The primary purpose of this article is to clarify the nature of the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) construct and to propose a contingency framework for investigating the relationship between EO and firm performance. We first explore and refine the dimensions of EO and discuss the usefulness of viewing a firm's EO as a multidimensional construct. Then, drawing on examples from the EO-related contingencies literature, we suggest alternative models (moderating effects, mediating effects, independent effects, interaction effects) for testing the EO-performance relationship.

Clarifying the Entrepreneurial Orientation Construct and Linking It To Performance

Effective organizations are configurations of management practices that facilitate the development of the knowledge that becomes the basis for competitive advantage. A market orientation, complemen...

Market Orientation and the Learning Organization

This article outlines a conceptual model of entrepreneurship as an organizational-level phenomenon. The model is intended to depict the organizational system elements that relate to entrepreneurial...

A Conceptual Model of Entrepreneurship as Firm Behavior

https://isiarticles.com/bundles/Article/pre/pdf/9619.pdf

Entrepreneurial orientation and small business performance : A Configurational Approach

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) has received substantial conceptual and empirical attention, representing one of the few areas in entrepreneurship research where a cumulative body of knowledge i ...

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Entrepreneurial Orientation and Business Performance: An Assessment of Past Research and Suggestions for the Future

The article presents three models which attempt to predict when individuals will try something new. A decision making situation may be modeled by a choice situation in which an individual has a dic...

The Use of Semantic Differential Scales in Studying The Innovation Boundary

It all started ten years ago. First, there was a perceived need. MS/OR researchers had discovered by the early 70's that, in spite of the technical sophistication and instrinsic beauty of many of their models, a relatively small percentage were being used by practicing managers. Better understanding of the implementation process was needed. We became interested in the problem as an aspect of behavioral science. And finally, a research site emerged. A major US corporation was implementing a computerized sales forecasting model. Great care was taken to make sure that the research was rigorous and “correctly done.” The research questions were straightforward: 1. What basic attitudes affect implementation success? 2. How can these attitudes be measured? 3. How do these attitudes affect implementation success?

Implementation Exchange: The Implementation Profile

Market pioneering, as a form of corporate entrepreneurship, occurs when a firm is first to offer a new product on the market. The connection between market pioneering and firm performance has received little scholarly attention, and it focused primarily on (1) pioneering as an environment specific phenomenon and (2) firm's performance, as affected by the fit between a firm's pioneer/follower status and its competitive tactics. These phenomena are explored, emphasizing how they are manifested in different industry environments and what pioneers and followers do differently to promote their performance. A theory that describes how specific competitive tactics relate to firm sales growth rate among market pioneers and market followers is developed in two distinct environmental settings: hostile and benign. To test two proposed hypotheses, data is collected from senior managers of 103 independent, non-diversified manufacturing firms in 75 industries. The main analytical techniques used to assess the data are: cluster analysis, ANOVA, and correlational analysis. The findings suggest that market pioneers grow at the same rate as market followers. In hostile environments, pioneering may enable firms to break out of the dominant price-based mode of competition and grow despite charging high prices. Pioneers in hostile environments are better served than followers from a wide geographical distribution of their products. It is recommended that followers in hostile environments reduce their cost structures in order to maintain low price strategies. The results also suggest that, in benign environments, offering products with warranties superior to those of competitors may have positive effects on sales growth, more so among pioneers than followers. Using a large number of distribution channels benefits pioneers more than followers. The study's contribution to the pioneering literature and literature on coping with hostility is assessed. Common and effective bases for competition under various levels of environment hostility are theorized and empirically identified.(CBS)

Pioneers and Followers: Competitive Tactics, Environment, and Firm Growth

For some time we have been concerned with the problems of putting management science into practice and how this can best be done. We and others have looked at the meaning of implementation and sought for the factors and methods which make it successful. Two conferences at the University of Pittsburgh resulted in our editing books about implementation research, and many studies have been published in management science literature, including Interfaces. Still, we question whether implementation research has itself been implemented. In editing and contributing to this column we hope to establish connections between the creators of theories about implementation and the practitioners who will use them, to give and receive information reciprocally. That is why we call this column the “Implementation Exchange.”

Implementation Exchange: Implementing Implementation Research

The article discusses market pioneering and business firm growth. Market pioneering allows organizations to capitalize on possible first-mover advantages, which could help a firm create and sustain...

Dennis P. Slevin

Papers

The Use of Semantic Differential Scales in Studying The Innovation Boundary

Implementation Exchange: The Implementation Profile

Pioneers and Followers: Competitive Tactics, Environment, and Firm Growth

Implementation Exchange: Implementing Implementation Research

Market pioneering and firm growth: knowing when and to what degree pioneering makes sense.