Authors: Achim Walter; Michael Auer; Thomas Ritter
University spin-offs, usually formed to commercialize technologies originating from publicly funded research institutions, may serve as an effective contributor to economic prosperity and job creation. Although there is increased interest in academic entrepreneurship, there is little empirical research identifying organizational properties that foster the growth and long-term survival of university spin-offs. Drawing on a database of 139 university spin-offs, we investigated the impact of network competence (NC) and entrepreneurial posture (EP) on organizational performance. Our study shows that the performance variables growth in turnover, turnover per employee, profit attainment, market effectiveness, and realized competitive advantages are influenced by a spin-off’s NC. The results of this research highlight two issues. First, they support the recent arguments of entrepreneurship scholars regarding the importance of networks for spin-off success. Second, as we have analyzed the ability of networking and not only the existence of a network, we contribute with an insight motivated from the capability-based view of the firm, highlighting that university spin-offs perform better with an increasing degree of network capability. These results have important implications for the management of university spin-offs. Firms should note that an entrepreneurial posture in and of itself is not enough to compete in today’s markets. Posture is an entrance ticket that allows for higher impacts of competencies on performance. Entrepreneurial ambitions alone do not create value and should not be seen as the fundamental force for the sustainable prosperity and growth of spin-offs.We suggest that firms develop their network competence and their networks as a means to improve performance. One possibility is to relate to experienced and well-known business people. Some governmental agencies and venture capitalists run mentor programs that aim at the development of networks. Another issue is to make resources for networking available and to empower employees to develop relationships.
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Publish Year: 2003
Conference: Lugano, Switzerland (2003)