Lakshmi Balachandra

Do You See What I See? Signaling Effects of Gender and Firm Characteristics on Financing Entrepreneurial Ventures

In this study, we examine whether female entrepreneurs are held to a different standard than male entrepreneurs in obtaining financing from banks. To test this idea, we draw from the literature on signaling theory to propose that characteristics specific to the firm and the entrepreneur act as a means to communicate (i.e., signal) the inherent quality of the venture and thus impact the amount of capital the entrepreneur is able to obtain. We then explore the moderating role of gender based on gender role congruity theory to argue that capital providers reward the business characteristics of male and female entrepreneurs differently to the disadvantage of women.

RHETORIC THAT WINS CLIENTS: ENTREPRENEURIAL FIRMS USE OF INSTITUTIONAL LOGICS WHEN COMPETING FOR RESOURCES

Entrepreneurial firms such as professional service firms (PSFs) face constant challenges to acquire resources, one of the greatest of which is the challenge to win client engagements. Although rhetoric is at the center of the challenge to win client engagements, scholars have not identified what rhetorical strategies are the most persuasive to potential clients. By exploring one type of PSF, architecture firms, we argue that PSFs can compete for and legitimate themselves with clients by deploying institutional logics that provide symbolic frameworks and meaning. Since multiple institutional logics exist in society, a critical question for a PSF is which logic is most persuasive to clients. We analyze architecture firms’ written pitches to predict which rhetoric strategies win the valuable resource of a client engagement for a multiclient state project. Our results identify that rhetoric deploying a “profession” logic was most effective whereas a “business” logic was counter-productive in obtaining client engagements and securing resources for the firm.

The gender gap in venture capital- progress, problems, and perspectives

Abstract Financial capital is a critical resource for growing firms, yet women entrepreneurs received very small percent of the funding. This research updates earlier research by the Diana Project using a data base of all venture capital funded firms in the US. We compare funding in those firms led by men and women across stage, sector, state, region and outcomes. Results show women have made progress in attracting venture capital, although there is still a significant gender gap. A research framework and future research directions are proposed.

Don’t Pitch Like a Girl!: How Gender Stereotypes Influence Investor Decisions

We consider the role that gender-stereotyped behaviors play in investors’ evaluations of men- and women-owned ventures. Contrary to research suggesting that investors exhibit bias against women, we find that being a woman entrepreneur does not diminish interest by investors. Rather, our findings reveal that investors are biased against the display of feminine-stereotyped behaviors by entrepreneurs, men and women alike. Our study finds that investor decisions are driven in part by observations of gender-stereotyped behaviors and the implicit associations with the entrepreneur’s business competency, rather than the entrepreneur’s sex.