Entry Barriers and New Venture Performance: A Longitudinal Investigation of Direct and Moderated Effects

This longitudinal study utilized a sample of 115 independent new manufacturing ventures to empirically investigate the (1) direct (independent) effects of entry barriers on business performance, and (2) the moderating (contingent) effects of other theoretically justified variables on the relationship between entry barriers and business performance. The results of this research suggest why prior management research has failed to provide conclusive findings vis-a-vis the effects of entry barriers on business performance. The relationship between alternative measures of entry barriers and business performance is complex, and prior studies have not examined the complex moderating effects of other theoretically justified variables on the relationship between entry barriers and divergent measures of business performance. Consistent with prior studies utilizing the universal approach, this study found limited support for the direct effects of entry barriers upon performance. Conversely, the results of this study provide support for prior theory which suggests that the relationship between alternative measures of entry barriers and business performance is moderated by (contingent upon): (1) other measures of entry barriers; (2) venture age; and (3) life cycle stage. In sum, this study provides strong support for utilizing the contingency approach to investigate the effects of entry barriers upon performance, as models based on the contingency approach explained 45 percent of the variance in profitability and 50 percent of the variance in sales growth. Additionally, this research provides evidence that venture profitability and sales growth represent different dimensions of business performance, and that trade-offs exist among these measures

The Impact of Alternative Operationalizations of Industry Structural Elements on Measures of Performance for Entrepreneurial Manufacturing Ventures

Using a sample of 115 manufacturing ventures, this study examined elements of industry structure which prior theory and research in the fields of industrial organization economics, strategic management, and entrepreneurship suggest are the most important structural characteristics of industries. Future researchers should carefully select the particular operationalization of industry structure as our research demonstrates that the influence of industry structural elements on measures of firm performance is strongly dependent upon the particular operationalization utilized. In addition, measures of industry structure were found to have a differential impact on alternative measures of firm performance, suggesting that different performance measures are not interchangeable proxies for one another

Toward a Theory of International New ventures

The formation of organizations that are international from inception—international new ventures—is an increasingly important phenomenon that is incongruent with traditionally expected characteristics of multinational enterprises. A framework is presented that explains the phenomenon by integrating international business, entrepreneurship, and strategic management theory. That framework describes four necessary and sufficient elements for the existence of international new ventures: (1) organizational formation through internalization of some transactions, (2) strong reliance on alternative governance structures to access resources, (3) establishment of foreign location advantages, and (4) control over unique resources.© 1994 JIBS. Journal of International Business Studies (1994) 25, 45–64