International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal最新文献

This research observes the relationship between industry 4.0 technologies (i.e., Internet of Things or IoT, machine learning, blockchain technology, and big data) and supply chain performance (SCP) with the mediating role of technological intensity in manufacturing firms using a resource-based view (RBV). Marketing strategy alignment is used as a moderator between technological intensity and SCP. The PLS-SEM is used, and 340 responses are used for the final analysis, collected using a simple random sampling technique. Multiple regressions were used to test hypotheses. IoT, blockchain technology, and technological intensity improve SCP. In contrast, machine learning and big data do not directly influence SCP. IoT, machine learning, big data, and blockchain technology significantly determine technological intensity. Besides, technological intensity significantly mediates industry 4.0 technologies and SCP. Finally, marketing strategy alignment strengthens the relationship between technological intensity and SCP. This research recommends that management implement industry 4.0 technologies, technological intensity, and marketing strategy alignment to improve SCP. This initial research examines industry 4.0 technologies, technological intensity, and marketing strategy alignment influence on SCP by using RBV.

Abstract

This study examines the complex relationships between Psychological Capital, family business, ownership, gender, and firm performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study examines the effects of these variables on firm performance and explores the empirical interaction effects. The findings reveal that Psychological Capital positively influences firm performance, supporting the hypothesis that owners with higher Psychological Capital contribute to better business outcomes. Additionally, family business and ownership significantly impact firm performance, indicating that family involvement and concentrated ownership drive organizational success. Surprisingly, the results indicate a negative impact of gender on firm performance, suggesting that firms managed by women are perceived as less successful. The study also explores the interaction effects and finds that the positive relationship between Psychological Capital and firm performance is amplified in family businesses. However, gender does not moderate this relationship, indicating that women Owners face challenges in translating their Psychological Capital into firm performance in the emerging economy of Ecuador. The results provide insights into the complex dynamics within family businesses and underline the need to address gender disparities and promote inclusive Ownership practices. Implications are discussed.

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between the family governance evolutionary stages and the rate of return required by family businesses’ shareholders (k_e), building on an institutional and relational governance lens. We make the distinction between the informal stage, the family council stage and the family constitution stage. Findings from a sample of Spanish private family firms reveal that family firms in the family constitution stage have a lower k_e than family firms in the family council stage and the informal stage. Surprisingly, family firms in the family council stage seem to have a higher k_e than family firms that are in the informal stage, which points to ceremonial adoption effects and a mismatch between governance needs and practices in the family council stage. We also find that the effect of different family governance stages on k_e is conditional on the number of family shareholders.

This study examines the influence of emotional factors on entrepreneurial decision-making, specifically focusing on early-stage entrepreneurs and those with more years of experience in the entrepreneurial process. The aim is to understand how emotional intensity affects business decisions at different stages of entrepreneurship. Neuroqualitative interviews were conducted using a stratified sample of entrepreneurs. The methodology included semi-structured interviews. Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) technology was employed to simultaneously measure participants’ emotional levels during the interviews. The results revealed significant differences in emotional levels between novice and experienced entrepreneurs concerning the analysed emotional factors. Novice entrepreneurs exhibited higher levels of anxiety and fear, especially in questions not previously anticipated, while experienced entrepreneurs showed confidence and a more optimistic outlook, particularly on topics related to long-term consolidation and revenue forecasting. This study highlights originality by demonstrating the importance of emotional factors in entrepreneurial decision-making and their variation over time in the entrepreneurial process. The use of GSR technology in neuroqualitative interviews adds a unique dimension by providing an objective assessment of entrepreneurs’ emotional levels, thus complementing the qualitative richness of verbal responses. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of emotional complexity in business decision-making and emphasize the need to consider these aspects in entrepreneurship support strategies.

Abstract

The geographical location of an establishment is a strategic decision of major importance for companies. In the case of franchising, the peculiarities of the system render this decision of vital importance. The objectives of this work are threefold: a) to identify hotspots of franchise establishments; b) to perform an analysis of the distance between establishments; and c) to specify a weighted geographical regression model to estimate the influence of income, population density, and percentage of commercial area of the municipalities on the number of establishments of the franchises located in the chosen municipalities. To this end, 1,508 establishments belonging to seven franchising chains operating in Spain have been selected. The results show that there is an agglomeration of establishments in various geographical areas. Geographically weighted regression also confirms that the variables analysed constitute good predictors of the number of establishments in each municipality.

Emotional intelligence (EI) and leadership style are topics that have attracted a growing interest in the literature. In this study, we posit that entrepreneurs’ EI is an antecedent of transformational leadership (TL) while examining the moderating role of gender and generational cohort. Data were collected from 2,084 international entrepreneurs and analysed using multivariate analysis and hierarchical linear regression. The results confirm EI as an antecedent of TL and show that others’ emotion appraisal (OEA) and regulation of emotions (ROE) are the most contributing subdimensions of EI to TL. Moreover, the study also reveals significant gender and generational cohort differences for EI and TL. In one of the relevant findings, our research shows that only female Gen Z entrepreneurs have lower scores than their male counterparts. Although men’s EI scores are similar across generations, women’s scores are significantly higher in each older generation leaving ¡open questions for further research in the area.

Despite the limited resources of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), they can still manage to be competitive and survive in the current environment by implementing competitive strategies that lead to innovation and improve their market performance. The aim of this study is to examine and analyse the effect of business strategy on market performance in Spanish small and medium-sized entrepreneurial enterprises, and the mediating effect of innovation is explored as a solution to business crises. In addition, we analyse the moderating effect that the perceived risk of COVID-19 may have on this relationship, as well as whether the commercialisation capacity of SMEs exerts an impact and improves performance based on innovation. Taking 1,842 Spanish entrepreneurial firms with fewer than 250 employees as a reference and using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), our study shows that entrepreneurial SMEs that apply a competitive strategy can achieve enhanced innovation. Moreover, this innovation has a direct and positive effect on the market performance of SMEs, and this effect is greater under higher marketing capability. Our findings suggest a heterogeneous effect on the impact of the perceived risk of COVID-19 on the strategy-innovation relationship. In entrepreneurial SMEs that adopt a differentiation strategy, the perceived risk has an enhancing impact, while in entrepreneurial SMEs that follow cost strategies, the effect is negative.

The resource-based view, signaling, and behavioral perspectives focus on different theoretical mechanisms through which human capital and the behavioral characteristics of nascent entrepreneurs, in combination with insider and outsider financing, may influence the emergence of new ventures. This work tests the relative explanatory power of these different theoretical perspectives. We estimate a mediation model to disentangle the direct effect of nascent entrepreneur personal characteristics on new firm creation from their indirect effects, mediated by the amount of insider financing committed to new ventures and access to greater outsider financing. Our empirical results are based on data from the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED II) and improve our understanding of the drivers of new firm creation and their underlying mechanisms. Our findings support the resource-based view and the behavioral perspective in our sample of nascent entrepreneurs, but do not provide evidence of the signaling perspective.

The purpose of this research work is to provide a measurement instrument, through the validation of a proposed scale, to determine the relevant factors that affect the motivation of university students, and that can be used as anticipatory indicators of personal entrepreneurship to achieve educational and work success. To carry it out, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses have been carried out, based on the principal components’ method, which have been validated through the usual model fit measures in the literature, considering an analysis of reliability and reliability of the measurement instrument. To obtain this purpose, a sample of the university population was selected, through a simple random sampling, considering heterogeneity of courses, subjects, areas, and teaching modalities, of 596 individuals, with a higher percentage of women compared to men, as can be seen from the total number of enrolled in university degrees in the Spanish education system. The scale proved to have good psychometric properties, obtaining good internal consistency and validity. Among the main findings, we can highlight several dimensions for motivation, for instance, emotional self-management and adversity management; and learning strategies, such as: active self-management of study material, study management and self-management of effort, among others. In conclusion, a scale has been validated to determine which dimensions should be considered to promote student motivation as a method of personal entrepreneurship, and which can be used by educational authorities to propose extracurricular training that affects the improvement of students' competence, both in academic and emotional management. The dataset was analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis.

This study examines whether labor force diversity also matters for entrepreneurship in the context of South Korea, with the aim of evaluating the applicability of previous findings from developed Western countries to the growing Asian nations. The results suggest a clear country variance in labor force diversity effects, revealing negative impacts of demographic diversity and insignificance of cultural diversity on entrepreneurship in South Korea, which is in contrast to prior observations in most Western countries. I propose that South Korea's strong societal hierarchy, historical emphasis on ethnic homogeneity, and existing ethnic polarization reduce the nation's openness towards diversity, resulting in unpromising labor force diversity effects on entrepreneurship in South Korea. This research contributes to the current literature by filling the research gap beyond the regional context of developed Western countries and by suggesting possible country variance in labor force diversity effects according to the nation's varying openness towards diversity.