Can an algorithm outperform the average angel investor? And if it can, does that also mean it will make less biased investments? Researchers put these questions to the test: They built an investing algorithm and put it head to head with 255 angel investors in a simulation, asking it to select the most promising investment opportunities among 623 deals from one of the largest European angel networks. The results? The algorithm significantly outperformed the average novice investor and even experienced investors who fell prey to cognitive biases, but was bested by the top tier of experienced investors, who could control for their own biases. While the algorithm may have made less biased choices when it came to the race and gender of the founders it picked, it also reflected systemic inequalities, and illustrated the limits of how algorithmic investing can be used to address deep social inequalities. Even so, the experiment offers a vision for how — and when — investors might deploy similar algorithmic aids in their investing, and how it might lead to better and fairer decisions. 

Managers’ use of auditors in decision processes is well known in theaccounting literature, but little is known about owner-managers in innovativefirms and their acquisition of accounting knowledge through direct contactswith external auditors. We conducted a multiple embedded study of exploratorycharacter based on 21 interviews with owner-managers and external auditorsconnected to six innovative firms. We show that owner-managers in innovativefirms apply informal management control in early phases of the innovationprocess and thus also rely heavily on external auditors for such purposes.However, management’s acquisition of accounting knowledge may contributeover time to the development of a more formalised control system as theircompetence increases. This study suggests that a competence-based view maybe useful for understanding the role of accounting and external auditors ininnovative firms’ management control systems.

This paper aims to enhance the knowledge of business model development in the mobile service sector by exploring the underlying components of a business model for organizations within that industry. By drawing from business model literature combined with findings from a longitudinal case study of an iPhone application, a conceptual business model for mobile services was developed. Proposed model extends earlier frameworks by adding contingency aspects and the view of core resources into a dynamic business model. Findings from the study highlight the importance for application developers to have an overall resource strategy in order to support the sustainability of their business models. This is particularly important due to the rapid pace of change in the industry and the technology.

Business model management is critical in the development of business models aimed to launch innovations and generate high venture performance. This study presents the use of personal construct theory and the repertory grid methodology, a new technique to explore central factors in entrepreneurs’ business model management. We identify typologies for business model management and underlying logics of these typologies.The study advances the business model literature in several ways. First it contributes with visualisation of entrepreneurs’ business model management and hence adds dimension of business model management. Second, theories and methods from cognitive psychology contribute to the literature with new knowledge on business model management. Repertory grid methodology, developed from Personal construct theory, enable identification of entrepreneurial cognitions of business models.Through 11 semi-structured interviews with serial entrepreneurs in the mobile service sector, this paper contributes with a framework that advances the business model literature by identifying business model management strategies and its defining features. Three categories are identified including six types of business model management strategies for navigating management of business models. The identified categories are: 1) “Comprehensive management” characterized by various levels of complexity, uncertainty, and variation, 2) “Risk management” characterized by various types of risks e.g. business, financial and social, and 3) “Resource management” characterized of various types of capital; e.g. financial, social, human, and innovation. The business model management typologies may assist entrepreneurs to reflect on their business model design and management. This study suggests that the repertory grid technique may be useful in understanding business model management.

The main purpose of this report is to explore the socio-techno-economic key factors and activities of relevance for the development of a sustainable testbed federation in Europe. In this process there is a need of incorporating a business model framework for enabling decision making in value creation and value capturing. This study shows that the federation has great opportunities to reach a broad market via the key partners networks. In this federation a span of testbeds are involved which provides a large knowledge and resource base. By being involved in the federation, partners and customers get access to a great variety of technical competences as well as testing resources for remote tests. Through the use of the resources offered in the federation, customers can build their own virtual testbed which makes it easier and cheaper for them to perform tests before their technology enters the market.

This commentary lays out four challenges that currently prevent capital markets from contributing to a socially and environmentally sustainable economy. It reflects on how these can be turned into opportunities and the role of transdisciplinary research and action in promoting such change.

The increase for Internet corporate social responsibility (ICSR) creates new challenges to investors, management, and regulators as there is no guidance. Prior studies have found significant relationship between firm characteristics and corporate governance mechanisms and papers based for corporate social responsibly disclosure. Additionally prior studies have also found there is not significant relationship between firm characteristics and corporate governance mechanisms and Internet reporting. There is gap between these studies. The study use online research and content analysis of Internet corporate social responsibility disclosure for a sample of 100 large public listed companies in Malaysia. Agency and signalling theories as well as disclosure literature were used to generate hypotheses regarding the determinants of ICSR disclosure. However, the result of the current study can’t find that firm characteristics and corporate governance mechanisms are related to ICSR. We propose legitimacy theory (environmental pressures including political, social and economic) as a potential alternative explanation for ICSR disclosure.

The voluntary use of Internet in corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure is an important step in applying Internet for corporate social responsibility disclosure. The challenging issues revolve both providers of Internet corporate social responsibility as well as users of the CSR report via Internet. Prior research has not been able to find relationships between firm characteristics and corporate governance mechanisms and use of Internet in corporate social responsibility disclosure. This study propose legitimacy theory as a potential alternative theory for explaining Internet corporate social responsibility (ICSR) disclosure. Furthermore, the study propose the stakeholder attributes on legitimacy and power may influence the CSR disclosure via Internet.

The aim of the study is to examine the type and quantity of Corporate Social Responsibility disclosure practices among a sample of 100 top companies listed on the Bursa Malaysia by Market capitalization for the financial year ended 2007. This research made use of online search for the website survey and content analysis by physical observation of the websites. The maximum raw score for corporate social responsibility obtained by the companies was 7 (or 88% of the total possible 8 points). The minimum score was 0. The average, corporate social responsibility raw score was 4.79 (or 63%), indicating an acceptable level of reporting for CSR. Therefore the findings in this study may promote Malaysian regulators to specify the means by which Malaysian listed companies are to disclose transparent, credible information. The finding may also propose that new regulatory guidance in Corporate Social Responsibility lead to improved disclosure via Internet Corporate Reporting.

Environmental entrepreneurship has tremendous potential to deliver radical and disruptive technology innovation that can safeguard our biosphere. However, we lack insights into how green ventures can cultivate dynamic capabilities that allow these ventures to thrive. The existing dynamic capability framework does not adequately capture the unique challenges and opportunities facing early-stage green ventures. Consequently, in this study we ask: what are the micro-foundations underpinning dynamic capabilities in early-stage green ventures? How are these dynamic capabilities cultivated? How do these dynamic capabilities correspond to and co-develop with external factors in flux when disruptive green innovation is commercialized? This paper is based on an exploratory case study of 14 ventures developing green innovations in the biofuel, bioenergy, biochemistry, and biomaterial sectors. Our study conceptualizes the micro-foundations of dynamic capabilities related to sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring capabilities. Moreover, it develops a detailed and comprehensive framework of dynamic capability building for early-stage green ventures, which links internal dynamic capability building processes with influential external factors in flux.

Syftet med detta projekt är att identifiera affärsmodeller för mobila tjänster och att föreslå en meta-affärsmodell som kan tillvarata affärspotential genom samverkan mellan aktörer som tjänsteleverantörer, tjänsteförmedlare och kunder i ett större nätverk. I projektet samverkar forskare från fem forskningsområden (industriell marknadsföring, e-handel, redovisning & styrning, informatik, och industriell organisation) vid Luleå tekniska universitet (LTU) för att från sina respektive angreppsvinklar: Identifiera och beskriva affärsmodeller för mobila tjänster. Föreslå en meta-affärsmodell för att möjliggöra effektiva framtida affärer för mobila tjänsteleverantörer. Samla insamlade erfarenheter i ett white paper som kananvändas som stöd för utveckling av framgångsrika affärsmodeller för de deltagande företagen. Synliggöra vetenskapliga resultat i publikationer och presentationer. MeMo-projektet är finansierat av VINNOVA och genomförs i samarbete mellan LTU och TeliaSonera och ett antal av dess nuvarande och framtida tjänsteleverantörer. Genom Centrum för Distansöverbryggande Teknik (CDT) vid LTU och dess Living Lab-nätverk, når projektet ut till stora grupper av slutanvändare.

The purpose with the present paper is to improve the understanding of management's choice of capital structure in high-growth innovative new technology-based firms (NTBFs). A conceptual model regarding the relationship between 1. resource based strategy and capital structure and 2. stakeholder strategy and capital structure is developed. Resource based strategy is considered in terms of resource based view (RBV) and stakeholder strategy in terms of agency theory. Choice of capital is further connected to management preferences in terms of the pecking order theory. The paper contributes to the area of small firm finance from the perspectives of financial accounting and management strategies. Based on the paper, we suggest that a resource based strategy call for development of unique resources of opaque character. Internal financing in line with the pecking-order theory is thus preferred for competitive innovations based on opaque resources of unique character. However, opaque resources are connected to high uncertainty and information asymmetry in terms of the agency theory. This results in agency costs for the management. Based on the agency theory our suggestion is that NTBFs prefer internal generated financing in first case. A controversy in the two theoretical areas leads us to a paradox. A resource based strategy lead towards competitive innovations at the same time as it restricts the firms' access to external resources and thus the ability to develop competitive innovations. The paradox also helps to explain the financial gap for innovative NTBF.

Two sides of the creation of innovations are focused: how the proper competences for exploitations of innovations are acquired and how exploitations of innovations are financed. The purpose of this paper is to propose a conceptual model, which is suggested to capture how innovative technology ventures cope with their needs of finance and competence for innovation exploitation. The success in exploitation of innovation is proposed to be contingent based on the fit between the ventures needs and the sources supplies. One contribution may be an increased understanding of successful matchmaking between supply and demand of finance and competence.

Syfte och Mål: Syftet med projektet är att kartlägga forskning inom området finansiering av kvinnors företagande. Här ingår även att identifiera områden för framtida forskning. Resultat och förväntade effekterProjektets effektmål är att öka medvetenheten kring finansiering av kvinnors företagande samt att bidra till vägledning av framtida forskningsområden relaterade till ämnet. Uppläggning och genomförandeProjektet omfattar en litteraturstudie över området finansiering av kvinnors företagande samt en mindre pilotstudie kopplat till området.

Innovative ventures aiming for rapid growth will require substantial financial capital. Accessing external financial capital requires a high business model transparency, potentially weakening the competitive advantages of the venture. The transparency of the business model can be better understood in terms of two complementary research paradigms: resource-based theory and agency theory. The theories drive transparency in opposite directions and produce a business model transparency paradox that explains the challenges of achieving growth.Acknowledging the implications from one theory can lead to harmful practical implications regarding the challenge of business model transparency and cause a risk of unintended consequence and in the worst case venture failure. A conceptual model and aligned propositions are outlined for comprehensive understanding of the trade-offs suggested by the two theories for ongoing venture exploitation of innovation and growth. An inverted u-shaped function on business model transparency based on a combination of the two theories is proposed for achieving optimal opportunities for venture growth. This conceptual article contributes with implications on financial gaps, business model management, and entrepreneurship education

This paper aims to enhance the knowledge of business models in the mobile service sector by exploring their key mechanisms and underlying components. By combining the business model literature with empirical interview-based case studies of 69 business models in the mobile service sector, it illustrates the findings of a longitudinal case study of a business model design attached to an iPhone application. A model for managing business model design in an open innovation context of mobile services is proposed. The model extends earlier frameworks by adding contingency aspects and the view of core resources for addressing logics in the dynamic sector. Findings highlight the importance of ventures in the mobile service sector continually managing the business model design in order to support the sustainability of their business models.

Det övergripande målet med PanLabII är att utveckla och förbättra de mekanismer och teknologier som möjliggör skapandet av en federation av existerande testbäddar som skapar ett ökat värde för användare av existerande lokala testbäddar samt visa en federationen som en modell som möjliggör etablerandet av långsiktiga, livskraftiga och storskaliga testinfrastrukturer för telekom teknologier, tjänster och applikationer i Europa. Detta Intergrated Projekt är finansierat av EU:s sjunde ramprogram.

We introduce Personal Construct Theory (PCT) and the Repertory Grid methodology to investigate deeper differences in the way government venture capital financiers cognitively process to evaluate 77 investment proposals from women and men entrepreneurs. In our study of financiers’ who are by law forbidden to discriminate, we reveal an underlying cognitive bias when evaluating women entrepreneurs. We find that the difficulty when assessing women’s venture potential, as indicated by the greater thought complexity and the excessive weight financiers place on the person rather than the full business case, can be considered to represent the underlying thought mechanism that affect women’s chances of securing financing. This finding suggests women entrepreneurs are looked upon as being role incongruent: misdirecting attention in evaluations. Evaluating women entrepreneurs is a cognitive challenge, because they deviate from the stereotype of an entrepreneur.

Researchers question the impact of governmental venture capitalists (GVC) compared to private venture capitalists (PVC), but we know little about why this difference occurs and if this criticism is justified. We observed a group of GVCs and developed a new model that describes the way that GVCs process signals pre- and post-decisions. Certain macro level factors severely undermine micro level performance, causing GVCs to financially underperform with respect to PVCs. This helped us to understand that GVCs do not make investment decisions in the same way as PVCs, and what undermines the performance of GVCs’ decision-making processes. The main goals of GVCs are to promote investments in responsible SMEs, mobilizing societal impact. We discuss that the criticism of GVC needs to be more nuanced, as they have a different role than PVC in the financial system as providers of sustainable investments in responsible SMEs.

This paper explores how government venture capitalists approve or reject financing applications. Based on longitudinal observations, complemented by interviews, documentation, and secondary data, the findings show the limited influence of the regulative and normative logics (e.g., formal guidelines and accepted behavior) on government venture capitalists’ decisions. Instead, individual decisions are observed to be largely overshadowed by cognitions and heuristics, which dominate formal regulations and socially constructed group-level norms. Although official decision communications state that regulations have been followed, the evidence suggests that the cognitive logic dominates the funding decision-making process through a set of overshadowing forces that restrict the influence of the normative and regulative logics on funding decisions. This research has implications for venture financing and highlights the importance of cognitions in shaping venture capital decisions.

Rapporten RIKA affärsmodeller presenterar ett ramverk för arbete med normkritisk innovation för nya affärsmodeller med inriktning mot kommunikations- och marknadskanaler. Rapporten baseras på resultat från VINNOVA-projektet RIKA 3.0. Offentliga finansiärer, näringslivsrådgivare, nuvarande och potentiella entreprenörer samt andra typer av finansiärer har inom ramen för en experimentell miljö, s.k. Livinglabb, tillsammans bidragit till att identifiera upplevda problem och möjligheter med finansiärernas kommunikation och marknadskanaler. I arbetet har en normkritisk analysmetodik använts för utveckling av en prototyp; ”MÖTA” för att hantera kommunikation med inriktning på affärsmodeller mot en mångfald av entreprenörer/företag samt ett dialogverktyg för normkritisk innovation i kommunikations- och marknadskanaler. Dialogverktyget har potential till att bidra till en mer medveten kommunikationsstrategi med möjlighet att möta en mångfald av företagare och därmed bidra till jämlik tillgång till offentlig finansiering. Dialogverktyget kan därmed synliggöra och riva strukturella hinder kring mångfald hos offentliga finansiärer, vilka idag mer eller mindre omedvetet hindrar mångfald av företag och deras möjlighet att ta del av det offentliga finansieringssystemet. Genom att sätta ”MÖTA” mot nuvarande affärsmodeller kan potentialen inom en bredare bas av företag, företag som ligger utanför den gängse normen av företagande tillvaratas även de som ofta mer eller mindre omedvetet exkluderas från finansieringssystemet

RIKA 3.0 avser att i living lab-miljö utveckla en prototyp till nya inkluderande affärsmodeller för offentlig finansiering, något som ska bidra till jämställd/jämlik tillgång till offentlig finansiering.

The research questions addressed in this licentiate thesis are; How can small firms acquire competence? What factors can be identified as important for understanding how competence is acquired in small firms? Why are these factors important? Three factor groups are included in building a preliminary model of competence acquisition; the entrepreneur, the business concept, and the competence base which are identified in the literature as affecting competence acquisition. The surrounding environment is seen as a platform for the acquisition of competence. Three different modes of competence acquisition are discussed; internal, social network, and market. The entrepreneurs of four small firms were interviewed where competence acquisition processes were in focus. The processes in each firm are, first, analyzed separately. Second, a between-process analysis is conducted in each firm and, third, a between-firm analysis is carried out where aspects of the factor groups are brought out. The phenomenon concerning competence acquisition is very complex. The factor groups do not only, per se, affect acquisition of competence. Aspects of the factor groups may, in fact, express a more complex picture of how the factors affect acquisition of competence. The modes of competence acquisition appear in combinations and sequences. Competence acquisition processes are built in sequences over time. Strategies in competence acquisition emerge in patterns that develop.

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the essence that is, the nature of organizational responses to efficiently resist enforced change in institutionalized work practice destined to address poor organizational performance. The micro-foundations of the cognitive logic that are activated when organizations face change are hereby conceptualized.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a case study design, the study focusses on narratives of a failure to implement a regulatory enforced change in work practice at a military academy established in the 1600s. The interviews are complemented by secondary data.

Findings

The analysis reveals a cognitive framework by which the members of the organization shaped their responses. By building on micro-foundations for mobilizing resistance (i.e. the essential substance at a micro level), this study shows how the cognitive logic is activated to respond to change. To show how the cognitive logic is used to mitigate and compensate for incongruences with the regulatory logic, this study outlines a set of strategic resistance maneuvers and cognitive resistance forces that restrict regulatory influence on change in work practice. This study thus provides insights into maneuvers and resistance forces that members may activate to resist change efficiently.

Originality/value

To the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to attempt to conceptualize the essence of the cognitive logic activated to resist organizational change.

Competence acquisition in small firms is an under-researched area. The purposes of the entire thesis are, to describe how small firms acquire competence, to create an understanding by identifying factors that can affect how small firms handle competence acquisition, and why these factors affect the acquisition of competence, and to develop and test a model about competence acquisition. The study draws upon the resource-based view, the competence-based view, the strategy literature and entrepreneurship literature. A model about competence acquisition in small firms is developed and tested. Predictors identified are the entrepreneur's experiences, the entrepreneur's tolerance for ambiguity, the business concept and the competence base of the firm and these are found to be relevant factors for explaining actions in competence acquisition. In addition, time and trust are two aspects found to be central for understanding competence acquisition in small firms. A Pecking order in use of competence acquisition modes is apparent among small firms actions where an internal acquisition mode is the most used mode followed by the social network modes and the least used modes are the market acquisition modes.

Betydelsen av könsdiversifierad styrelse har debatterats och tidigare forskningsstudier har visat blandade resultat. En viktig orsak till de blandade resultaten är att många studier jämfört styrelser helt i avsaknad av kvinnor med styrelser där en eller två kvinnor är representerade. Det har varit ett faktum att andra analysmöjligheter inte varit möjliga då alltför få företag haft en jämn könsfördelning i styrelserna. De blandade resultaten har också hänförts till att tidigare studier haft brist på kontrollvariabler och i många fall använt begränsade prestationsmått. Den omfattande databasen som den här rapporten bygger på inkluderar hela populationen av svenska aktiva aktiebolag år 2013. Detta möjliggjorde för nydanande analyser där fokus riktats mot hur jämn eller ojämn könsfördelning i styrelser relaterar till reell företagsprestation i form av lönsamhet och omsättning.

Resultaten i rapporten visar ekonomisk ineffektivitet av obalans i styrelsers könsfördelning. Kortfattat visar rapportens resultat att svenska aktiebolag med en jämn könsfördelning i styrelsesammansättning har högre lönsamhet och högre omsättning än företag med ojämn könsfördelning i styrelsesammansättning. Resultaten visar att sambanden gäller även när alternativa förklaringar till lönsamhet och omsättning läggs till i analysen. De alternativa förklaringarna utgörs i rapporten av vilken bransch företag tillhör, om VDn är kvinna eller man, om företaget ingår i koncern eller ej, samt hur många anställda företaget har. Därmed visar rapporten att ojämn könsfördelning medför försummade möjligheter till makroekonomisk tillväxt.

Både etik och ekonomisk effektivitet kan argumenteras för som skäl för jämn könsfördelning i bolagsstyrelser. Om etik och moral inte är ett tillräckligt motiverande argument för könsdiversifiering i bolagsstyrelser, så kan det ekonomiska effektivitetsperspektivet som rapportens resultat stödjer motivera krafttag till förändrad könsfördelning i styrelserummen.

Bootstrapping behavior in small ventures is examined in this study through a prism of typologies to advance our understanding of entrepreneurial behavior. Based on a survey of 91 entrepreneurs in small ventures and interviews with 10 entrepreneurs, this study develops a taxonomy of strategies for bootstrapping behavior and explores the strategies' constitutive elements and underlying logics. The statistically identified ‘chunks’ of entrepreneurial bootstrap behavior formed a basis for further qualitative exploration and confirmation of a taxonomy of such behavior. The study offers a multifaceted image of bootstrap financing practiced in small ventures by proposing discriminating strategy profiles. By delineating the nature of three entrepreneurial strategy profiles and their underlying logics, and highlighting their effects, the present research contributes to the understanding of how small ventures orient themselves to resource mobilization and gives insights into why entrepreneurs use specific bootstrapping strategies. The taxonomy outlines three bootstrap financing strategies for resource mobilization in small ventures: ‘quick-fix bootstrappers’, which emphasize temporary access to resources and prefer internally oriented activities for such purposes; ‘proactive bootstrappers’, which focus on operational resource issues; and ‘efficient bootstrappers’, which prefer activities that are externally and vertically oriented, up or down in the value creation chain

This meta-analysis of 31 studies over 20 years advances our understanding of the gender gap in entrepreneurial bank finance. Findings from previous research on the relationship between entrepreneurs’ gender and bank financing are mixed, which suggests the need to pay particular attention to entrepreneurs’ social context. In this study, we develop a model of how social gender norms explain variation in women entrepreneurs’ (vis-à-vis men entrepreneurs’) access to bank finance. Specifically, we theorize how women’s formal (their nations’ political ideologies) and informal (women’s empowerment) social standing within their societies influence gender discrimination in entrepreneurial bank financing. Consistent with most previous studies, our baseline results show that women entrepreneurs’ business loan applications are rejected to a greater extent than men entrepreneurs’ loan applications. Women entrepreneurs also pay higher interest rates on loans than men entrepreneurs. Further, in societies dominated by a conservative (rather than a liberal) political ideology, the positive relationship between women entrepreneurs and loan interest rates is more positive. Interestingly, gender discrimination in loan rejection and interest rates is magnified in societies with greater women’s empowerment. Taking a social gender-norm perspective, our analysis establishes a gender gap in entrepreneurial bank finance, and we outline an agenda for further research.

A global analysis of previous research over the last three decades shows that women entrepreneurs face a higher rate of business loan denials and increased interest rates in loan decisions made by commercial bankers. Interestingly, the data also reveals that the formal and informal standing of women in a particular society can provide clues to some of the true hurdles to positive change. This article reviews these hurdles, and offers three recommendations for change.