis plan was used in the final data analysis. Eight themes emerged from the study: capital constraint; identification of potential investors; collaboration, guidance, and support; investment potential; investment thesis; measurement of success; passion and preparedness; and prevention of stock dilution. The findings of this study have implications for positive social change. HPTS ventures can use the study findings to gain approval of investment proposals and increase ventures that create value for customers and for the organizations

Innovative Work Behaviour: Measurement and Validation

Although both scientists and practitioners emphasize the importance of innovative work behavior (IWB) of individual employees for organizational success, the measurement of employees' IWB is still in evolution. Here, we present two multi-source studies that aimed to develop and validate a measure of IWB. Four related dimensions of IWB are distinguished: opportunity exploration, idea generation, championing and application. We derived a tenitem measure of these IWB dimensions from a pilot survey among matched dyads of 81 professionals in a research institute and their supervisors. Next, a survey among a matching sample of 703 knowledge workers and their supervisors from 94 different firms was done. We used confirmatory factor analyses to examine convergent and discriminant validity, and hierarchical multilevel regression to test hypothesized relationships of IWB with participative leadership, external work contacts and innovative output (proposed as an initial nomological network). Results demonstrate strong convergent validity of the IWB measure as all four dimensions contribute to an overall measure of IWB. Support for discriminant validity is weaker as correlations between some dimensions are relatively high. Finally, IWB is positively related with participative leadership, external work contacts and innovative output, providing first evidence for nomological validity.

Decision-making moon-bridge : SMEs’ usage of causation and effectuation perpetually in motion

The importance of new ventures and SMEs to the economy has been at the forefront of decision-making logic research. The growth and diversity of nascent effectuation have been reported in the literature, without forgetting the effects of the traditional causal approach. Despite the general popularity of the topic, literature on the role of decision-making logic in innovation, internationalization and business relationships is rather limited. To address this gap, this paper draws on causation and effectuation theories to develop: (1) a model that describes; (1a) the interconnectedness of the decision-making logics, (1b) matters that determine the prevailing logic, (1c) focus phenomena affected by decision-making logics, and (1d) how decision-making logic influences companies' reactions to opportunities and obstacles. (2) a concept that will assist entrepreneurs in their decision-making related considerations. The results are based on an abductive multi-case study on six Finnish energy technology firms, three of which are start-ups and three are solidly established SMEs. The main data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and observations within a time period of three years. The data indicate that these two logics are not opposites and most decisions contain at least the seeds of both logics. Actually, the findings confirm that the use of absolute causation or effectuation logic is negligible, and the usage of logics are intertwined and constantly changing. The contribution is a view of the decision-maker's role, the effects of the operational context and the subject matter topic on the definition of the prevailing decision-making logic and its effects.Uusien yritysten ja pk-yritysten tärkeys taloudelle on ollut päätöksentekologiikan tutkimuksen kärjessä. Suhteellisen uuden toimintateorian (effectuation) vahvistumista ja monimuotoisuutta on kirjallisuudessa laajalti raportoitu, unohtamatta perinteisen kausaalisen (causation) lähestymistavan vaikutuksia päätöksen¬tekoon. Kuitenkin, huolimatta aiheen yleisestä suosiosta tutkimukset päätöksentekologiikan roolista innovaatioissa, kansainvälistymisessä ja liikesuhteissa on varsin rajallista. Tämän puutteen korjaamiseksi tämä tutkimus hyödyntää ”causation” ja ”effectuation” -teorioita kehittääkseen (1) mallin, joka kuvaa; (1a) päätöksentekologiikkojen keskinäistä yhteyttä, (1b) tekijöitä, jotka määrittävät vallitsevan logiikan (1c) fokusilmiöitä, joihin päätöksentekologiikat vaikuttavat ja (1d) miten päätöksentekologiikka vaikuttaa yritysten reaktioihin mahdollisuuksiin ja esteisiin. Lisäksi tutkimus hyödyntää näitä teorioita kehittääkseen (2) konseptin, joka auttaa yrittäjiä heidän päätösten tekoon liittyvissä pohdinnoissa. Tulokset perustuvat abduktiiviseen monitapaustutkimukseen kuudessa suomalaisessa energiateknologia-alan yrityksessä, joista kolme on startup-yrityksiä ja kolme vakiintuneita pk-yrityksiä. Merkityksellisin tutkimusdata kerättiin puolistrukturoiduilla haastatteluilla ja havainnoilla kolmen vuoden seurantajakson aikana. Tulokset osoittavat, että nämä kaksi logiikkaa eivät ole toistensa vastakohtia ja useimmat päätökset sisältävät molemmista logiikoista ainakin ituja. Itse asiassa havainnot vahvistavat, että absoluuttisen ”causation” tai ”effectuation” -logiikan käyttö on vähäistä ja toisiinsa kietoutuneiden logiikkojen käyttö on jatkuvassa muutoksessa. Tutkimuksen tuotos on selvä näkemys päätöksentekijän roolista sekä ympäristön, kontekstin ja itse aiheen vaikutuksista vallitsevaan päätöksentekologiikan ja näiden vaikutusten seurauksiin.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed