Fariss-Terry Mousa

Empirical research on entrepreneurial orientation: An assessment and suggestions for future research

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) is one of the most widely accepted firm-level constructs in the literature. The present study provides a comprehensive qualitative review and evaluation of the empirical EO literature. It finds that EO research has made considerable strides in recent years and is accelerating and broadening, although notable biases and inconsistencies in variable choice and model specification remain. The article sheds light on the popularity of Miller’s unidimensional conceptualization of EO, as well as the rise in multidimensional explorations of the phenomenon. It concludes with a discussion of the implications of the study’s findings for EO-related research and practice.

Founder effectiveness in leveraging entrepreneurial orientation

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the effects of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) on firm survival and examine whether founder chief executive officers (CEOs) are more effective than other types of managers at utilizing entrepreneurial orientation at initial public offerings (IPOs).Design/methodology/approach – Using survival analysis the authors investigate the effects of EO on firm survival as well as the moderating role of founder CEOs.Findings – The results suggest that EO increases post‐IPO survival. Further, founder‐CEOs moderate the EO‐survival relationship.Originality/value – The paper shows that entrepreneurial orientation enhances long‐term survival in IPO firms. Survival is an important, though generally overlooked consideration in EO research. The paper also concludes that firms with founder CEOs are more likely to value and implement EO. Finally, the paper addresses calls for greater use of secondary measures of EO.

Configurations of slack and their performance implications: an examination of high‐tech IPOs

Purpose – This study aims to improve the understanding of the relationship between organizational slack and firm performance for high technology initial public offerings (IPOs).Design/methodology/approach – Using cluster analysis the paper investigates configurations of slack and their associated performance implications.Findings – The findings indicate the existence of distinct configurations of slack resources and associated performance differences among the configurations. Implications of the findings for managerial practice and future research are discussed.Originality/value – The purpose of this study is to extend slack measurement research by examining the slack and performance relationship in high‐technology IPOs from a configurational perspective.

Organizational slack effects on innovation: the moderating roles of CEO tenure and compensation

This study draws on upper echelons theory, the resource based view, and Penroses theory of firm growth to show that slack resources, specifically financial and human slack, are essential to the research and development (R&D) strategies of organizations. We also suggest that both Chief Executive Officer (CEO) tenure and CEO compensation positively moderate the slack-innovation relationship.The empirical design compromised of panel regression analysis. We tested our hypotheses using all US publicly traded firms between 1993 and 2011.The research results show that firms with excess financial resources are more likely to have higher R&D investments, and to completely understand this relationship we must study CEO tenure and compensation.This study sheds light on central antecedents of firm innovation, it further extends our understanding by investigating the impact of CEO tenure and compensation on the slackinnovation relationship, and it applies a longitudinal design which answers previous calls to investigate this topic in more depth by offering enhanced stability to the results while allowing for different economic scenarios.

Founder-CEO board involvement and optimal IPO valuation

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to extend governance research in the small business context by examining the moderating influence of top executive involvement on the board of directors on market valuation. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on a sample of initial public offering (IPO) high-tech firms engaged in late-stage funding, the study uses stepwise regression to test board involvement moderation effects. Findings – Primary market investors reward governance structures that limit founder power. Originality/value – The current study introduces the notion that optimal market valuation depends not only on whether a CEO-founder governs the firm, but also on level of involvement on the board of directors.

Examining affective and cognitive discourse at the time of IPO: Effects on underpricing and the moderating role of entrepreneurial orientation

This study presents evidence concerning the effects of affective and cognitive rhetoric on the underpricing of firms at the time of their initial public offering. It is suggested that firms that use less affective, and more cognitively oriented discourse in their IPO prospectus will experience better underpricing outcomes. We examine these assertions using a sample of young high-tech IPO firms where investors rely on prospectuses as accurate and informative firm communications. Results from a robust five-year time span observe initial support for the hypothesized effects. Moreover, the signaling of a higher degree of entrepreneurial orientation in the firm prospectus is found to worsen the negative effects of affective discourse