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Abstract:
In this paper we argue that specific institutional and behavioral disjunctures in the process of technology development may systematically impede the flow of financial and other resources to even the most promising nascent technology ventures. Our particular focus is on the role of technology entrepreneurs in managing early stage technology development (ESTD) projects - the transition from invention to innovation. We introduce the term collective entrepreneurship to describe the trust- and reputation based process by which entrepreneurs work collaboratively to overcome informational and contracting challenges inherent in ESTD. We then examine in some detail two paradigmatic contexts in which collective entrepreneurship occurs: university-based start-ups and corporate spin-offs.

collaboration, collective entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship, technology, start-ups, spin-offs

Abstract:
This papers contrasts "invention-to-growth" policies derived from macroeconomic models with "opportunity-to-growth" policies suggested by consideration of microeconomic fundamentals. I focus on the effectiveness of opportunity exploitation by entrepreneurs relative to established incumbents - in particular, how the relative "price of entry" depends on the magnitude of interaction costs, which I define as the sum of conventionally defined transactions costs and additional costs of validation and search attributable to asymmetries of information. I further emphasize the manner in which new tools of communication and collaboration are rapidly changing interaction costs, with implications for the intensity and direction of entrepreneurial effort.

Abstract:
Does social entrepreneurship matter? A strong consensus is emerging that this question has an obvious answer. The disagreement comes over whether that answer is "yes" or "no." With reference to three cases (the Tata Group, the Aravind Eye Hospital, and Ben & Jerry's), I argue in this paper that entrepreneurs of various types create both private and social value. Private value can be assessed in terms of conventionally defined consumer surplus and producer surplus, where producer surplus is comprised of financial, reputational, and ethical "residuals." Social value derives both from potentially positive impacts on the transparency and effectiveness of governance, and from direct action to address inequities. The potential impact of social entrepreneurship, and its relevance in the context of global challenges, is enhanced by global trends toward networked production and service delivery.

development, entrepreneurship, governance, social entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibilityl

Abstract:
The existence of a fundamental relationship between invention, innovation, and economic growth, as insisted upon by Schumpeter, is increasingly taken as an article of faith in nations around the world. Yet the inventions-to-growth relationship is today more complex and less bounded at the scale of the nation than ever before. Just as the inventions-to-growth policy model-focusing on the development of capabilities to undertake basic science and a nurturing of entrepreneurial talent-is beginning to gain widespread acceptance, its shortcomings are becoming increasingly evident. In this paper we describe the model and its shortcomings, focusing on implications for innovation policy of the emergence of the globally networked enterprise.

Global enterprise, Networking, Innovation, Science and technology policy, Technological change

Abstract:
This paper develops microeconomic foundations for a theory of entrepreneurship and growth, focusing on innovation and opportunity as intermediate linkages between the two. Expanding upon points of tangency between Schumpeter and Coase, the paper argues that transactions costs are the glue that holds together entrepreneurial 'new combinations.' Technological/organizational complexity of production is defined as the extent to which a technical decision by one unit within the firm affects the productive efficiency of other units. Where decreasing transactions costs tend to pull incumbent organizations apart, the possession of difficult to imitate production practices by the same organizations keeps them together. The dissolution of incumbent firms creates opportunities for entrepreneurs; the prospect of Schumpeterian rents provides the incentive to realize those opportunities.

complexity, entrepreneurship, growth, intrafirm externalities, opportunity, production recipes, spillovers, theory of the firm

Abstract:
A large empirical literature has documented differences in Schumpeterian profits, both among firms in single industries and between firms in different industries. Theorists have proposed various institutional and strategic factors to account for such differences but have had relatively little to say about the manner in which technology affects entry and profits. In this paper I present a model in which persistent intraindustry differences in firm profitability arise as the outcomes of learning and imitation, and interindustry differences in the persistence of above normal profits arise solely from production being more technologically complex in some industries than in others.

Abstract:
In this paper we build upon work by Jacobs (1961, 1963, 1984) and Glaeser et al. (1993) to derive the following hypothesis: diversity of economic agents is conducive to innovation, and thus to growth. We present a simple model of a small open economy existing in a world where prices are fixed exogenously, capital (in this case knowledge capital specific to the firm) is immobile, rival and excludable. There is no market for the exchange of knowledge capital, so persistent quasi-rents accrue to firms with better than average productivity. We discuss some results pertaining to special cases of the model. We then extend the model to allow for external economies and to examine the relationship between economic diversity and growth. This leads to a tentative conclusion that may reconcile two distinct views of economic growth: the view that diversity of economic activities drives growth, and the view that economic specialization drives growth. We propose that these two phenomena represent distinct episodes in the evolution of economic systems.

complexity, diversity, economic growth, external economies, networks, NK model

Abstract:
We do two things in this paper. First, we put forward some elements of a microeconomic theory of technological evolution. This involves adding nascent (essentially undiscovered) technologies to the existing technologies of neoclassical production theory, and, more importantly, expanding the notion of the production plan to include the recipe - the complete description of the underlying engineering process. Second, we use the recipes approach in constructing a simple microeconomic model of shop-floor learning by doing. We simulate the dynamics of the model and report the effects of changes in the basic parameters on the resulting engineering experience curves. For correctly chosen values of these parameters, the predictions of the model match the observed experience curves.

engineering experience curves, learning by doing, learning curves, NK model, organizational learning, production recipes, technological evolution

Abstract:
Examines varyinglevels of funding by U.S.companies for early-stage technology development (ESTD), across industries andfirms. For purposes of this study, ESTD is defined as the early development offundamentally new products or processes that lie outside of, or might be inconflict with, the firm's current technology strategy or that deploy currenttechnology outside of the firm's current core businesses. Data were collected through 39 interviews with R&D executives from eightventure capital firms and 31 large corporations across eight industry sectorsfrom July 2001 to January 2002. Results indicate that, despite recognition thatESTD investments are critical to long-term growth, these investments are not acorporate priority. Approximately 7.3% of corporate R&D budgets aredirected toward ESTD activities. Of the industries considered in this analysis,the chemical industry invested the highest proportion (33%) of their R&Dbudgets in ESTD. Companies have developed several strategies for maintaining access to newtechnologies while minimizing cost. Such strategiesinclude alliances,acquisitions, and outsourcing. The variation across firms for ESTD funding canbe attributed to the increased sophistication required to develop newtechnologies and mounting pressure on R&D divisions to demonstratefinancial value from R&D investments. (SRD)

Early stage technologies, R&D expenditures, Private sector, Management decisions, High technology firms, Innovation process, New technologies, Product development, Acquisitions & mergers, Outsourcing, Interfirm alliances

Abstract:
This analysis addresses the question ofwhetherthe influence of scientific innovation in large corporations is declining.Focus is placed on the growth of research innovations into market-readyproducts and on imitative technologies. Data were collected in 2001-2002 from39 detailed interviews with CEOs, senior executives, technology managers andventure capitalists, whose firms accounted for 7 percent of total U.Sindustrial R&D expenditures. The sample represents diversity in industry,firm size, and lifecycle stage. Findings revealed that large corporations are no longer the onlyorganizations involved in research and development. Rather,largeindustrial corporations and start-up companies both play an instrumental rolein supporting innovations by differently exploring and exploiting the marketpotential of various science-based innovations. (SRY)

Mansfield, Edwin, Imitation, Military, Science-based inventions, Inventions, R&D, Technology innovation, Disruptive technologies, Commercialization, Economic growth, Startups, Technology transfer, Competitive advantages, Large firms, Industrial research