Utilizing the Kauffman Firm Survey to Predict Growth in Venture Size and Scope among Small Firm Startups: 2004 Startups Tracked through 2008.

摘要

What determines whether a startup venture grows and survives or stagnates and dies. This study attempts to delineate the new-venture entrants and very young firms destined to achieve only modest growth (or worse) from those most likely to grow considerably. Although no simple formula accurately sorts the gazelles from firms generating little or no growth, certain factors stand out repeatedly in our analytical exercises identifying firm and owner traits and strategies that explain growth patterns among young small businesses. On the positive side, firms with groups of three or more owners tend to grow faster than businesses with fewer owners. This finding supports our hypothesis that larger teams of owners provide a greater depth of experience and expertise, relative to other firms, and this larger talent pool enhances venture growth. Next, we hypothesized that greater investment of financial capital in young businesses translates into a higher likelihood of firm growth than lower investment and weaker capitalization; our empirical findings support this. On the negative side, we hypothesized that ventures whose owners were less growth motivated would indeed experience less actual firm growth than others, and our findings, once again, supported our hypothesis.