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Non-founder human capital and the long-run growth and survival of high-tech ventures

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posted on 2023-06-09, 04:04 authored by Josh SiepelJosh Siepel, Marc Cowling, Alex Coad
This paper considers the impact of non-founder human capital on high-tech firms' long-run growth and survival. Drawing upon threshold theory, we explore how lack of access to complementary skills at different points in the life course impacts founders' thresholds for exit. We examine these factors using a unique longitudinal dataset tracking the performance and survival of a sample of UK high-tech firms over thirteen years as the firms move from youth into maturity. We find that firms that survive but do not grow are characterized by difficulty in accessing complementary managerial skills in youth, while firms that grow but subsequently exit are characterized by shortfalls of specialized complementary skills during adolescence. Firms that grow and survive do not report skills shortfalls. We discuss the implications of these resource constraints for entrepreneurs’ decisions to persist or exit through the life course.

Funding

Skills, Knowledge, Innovation, Policy and Practice; ESRC-ECONOMIC & SOCIAL RESEARCH COUNCIL; ES/J008427/1

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Published version

Journal

Technovation

ISSN

0166-4972

Publisher

Elsevier

Volume

59

Page range

34-43

Department affiliated with

  • SPRU - Science Policy Research Unit Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2016-11-17

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2016-11-17

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2016-11-17

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