- 20 Oct 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Flight to Safety: How Economic Downturns Affect Talent Flows to Startups
The COVID-19 crisis makes it more difficult for small, young firms to attract talent as higher-quality candidates turn to more mature firms. Such “flight to safety” leads to a deterioration in the quality of human capital available for startups.
- 13 Oct 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Fencing Off Silicon Valley: Cross-Border Venture Capital and Technology Spillovers
This study of foreign corporate investment transactions from 32 countries between 1976 and 2015 finds these investments pose a trade-off: While they support young firms in pursuing innovations they could not otherwise afford, they also generate knowledge for the foreign investors.
- 22 Sep 2020
- Research & Ideas
Recessions Push Some Entrepreneurs to Launch Too Soon
Research by Maria Roche looks at how past economic downturns forced job-insecure, high-tech entrepreneurs to rush their ventures to market. Will COVID-19 do the same? Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 29 Jul 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Two Case Studies on the Financing of Forest Conservation
Case studies about The Conservation Fund and Sonen Capital highlight three broad lessons about fresh approaches to the ownership and management of forestland.
- 27 Jul 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
The Evolution of CEO Compensation in Venture Capital-Backed Startups
Resolving uncertainty related to market demand—so called “product-market” fit—marks a key inflection point in the compensation contract for CEOs of venture-capital backed firms.
- 19 Jul 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Open Source Software and Global Entrepreneurship
Does more activity in open source software development lead to increased entrepreneurial activity and, if so, how much, and in what direction? This study measures how participation on the GitHub open source platform affects the founding of new ventures globally.
- 16 Jun 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Government Incentives for Entrepreneurship
Even though many public policy efforts on entrepreneurship are well intentioned, the success rate has been disappointing. This essay explores these policies, focusing on financial incentives to entrepreneurs and the intermediaries who fund them.
- 07 Jun 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Financial Distancing: How Venture Capital Follows the Economy Down and Curtails Innovation
Common wisdom holds that VC investment and VC-backed startups are relatively insulated from downturns. This study shows that the relative quantity and quality of innovation declines more for VC-backed firms than for other types of firms during downturns.
- 05 Jun 2020
- Research & Ideas
How Anchor Investors Help Impact Funds Succeed
3Questions A startup fund's ability to attract a major first investor is a signal to others that the investment pool is just fine for entering. Shawn Cole and Rob Zochowski answer questions about anchor investors. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 02 Jun 2020
- Research & Ideas
Coronavirus Careers: Cloud Kitchens Are Now Serving
Cloud kitchens are restaurants built around food delivery rather than sit-down service, and they are increasing in popularity as COVID-19 disrupts the industry, write Lena Ye and Geoffrey Jones. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 11 May 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Targeting High Ability Entrepreneurs Using Community Information: Mechanism Design in the Field
Based on a field experiment involving 1,345 microentrepreneurs in India, this study provides insight into the depth and breadth of social knowledge contained in rural and peri-urban social networks. Harnessing community information directly from a microentrepreneur’s peers helps to identify high-growth microentrepreneurs and predict their returns to capital.
- 29 Apr 2020
- Book
The Key to Powerful Social Change: Small Villages
When institutions let us down, look for leadership outside of hierarchies, says Rosabeth Moss Kanter. These leaders "don’t wait to be asked; they just get moving." Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 18 Apr 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
How Are Small Businesses Adjusting to COVID-19? Early Evidence From a Survey
This survey of 5,819 small businesses in the United States shows that the pandemic has already caused massive dislocation among small businesses. Many businesses think they will not be able to survive if the crisis persists for the coming months. The immediacy of new funding will likely impact medium-term outcomes.
- 14 Apr 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Contractual Restrictions and Debt Traps
Microfinance has failed to catalyze entrepreneurship in developing countries, despite abundant evidence of high return on investment opportunities. What can account for this? This study presents a theory in which firms that borrow from an informal lender may see their growth stalled and remain in the relationship indefinitely, even though they would have continued to grow in the absence of a lender.
- 20 Mar 2020
- Research & Ideas
How Small Businesses Can Survive the Coronavirus Outbreak
COVID-19 will put many small businesses on life support. Karen G. Mills, who has been advising policymakers on aid options, offers guidance to owners on the brink of ruin. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 09 Mar 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Impact Investing: A Theory of Financing Social Entrepreneurship
The author provides a formal definition of organizational sustainability and characterizes the situations in which a social enterprise should be sustainable. The analysis then delineates when an investment in a social enterprise delivers superior impact to a grant.
- 18 Feb 2020
- Cold Call Podcast
Global Ocean Trust: Protecting the Blue Planet in New Ways
Following a successful career in finance, Torsten Thiele has devoted himself to the challenging cause of ocean conservation and stewardship. Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Thiele discuss strategy for solving one of the world's biggest problems. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 17 Feb 2020
- Sharpening Your Skills
How Entrepreneurs Can Find the Right Problem to Solve
Identifying a customer's pain points is the first step for entrepreneurs in developing a new product. Julia Austin offers tips for choosing the right "job to be done." Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 04 Feb 2020
- Cold Call Podcast
Why Backstage Capital Invests in ‘Underestimated’ Entrepreneurs
Laura Huang discusses VC Arlan Hamilton’s strategy of backing entrepreneurs who have been ignored because of stereotypes, biases, and preconceptions. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
Biased Sampling of Early Users and the Direction of Startup Innovation
New ventures catering to female customers should be aware that the underrepresentation of women among early users on digital platforms can reduce the venture’s growth and chances of survival. As a result of gaining fewer early users, these ventures reduce future product development and are less likely to raise VC funding.