Does venture capital pay off? a meta-analysis on the relationship between venture capital involvement and firm performance

Venture capital (VC) as an alternative to mainstream corporate finance (Wright and Robbie, 1998) has attracted a large amount of interest in academic research and among practitioners. On e of the main questions is whether VC adds value to firms. Yet, empirical research results are highly inconsistent. Venture capitalists do not only provide capital and monitoring, but also actively assist firms with industry-specific knowledge and skills (MacMillan et al., 1989). Furthermore, they increase the legitimacy of entrepreneurial firms (Zimmerman & Zeitz, 2002). On the other hand, venture capitalists may pressure firms to an initial public offering (IPO) in a premature stage of their life cycle (Gompers, 1996). High costs associated with an IPO may, in turn, decrease profitability and even endanger the survival of firms. Whether venture capital really pays off, thus, largely depends on contextual factors. The aim of this study is to provide a review and synthesis of existing empirical research on the relationship between VC and firm performance. Specifically, we intend to answer two research questions: (1) Does VC increase the performance of firms? (2) Which variables moderate this relationship

Is innovation always beneficial? A meta-analysis of the relationship between innovation and performance in SMEs

The performance implications of innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have attracted considerable interest among academics and practitioners. However, empirical research on the innovation–performance relationship in SMEs shows controversial results. This meta-analysis synthesizes empirical findings in order to obtain evidence whether and especially under which circumstances smaller, resource-scarce firms benefit from innovation. We find that innovation–performance relationship is context dependent. Factors such as the age of the firm, the type of innovation, and the cultural context affect the impact of innovation on firm performance to a large extent

Alkali vapor pressure modulation on the 100ms scale in a single-cell vacuum system for cold atom experiments

We describe and characterize a device for alkali vapor pressure modulation on the 100ms timescale in a single-cell cold atom experiment. Its mechanism is based on optimized heat conduction between a current-modulated alkali dispenser and a heat sink at room temperature. We have studied both the short-term behavior during individual pulses and the long-term pressure evolution in the cell. The device combines fast trap loading and relatively long trap lifetime, enabling high repetition rates in a very simple setup. These features make it particularly suitable for portable atomic sensors.Comment: One reference added, one correcte

Human capital and entrepreneurial success : a meta-analytical review

The study meta-analytically integrates results from three decades of human capital research in entrepreneurship. Based on 70 independent samples (N = 24,733), we found a significant but small relationship between human capital and success (r(c) = .098). We examined theoretically derived moderators of this relationship referring to conceptualizations of human capital, to context, and to measurement of success. The relationship was higher for outcomes of human capital investments (knowledge/skills) than for human capital investments (education/experience), for human capital with high task-relatedness compared to low task-relatedness, for young businesses compared to old businesses, and for the dependent variable size compared to growth or profitability. Findings are relevant for practitioners (lenders, policy makers, educators) and for future research. Our findings show that future research should pursue moderator approaches to study the effects of human capital on success. Further, human capital is most important if it is task-related and if it consists of outcomes of human capital investments rather than human capital investments; this suggests that research should overcome a static view of human capital and should rather investigate the processes of learning, knowledge acquisition, and the transfer of knowledge to entrepreneurial tasks

Guerra Total en territorio neutral: Actividades alemanas en España durante la Primera Guerra Mundial

Resumen: Cuando se examina las relaciones Hispano-Germanas durante la Primera Guerra Mundial resulta evidente que Alemania supo cómo llegar al alma de la España neutral. El objeto primordial de las actividades alemanas en suelo español durante este periodo fue confirmar su neutralidad por cualquier medio e impedir su alineamiento con la Entente. En muchas ocasiones, particularmente en relación con la disrupción de la producción destinada al esfuerzo bélico de los Aliados, Alemania llegó a extremos que claramente violaban la neutralidad de España. Mientras su propaganda contribuyó a exacerbar el amargo debate entre francófilos y germanófilos, la diplomacia alemana intentó influenciar las decisiones de las figuras más importantes del estado como el Rey Alfonso XIII. Los agentes alemanes buscaron el apoyo de las elites aristocráticas y conservadoras del país. Sin embargo, al mismo tiempo, también intentaron infiltrarse en ciertos sectores del movimiento obrero para fomentar actividades huelguísticas que interrumpiera el comercio con los Aliados Este artículo explora los principales aspectos de la interferencia alemana en los asuntos internos de España durante la Primera Guerra Mundial y el subsecuente efecto desestabilizador que tal interferencia tuvo en la ya muy frágil situación doméstica. Palabras clave: Kaiser Guillermo II, General Eric Ludendorff, Comandante Arnold Kalle, Comandante Hans von Krohn, Príncipe Maximilian von Ratibor. Abstract: In examining Spanish-German relations during the war, it becomes evident that Germany did know how to find the way to the soul of neutral Spain. The overall aim of German activity in Spain was to ensure Spanish neutrality at all costs in order to prohibit Spain from joining the Entente. However, this often meant completely violating the country’s rights as a neutral in the European conflict. This becomes particularly evident when examining Germany’s attempts to disrupt the Allied economic war effort from Spain as much as possible. While widespread German press propaganda ensured heated debates amongst Francófilos and Germanófilos, German diplomats tried to influence important power brokers in Spain such as King Alfonso XIII. On one hand, German diplomats and agents bolstered Spain’s conservative and monarchist ruling elite, and on the other hand, Germany also supported and infiltrated Spanish workers organisations with the aim of agitating strike action which would negatively impact on Allied trade. The article will outline the main aspects of German interference in Spanish domestic affairs during the First World War and the destabilising effect this interference had on Spain's already highly fragile domestic situation Keywords: Kaiser Wilhem II, General Eric Ludendorff, Major Arnold Kalle, Lieutenant Commander Hans von Krohn, Prince Maximilian von Ratibo

Neutrality in the balance. Spanish-German relations during the First World War, 1914-1918

There is no abstract for this thesis

Neutrality in the balance. Spanish-German relations during the First World War, 1914-1918

There is no abstract for this thesis

Stability of a trapped atom clock on a chip

We present a compact atomic clock interrogating ultracold 87Rb magnetically trapped on an atom chip. Very long coherence times sustained by spin self-rephasing allow us to interrogate the atomic transition with 85% contrast at 5 s Ramsey time. The clock exhibits a fractional frequency stability of $5.8\times 10^{-13}$ at 1 s and is likely to integrate into the $1\times10^{-15}$ range in less than a day. A detailed analysis of 7 noise sources explains the measured frequency stability. Fluctuations in the atom temperature (0.4 nK shot-to-shot) and in the offset magnetic field ($5\times10^{-6}$ relative fluctuations shot-to-shot) are the main noise sources together with the local oscillator, which is degraded by the 30% duty cycle. The analysis suggests technical improvements to be implemented in a future second generation set-up. The results demonstrate the remarkable degree of technical control that can be reached in an atom chip experiment.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figure

Spin waves and Collisional Frequency Shifts of a Trapped-Atom Clock

We excite spin-waves with spatially inhomogeneous pulses and study the resulting frequency shifts of a chip-scale atomic clock of trapped $^{87}$Rb. The density-dependent frequency shifts of the hyperfine transition simulate the s-wave collisional frequency shifts of fermions, including those of optical lattice clocks. As the spin polarizations oscillate in the trap, the frequency shift reverses and it depends on the area of the second Ramsey pulse, exhibiting a predicted beyond mean-field frequency shift. Numerical and analytic models illustrate the observed behaviors.Comment: Will appear soon in Physical Review Letters - Typos correcte