Importance of spatial proximity between venture capital investors and investees in Germany

Based on 1182 dyads of venture capitalists and German portfolio companies involved in a financing round between 2002 and 2007, the study here examines the importance of spatial proximity between investors and investees in a dense economy. Analysis of this data shows that the probability of a financing relationship decreases by 8% if the journey time increases by one standard deviation. For deals involving very small or very large investment sums, and for less experienced venture capitalists and lead investors, spatial proximity is particularly important. The results suggest that even in economies with a dense infrastructure such as Germany spatial proximity between investor and investee impacts the likelihood of an investment.     

Face as a mediator of the relationship between material value and brand consciousness

Although the relationship between materialism and name‐brand consumption has been documented in literature, its relational mechanism is not well addressed. It can hardly explain why people buy brand products without really knowing about the brands. In this case, people may consume brand products not for material possessions but for social needs, such as a desire to have favorable social self‐worth and to be respected in relation to others and social activities, which is defined as face (Ting‐Toomey & Kurogi, 1998). The present study explored how the relationship between materialism and brand consciousness is influenced by face. The role of face was tested both as a moderator and as a mediator. The results showed that face consciousness, material values, and brand consciousness were significantly correlated but did not exhibit significant interaction. Multiple regression analyses support face not as a moderator, but as a partial mediator. The results provide new insights into the mechanisms of how materialism and face influence brand consciousness differently. The theoretical meaning and implications for marketing management are discussed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Trust as a mediator of the relationship between leader/member behavior and leader-member-exchange quality

We examined how and why trust between a subordinate and supervisor develops over time from the separate perspectives and experiences of both dyad partners. Integrating the literatures on trust, leader-member-exchange (LMX) and promotion regulatory focus (PRF), we test our model using longitudinal data from a Malaysian subsidiary of a U.S. headquartered corporation. Subordinate's trust in supervisor mediated between supervisor's PRF and subordinate's experience of LMX quality; supervisor's trust in subordinate mediated between subordinate's job performance and leader's experience of LMX quality. Findings are interpreted within the high power-distance, high collectivist, and high performance orientation of Malaysian culture.     

Earliness of internationalization and performance outcomes: Exploring the moderating effects of venture age and international commitment

This study examines the impact of early foreign market entry on new ventures’ performance outcomes. Venture age and international commitment are theorized as moderators to address the inconsistent findings of previous research surrounding the performance implications of early internationalization. Results from a sample of international new ventures in China found that the earliness of internationalization positively contributes to firm performance in terms of sales growth, but not innovation and profitability. The performance advantage of early internationalization becomes obsolete as young ventures become mature, especially among those with a low level of international commitment. This study highlights the importance of incorporating time-based dimensions of international venturing for a better understanding of the performance implications of early internationalization.     

The influence of firm age and intangible resources on the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and firm growth among Japanese SMEs

With the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and firm performance having broad scholarly acceptance, researchers are now delving with increased focus into the contextual factors that change the nature of the relationship between EO and various manifestations of organizational performance. In this vein, this study adopts the resource based view and investigates the moderating influence of firm age and intangible resources on the EO-firm growth relationship among small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Japan. Further, we propose a three-way interactive model between EO, firm age, and intangible resources to better identify entrepreneurial configurations that promote superior SME growth.     

外商投资对江西省经济增长贡献研究

文章运用灰色关联模型,对江西省2001—2010年外商投资与经济增长的关系进行了实证研究。研究表明:外商投资带来的产业转移与江西省经济发展的水平具有密切的关系,产业转移不断推进有力的促进了江西省经济的发展。文章最后还提出了相关的政策建议。     

Asset specificity and behavioral uncertainty as moderators of the sales growth — Employment growth relationship in emerging ventures

Sales growth and employment growth are the two most widely used growth indicators for new ventures; yet, sales growth and employment growth are not interchangeable measures of new venture growth. Rather, they are related, but somewhat independent constructs that respond differently to a variety of criteria. Most of the literature treats this as a methodological technicality. However, sales growth with or without accompanying employment growth has very different implications for managers and policy makers. A better understanding of what drives these different growth metrics has the potential to lead to better decision making. To improve that understanding we apply transaction cost economics reasoning to predict when sales growth will be or will not be accompanied by employment growth. Our results indicate that our predictions are borne out consistently in resource-constrained contexts but not in resource-munificent contexts.     

The moderating effect of environmental dynamism on the relationship between entrepreneur leadership behavior and new venture performance

This article outlines a model of when, why, and how the influence of entrepreneur leadership behavior on new venture performance is likely to be moderated by the level of environmental dynamism. The model is tested using a sample of 66 new ventures. The results indicate that environmental dynamism has a significant positive moderating effect on the relationship between transformational leadership and new venture performance, and a significant negative moderating effect on the relationship between transactional leadership and new venture performance. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

公私医疗卫生支出与经济增长关系的实证分析

众所周知,医疗卫生支出不仅关系到一个国家社会福利政策的规划,还对经济增长具有不可忽略的促进作用。然而,现有文献对于医疗卫生支出与经济增长关系之间的研究结论却是众说纷纭。鉴于此,本文根据医疗卫生支出的支付主体,将其分为政府医疗卫生支出和居民医疗卫生支出,并通过建立双向固定效应模型对公私医疗卫生支出对经济增长的影响进行分析。结果显示：从全国平均水平来看,政府医疗卫生支出每增长100％,带动经济增长12．08％,居民医疗卫生支出每增长100％,带动经济增长15．85％;但与此同时,考虑到不同地区的经济发展非均衡化时,政府医疗卫生支出和居民医疗卫生支出带动经济增长的效应差异甚大,其中政府医疗卫生支出对经济增长呈现“倒U型”效应,而居民医疗卫生支出对经济增长呈现“阶梯型”效应。     

The relationship between trade openness and economic growth: Some new insights on the openness measurement issue

Empirical results on the links between trade openness and economic growth often suggest that, in the long run, more outward‐oriented countries register better economic growth. However, a similar level of trade openness can hide different types of trade structures. The aim of this paper was to enrich the way of measuring trade openness taking into account two different dimensions of countries’ integration in world trade: export quality and export variety. Based on the estimation of an endogenous growth model on a panel of 169 countries between 1988 and 2014 using a generalised method of moments estimator, our results confirm that countries exporting higher quality products and new varieties grow more rapidly. More importantly, we find a non‐linear pattern between the export ratio and the quality of the export basket, suggesting that openness to trade may impact growth negatively for countries which are specialised in low‐quality products. A non‐linear relationship between export variety, the export ratio and growth is also found, suggesting that countries increasing their exports will grow more rapidly after reaching a certain degree of the extensive margin of exports.     

The hidden hand and the license raj to An evaluation of the relationship between age and the growth of firms in India

The study that this article reports on considers the consequences of nationally variable macroinstitutional environments, and the implications of major alterations in such environments, on organizational level behavior and performance. Specifically, it examines the relationship between firm age and growth for a large sample of Indian firms using contemporary data. Firms are classified as falling into three specific categories: those incorporated, or born, prior to 1956; those incorporated between 1956 and 1980; and those incorporated after 1980.Each of these selected periods defines and denotes specific policy regimes affecting Indian industry. These policy regimes have been dictated by the national macroinstitutional environmental considerations that were in existence for the Indian economy. No significant relationship is established between the age variable and growth for firms incorporated prior to 1956, while a negative relationship is established between the age variable and growth for firms incorporated between 1956 and 1980. These were the years when the command and control industrial policy regime, popularly known as the “license raj,” was in operation in India. Conversely, for firms incorporated after 1980 when market forces began to be encouraged, and the “hidden hand” started becoming visible to some degree in the Indian context, the age and growth relationship is established to be positive.The evidence suggests that entrepreneurial behavior is an extremely important feature of contemporary Indian industry. Recent anecdotes about Indian firms, particularly in the information technology sector, suggest that there has been a resurgence of industrial activity in the country. These beliefs are well borne out by the large-scale empirical analysis that this article reports on. The younger Indian firms, those which have not been imprinted by the taints of a command and control regime, are going to drive India's industrial progress forward. The “hidden hand” is alive and well in India.Conversely, older firms, which might seem to possess a stock of capabilities developed over time, are going to find that these are unlikely to be readily deployable in the future. Older firms might have had the attributes that led to corporate success in an environment where rent seeking was the norm. In the present milieu, such abilities are not conducive to corporate progress. In particular, the “license raj” firms have no capability to succeed, as shown by the negative age and growth relationship.Additionally, the relationship between size and the growth of Indian firms is found to be negative. This suggests that a process of industrial fragmentation may be taking place in Indian industry, with small firms growing faster than larger firms and reducing the importance of larger firms in Indian industry. This has important implications for the future competitiveness of Indian industry.     

贸易模式变迁与经济增长的关系研究

伴随着科技的进步与经济社会的发展,专业化分工逐步拓展与深化,贸易模式也相应地不断发生变化.与此同时,贸易模式的变迁又反过来促进了专业化分工的进一步深化,进而促进了技术进步与经济增长,贸易模式变迁、专业化分工深化与经济增长之间的交互关系对经济发展具有重要作用.     

FDI inflow as an international business operation by MNCs and economic growth: An empirical study on Turkey

The issue of foreign direct investment (FDI) has been affecting the world economy for years and is a considerable subject for both developed and developing countries. FDI is the fixed form of international business operation made across the national borders made mostly by the multi national corporations (MNCs). The positive impact of FDI inflow in a host country is expected to emerge as capital accumulation, technology transfer, know-how acquisition, innovative capacity and economic growth eventually. In this study, it is aimed to address the FDI literature depending on comprehensive international publications and then to analyze the FDI inflow and GDP growth in Turkey with econometric methods.The relation between FDI inflow and GDP growth is analyzed by using the Johansen cointegration test and Granger causality analysis. Afterwards, a regression equation is estimated by using the ordinary least squares method (OLS). Prior to applying the Cointegration test, the stationarity and integration degrees of the series are determined by the augmented Dickey–Fuller test (ADF). Consequently, resting on the results of entire analysis, it is possible to mention that no significant relation is determined between the FDI inflow and GDP growth in Turkey both in the short and long run.     

The influence of age and gender on food choice: a focus group exploration

With 25% of the UK population predicted to be obese by 2010, the costs to individuals and society are set to rise. Due to the extra economic and social pressures obesity causes, there is an increasing need to understand what motivates and prevents consumers from eating a healthy diet so as to be able to tailor policy interventions to specific groups in society. In so doing, it is important to explore potential variations in attitudes, motivation and behaviour as a function of age and gender. Both demographic factors are easily distinguished within society and a future intervention study which targets either, or both, of these would likely be both feasible and cost‐effective for policy makers. As part of a preliminary study, six focus groups (total n = 43) were conducted at the University of Reading in November 2006, with groups segmented on the basis of age and gender. In order to gather more sensitive information, participants were also asked to fill out a short anonymous questionnaire before each focus group began, relating to healthy eating, alcohol consumption and body dissatisfaction. Making use of thematic content analysis, results suggested that most participants were aware of the type of foods that contribute to a healthy diet and the importance of achieving a healthy balance within a diet. However, they believed that healthy eating messages were often conflicting, and were uncertain about where to find information on the topic. Participants believed that the family has an important role in educating children about eating habits. Despite these similarities, there were a number of key differences among the groups in terms of their reasons for making food choices. Older participants (60+ years old) were more likely to make food choices based on health considerations. Participants between the ages of 18–30 were less concerned with this link, and instead focused on issues of food preparation and knowledge, prices and time. Younger female participants said they had more energy when they ate healthier diets; however, very often their food choices related to concern with their appearance. Older female participants also expressed this concern within the questionnaire, rather than in the group discussions. Overall, these results suggest that consumer motivations for healthy eating are diverse and that this must be considered by government, retailers and food producers.     

The moderating effects of customer driven complexity on the structure and growth relationship in young firms

Close exchange relationships with customers are recognized as important for young firms. In fact, close partnerships with customers provide many advantages, such as innovation, opportunity recognition, reputation, etc. The current paper argues that customers with their close exchange relationships create significant complexities for young firms that require effective structural response. Based on past work on customer driven complexity, four parameters of customer driven complexities were conceptualized: customer variability, customer opportunism, customer-interaction variability, and customer-interaction specificity. Using both archival and survey data from 134 young (6 year old or younger) firms, this study tests the moderating influences of customer driven complexity variables on the relationship between structure and growth of young firms. Findings support the suggestion that more formalization and less delegation of authority at the customer interface significantly contribute to the growth in young firms. However, the positive relationship between formalization and revenue growth is found to be weaker when young firms face a higher level of customer variability and stronger when firms face a higher level of customer opportunism. Similarly, the negative relationship between delegation of authority and revenue growth is weaker when these firms face either a higher level of customer-interaction variability or a higher level of customer-interaction specificity.     

The moderating effect of institutional context on the relationship between associational activity and new business activity in emerging economies

Varying institutional environments provide the foundation for a great deal of international business (IB) research yet relatively little empirical work has examined the association between institutional factors and new business development in emerging economies, although the importance of new business development for economic transition and growth is widely acknowledged. Drawing from social network and institutional theories, we address this gap by examining the effect of associational activity on the level of new business activity in emerging economies, and testing the thesis that associational activity becomes more instrumental for new business creation when aspiring entrepreneurs confront higher institutional burdens (i.e., obstacles derived from underdeveloped or absent institutions). On the basis of data from two cross-national research projects—the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor and the World Values Survey—we find a positive relationship between a country's associational activity and new business activity; this relationship is stronger for higher regulatory and normative institutional burdens and lower cognitive institutional burdens. This study is among the first to examine empirically the possible substitution effect between social ties and institutions to predict new business activity; it paints a nuanced picture of how social networks might be more instrumental in contexts characterized by weak institutions. We discuss the implications of these findings for IB theory and practice and offer directions for further research in the area.     

A comparative analysis of the entrepreneurial orientation/growth relationship in service firms and manufacturing firms

This article builds on the recently increasingly mentioned notion that entrepreneurship in the service sector is a worthwhile, but clearly underresearched topic. Using a sample of 1,612 small- and medium-size enterprises from the four German-speaking countries Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein, and using structural equation modeling, this article finds that service firms have a significantly higher entrepreneurial orientation (EO) than manufacturing firms – both on the overall level as well as for each of the three sub-categories proactiveness, innovativeness, and risk-taking. With regards to the positive relationship between a firm's EO and its growth aspirations, nevertheless, no significant differences could be identified. Accordingly, this study shows that EO is a strategic orientation of highest value for service firms as well, under the premise of growth-orientation.     

Entrepreneurs as prime targets: Insights from Mexican ventures on the link between venture visibility and crime of varying severity

This study addresses entrepreneurs as targets of crime. Leveraging insights from strategic responses to institutional pressures as the main theoretical frame, coupled with supporting insights from routine activities theory and interview data from 14 entrepreneurs who have been victims of crime, we introduce entrepreneur-led ventures becoming targets of crime via their engagement in routine activities that increase venture visibility. We then conceptualize that crime severity pushes entrepreneurs toward venture visibility-reduction responses, such as truncating growth, relocating, or discontinuing the venture. Survey data from 87,486 legally registered entrepreneur-led ventures in Mexico provide strong support for the relationships in our theoretical model. We find that as routine venture activities increase, entrepreneurs encounter crime of increasing severity, with the routine venture activity of making transactions at a bank serving as the strongest attractor of crime. Building on these findings, we observe an indirect effect through crime severity such that the choice to relocate the venture is the most likely response to being targeted by criminals. Our results advance the literature at the intersection of crime and entrepreneurship, especially in developing economies, and offers venture visibility as a mechanism that shapes both criminals' targeting of ventures and entrepreneurs' attempts to reduce being targeted.     

Fellow-townsmenship as the mechanism for exploring and exploiting business opportunities: A longitudinal reflection of the nineteenth century Ningbo entrepreneurs in Shanghai

This research examines how fellow-townsmenship, a distinctive homophilous social network, functioned among Ningbo entrepreneurs pertaining to their simultaneous exploration and exploitation of business opportunities, or achieving ambidexterity, in the nineteenth century. By investigating data in relevant historical records from museums, archives and libraries, case studies based on two representative Ningbo entrepreneurs from a distinctive business family showcase how those entrepreneurs took advantage of townsmenship to resolve the trade-off between exploration and exploitation. In doing so, simultaneous exploration and exploitation alongside the expansion of fellow townsmenship proved to be effective and successful. This research provides new grounds to examine ambidexterity.     

企业集团与规模经营初探

现阶段在我国企业的改革中,为了增强企业的国际竞争力,正着力组建企业集团,为发展规模经济提供组织保证.虽然企业集团产生已有100多年的历史,然而对我国的企业来说仍是一个新的课题,为增强组建企业集团的有效性,应当从企业集团历史发展的轨迹中去研究企业集团产生、发展的经济条件和社会环境,应当从我国企业的几次联合中总结经验和教训,应当从经济规模理论中去把握规模的合理度,应当研究组建企业集团的正确途径,以提高企业集团的时效性.从上述目的出发,拟就企业集团与规模经营的相关问题作一些探索.