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.     

ON TWO APPROACHES TO COHERENT RISK CONTRIBUTION

We compare two approaches to the coherent risk contribution: the directional risk contribution is defined as where ρ is a coherent risk measure; the linear risk contribution ρ^l(X; Y) is defined through a set of axioms, one of which is the linearity in X . The linear risk contribution exists and is unique for any ρ from the Weighted V@R class. We provide the representation for both risk contributions in the general setting as well as in some examples, including the MINV@R risk measure defined as where X₁, … , X_N are independent copies of X .     

Start-ups by the unemployed: characteristics,survival and direct employment effects

Fostering and supporting start-up businesses by unemployed persons has become an increasingly important issue in many European countries. These new ventures are being subsidized by various governmental programs. Empirical evidence on skill-composition, direct job creation and other key variables is rather scarce, largely because of inadequate data availability. We base our analysis on unique survey data containing a representative sample of over 3,100 start-ups founded by unemployed persons in Germany and subsidized under two different schemes: the bridging allowance (BA) and the start-up-subsidy (SUS). We are able to draw on extensive pre- and post-founding information concerning the characteristics of the business (start-up capital, industry, etc.) and of the business founders (education, motivation, preparation, etc.). Our main results are: (1) The two programs attracted very different business founders (higher skilled for the BA, more female persons for the SUS), and different businesses were created (less capital intensive for the SUS). (2) We find that formerly unemployed founders are motivated by push and pull factors. (3) Survival rates 2.5 years after business founding are quite high (around 70%) and similar for both programs and across gender. (4) However, the newly developed businesses differ significantly in terms of direct employment effects. While around 30% of the founders with the BA already have at least one employee, this is true for roughly 12% of the founders with the SUS.     

Town centre management in the UK: A review,synthesis and research agenda

Despite rapid growth in the number of town centre management schemes in the UK there have been few attempts to consider this topic from an academic perspective. This article develops a typology of town centre management schemes, based upon a comprehensive review of existing literature. The criteria of organizational structure and resource origin are identified as primary influences in the initiation and development of such schemes. The article concludes by outlining a research agenda which considers both local governance and spatial and temporal themes in the initiation and development of town centre management. The analysis of such factors is vital to a fuller understanding of this area.     

Global Integration in Primary Equity Markets: The Role of U.S. Banks and U.S. Investors

We examine the costs and benefits of the global integrationof initial public offering (IPO) markets associated with thediffusion of U.S. underwriting methods in the 1990s. Bookbuildingis becoming increasingly popular outside the United States andtypically costs twice as much as a fixed-price offer. However,on its own, bookbuilding only leads to lower underpricing whenconducted by U.S. banks and/or targeted at U.S. investors. Formost issuers, the gains associated with lower underpricing outweighedthe additional costs associated with hiring U.S. banks or marketingin the United States. This suggests a quality/price trade-offcontrasting with the findings of Chen and Ritter, particularlysince non-U.S. issuers raising US$20 million–US$80 millionalso typically pay a 7% spread when U.S. banks and investorsare involved.     

Personality characteristics and the decisions to become and stay self-employed

Based on a large, representative German household panel, we investigate to what extent the personality of individuals influences the entry decision into and the exit decision from self-employment. We reveal that some traits, such as openness to experience, extraversion, and risk tolerance affect entry, but different ones, such as agreeableness or different parameter values of risk tolerance, affect exit from self-employment. Only locus of control has a similar influence on the entry and exit decisions. The explanatory power of all observed traits among all observable variables amounts to 30 %, with risk tolerance, locus of control, and openness having the highest explanatory power.     

When Stress Frustrates and When It Does Not: Configural Models of Frustrated versus Mellow Salespeople

The purpose of this study is to elucidate the stress–strain relationship by examining compound causes of frustration in the workplace. Drawing on configuration theory, this article describes stress patterns, that is, configurations of role stressors and social stressors, and underlying frustration and its negation, that is, mellowness. In addition, this article describes potential sources of such frustration‐stimulating stress patterns by examining constellations of employee and task characteristics. Based on a sample of 118 salespeople, the authors analyze the data using fuzzy‐set Qualitative Comparative Analysis—an analytic method pertinent to describing configurational patterns of causal factors. The findings from this study indicate the coexistence of alternative patterns of stressors for frustration. In addition, the findings show that configurational patterns for frustrated salespeople are quite different from those characterizing mellow salespeople. In summary, knowledge of these constellations of stressors helps sales managers detect conditions that frustrate, and develop strategies to diminish these conditions in order to improve sales force performance.     

Common good leadership in business management: an ethical model from the Indian tradition

While dominant management thinking is steered by profit maximisation, this paper proposes that sustained organisational growth can best be stimulated by attention to the common good and the capacity of corporate leaders to create commitment to the common good. The leadership thinking of Kautilya and Ashoka embodies this principle. Both offer a common good approach, emphasising the leader's moral and legal responsibility for people's welfare, the robust interaction between the business community and the state, and the importance of moral training of leaders in identifying and promoting the common good. We argue that the complex process of re‐orientating corporate priorities towards the common good requires alertness and concerted effort if both business and society are to truly benefit. As Ashoka said: ‘A good deed is a difficult thing’.     

The Business Model and Firm Performance: The Case of Russian Food Service Ventures

Using a unique methodology for capturing the business model and drawing comparisons across larger samples of firms, we investigate the relationship between business model design and firm performance in a Russian context. The evolution of the business model concept and its components is reviewed. Empirical research was conducted on the basis of a cross‐sectional survey of firms in the food service industry. A typology of seven business models in this industry is produced, and linkages are established between model type and company performance.