| Entry Barriers and New Venture Performance: A Longitudinal Investigation of Direct and Moderated Effects |
| | Robinson, Kenneth Charles | Kennesaw State U. | krobinso@ksumail.kennesaw.edu | 770-423-6446 |
| | McDougall, Patricia Phillips | Georgia Institute of Technology | patricia.mcdougall@mgt.gatech.edu | 404-894-4373 |
| | This longitudinal study utilized a sample of 115 independent new manufacturing ventures to empirically investigate the (1) direct
(independent) effects of entry barriers on business performance, and (2) the moderating (contingent) effects of other theoretically
justified variables on the relationship between entry barriers and business performance. The results of this research suggest why
prior management research has failed to provide conclusive findings vis-a-vis the effects of entry barriers on business performance.
The relationship between alternative measures of entry barriers and business performance is complex, and prior studies have not
examined the complex moderating effects of other theoretically justified variables on the relationship between entry barriers and
divergent measures of business performance. Consistent with prior studies utilizing the universal approach, this study found limited
support for the direct effects of entry barriers upon performance. Conversely, the results of this study provide support for prior theory
which suggests that the relationship between alternative measures of entry barriers and business performance is moderated by
(contingent upon): (1) other measures of entry barriers; (2) venture age; and (3) life cycle stage. In sum, this study provides strong
support for utilizing the contingency approach to investigate the effects of entry barriers upon performance, as models based on the
contingency approach explained 45 percent of the variance in profitability and 50 percent of the variance in sales growth. Additionally,
this research provides evidence that venture profitability and sales growth represent different dimensions of business performance,
and that tradeoffs exist among these measures. |
| | Keywords: Entry barriers; Industry structure; New venture performance |
| The Impact of Institutional, Commercial, and Entrepreneurial Factors on the Performance of University Technology Transfer Organizations |
| | Kuhns, Barbara A. | U. of Houston | bakuhns@interactiva.cl | 562-215-2316 |
| | Keller, Robert T. | U. of Houston | Keller@uh.edu | 713-743-4676 |
| | Hill, Robert C. | U. of Houston | bobhill@uh.edu | 713-743-4679 |
| | A study of 77 university technology transfer organizations examined the impact of institutional, commercial, and entrepreneurial factors on performance. High performing technology transfer offices revealed a strong commercial orientation, specifically a strong entrepreneurial orientation. An entrepreneurial orientation contributed to both commercial performance (as predicted), and, somewhat surprisingly, to a strong institutional performance, before controlling for the effects of university size as measured by the number of full-time faculty. After controlling for university size, however, there were no differences in institutional performance measures. Technology transfer offices operating with a mixed orientation (that is institutional as well as commercial orientations) generated more patents, royalties, and licenses than technology transfer offices having institutional orientations after controlling for university size. In addition, after controlling for university size, the offices having commercial orientations generated significantly higher royalties but did not differ from offices having institutional orientations in terms of number of patents or in number of licenses. These findings suggest that university technology transfer offices must focus on the demands of both their commercial and institutional environments or stakeholders in order to successfully commercialize technology within the framework of highly institutionalized settings. The study uncovered entrepreneurial orientation as a factor associated with strong university research funding on a per faculty basis, and with strong patent performance on a per faculty basis. Thus, independent of university size, entrepreneurial orientation in a technology transfer office contributes to strong performance.
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| | Keywords: Technology; Transfer; University |
| Configurations for Improved Organizational Performance Across Multiple Domains: The Influences of Quality of Work Life, High Involvement Work Processes, and Quality Service Approaches |
| | Richardson, Hettie A. | U. of Georgia | hrichard@blaze.cba.uga.edu | (706)-542-4665 |
| | Vandenberg, Robert J. | U. of Georgia | rvandenb@blaze.cba.uga.edu | 706-542-3720 |
| | Managers and researchers have become increasingly interested in methods for improving organizational performance.
Among the many approaches hypothesized to be related to performance, three of strong contemporary interest are:
quality of work life programs (QWL), high involvement work processes (HIWP), and quality services (QS). To date, these
approaches have primarily been treated independently rather than as multidimensional configurations that are likely to be
used simultaneously within real organizations. Using the configurational approach, this paper examines the relationship
between QWL, HIWP, and QS and multiple indices of organizational performance, including financial, attitudinal, and overall
effectiveness measures. As expected, QWL, HIWP, and QS do not operate independently and do influence multiple performance
domains in relation to one another. Specifically, the three approaches each drive unique aspects of organizational performance
and serve to counterbalance one another in order to produce net gains across performance domains. The specific pattern of
results found would have been masked had we used fewer indices of effectiveness and looked at only one approach rather than all three. |
| | Keywords: Configurational Approach; Organizational Effectiveness |
| Outsourcing and Firm Performance: The Moderating Effects of Firm Strategy and Environmental Dynamism |
| | Gilley, K. Matthew | Oklahoma State U. | gilleykm@jmu.edu | (540) 568-3025 |
| | Rasheed, Abdul | U. of Texas, Arlington | abdul@uta.edu | (817) 272-3166 |
| | Considerable debate has taken place in both the popular press and management literature regarding the benefits and costs of outsourcing. While many compelling arguments have been made both in favor of and against outsourcing as a means of improving a firm’s competitiveness, few empirical studies of the topic exist. This study attempts to fill this gap in the literature by empirically examining the extent to which outsourcing influences firms performance. In addition, the potential moderating effects of firm strategy and environmental dynamism on the outsourcing-performance relationship were examined. Using a sample of 94 privately held manufacturing firms, our results indicate that outsourcing has no direct influence on firm performance. However, we found that the effects of outsourcing on performance are contingent on both firm strategy and environmental dynamism. More specifically, we found that outsourcing is more valuable to firms pursuing either cost leadership or innovative differentiation strategies. Contrary to our expectations, we found that the benefits of outsourcing increase in more stable environments. Future research on outsourcing should attempt to determine the antecedents of outsourcing decisions, as well as the performance implications of outsourcing across a broader sample of organizations. |
| | Keywords: outsourcing; organizational networks |