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This paper aims to address third actor introductions to interaction episodes aiming at fast-forwarding the continuous development of business relationships of new firms.

The study is qualitative, collecting data from 30 interviews from 28 informants associated with creation of new ventures and business network development in the context of a novel type of third actor called venture builder. Venture builders are privately owned organizations devoted to new firm creation in a factory-like mode, collaborating with individual entrepreneurs.

The findings suggest that interaction episodes, central to the development of new relationships, may be triggered by introductions managed by third actors using different types of involvement depending on the location and focus of the potential relationship. A framework is presented including four types of introductions to interaction episodes, aiming at saving time by removing the perceived distance between new firms and their counterparts in the initiation of business relationships. The framework describes four types of introductions of interaction episodes: Managed, Advised, Facilitated and Monitored.

Triggers and introductions of interaction episodes for new firms has previously been sparsely addressed. This paper presents how third actor involvement, by the introductions of interaction episodes with internal and external counterparts is managed with an aim of fast-forwarding relationship development.

How does entrepreneurship flourish amidst persistent resource scarcity, market imperfections, underdeveloped infrastructure and institutional voids? In recent years, bricolage has emerged in the entrepreneurship literature as an effective form of resource mobilization in resource-constrained environments and crisis situations. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of bricolage in new venture creation by examining the use of bricolage at each stage of the entrepreneurial process of opportunity discovery, development and exploitation.

The author conducted a qualitative analysis of 10 new business ventures established in the Philippines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The author found a prevalence of bricolage at every stage of the entrepreneurial process in all cases, showing that bricolage was embedded in the behavior and decision-making of entrepreneurs throughout the process.

The finding have implications for policymakers aiming to support entrepreneurship in emerging economies.

This paper contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence of bricolage behavior identified at every step of the entrepreneurial process in a specific emerging economy context.

This paper aims to examine the effects of two types of improvisational strategic orientation on new venture performance: defensive improvisation and creative improvisation. Moreover, this study investigates the role of entrepreneurial bricolage in mediating the transition from various types of improvisational strategic orientation to new venture performance.

This study is designed as quantitative research, employing a structural equation model and bootstrap analysis to empirically test the survey data of 249 new ventures gathered to investigate the true relationship between variables in this paper.

The findings of this study show that (1) both defensive and creative improvisation positively affect the performance of new ventures, with defensive improvisation having a stronger positive effect; (2) both internal and external bricolage positively affect new venture performance, and play varying degrees of intermediary roles in the influence that defensive and creative improvisation has on the performance of start-ups.

The following limitations apply to this study: First, this paper collects data using a cross-sectional research design, which cannot reveal dynamic changes in the research variables. Second, this study only opens the “black box” of the role of improvisational strategic orientation on new venture performance from the perspective of entrepreneurial bricolage, and the research conclusion may be biased. Finally, the external factors' contingency effect on the relationship between variables is ignored.

This study develops a theoretical research model of improvisational strategic orientation, entrepreneurial bricolage and new venture performance, and provides a thorough examination of the internal mechanisms of various types of improvisational strategic orientation on new venture performance. The research findings not only contribute to the advancement of research on improvisational strategic orientation in the context of entrepreneurship but also assist entrepreneurs in developing a correct understanding of improvisational strategic orientation.

The purpose of this paper is to study triadic market relations between an international aid agency (IAA), local ventures and the poor communities where they are embedded in order to shift the poverty alleviation discussion to account for the perceptions held by each category of actor, especially those of poor communities. Poverty alleviation is a key commitment of the United Nations, and market-driven approaches are increasingly advocated as a means to reduce poverty, particularly among IAAs. One such strategy is to connect ventures in poor communities with international markets. However, research shows that such approaches have mixed success.

The authors conducted a comparative case study of three ventures embedded in urban and rural poor communities receiving support from an IAA. The authors then analyzed the data to determine the mechanisms that led to discrepancies in the perceptions of poverty alleviation held by each actor involved.

This study suggests three such mechanisms: ‘decoupling markets from poverty’, wherein aiding ventures may paradoxically lead to decoupling them from poor communities; ‘overburden stress’, in which ventures cannot fulfil a poverty alleviation role through their market activities because the expectation to do so overburdens the venture; and ‘value divergence’, in which the actors involved evaluate the impact of these approaches differently.

The authors propose that a key aspect of enabling effective poverty alleviation through market-driven approaches in terms of substantial, long-term contributions is to monitor and support the relations between the actors involved – including the poor communities themselves – and explore how each perceives the efficacy of the approach.

El objetivo de nuestro estudio es integrar las percepciones de tres actores: los organismos internacionales, los emprendimientos en comunidades pobres y las propias comunidades pobres, con el fin de cambiar la discusión sobre la reducción de la pobreza hacia las percepciones de los diferentes actores involucrados en las relaciones de mercado, en particular las de las comunidades pobres. La reducción de la pobreza es un compromiso clave de las Naciones Unidas, y en la actualidad se promueven enfoques de mercado como un medio para reducir la pobreza, especialmente entre los organismos internacionales. Una estrategia consiste en conectar emprendimientos en comunidades pobres con mercados internacionales. Sin embargo, investigaciones previas muestran que estos enfoques de mercado tienen un éxito variado en ciertas ocasiones y en otras no.

Realizamos un estudio de casos comparativo de tres emprendimientos en comunidades pobres urbanas y rurales que reciben apoyo de un organismo internacional. Luego, analizamos nuestros datos para determinar qué mecanismos condujeron a discrepancias en las percepciones de cada actor involucrado con respecto a la reducción de la pobreza.

Nuestro estudio identifica tres mecanismos que explican las discrepancias en las percepciones de los actores involucrados con respecto a los enfoques de mercado para la reducción de la pobreza: ‘desvinculación de los mercados de la pobreza’, en donde el apoyo a los emprendimientos puede llevar paradójicamente a separarlos de las comunidades pobres; ‘estrés de sobrecarga’ que captura situaciones en las que los emprendimientos no pueden cumplir su función de reducción de la pobreza a través de sus actividades en el mercado debido a que la expectativa de hacerlo, aunque implícita, sobrecarga al emprendimiento; y ‘divergencia de valores’ que muestra que los actores involucrados a menudo evalúan de manera diferente el impacto de los enfoques de mercado en la pobreza.

Proponemos que un aspecto clave de la reducción efectiva de la pobreza a través de enfoques de mercado que hagan contribuciones sustanciales y a largo plazo es monitorear las relaciones y la eficacia percibida entre todos los actores involucrados en estos enfoques, incluyendo a las propias comunidades pobres.

El objetivo de nosso estudo é integrar as percepções de três atores: os organismos internacionais, os empreendimentos em comunidades pobres e as próprias comunidades pobres, com o objetivo de mudar a discussão sobre a redução da pobreza para as percepções dos diferentes atores envolvidos nas relações de mercado, particularmente as das comunidades pobres. A redução da pobreza é um compromisso chave das nações unidas, e atualmente abordagens de mercado são promovidas como um meio para reduzir a pobreza, especialmente entre os organismos internacionais. Uma estratégia consiste em conectar empreendimentos em comunidades pobres com mercados internacionais. No entanto, pesquisas anteriores mostram que essas abordagens de mercado têm sucesso variado em algumas ocasiões e em outras não.

Realizamos um estudo de casos comparativo de três empreendimentos em comunidades pobres urbanas e rurais que recebem apoio de um organismo internacional. Em seguida, analisamos nossos dados para determinar quais mecanismos levaram a discrepâncias nas percepções de cada ator envolvido em relação à redução da pobreza.

Nosso estudo identifica três mecanismos que explicam as discrepâncias nas percepções dos atores envolvidos em relação às abordagens de mercado para a redução da pobreza: ‘desvinculação dos mercados da pobreza’, onde o apoio aos empreendimentos pode paradoxalmente separá-los das comunidades pobres; ‘estresse de sobrecarga’ que captura situações em que os empreendimentos não podem cumprir sua função de redução da pobreza por meio de suas atividades no mercado devido à expectativa de fazê-lo, mesmo que implicitamente, sobrecarregando o empreendimento; e ‘divergência de valores’ que mostra que os atores envolvidos frequentemente avaliam de maneira diferente o impacto das abordagens de mercado na pobreza.

Propomos que um aspecto-chave da redução efetiva da pobreza por meio de abordagens de mercado que façam contribuições substanciais e a longo prazo é monitorar as relações e a eficácia percebida entre todos os atores envolvidos nessas abordagens, incluindo as próprias comunidades pobres.

This paper aims to integrate the consumption perspective within the Industrial Marketing and Purchasing (IMP) debate. The study delves into how consumer communities can be conceived like other network business actors. The perspective of sustainable new ventures (SNVs) in the fashion industry is adopted, considering their specific connection with consumer communities.

Adopting a multiple case study methodology, this paper uses a qualitative approach. Data collection mainly relies on interviews conducted with 10 SNVs in the fashion industry; this sector is a fertile ground for studying sustainability and consumer communities. For data analysis, the abductive approach of systematic combining is applied.

The paper identifies four distinct types of consumer communities and four roles that they can assume as business actors in the business network. Owing to their engagement in these specific roles, consumer communities become part of the SNVs’ network, akin to other business-to-business players.

This study represents one of the initial endeavors to introduce consumption into the IMP theoretical framework. In this paper’s conceptualization, consumer communities are groups of consumers and collective actors in the business network. Additionally, this study advances the research on sustainability as a network concept by including consumer communities’ roles in business networks.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of green finance on human well-being in China in the context of urbanization and aging population. It aims to explore the contributions of green finance in such demographic scenarios.

This study innovates and optimizes the calculation of the carbon intensity of human well-being (CIWB) index and strengthens the integrity of the assessment model for green finance development. It uses the serial multiple mediator model and moderation effect analysis to address the impact of green finance on human well-being in China on the provincial level from 2009 to 2020.

Green finance has a significant, positive and direct impact on human well-being. Simultaneously, it influences human well-being indirectly through three transmission channels. Urbanization and an ageing population are significant individual mediators through which green finance contributes to human well-being improvement. Notably, these two mediators also work together to transfer the promotional impact of green finance to human well-being.

The government can perfect the regulations to strengthen the market ecosystem to accelerate the development of green finance. Reforms on the administrative division to expand the size of cities with the implementation of ageing friendly development strategy is also necessary. Attracting incoming foreign direct investment in sustainable projects and adjusting public projects and trade activities to fulfil the sustainable principles are also regarded as essential.

The findings challenge traditional views on the impact of aging populations, highlighting the beneficial role of green finance in improving well-being amidst demographic changes. This offers a new perspective on economic and environmental sustainability in aging societies.

A multi-dimensional well-being indicator, CIWB and the serial multiple mediator model are used and direct and indirect impacts of green finance on human well-being is exhibited. It offers novel insights on the transmission channels behind, identifies the mediating role of urbanization and ageing population and offers empirical evidences with strong academic and policy implications.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of external enablers (EEs) – factors that are exogenous and independent of the actors – on the rate of new venture creation (NVC) in digital entrepreneurship.

The authors established a unique data panel comprising all formal digital entrepreneurial firms and startups licensed to operate in the digital space from Iran E-Commerce Development Center, from 2012 to 2022, totaling 124,751 businesses classified in 16 sectors. The authors used Poisson regression with robust standard errors to analyze the relationship between external factors and NVC. Additionally, the authors segmented the data set along demographic, spatial and sectoral subsets to compare them using the average treatment effect model.

This analysis confirms that technology readiness and technology intensity, as EEs, significantly boost digital entrepreneurship in a developing country. The authors also explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic as a natural environmental enabler and explored its facilitating effects and the enduring impacts post-pandemic. Moreover, the authors assessed the heterogeneous impact of the EEs across different groups and derived implications for each.

While this study is comprehensive, it focuses exclusively on formal digital entrepreneurship within a single developing country, namely, Iran. Although the authors explored various EEs, they did not address all possible types, highlighting the potential for further research in other entrepreneurial sectors for a comparative analysis of EEs.

The initial findings affirm that most NVC in Iran stems from external factors. These findings have been widely used by policymakers to define the goals and objectives of EEs concerning their nature and impact. This research reveals that EEs have heterogeneous effects on NVC, varying across different characteristics such as gender, geography and industry sectors. The results of this study suggest that governments should reassess the role of “macro” policies to support vulnerable groups. EEs disproportionately benefit male founders, which exacerbates existing gender gaps and necessitates ongoing attention and intervention. Additionally, EEs have diverse impacts across industries, potentially favoring some while disadvantaging others because of varying social, cultural and economic factors.

NVC, central to entrepreneurship in developing nations, encounters numerous challenges, yet the role of EEs remains underexplored in this context. EEs are opportunities that are not limited to a subset of entrepreneurial actors; they act as levers influencing a wide range of entrepreneurial activities. This research distinctively investigates the empirical impact of EEs in a Middle Eastern developing country context, contributing to the growing literature on the external enablers framework.

This study aims to investigate how a firm’s sustainable competitive advantage is influenced by the combination of entrepreneurial ecological orientation, digital transformation and dynamic capabilities.

Based on the qualitative comparative analysis method, this study systematically explores the significant key conditions and configuration effects that affect the growth of sustainable competitive advantage. This study uncovers the causal relationship and complex mechanisms underlying the sustainable and unsustainable competitive advantages for new ventures, by examining the grouping effects of the above three factors – entrepreneurial ecological orientation, digital transformation and dynamic capabilities on those advantages.

A single factor fails to constitute a necessary condition for sustainable competitive advantage. Three types of configurations are beneficial to sustainable competitive advantage, namely, flexible and responsive type, dynamically adjusted type and type of opportunity resource integration, whereas four types of configurations lead to the unsustainable competitive advantage of new ventures, namely, type of organizational rigidity, informal entrepreneurial type, information-blocking type and technology-deficient type.

According to this study, adopting an entrepreneurial ecological orientation is a novel strategic move. This study offers an extensive review of three aspects of entrepreneurial ecological orientation, dynamic capacities and digital transformation and their mutually synergistic cascading effects on the sustainable competitive advantage of new ventures. This study investigates how three dimensions interact to achieve sustainable competitive advantage for firms, ultimately contributing to the study of sustainable competitive advantage strategies from an entrepreneurial ecosystem perspective.

The purpose of this study is to explore the influence of venture capital participation on corporate innovation and to assess how internationalization strategies (including both the internationalization scope and speed) in mediating serve as intermediaries in the relationship between venture capital and corporate innovation.

Using hierarchical regression analysis, this research tests the hypothesized framework using survey data collected from 442 high-tech enterprises listed on the A-share markets in Shanghai and Shenzhen, China, spanning from 2010 to 2019.

The study reveals a non-linear (U-shaped) correlation between venture capital investment and innovation. This non-linear linkage is facilitated through the execution of enterprises’ strategies for international expansion. The primary finding suggests that venture capital participation positively influences the rapidity and extent of internationalization. Additionally, a U-shaped relationship is observed between corporate innovation and both the speed and scope of internationalization.

This document contributes insights into the micro-level mechanisms that explain the effects of venture capital and internationalization strategy on corporate innovation. The results offer multinational corporations practical guidance for executing their internationalization strategies effectively and fostering innovation.

Venture capital (VC) is an essential element in healthy entrepreneurial environments; therefore, many countries in developing entrepreneurial economies support the industry via direct or indirect government interventions. The purpose of this study is to examine through the example of the Hungarian market, whether direct or hybrid state involvement has contributed more to the growth of the invested enterprises. The findings are relevant in the design of government VC schemes and in the contracts mitigating the moral hazards inherent in government funding.

The basis of empirical research is a unique hand-collected database covering Hungarian government-backed VC (GVC) investments. Based on the financial data of investee firms, the authors investigate whether firms financed by hybrid VC involving market participants are able to outperform firms that receive pure public financing using panel regression.

Based on Hungarian evidence, hybrid VC-backed firms generated lower growth and employment than their purely government-backed peers. Both schemes showed meagre innovation activity. The conclusion is that because of the conflict of private and economic policy objectives in hybrid financing, the exposure of hybrid risk capital to moral hazard is higher than that of pure public financing. Private interests in hybrid funds can only improve investment efficiency if they are structured along the lines of market-based independent financial intermediation and the contracts imitate the ones existing amongst limited and general partners in private schemes.

The research covers the data of Hungarian government-backed firms by tracking the full range of 86 investments made in the purely government scheme and 340 firms that received funding in the hybrid scheme. The research focuses on two government initiatives, and the results are influenced by the specific regulation of the programs; therefore, the results cannot be generalized for all government agendas; they are indicative in the designs of the agendas.

There is a limited number of empirical studies investigating the impact of VC in developing markets, especially in the Central and Eastern Europe region. This firm-level research on the impact of public VC can help improve the effectiveness of development policies. By analysing the entirety of investments of a VC program that is near to its completion, the authors provide new insight into the efficiency and prospects of GVC schemes in the region.