Entrepreneurs' Decisions to Exploit Opportunities

Abstract

Examines, from a resource-based view, the decisions of entrepreneurs to begin exploiting business opportunities and bring a product to market.The sample was 55 independent entrepreneurs involved in high technology whose ventures are located in business incubators in the United States. Factors of the resource-based decision to enter a market include first mover advantages, rarity, value to the consumer and firm capabilities. Conjoint analysis of the entrepreneurs' responses to a series of hypothetical profiles suggests that entrepreneurs are more likely to exploit opportunities when they perceive more knowledge of customer demand for the new product, more fully developed necessary technologies, greater managerial capability, and greater stakeholder support. Findings highlight a less emphasized feature of the resource-based view: that the new product’s anticipated lead time serves as an enhancing moderator in an entrepreneur’s decisions to exploit opportunities.(TNM)

Keywords: High technology firms, Firm capabilities, Resource theory, Experimental/primary research, Individual traits, Demand, Competitive advantage, Customers, Stakeholders, Opportunity recognition, Opportunity development, Incubators