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The field of entrepreneurship has seen a dramatic increase in studies focusing on networks and relations. Research in this area has thus far focused on how the structure and quality of entrepreneurs' existing interpersonal ties shape information access and thereby influence entrepreneurial outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to extend the focus further by examining how the entrepreneur's socio‐demographic profile affects advisory network configuration in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) context.

In this paper, the authors used Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) data, at the individual level (total early‐stage entrepreneurial activities) in 14 countries within the MENA region over the course of three years (2009, 2010 and 2011). The sample of networks is obtained from the entrepreneurs identified among the adults interviewed in the adult population survey of GEM participating countries from the MENA region.

Strong evidence was found that socio‐demographic variables such as gender, age, income and education have an impact on the usage of advice‐seeking networks by entrepreneurs across MENA. For instance, the findings suggest that women entrepreneurs in the MENA region tend to rely more on personal networks compared to male entrepreneurs.

The paper's contribution is novel in providing empirical evidence exposing the interplay between socio‐demographic factors, new venture start‐up phases, to entrepreneurial networks. Prospective scholarly research need to improve our understanding about the effects of network evolution on the entrepreneurial trajectory, as well to develop a greater understanding on how, when and why MENA‐based entrepreneurial networks emerge, develop and change over time.

While most extant research focused on different dimensions of the entrepreneurs’ social network such as the size and quality of the network, the focus of this paper is on the extent to which entrepreneurs utilize their personal network with suppliers, competitors, customers, and government officials to support the operations of their ventures. This paper also takes into account the effects of industry level determinants that can influence the relationship between entrepreneurs’ personal network usage and young firms’ performance.

The paper employs confirmatory factor analysis and moderated hierarchical multiple regressions on a sample of 246 young firms in Kuwait.

The results indicate that entrepreneurs' personal network usage is positively associated with young firms' performance. The results also reveal that industry dynamism strengthens this relationship, while in hostile industries the relationship between network usage and young firms' performance becomes weaker.

The present study provides insights into how the extent of utilization of an entrepreneur's personal network affects the firm's performance. Furthermore, by unpacking how industry dynamism and industry hostility influence the entrepreneurs' ability to reap benefits from their personal networks, this paper enriches the research on the role of industry factors in the performance of young firms.