Variations in entrepreneurship

This article is written in the style of a “bildungsroman,” a fictional autobiographical “coming of age story” about the author’s experiences of his beginning to recognize the: great diversity of entrepreneurs, many types of startup firms, multiple ways entrepreneurs go about starting firms, and innumerable situations in which entrepreneurial activity takes place. In this remembrance of things past, the author realizes: the phenomenological underpinnings of his understanding of entrepreneurship, his belief in the primacy of facts as the arbiter of theory, that his theory predisposed him to look only for certain kinds of facts and ignore others which then makes theory paradoxically the arbiter of the facts found, and, finally, that knowledge is hard won and wisdom elusive. “Nothing is more uncertain, more contradictory, more unsatisfactory than the evidence of facts”—William Godwin     

Enacting entrepreneurship research in a pioneering,provocative and participative way: on the work of Bengt Johannisson

Bengt Johannisson received the International Award for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Research in 2008. In this essay we present and evaluate his work over the last four decades in three of its dimensions: pioneering, provocative and participative. While his research interests and themes range widely, early on he resisted the individualization of entrepreneurship studies and instead emphasized that entrepreneurship is a social practice that must be contextualized, localized and situated. In so doing, he uses such concepts as networks, industrial districts, regions and local communities. Making interpretive studies possible in a European context, his conceptual and methodological approach documents how future studies of entrepreneurship can be enacted as a reflexive, participative practice where methods of research, intervention and debate become blurred.     

The emergence of the maker movement: Implications for entrepreneurship research

The maker movement has been touted as a harbinger of the next industrial revolution. Through shared access to tools and digital fabrication technologies, makers can act as producers in the sharing economy and potentially increase entrepreneurship rates, catalyze advanced manufacturing, and spur economic development. We develop a model of the maker movement configured around social exchange, technology resources, and knowledge creation and sharing. We highlight opportunities for studying the conditions under which the movement might foster entrepreneurship outcomes and discuss how research on the maker movement can deepen our understanding of entrepreneurial teams and corporate entrepreneurship.     

Launching a High-Risk Business – An Interactive Simulation. Developed by High Performance Systems,Inc., based on the work of William A. Sahlman and Michael J. Roberts

Small Business Economics -     

Knocking at the gate: The path to publication for entrepreneurship experiments through the lens of gatekeeping theory

We draw on gatekeeping theory to explore the individual and routine-level criticisms that entrepreneurship experimentalists receive during the review process. Using a multi-study approach, we categorize common gatekeeping themes and present illustrative critiques derived from a unique sample of decision letters and a supplemental survey of entrepreneurship editors. In combination, we extend gatekeeping theory by considering how it applies to the scholarly domain, contribute to the literature by exploring an alternative theoretical explanation as to why entrepreneurship experiments might fail to survive the review process, and finally, provide contextualized recommendations for authors and reviewers of experimental research.     

More power for international entrepreneurs: the effect of digital readiness of economies on channeling national R&D resources to entrepreneurship

Journal of International Entrepreneurship - In the economic paradigm of the twenty-first century, the increasing importance of innovation for SMEs and their global expansion motivates research on...     

Building on formal education: employers’ approaches to the training and development of new recruits in the People's Republic of China

Conceptions of modern management and of skill in China have developed out of quantitative, production oriented traditions that have tended to downplay the human side of management, training and development. Based on recent survey and case study research this paper argues that some organisations are moving away from such narrow definitions. These tend to be resource rich, larger enterprises, often in modern growth sectors and organisations exposed to foreign practice (either by virtue of foreign ownership or investment, or as a result of exposure to the pressures of global competition through operation in international markets). Skills shortages are faced by organisations throughout China. However, employers do not generally feel that the education system is serving to address these skills needs. The varying conceptions of modern management shape the manner in which organisations recruit from, and build, on formal education provision. Many resource rich employers are using formal education as a selection mechanism, selecting the educational elite and continuing to develop them. Those organisations that have limited access to highly qualified recruits are also least likely to be in a position to provide extensive or high quality training. Consequently the divide between resource rich and resource poor organisations, in terms of both organisational resources and employees’ opportunities for skill acquisition, learning and development, seems likely to widen.     

Ernest Dichter and motivation research: new perspectives on the making of post-war consumer culture

Advertising as a proportion of national income rose from the late 1940s and peaked in the mid-to-late 1950s. This growth however exhibited inflection points in 1949 and 1951 which coincided with political economy shifts. During this period of growth all sectors producing consumer goods increased expenditure on advertising; expenditure on advertising by the tobacco, and the clothing and footwear sectors rose the most relative to consumer spending on these product categories. From the mid-1950s, advertising of household goods, a category which included electrical durables and furniture, rose at the fastest rate.     

Willingness to work for multinational enterprises from emerging countries: The case of Chinese multinational enterprises in the Netherlands

How do perceptions of country-of-origin image (COI) relate to willingness of Western people to work for subsidiaries in advanced countries of multinational enterprises from emerging countries (EMNEs)? We seek to shed light on this question by exploring six hypotheses based on environment-processing metatheory. Applying a PLS-SEM analysis of online survey data from the Netherlands, we find that the COI and familiarity with the EMNE’s home country are positively associated with willingness to work. Additionally, we reveal a few mediating effects indicating that familiarity and individual difference are indirectly related to willingness to work. This study contributes to our understanding of the inability of EMNEs to attract talent in the Western world by adding a macro perspective to the human resource management literature. Furthermore, we extend environment-processing metatheory by expanding the focus from the perceived internal context (corporate information) to the perceived external environment (country of origin), as well as to the antecedents (familiarity and individual differences) of the perceived environment.     

The impact of reverse logistics process coordination on third party relationship quality: A moderated mediation model for multichannel retailers in the fashion industry

Multichannel retailing is a widely adopted strategy in the fashion industry. Companies in this industry find it a source of competitive advantage to invest in reverse logistics infrastructure. However, limited empirical studies investigate the enablers of the relationship quality between the retailers and their reverse logistics service providers. This study quantifies the impact of reverse logistics process coordination between retailers and logistics service providers on relationship quality. Moreover, it tests the mediating role of reverse logistics service quality and the moderating role of conflict frequency in this relationship. Data were collected through a survey using a purposive sample of 241 retail store managers from the fashion retail industry of Pakistan. For this purpose, a self-administered questionnaire was developed using a five-point Likert Scale to gauge the responses. Conditional process analysis was used to evaluate the moderated mediation model. The findings showed a significant positive impact of reverse logistics process coordination on the relationship quality with a logistics service provider, a significant positive mediation effect of reverse logistics service quality, and a significant moderation effect of conflict frequency on the indirect relationship. However, conflict frequency, contrary to the hypothesis in the study, strengthened the indirect relationship. Furthermore, the moderation effect of conflict frequency on the direct relationship was insignificant. This study will help managers better understand the best practices leading to effective management of reverse logistics processes, particularly product returns.     

加害人不明的建筑物抛掷物责任探究——兼评《侵权责任法草案（二次审议稿）》第83条

对于加害人不明的建筑物抛掷物责任承担问题各学者是各执一词,在审判实践中,相似的案件不同的判决结果更是让讨论愈演愈烈。在加害人不明的情况下,让可能致害的建筑物使用人承担连带责任,既缺乏充足的法理依据,也会造成实质上的不公,因而是一种不适当的做法。加害人不明的建筑物抛掷物责任,归根结底是一个分散风险与利益平衡的问题,超出了侵权法的调整范畴,对受害人的救济,可通过社会保障和商业保险等立法政策予以调整和实现。     

Out of sight but not out of mind: Why failure to account for left truncation biases research on failure rates

We note at least three major issues in entrepreneurship theory that can be clarified by studying the survival chances of new ventures: the extent to which entrepreneurs are so constrained by initial founding conditions that they are unable to learn; the degree to which heterogeneity and innovative capabilities are lost due to the failure of new ventures; and the imprinting effects of new ventures' early days on their subsequent development. However, previous research on these issues has been inconclusive because of problems in research design and data analysis. In this paper, we shed light on new venture failure rates by assessing the validity and generalizability of previous findings. We argue that research using registration data to study new ventures is very likely to generate biased results and that research attempting to track new ventures from a very early stage can still suffer from selection bias due to left truncation. Using a sample of new ventures from the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics II, we provide evidence for the extent of such biases. We offer a statistical solution to left truncation that can be easily applied in widely used statistical programs.     

Television advertising television: measuring the ability of television promos to deliver ratings for new programs using single-source data

The entertainment industry relies heavily on advertising to attract audiences. This article demonstrates a method to measure the effect of on-air television promotions, or promos, on viewing behaviour, based on a well-established single-source method for determining the causal impact of advertising on sales. We illustrate this method on 18 new prime-time programs, showing that promos have a positive impact on viewing behaviour. Exposed viewers are substantially more likely to view the premiere episode of a new series, across a wide range of different television-viewing weights, frequency of promo exposures and program types. The research also shows evidence of reach-based scheduling strategies being generally more efficacious than frequency-based strategies. These findings provide guidance to help networks implement their promo strategy more effectively, as well as a method for future research into the effectiveness of television promos as this approach can be utilized in any country with a television ratings panel.     

将中美纺织品贸易争端提交DSB解决的理论研究

"特保"和"特限"是中美纺织品争端的焦点.澄清有关"特保"和"特限"规则中的模糊之处是解决中美纺织品争端的关键.文章将中美纺织品贸易争端提交DSB,争取以判例的形式明确启动"特保"和"特限"应具备的法律要件,为我国纺织品出口创造较好的国际法律环境.     

统一思想狠抓落实努力把全省对外开放工作推向新阶段--王利民副省长在全省对开放工作会议上的总结讲话(节选)

全省对外开放工作会议是一次解放思想,更新观念,深入贯彻党的十六大、十六届三中全会和省委经济工作会议精神的学习会;是一次找准差距,研究对策,奋起直追,以开放促改革、促发展的鞭策会;是一次完善思路,明确目标,强化领导,通过大开放实现大发展、快发展的部署会;也是一次攻坚克难,开拓进取,与时俱进,全面开创对外开放工作新局面的动员会.这次会议,对今年乃至今后一个时期全省对外开放工作具有重要的指导意义.