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In recent years, research on corporate sustainability integration strategies has witnessed a significant growth in interest. However, contributions remain disjointed and fragmented, preventing the emergence of a cohesive understanding of the current research state. This study uses a systematic review of 126 articles from Web of Science (WoS) and Ebsco to extract a seven-dimensional integrated view of corporate sustainability integration strategies. Our review's contributions are threefold: (1) we enrich the corporate sustainability strategies literature by identifying the focuses and themes of recent publications; (2) we address the research's fragmentation issue by presenting the sustainability implementation strategies in an integrated view with the essential interdependencies shown at different hierarchical levels and across organizational dimensions simultaneously, (3) we present the theoretical and managerial implications and discuss in detail the crucial interdependencies of sustainability integration strategies. The study finishes with a conclusion highlighting potential avenues for future research.
There is a plethora of research on organisational design elements of corporate venture capital (CVC) programs. However, the fragmented nature of this vein of corporate venturing research has led to an inconsistent picture regarding the organisational design of CVC programs. The goal of this study is to provide a holistic picture for both scholars and practitioners by integrating empirical research on the design of CVC programs. Therefore, the study employs a systematic literature review approach including a sample of 41 studies published from 1987 to 2023. For a systematic assessment of design elements of CVC programs, an inductive concept development approach is used to illustrate four main design dimensions–personnel, corporate relationship management, investment operating model and portfolio relationship management–which reflect 69 descriptive design elements. While previous studies have mainly looked at individual design dimensions of CVC programs from a strategic perspective, this paper presents comprehensive view on organisational structures of CVC programs by identifying building blocks of CVC design according to chosen objectives and available typologies. By specifying and allocating design dimensions to structural types and objectives of CVC programs, this study may also serve as a foundation for further research on the concepts which prevent high rates of early abandonment of CVCs.
The Leipzig Leadership Model
(2023)
The Leipzig Leadership Model (LLM) connects theory and practice. Building on actor-world relations and insights from motivational psychology (actor-action relations), the LLM proposes a holistic framework able to integrate the existing plethora of leadership theories and styles. This opens up a new perspective on a comprehensive understanding of leadership roles. With its four leadership orientation dimensions of purpose, entrepreneurial spirit, responsibility, and effectiveness, the LLM enables leaders to identify and reflect on relevant leadership competencies. In order to facilitate future research on the LLM and its dimensions, we report on two studies that are developing and validating a 32-item LLM-based scale. We applied oblique bifactor target rotation in a bifactor Exploratory Structural Equation Model within CFA approach in a German sample (N = 309) with robust WLSMV-estimates to fit an LLM-based model to the data. The results suggest a good fit. Furthermore, as ECV, PUC and ARPB support the multidimensional nature of the scale, we report the appropriate bifactor statistical indices. After parallel back translation, an English version of the scale was tested in a second sample (N = 311) to replicate our earlier findings. This study facilitates future empirical research by providing a concise and integrative self-rating measure of leadership orientations. We further strengthen the scientific foundation of the LLM by empirically testing its conceptually developed four-factor structure. The scale provides a starting point for further research into leadership orientations (also as standalone subscales), and offers an applicable guideline for self-reflection and decision-making.
How can Business Schools create and appropriate value in university-based technological innovation?
(2023)
Discussion in the scholarly literature about partnerships between entrepreneurs and universities for the creation of technological spinouts, and for helping universities to extract more value from their technology-related intellectual property (IP), is lively. However, the literature exhibits a gap in understanding how business schools may participate in the process of technology commercialization by facilitating the creation of intellectual property rights. In this conceptual paper, we seek to fill this gap in three ways. First, we offer some novel conceptual insights by studying the partnership between technical universities and entrepreneurs using a multi-level approach, incorporating a phenomenological research method, through the lenses of several established theoretical perspectives from the domains of economics, social science, and management: the division of labor, motivation, the nature of the firm, organization, and IP. Second, we develop a working hypothesis focused on learning reinforcement through multiple organizational levels that predicts how business schools may play a prominent role in technology commercialization, together with the theoretical conditions under which they may do so. Third, we offer an IP management model under which business schools, as such, may create and appropriate financial value by generating innovation-related IP that may be transferred to enterprises. Our research reveals a misalignment between promising approaches to university-based technological innovation suggested by normative theory and typical approaches associated with extant practice; and it also highlights a strategic issue, which is that the performance of most universities in the domain of technology transfer is disappointing. We suggest a way to address this misalignment, and this strategic issue, which is through the establishment of what we label as "Technology Innovation Laboratories" in business schools-analogous to technical laboratories usually associated with technical universities-that could generate various types of product- or service-related IP. This type of intellectual property-typically different from invention IP, and which we label here as "business IP"-could be exchanged for equity in spinouts or royalties from licensing, similar to the manner in which the invention IP of technical universities is usually commercialized.
Purpose
Unlike the traditional growth model of emerging markets after economic liberalization, India's inward foreign direct investment (FDI) surged paralleling its strong economic growth in the 2000s, despite the failure to establish a strong secondary sector. This creates an opportunity to deepen the conceptual and contextual understanding of the pivotal mechanisms that impel foreign multinational enterprises to invest into India and provides a natural setting to better understand the nature of its institutional, political and economic environment. Design/methodology/approach
The authors develop a theory contextualized to Indian inward FDI patterns for the 2000-2017 period. The theoretical framework expands upon received investment motives, with explicit consideration given to the idiosyncrasies of developments in India's recent macro and socioeconomic environment. The authors test the hypotheses using panel data from 134 countries that invested in India, using a Hausman-Taylor estimation.
Findings
The authors find that India's transition toward a knowledge economy attracts asset augmenting rather than asset exploiting FDI. Investors appear to target long-term investments by gaining access to India's digital capabilities, R&D, and growing talent base with a high degree of specialization within analytics, biotechnology, engineering, or pharmaceuticals. Foreign investors do not seem to be notably deterred by infrastructural challenges nor by legal and regulatory restrictions.
Originality/value
By providing a new perspective on India's atheoretical economic development and FDI environment, this study offers a distinct point of comparison with regard to established hypotheses within the extant literature on FDI into emerging markets. Rethinking contemporary investment motive theory by introducing an adapted conceptual framework provides further opportunity to inform the understanding of firm strategies in similar environments.
Entrepreneurship through acquisition (ETA) is gaining momentum as a viable alternative to starting a company on one’s own. However, despite its growing practical relevance, scholarly work about ETA is scarce and has not been comprehensively reviewed. To address this gap, we conduct a systematic review of entrepreneurship literature by identifying studies that examine ETA and its outcomes. Our review methodology was developed based on established guidelines for systematic reviews and protocols, which informed our scoping review process and analytical approach. Searches were conducted on three electronic databases, and inclusion/exclusion criteria were applied. For inclusion, studies must examine an entrepreneurial perspective in buying into a company. Quantitative and qualitative data were extracted for thematic analysis and descriptive statistics. ETA is an entrepreneurship model with growing appeal and relevance in practice but limited academic evidence. While there is extensive research on leveraged buyouts and family-external succession, evidence specifically on ETA is still lacking. In particular, knowledge about the entrepreneurial intent that makes ETA unique is absent from the evidence base. As ETA gains momentum, entrepreneurs need to understand the unique properties, the various approaches, and the upsides and eventual downsides of acquiring a business instead of starting one from scratch. The present work may serve as a starting point for future research as we scope existing evidence on the archetype of ETA and identify a definition, available models, and a process archetype.
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to develop an integrative framework of accelerator design to answer the question of what activities accelerators perform and how they function within a structured framework. Research on the functioning of accelerators as a mechanism for startup engagement produced multiple empirical results. However, the comparability of relevant research is strongly limited, currently hindering theoretical developments. Existing accelerator design models often differ and only partially overlap, which leaves extant literature with a fragmented and discordant conceptual understanding.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a meta-synthesis method using qualitative analysis of 36 accelerator design articles, an integrative framework is developed. After identification of relevant literature, a renowned method for extracting, coding and synthesizing data on individual and cross-study level is applied to identify accelerator design constructs. Eventually, identified accelerator design constructs are integrated into a framework resting on the activity system lens of business model design.
Findings
The article reconciles fragmented knowledge on accelerator design and shows how accelerator design can be holistically conceptualized by 32 key activities clustered in eight design dimensions. The framework is complemented by an initial guideline for measurement. The findings further highlight formerly disregarded aspects of governance and community formation from a processual and structural perspective.
Originality/value
This article is the first to present a comprehensive picture of accelerator design integrating multiple empirical findings of prior research into a single coherent framework. This framework offers a shared foundation for future research exploring the delineations, functioning and impact of accelerators. From a practical perspective, the article provides managers of accelerators a guide to design, review and improve programs according to their value creation goals.
Purpose
The article discusses the current relevance of artificial intelligence (AI) in research and how AI improves various research methods. This article focuses on the practical case study of systematic literature reviews (SLRs) to provide a guideline for employing AI in the process.
Design/methodology/approach
Researchers no longer require technical skills to use AI in their research. The recent discussion about using Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT), a chatbot by OpenAI, has reached the academic world and fueled heated debates about the future of academic research. Nevertheless, as the saying goes, AI will not replace our job; a human being using AI will. This editorial aims to provide an overview of the current state of using AI in research, highlighting recent trends and developments in the field.
Findings
The main result is guidelines for the use of AI in the scientific research process. The guidelines were developed for the literature review case but the authors believe the instructions provided can be adjusted to many fields of research, including but not limited to quantitative research, data qualification, research on unstructured data, qualitative data and even on many support functions and repetitive tasks.
Originality/value
AI already has the potential to make researchers’ work faster, more reliable and more convenient. The authors highlight the advantages and limitations of AI in the current time, which should be present in any research utilizing AI. Advantages include objectivity and repeatability in research processes that currently are subject to human error. The most substantial disadvantages lie in the architecture of current general-purpose models, which understanding is essential for using them in research. The authors will describe the most critical shortcomings without going into technical detail and suggest how to work with the shortcomings daily.
Despite considerable interest from academics and management professionals in creating sustainable, competitive advantages through business model innovation (BMI), and highly-prominent BMI success stories, the contemporary understanding of how company-internal antecedents can enable systematic BMI remains limited. However, this specific knowledge is necessary if companies are to repeatedly exploit BMI's strategic and financial benefits. Therefore, this paper aims to reveal the internal antecedents by applying an in-depth qualitative research approach to the systematic BMI of all five German automotive manufacturers. The results show that systematic BMI is enabled through: 1) unified orientation; 2) dynamic orchestration; 3) flexible operations; 4) adjacent fields, which are underpinned by 16 distinct second-order themes. These findings significantly enhance the theoretical and managerial understanding of the enabling factors for BMI, and contribute unique empirical insights to the ongoing academic debate - particularly from the perspectives of dynamic capabilities and strategic agility.
Innovation in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is often the result of technology-driven or market-pull entrepreneurship activities. So far, although its importance in practice, as well as in academia continues to grow, extant research exhibits little theory about the process of technology-driven entrepreneurship in SMEs. The study aims to better understand how technology-driven entrepreneurship processes transform business in SMEs in the manufacturing industry. Therefore, we developed a technological entrepreneurship (TE) process framework by utilizing the flexible pattern matching approach (FPMA). We iteratively compared a priori patterns from existing theoretical knowledge to empirical findings that emerged from in-depth interviews with corporate executives in the manufacturing industry. The framework highlights the TE process in SMEs leading to four output components: (1) corporate-function-related, (2) business-model-related, (3) competitiveness-related, and (4) customer-related. This study makes a unique contribution to academia by being the first that develops a TE process framework tailored to SMEs from the manufacturing industry. We point out that sustainable growth and competitiveness of SMEs depends on appropriate TE process management, and we underline the strategic importance of TE-driven transformation for SME managers. Our study expands the scope of TE and SME research and provides empirically grounded insights into technology-driven innovation.
Service productivity
(2023)
The service productivity literature has grown remarkably over the last two decades and has gathered substantial knowledge. However, with the gradual acceleration of knowledge production about service productivity, the collective evidence becomes more fragmented and interdisciplinary. The purpose of this literature review is to systematically identify and analyze 190 publications focusing on service productivity to link previously dispersed studies as a next step in theory development. By clustering existing service productivity research into macroeconomic, mesoeconomic, and microeconomic dimensions, our review reveals that much progress has been made in advancing the open-ended theory of optimal service productivity. Reviewing key insights from the existing literature, we show that the majority of service productivity research adopts a one-sided industrial perspective that primarily focuses on firm productivity. Although valuable, these studies most often leave out consumers’ time and effort, neglecting the value of consumer-generated input. Thus, the present research offers a new conceptualization of service productivity by emphasizing it as an open and customer-inclusive process that transcends the service producer–customer divide. Finally, we contribute a set of propositions. Within these propositions, we identify beneficial conditions and means for firms to improve service productivity. In sum, the article provides policymakers, researchers, and practitioners with valuable guidance for developing means to generate positive effects in a service economy that lacks productivity.
Artificial intelligence is spreading rapidly in business products and processes, with innovations that bring great benefits to society; however, significant risks also arise. AI-enabled systems make decisions autonomously and influence users and the environment, presenting multiple ethical issues. This work focuses on the ethics of AI use in business. We conduct a survey of business journal articles published between 2000 and mid-2021 to identify the most influential journals, articles, and authors, the most influential ethical schools, and the main ethical issues of AI in business. It describes the state-of-the-art in the field and identifies trends in ethical issues arising from AI. Thus, we present maps and trends of the ethics in AI in business literature.
Corporate accelerators have become a relevant intermediary that connects startups and corporations. Their strategic goal is to establish close relationships between startups and corporations that add value for both parties in the long term. While in principle startups go through an acceleration phase successfully, they may struggle to build meaningful relationships with the accelerator’s corporate parent thereafter. In research, the post-acceleration phase and its challenges for corporations and startups has not been adequately addressed to date. Therefore, the goal of this article is to shed light on how corporations and startups collaborate after startups leave an accelerator programme, and which factors hinder successful relationship-building. Grounding on 21 corporate accelerator cases containing data from 99 semi-structured interviews with corporate accelerator managers and startup alumni of accelerator programmes, we present different forms of post-programme collaboration and outline obstacles of post-programme relationship-building. Our results emphasise a key role of business units in successful relationship-building and indicate legitimacy problems of accelerators within its corporate organisation. We alsoprovide guidance for corporations, accelerators, and startups on how to increase the success of post-programme collaboration by demonstrating manifold challenges of post-programme collaboration and showing ways how to overcome them.
Purpose
Recent years have seen a meteoric rise in the study of narcissism in entrepreneurship, although little consolidation has occurred in this area. The purpose of this paper is the development of an integrative framework to harmonise the academic discussion and serve as a structured foundation for future research.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted an artificial intelligence-aided, structured literature review focused on content analysis of concepts and contexts to map out current findings and research gaps in startup narcissism research.
Findings
According to the findings of this study, narcissistic tendencies have the potential to positively influence startup success early on in an entrepreneur's journey, but after a certain point in the process, the influence of narcissism on success becomes predominantly negative.
Research limitations/implications
The research field is currently not very harmonised regarding research measures, research subjects and key research terms. Further research must use a standardised approach to add value to the research body.
Practical implications
Narcissism is a two-sided sword for founders. In the early stages of a company, many of the founder’s tasks can benefit from narcissistic tendencies. In the later stages of a company, that might shift to overwhelmingly negative effects of narcissism.
Originality/value
Methodically, this study is the first one to establish an artificial intelligence component to add value to the results of a review paper to the best of the authors’ knowledge. The results of this study provide a clear framework of entrepreneurial intention, entrepreneurial activity and entrepreneurial performance to give researchers the opportunity of a more differentiated way of organising work.
Earnings management decisions and ineffective monitoring activities have contributed to financial accounting scandals and reduced confidence in firms’ reporting quality among potential investors, lenders and other creditors. The implementation of an effective top management team (TMT) is considered essential in this context. It is well known that top managers have considerable discretion over firms’ financial reporting since they choose whether and how to manage earnings. However, research has yet to establish the relationship between top managers’ diversity attributes and firms’ earnings management levels. Therefore, this study analyses whether and how top managers’ nationality, gender and age diversity are associated with accounting quality. Based on a sample of German DAX 30 listed firms from 2011 to 2018, we found that diversity in TMT nationality and gender have a positive impact on accounting quality. This relationship is context-dependent and negatively moderated by the tenure of the chief financial officer. Our findings provide novel insights on accounting quality for practitioners such as investors, regulators and stock corporations. The implications of this study further advance the academic debate on diversity in TMTs and its effects on earnings management.
Barbarians inside the gates
(2022)
Purpose
Facing increased asset prices and growing competition, private equity firms needed to innovate their established business model and shift from focusing on financial engineering to creating operating value. Yet, the authors understand little about how private equity firms increase the value of companies in their portfolios. This paper aims to shed light on organizational strategies, activities and governance principles that private equity firms use to create value.
Design/methodology/approach
This investigation combines several qualitative research approaches. Using in-depth interviews with executives in 35 private equity firms, the authors define industry-specific design principles for value creation using a Gioia methodology. They then use the Eisenhardt methodology to make in-depth case comparisons among sample firms.
Findings
Private equity firms employ one of four strategies – labeled “Infiltrator,” “Consultant,” “Organizer” or “Investor” – to create value in portfolio companies, each with a different organizational structure, level of cooperation between investor and portfolio firm and specific configuration of design elements.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to focus on private equity value creation strategies from an organizational perspective. To their knowledge, no other publication has tapped this deeply into the interface between the private equity firm and the portfolio company to define the exact approach taken by the firm. This study contributes to the emerging discussion around the nonfinancial inputs to value creation. In addition, this qualitative research design is underrepresented in private equity research.
688 students from 9 countries on 5 continents participated in this research. The objective was to ascertain what effects, if any, using the direct or indirect format for the operating activities section of the cash flow statement has, if any, on a loan decision and on the ratings of various attributes of the cash flow statement. Students were pretested on their accounting skills with a few simple calculations, then asked to make the loan decision and finally requested to give their opinion of the financial statements in general and of the statement of cash flows in particular. Format had only a minor effect on the loan decision itself but significantly more favorable comments on user friendliness were received on the direct format than on the indirect. Significant differences were found, however, as regards the loan decisions between the students who had correctly done the calculations and those who had not, to such a degree that the effects of innumeracy became the main contribution to knowledge of this research. We find that the ability to perform accurate calculations, a fundamental foundation of financial numeracy, has an effect on financial decision making that has been ignored in previous studies of financial statement users and uses. This has significant implications for accounting and investing practice, and opens up an important field of research in accounting which can learn from what has already been studied on the effects of innumeracy in the health management field.
Digitisation is key for staying competitive. However, the impact of digitisation on small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) business performance remains under-researched in the extant literature. To make effective technology adoption decisions, entrepreneurs need to understand the concrete added value of and return on digital solutions. Towards this end, a systematic literature review is conducted by analysing 124 publications in peer-reviewed journals between 2009 and 2019. Articles were extracted from commonly used databases including EBSCOhost, Emerald, ResearchGate and ScienceDirect. A state-of-the-art report on digital value creation was delivered. The analysis reveals 14 verified added values that can be ranked according to number of mentions and classified into financial as well as strategic digital benefits. The most cited returns are efficiency and effectiveness, cost reduction, productivity growth, customer satisfaction, and competitive advantage. The most quoted digital solutions are social media, websites, cloud computing, and data analytics.
Implementation of digital technologies requires financial resources to create value. These resources are more limited in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and digital use cases or best practices are not well known. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate how SME managers are adding value and achieving a measurable return on investment (ROI) by using certain digital technologies. The results of this study were derived from 48 in-depth expert interviews conducted within cross-sectoral SMEs in Germany. The findings showed a set of 57 ROIs based on multiple digital use cases. Here, digital solutions either increased revenue through higher sales and new business models or cut operational expenditure (OPEX) and personnel costs. This study’s weighted digital ROI average was 33.77, with a median of 5.29. The results emphasize the need to implement digital solutions, offer robust guidelines to support SMEs with their digitization strategy and help measure the tangible value of digital projects. Moreover, the suggested technologies and added value can be used as benchmarks. As this study examines the impact of digital transformation on SMEs’ business performance, the research is novel, and the presented ROI calculations are original. The findings enrich the literature on entrepreneurial SMEs.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review the development of the German advertising industry starting from 1950 to 2018 with a special focus on the American influence.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses the oral history methodology. The content is based on 27 semi-structured interviews with current and former experts from the German and American advertising industry. An analysis of secondary sources supports the line of argumentation.
Findings
The paper confirms the outstanding role of the American influence on the German advertising industry, owing to new standards of professionalism, to novel versions of terminology and to the introduction of the theory of marketing. However, incompatible management styles, increasing global competition and financial pressure diminished the impact. Likewise, the American interference did not suppress the development of specific German industry characteristics such as a strong entrepreneurial culture or sustainable leadership.
Originality/value
This paper provides an overview of the history of German advertising with a focus on advertising agencies in the period from 1950 to today (2018). Further, this paper assesses the special impact of the American influence on the German advertising industry. Further, subjects of investigation are particularities of the German advertising industry, such as special attributes of agency leaders and their relationship with clients, distinct versions of ownership structures, agency service offerings and, finally, the role of creativity.