Modelling Entrepreneurship: Unifying The Equilibrium and Entry/Exit Approach

Two approaches can be distinguished with respect to modelling entrepreneurship: (i) the approach focusing on the net development of the number of entrepreneurs in an equilibrium framework and (ii) the approach focusing on the entries and exits of entrepreneurs. In this paper we unify these approaches to arrive at a model explaining the equilibrium and actual number of entrepreneurs and the entry and exit rate of entrepreneurs simultaneously and consistently. We apply our unified approach to the Netherlands using self-employment data for the 1960–1999 period. We find error-correction of about 20% per year and a very different situation in terms of disequilibrium before and after the early 1980s. Periods of high unemployment appear to be characterized by both high entry and high exit rates.     

Risk Management: Its Adoption in Australian Public Universities within an Environment of Change Management – A Management Perspective

This study draws on the multi‐theoretical approach to governance and a qualitative methodology to examine the extent to which key players in Australian public universities have developed and implemented risk management within an environment of change management. The findings demonstrate that wider influences – largely the result of conflicting management cultures – have had differing impacts on the values of key players and the consequent adoption of the process. Key players’ values range from congruent with a corporate culture (at the strategic level) to incongruent with a corporate culture (at the operational level), and result in different outcomes. These different outcomes suggest that the adoption of risk management by Australian public universities under the influence of new public management is problematic. The study provides opportunities for further research to confirm these findings with a broader sample of actors and the adoption of other governance control processes.     

The (mis)fit between the profile of internal auditors and internal audit activities

This study investigates whether there is a fit between the profile of internal auditors and the activities of the internal audit department (IAD). It also seeks to discover which type of internal auditors fit which type of internal audit (IA) activities. This is commonly referred to as the person-job (P-J) fit. Furthermore, this study investigates whether this (mis)fit is associated with the outsourcing/co-sourcing of IA activities and turnover within the IAD. Bringing strategic human resource management (SHRM) into IA can be considered as the key contribution of this paper. The results of this study are based on a questionnaire completed by 280 members of the Institute of Internal Auditors in Belgium. The results show that there is a fit between some characteristics of internal auditors working in an IAD and the activities of the IAD. The results also show that certain internal auditor characteristics fit with certain types of IA activities. However, the degree of fit varies. Furthermore, it was found that IADs that co-source/outsource were significantly more associated with a misfit between the profile of the internal auditors and the activities of the IAD, whereas a misfit was not significantly associated with a high turnover of internal auditors.     

Effects of co‐creation claim on consumer brand perceptions and behavioural intentions

Increasingly often, companies ‘co‐create’ with consumers in open innovation practices to develop new products more effectively. Little is known about how co‐creation affects consumer brand perceptions in the mass market. We hypothesize that co‐creative brands – as opposed to non–co‐creative brands – are perceived as more authentic and sincere, and are associated with relatively positive behavioural intentions. A between‐subjects experiment was conducted to test these hypotheses in an online panel of consumers who did not take part in co‐creation. The experiment had a 3 (control vs. co‐creation vs. co‐creation supported with some visual proof) × 2 (well‐known existing brand vs. fictitious brand) design. Quantitative data analyses (n = 530) confirmed that for both brands, co‐creation affects brand personality perceptions directly and behavioural intentions indirectly. This study shows that co‐creating with consumers can be a strategic method to positively influence product perceptions and behavioural intentions.     

Dynamics of Cooperation: At the Brink of Irrelevance*

abstract Alliances have become commonplace. This has led to a considerable number of academic and professional publications on alliances and, more recently, on the dynamics of cooperation. However, the body of knowledge on the dynamics of cooperation developed so far is characterized by fragmentation, lack of coherence and non‐comparable research output. There is no consensus on paradigmatic beliefs, which hampers theoretical progress. As a result, there is what we call an academic gap. Moreover, the literature on the dynamics of cooperation often studies research questions that are irrelevant to managers' needs. As a consequence, there is also a managerial relevance gap. The emergence of these two gaps is primarily due to the choice of assumptions, the emphasis on originality, and the use of a variety of methodological approaches. Nevertheless, we believe it is still possible to reverse the trend and make the literature on the dynamics of cooperation more relevant.     

Zur Übertragung biologischer Konzepte in die Betriebswirtschaft

Unternehmen sind — wie Organismen — offene und komplexe Systeme, die in st?ndiger Wechselbeziehung zu ihrer Umwelt stehen. Vor diesem Hintergrund werden im Beitrag die M?glichkeiten der übertragung biologischer Konzepte in die Betriebswirtschaft analysiert. Die Gegenüberstellung beider Wissenschaftsdisziplinen erfolgt dabei auf einer abstrakten Ebene und stellt eine metaphorische Beziehung her, damit die zwei an sich v?llig unterschiedlichen Disziplinen einem Vergleich überhaupt erst zug?nglich werden. Hierbei werden zahlreiche Parallelen deutlich. Die Grenzen der übertragung biologischer Konzepte ergeben sich allerdings im Hinblick auf die mangelnde Ableitung konkreter Handlungsempfehlungen, weil lediglich analysiert werden kann, was sich bew?hrt hat, jedoch nicht, was sich bew?hren wird.