Joanne L. Scillitoe

Tapping Deep Pockets: The Role of Resources and Social Capital on Financial Capital Acquisition by Biotechnology Firms in Biotech–Pharma Alliances

Strategic alliances with pharmaceutical firms allow small biotechnology firms to acquire needed financial capital in exchange for sharing new, cutting-edge technologies. This study draws from aspects of resource-based view and social capital theory to examine the factors that influence the extent of financial capital biotech firms acquire when forming an alliance with pharmaceutical firms. Using a sample of 184 alliances from the period 1995-2000, we found that alliances where the pharmaceutical firm has greater management control are associated with greater acquisition of financial capital by the biotech firm. We also found that the credibility of the pharmaceutical firm is positively associated with the extent of financial capital acquired by the biotechnology firm and that the number of patents that the biotech firm has is negatively associated to the financial capital the biotech firm receives. We discuss the implications of our findings for theory, research, and management practice.

Navigating the innovation landscape: past research, present practice, and future trends

The management of innovation is among the most critical capabilities contributing to the success of modern organizations. It is also complex and frequently misunderstood. In this paper we first provide a broad overview of the organizational innovation literature [the Past] to distill five fundamental themes: What is innovation, why is it important, where does it come from, who engages in it, and how can it be best executed? Second, we illustrate how these concepts are applied by three companies on the vanguard of innovation management [the Present] – Google, Walt Disney, and Johnson & Johnson. Third, we project the discussion forward by considering key issues and emerging trends [the Future] of innovation management such as nanotechnology, ethical dilemmas, information technology, globalization, and sustainability. Fourth, we derive from the above analyses concrete guidelines for managers to leverage these insights and enable more effective innovation practices.

The sources of social capital within technology incubators: the roles of historical ties and organisational facilitation

There are currently three divergent views regarding the sources of beneficial social capital within collectivities or networks: historical ties, organisational facilitation, and trust-based shared pursuit of common goals. Technology incubators are newer organisational forms that are created to support and accelerate the development and success of affiliated technology-based ventures. However, it is unclear how social capital that benefits the technological development of affiliated ventures is created within technology incubators. Drawing from the social capital, technology, and organisational learning literature, this study seeks to understand how technology incubators can create social capital that enables accelerated technological learning of affiliated ventures. Based upon a survey of 43 technology-based ventures affiliated with US and Finnish technology incubators, results of this study suggest that facilitated networking support of the technology incubator serves as the primary source of social capital that enables accelerated technological learning of affiliated technology-based ventures. However, results also suggest that less-established or newer technology incubators enable accelerated technology learning better than more established incubators. This suggests that technology incubators are not able to maintain historical ties that benefit the technological learning of affiliated ventures.

Influence of Gender and Social Networks on Organizational Learning within Technology Incubators

New technology‐based ventures (NTBVs) gain access to beneficial social capital through their affiliation with technology incubators, organizations created to facilitate learning leading to the successful development of nascent firms. Scillitoe and Chakrabarti (2005, 2) identified three sources of beneficial social capital within human networks, “historical ties, organizational facilitation, and trustbased shared pursuit of common goals”, with organizational facilitation identified as the primary source of beneficial social capital for ventures within technology incubators. The current study extends this prior research investigating the development of social capital of NTBVs through incubator facilitation, focusing on the influence of female founders. Results are based on surveys collected from fifty‐four technology‐based firms affiliated with technology incubators in the United States and Finland. The results from this exploratory study show that the speed of technological learning is negatively affected by the interpersonal network access in firms with female founding management team members. Technological learning includes acquiring knowledge of legal protection of intellectual property, complex technological and scientific knowledge, and design and production skills that enable the development and commercialization of NTBV products and services (Deeds, DeCarolis, and Coombs, 1999). This finding contradicts prior research that suggests technological development of ventures is positively influenced by interpersonal network access through incubators (Hansen, Chesbrough, Nohria, and Sull 2000; Scillitoe and Chakrabarti 2005). Implications for technology incubator managers, NTBV founders, and economic development agencies that support technology incubators are discussed.

The sources of social capital within technology incubators: the roles of historical ties and organizational facilitation

There are currently three divergent views regarding the sources of beneficial social capital within collectivities or networks: historical ties, organizational facilitation, and trust-based shared pursuit of common goals. Technology incubators are newer organizational forms that are created to support and accelerate the development and success of affiliated technology-based ventures. However, it is unclear how social capital that benefits the technological development of affiliated ventures is created within technology incubators. Drawing from the social capital, technology, and organizational learning literature, this study seeks to understand how technology incubators can create social capital that enables accelerated technological learning of affiliated ventures. Based upon a survey of 43 technology-based ventures affiliated with U.S. and Finnish technology incubators, results of this study suggest that facilitated networking support of the technology incubator serves as the primary source of social capital that enables accelerated technological learning of affiliated technology-based ventures. However, results also suggest that less established or newer technology incubators enable accelerated technology learning better than more established incubators. This suggests that technology incubators are not able to maintain historical ties that benefit the technological learning of affiliated ventures.

The Impact of External Contexts on Alliance Governance in Biotech–Pharmaceutical Firm Alliances

The interest in strategic alliances has increased over the years, especially in high tech global industries such as biotechnology, as firms seek to gain access to needed resources, expertise, and knowledge for developing and commercializing new products and technologies. The governance structure of these alliances, which is an important consideration in understanding alliance formation and performance, is influenced by both external and internal contexts of the alliance partners. However, evidence from prior research has been inconclusive regarding the impact of external contexts on alliance governance selection. To better understand this impact, we simultaneously examine three key partner external contexts - international, technological, and social contexts, and their influence on biotechnology-pharmaceutical alliance governance structure selection. Using a sample of 389 alliances formed during the six-year period 1995 through 2000, we find that the international context, specifically national cultural distance between alliance partners, and the social context, specifically credibility of the biotechnology partner in the alliance network, influence governance structure selection. We offer implications of our findings for theory, future research, and management practice.

Venture growth – new findings from a multilevel perspective – Guest Editors' introduction to the focus issue on growth

New venture growth is an important research topic. Past research suggests that growing young ventures play a critical role in local, regional and national economies through the creation of jobs, the generation of profits and the development of innovations. Questions regarding how ventures grow, including internal and external forces, and where is growth occurring, such as international versus domestic markets, have received much less attention, limiting our true understanding of this phenomenon. This introduction addresses these questions, outlining the themes of papers in the special issue on growth.

Venture technological innovation, social value and economic value: The influence of customer-beneficiary alignment

The technological innovation literature has widely considered the process and outcomes of market driven firms. However, research on the innovation process and outcomes of socially driven firms, particularly socio-technological entrepreneurial ventures, is very limited. In particular, the influence of the alignment of customer versus beneficiary needs has not been addressed within this literature yet is an important consideration for socio-technological venture development and subsequent innovation impact. As a result, in this paper we present a conceptual model explaining how technological innovation impact is influenced by venture orientation, organizational structure, and customer/beneficiary alignment. Unlike a market oriented venture that typically selects a for-profit structure, a socially oriented venture may select from a choice of for-profit, nonprofit, or hybrid structures, influenced by founder experience. We also posit that customer-beneficiary alignment can influence the relationship between structure and innovation impact. When customer and beneficiary preferences are less aligned, a non-profit structure offers the greatest innovation impact for social value with minimal impact on economic value while a hybrid structure offers greater innovation impact for both social and economic value and a for-profit structure offers greater impact for economic value. However, when customer and beneficiary preferences are more aligned, a for-profit structure offers the greatest innovation impact for both social and economic value.

Keeping Financially Afloat: The Influence of Resources and Social Capital on Financial Capital Acquisition by Small Biotechnology Firms from Large Pharmaceutical Firms at Alliance Formation

Strategic alliances with pharmaceutical firms allow small biotechnology firms to acquire needed financial capital in exchange for the sharing of new, cutting-edge technologies. While prior research has considered the importance of resources in biotech firm acquisition of financial capital through the formation of alliances, the role of social capital in this acquisition process has not been explored. This study draws from complementary aspects of the resource-based and social capital theories to examine the factors that influence the extent of financial capital biotech firms acquire upon the formation of alliances with pharmaceutical firms. Results of this study suggest that resource based factors play a greater role in biotech financial acquisition than social capital factors. Specifically, alliances associated with more developed technologies and greater pharmaceutical firm control are associated with greater acquisition of financial capital by the biotech firm. In addition, the credibility of the pharmaceutical firm enables greater biotech financial capital acquisition. However, the social capital of the biotech firm does not appear to enable capital acquisition