Crystal X. Jiang

An Empirical Study of the Impact of CEO Characteristics on New Firms' Time to IPO

An initial public offering (IPO) is one of the most critical events in the life of a firm. As the IPO market continues to attract attention from both entrepreneurs and investors, research examining the relationship between the firms characteristics and its IPO performance is growing. In this paper, we use the upper echelon perspective to empirically examine the relationship between the firms chief executive officer (CEO) and the firms time to IPO, a relationship that has so far received little attention. Using data obtained from 237 IPOs in the U.S. software industry, we found that the CEOs prior executive experience, network, and age are significantly related to the new firms time to IPO. This study extends the understanding of the important role of the CEO in the IPO and provides investors greater insight into those variables that influence the speed with which firms go public.

Examining the Complementary Effect of Political Networking Capability With Absorptive Capacity on the Innovative Performance of Emerging-Market Firms:

By incorporating institutional theory with the dynamic capability perspective, we investigate how emerging-market firms’ organizational capability to acquire resources through political networking with government officials complements their absorptive capacity in enhancing incremental and radical innovations. We further investigate the conditions under which the complementary effect matters. On the basis of a survey of 108 senior executives in China, we find that political networking capability complements absorptive capacity in overcoming resource constraints and organizational disadvantages in enhancing firms’ innovations, and the result is more effective in improving radical rather than incremental innovations. Furthermore, the complementary effect becomes stronger for emerging-market firms’ radical innovations when facing intense competition. We provide theoretical and practical implications of these findings.

Classics in Entrepreneurship Research: Enduring Insights, Future Promises

Academic inquiry into entrepreneurial phenomena has had a rich history over several decades and continues to evolve. This editorial draws attention to the classics: seminal articles that make profound contributions to the development of an academic field in entrepreneurship studies. We focus on the formative years of entrepreneurship research, specifically the 1970s and 1980s, to identify classics using a key informant approach that surveys members of the journal editorial board. Each nominated classic is introduced and discussed by an editorial board member, with particular focus on research opportunities that may be pursued going forward. Analyzing classics allows for the recognition of substantive advances in entrepreneurship research and provides an opportunity to delve into the academic progress achieved in understanding entrepreneurial phenomena.

What affects lean capability development of emerging market firms? An empirical investigation.

In this study we explore factors affecting Emerging Market Firms’ (EMFs) dynamic capability development. Drawing on the dynamic capabilities view (DCV) and institutional theory, we argue that firm-level and country-level institutional factors matter to EMFs’ lean capability development. We tested hypotheses derived from our framework on a sample of 1,702 firms from Brazil, China, and India. Results show that EMFs’ internationalization enhances the positive relationship of firms’ human capital development and lean capability development. Particularly, at the firm level, Brazilian firms’ internationalization has stronger association with their lean capability development than their Chinese and Indian counterparts. Moreover, at the institutional level, regulatory institutions reinforce the positive effect of process management on EMFs’ lean capability development; however, normative institutions (power distance) negatively influence the effect of firms’ human capital management on lean capability development...