Hector O. Rocha

Bio: Hector O. Rocha is an academic researcher from IAE Universidad Austral. The author has contributed to research in topics: Entrepreneurship & Empirical research. The author has an hindex of 12, co-authored 32 publications receiving 1222 citations. Previous affiliations of Hector O. Rocha include Austral University & London Business School.

Entrepreneurship and Development: The Role of Clusters

Abstract: Defining entrepreneurship as the creation of new organisations,this paper explores,from a literature review standpoint,the moderating effect of clusters on the impact of entrepreneurship on development. To identify potential causes of this moderating effect, the paper focuses on three different impacts: entrepreneurship on development, clusters on development,and clusters on entrepreneurship. The findings of the paper are threefold.First,entrepreneurship is positively associated with economic growth.Given the importance of entrepreneurship in changing the economic and social structure of the economy,more research on the impact of entrepreneurship on development - i.e. focus on capabilities rather than on output - is needed. Second,it is difficult to reach empirical generalisations on the impact of clusters on development and entrepreneurship given conceptual and methodological constraints. Both positive results and caveats are found at different levels of analysis and at different stages of development of a cluster. Finally, given the previous finding, it is difficult to generalise on the impact of clusters on the association between entrepreneurship and development. Consensus on and validity between conceptual and operational definitions of clusters; consideration of context as well as process and, therefore, quantitative and qualitative methods; and differentiation between levels of analysis controlling for cluster stage and strength are the main criteria for future studies to consider to disentangle the impact of clusters on entrepreneurship, development and the association between entrepreneurship and development.

Entrepreneurship: The Role of Cluster Theoretical Perspectives and Empirical Evidence from Germany

Abstract: Little theoretical or empirical research existsregarding the effect of clusters on entrepreneurship at the regional levelbecause of limitations surrounding concepts, theory, and methodology.Thepurpose of this study is to advance knowledge of clusters and to explain theirimpact on entrepreneurship. The paper examines entrepreneurship both within and outside of areas withclusters, clusters with external networks, and industrialagglomerations.A literature review provides information regarding theoryand hypotheses regarding the influence of clusters and of industrialagglomerations on entrepreneurship. Based on this previous research, three hypotheses are posed.To testthese hypotheses, data were attained from a variety of quantitative andqualitative sources, including the German Federal Labour Office(GFLO).This study did control for the four influential factors of supraregional factors, regional factors different from clusters, sensitivity ofresults to the aggregation of regional clusters, and spatialautocorrelation. The results of the data analysis indicate the followingfindings:clusters rather than industrial agglomerations do have an effecton entrepreneurship and clusters are better than pure market mechanisms tofoster entrepreneurship.(AKP)

Entrepreneurship: The Role of Clusters Theoretical Perspectives and Empirical Evidence from Germany

Abstract: This paper is about the impact of clusters on entrepreneurship at the regional level. Defining entrepreneurship as the creation of new organisations and clusters as a geographically proximate group of interconnected firms and associated institutions in related industries, this paper aims to answer three research questions : first, do clusters matter to entrepreneurship at the regional level? Second, if clusters are associated with different levels of entrepreneurship, what explains those differences? Third, what do the answers to the previous questions imply for academics and policy makers? To answer these questions, this paper distinguishes between clusters and industrial agglomerations and advances a theoretical model and empirical research to explain the impact of clusters on entrepreneurship at the regional level. This paper uses the 97 German planning regions as units of analysis to test the hypotheses. Using hypotheses testing and OLS fixed-effects model, this paper finds that clusters do have an impact on entrepreneurship at the regional level, but industrial agglomerations do not. Implications for academics and policy makers and suggestions for future research are given in the concluding section.

Beyond Self-Interest Revisited†

Abstract: We revisit the self-interest view on human behaviour and its critique, and propose a framework, called self-love view, that integrates self-interest and unselfishness and provides different explanations of the relationship between preferences, behaviour, and outcomes. Proponents of self-interest as the only valid behavioural assumption argue for simplified assumptions and clear models in order to propose precise prescriptions, while critics to this self-interest view argue for realistic assumptions and rich descriptions in order to reach better explanations. This debate inhibits theoretical development because it faces the problem of incommensurability of standards for choosing among paradigms. We propose the concept of self-love, or the inclination of human beings to strive for their own good and perfection, to remove the assumption self-interest vs. unselfishness. Self-love distinguishes between the object and the subject of motivation and therefore creates a bi-dimensional motivational space. This framework replaces the unidimensional continuum self-interest–unselfishness, specifies eight interrelated motives, and provides different expected relationships between preferences, behaviour, and outcomes. We show that a better understanding of motivational assumptions, their embodiment in theories, and their influence on the very behaviours these theories assume provides managers and policymakers more alternatives for the designing of motivational contexts than in the case of assuming either self-interest or a permanent conflict between self-interest and unselfishness.

The I-Form Organization

Abstract: Every generation of managers experiments with new organizational forms – new business models and the organizational structures and management processes required to support them. Much of the current experimentation with business and organizational models is occurring in knowledge-intensive industries such as biotechnology, computers, telecommunications, and medical and scientific equipment. Based on our ongoing research, the principal business model that we see emerging in these and similar industries can be called market exploration. Market exploration is a firm’s pursuit of opportunities created by intersecting technologies and markets. The market exploration process is complex, involving technology development, product development and commercialization in collaboration with customers and other firms, and the orderly development of markets which have large but unknown potential. Firms that want to be effective at market exploration must organize specifically for innovation – they must be able to build and manage an I-form organization. In this article, we show how many firms are moving towards and improving the I-form organization, and we discuss its purpose, key features, and benefits.

Economy and Society

Abstract: The four Visegrad states — Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia (until 1993 Czechoslovakia) and Hungary — form a compact area between Germany and Austria in the west and the states of the former USSR in the east. They are bounded by the Baltic in the north and the Danube river in the south. They are cut by the Sudeten and Carpathian mountain ranges, which divide Poland off from the other states. Poland is an extension of the North European plain and like the latter is drained by rivers that flow from south to north west — the Oder, the Vlatava and the Elbe, the Vistula and the Bug. The Danube is the great exception, flowing from its source eastward, turning through two 90-degree turns to end up in the Black Sea, forming the barrier and often the political frontier between central Europe and the Balkans. Hungary to the east of the Danube is also an open plain. The region is historically and culturally part of western Europe, but its eastern Marches now represents a vital strategic zone between Germany and the core of the European Union to the west and the Russian zone to the east.

The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields (Chinese Translation)

Abstract: What makes organizations so similar? We contend that the engine of rationalization and bureaucratization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organizations emerges as a field, a paradox arises: rational actors make their organizations increasingly similar as they try to change them. We describe three isomorphic processes-coercive, mimetic, and normative—leading to this outcome. We then specify hypotheses about the impact of resource centralization and dependency, goal ambiguity and technical uncertainty, and professionalization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally, we suggest implications for theories of organizations and social change.