<p>Previous entrepreneurship research has shown that networks are of great importance when discovering and exploiting business opportunities, i.e. in the start up process of new venture (e.g. Davidsson and Honig 2003; Evald, Klyver, and Svendsen 2006; Klyver, Hindle, and Meyer forthcoming). The value of a network is referred to as social capital, which refers to the amount of resources, both tangible and intangible, that an entrepreneur or entrepreneuse might have access to through the members of their network (Nahapiet and Ghoshal 1998). Social capital is the product of social interactions (Anderson et al. 2007), implying that a person’s social abilities, i.e. social competence, can influence the creation of social capital (Baron and Markman 2000, 2003). Social capital the factor that helps the entrepreneur “get through the door”, while the entrepreneur’s social abilities determine the outcome of that interaction (Baron and Markman 2000:107). The focus of this study is, thus, to explore whether entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses utilize different types of the social capital in the process of starting a new venture and whether they perceive social competence to have an influential role in this process.</p><p>The theoretical framework consist of three main theoretical areas; social capital, social competence, and psychological gender. The first part is based on Nahapiet and Ghoshal’s (1998) model of social capital and describes theories explaining factors influence social capital embedded within a person’s network relationships. The second part covers social competence and the abilities that constitute this concept. Further, five dimensions are identified as comprising social competence, i.e. social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking ability, apparent sincerity, and social manipulation (Baron and Markman 2000, 2003; Hoehn-Weiss et al. 2004; Ferris et al. 2005, 2007; Riggio 1986). The last part discusses whether there might exist differences between entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses regarding their behaviours and their psychological gender (Bem 1974, 1975, 1977; Spence et al. 1975).</p><p>The research design show similarities with both an inductive and a deductive approach, with a focus on the induction since little research within the entrepreneurship field has combined the different topics comprising the scope of this study. Further, this implies qualitative research methods and the empirical data was collect through conducting 14 semi structured interviews with entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses as well as through a questionnaire aiming at determine the respondents’ psychological gender.</p><p>The results of the present study indicate that entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses utilize different the types of social capital in the stages of the start up phase. Further, the study show that social competence plays and important role in the start up process and that there is a circular relation between social capital and social competence. Moreover, the results of the study indicate that male and female entrepreneurs behave differently in the start up phase and that their perceptions about and usage of their social competence might differ.</p>

Previous entrepreneurship research has shown that networks are of great importance when discovering and exploiting business opportunities, i.e. in the start up process of new venture (e.g. Davidsson and Honig 2003; Evald, Klyver, and Svendsen 2006; Klyver, Hindle, and Meyer forthcoming). The value of a network is referred to as social capital, which refers to the amount of resources, both tangible and intangible, that an entrepreneur or entrepreneuse might have access to through the members of their network (Nahapiet and Ghoshal 1998). Social capital is the product of social interactions (Anderson et al. 2007), implying that a person’s social abilities, i.e. social competence, can influence the creation of social capital (Baron and Markman 2000, 2003). Social capital the factor that helps the entrepreneur “get through the door”, while the entrepreneur’s social abilities determine the outcome of that interaction (Baron and Markman 2000:107). The focus of this study is, thus, to explore whether entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses utilize different types of the social capital in the process of starting a new venture and whether they perceive social competence to have an influential role in this process. The theoretical framework consist of three main theoretical areas; social capital, social competence, and psychological gender. The first part is based on Nahapiet and Ghoshal’s (1998) model of social capital and describes theories explaining factors influence social capital embedded within a person’s network relationships. The second part covers social competence and the abilities that constitute this concept. Further, five dimensions are identified as comprising social competence, i.e. social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking ability, apparent sincerity, and social manipulation (Baron and Markman 2000, 2003; Hoehn-Weiss et al. 2004; Ferris et al. 2005, 2007; Riggio 1986). The last part discusses whether there might exist differences between entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses regarding their behaviours and their psychological gender (Bem 1974, 1975, 1977; Spence et al. 1975). The research design show similarities with both an inductive and a deductive approach, with a focus on the induction since little research within the entrepreneurship field has combined the different topics comprising the scope of this study. Further, this implies qualitative research methods and the empirical data was collect through conducting 14 semi structured interviews with entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses as well as through a questionnaire aiming at determine the respondents’ psychological gender. The results of the present study indicate that entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses utilize different the types of social capital in the stages of the start up phase. Further, the study show that social competence plays and important role in the start up process and that there is a circular relation between social capital and social competence. Moreover, the results of the study indicate that male and female entrepreneurs behave differently in the start up phase and that their perceptions about and usage of their social competence might differ.

Abstract Entrepreneurship research is a dynamic field in development. It has long ago moved past analyzing the differences between entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs to trying to understand the activity that an entrepreneur does. Current entrepreneurship research has identified business opportunities and their development as the main focus of entrepreneurship research field. However the creation of new business opportunities is largely not understood and theory which builds on entrepreneurship is still in its initial phases. This study aims to understand the creation of new ventures through a holistic approach, not focusing only on the entrepreneur but also on the industry and society where the venture creation happens. Therefore this study focuses on new venture creation in a software business context. This context was chosen because the economy is moving from a production based economy to a knowledge based economy and software plays a vital role in this change. The research question set forth in this study is: How are new ventures created in the software industry? This study identifies culture, society and entrepreneur as components and actualisation, socialisation and emergence as the processes that affect new venture creation. These components and processes are derived from existing literature of entrepreneurship. Based on these components and processes a research framework is created which is used as the study approaches venture creation through process and case study logics. As a result of this study a model of venture creation in software business was created. The model shows how the dynamic formation of new ventures happens. The model of venture creation identifies components, processes and generative mechanisms of which the latter create the real dynamism in the model. The study showed how entrepreneurs and the creation of new business were tightly integrated into the environment in which the entrepreneurs resided and the people with whom they interacted. The study also showed that venture creation and the development of an entrepreneurial identity do not happen overnight. Rather, they take time to develop, and happen in an evolutionary way. / Tiivistelmä Yrittäjyystutkimus on muuttuva ja kehittyvä tutkimusala. Siinä kiinnostuksen kohde on ajan saatossa muuttunut kohti yrittäjän toiminnan ja muutoksen ymmärtämistä sen sijaan, että analysoitaisiin yrittäjien ja ei-yrittäjien eroja. Yrittäjyystutkimus on tunnistanut tämän hetken tutkimuskohteeksi liiketoimintamahdollisuudet ja niiden kehittymisen. Näiden liiketoimintamahdollisuuksien luomista ei vielä täysin ymmärretä ja yrittäjyyden teorian rakentaminen on alkuvaiheissa. Tässä tutkimuksessa uusien liiketoimintojen luomista pyritään ymmärtämään kokonaisvaltaisen näkemyksen kautta, huomioiden yrittäjän lisäksi teollisuudenalan ja yhteiskunnan jossa liiketoiminnan luominen tapahtuu. Sen vuoksi tutkimuksessa keskitytään uuden liiketoiminnan luomiseen ohjelmistoteollisuudessa. Tämä konteksti valittiin, koska talous on muuttumassa tuotantoperustaisesta taloudesta kohti tietotaloutta ja ohjelmistoilla on merkittävä rooli tässä muutoksessa. Tutkimuskysymyksenä tutkimuksessa on: Miten uusia liiketoimintoja luodaan ohjelmistoteollisuudessa? Tutkimuksessa kulttuuri, yhteiskunta ja yrittäjä tunnistetaan liiketoiminnan luomiseen vaikuttaviksi komponenteiksi ja toteutuminen, sosialisaatio ja syntyminen liiketoiminnan luomiseen vaikuttaviksi prosesseiksi. Nämä komponentit ja prosessit johdettiin aikaisemmasta tutkimuksesta. Näiden komponenttien ja prosessien pohjalta luotiin tutkimuskehikko, jonka avulla tutkimusaineistoa lähestytään prosessi- ja tapaustutkimuksen keinoin. Tutkimuksen tuloksena luodaan ohjelmistoteollisuuteen uuden liiketoiminnan luomisen malli. Malli näyttää miten dynaaminen uuden liiketoiminnan luominen tapahtuu. Mallissa tunnistetaan komponentit, prosessit ja generoivat mekanismit joista viimeksimainitut luovat malliin todellisen dynamiikan. Tutkimuksessa havaittiin miten yrittäjät ja uuden liiketoiminnan luominen ovat tiukasti sidoksissa yrittäjän asuinympäristöön sekä sosiaalisiin suhteisiin. Tutkimuksessa havaittiin että uuden liiketoiminnan luominen ja yrittäjämäisen identiteetin kehittyminen vaativat aikaa kehittyäkseen.

Yes / Although literature on entrepreneurship has increasingly focused on intention-based models, not much emphasis has been laid on understanding the combined effect of contextual and situational factors along with support of university environment on the formation of entrepreneurial intention among students. In an effort to make up for this shortfall, by taking Theory of Planned Behavior as basic framework, the present study seeks to understand the influence of three of the most important factors, viz. (a) endogenous barriers, (b) exogenous environment, and (c) university environment and support on the entrepreneurial intention among management students. The study sample consisted of 1,097 students, wherein 526 students were from India, 252 from Singapore, and 319 were from Malaysia. The results indicates that along with positive attitude and perceived behavioral control that directly influences entrepreneurial intention, university environment and support and exogenous environment also have an indirect but significant impact on shaping of entrepreneurial intention among students. With this, it was found that exogenous environment was found to have a negative relationship with both attitude towards behavior and perceived behavioral control for all three countries. / The full-text of this article will be released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo on 2 Jun 2018.

<p>Being entrepreneurial is pathly being creative. This Master thesis presents a business plan of BEFCO Trading Ltd geared towards solving a problem in the Cameroonian Economy. The English speaking Cameroonians of South West and North West provinces of Cameroon are presently underserved with car sales offerings as there is presently no registered Company in this section of the Country.</p><p>An attempt is presently being made through this business plan thanks to the peaceful and favourable circumstances sorrounding the entrepreneurs and the opportunity gap of a niche market. The business plan shows a win to win situation in which the founding entrepreneurs become self employed by solving a problem in the market through novel business combinations.</p>

Purpose The purpose of this thesis is to explore how students at Jönköping University can establish a new business and to what extent Science Park Jönköping is involved throughout the business creation process. Background Numerous researches have been done on new venture creation and business incubation. However, these two areas of research are rarely combined. When it comes to venture creation, most theories focus either solely on the start-up process or on the entrepreneur and the environment. The novelty of this thesis lies in combining those two different fields of research and at the same time focusing on the entrepreneur, the environment and the start-up process. The authors aim at investigating the start-up process in connection with the business incubator Science Park Jönköping. This paper is opposing new venture creation process theory with empirical findings and further examining the influence of the business incubator Science Park Jönköping. Method The authors of this paper followed a qualitative approach which was implemented in the form of personal interviews. The participants of this study are entrepreneurs who created their venture in cooperation with Science Park Jönköping as well as one representative from Science Park Jönköping. Conclusion Contrary to previous research, the participants of this study do not perceive the business creation process and its stages as linear. Moreover, influential factors like the attributes of the entrepreneur and the environment have to be taken into account when speaking about the start-up of a company. Science Park Jönköping offers services at all stages of the process whereas the most intense contact between the business incubator and the entrepreneur takes place in the very beginning.

<p><strong>Purpose</strong></p><p>The purpose of this thesis is to explore how students at Jönköping University can establish a new business and to what extent Science Park Jönköping is involved throughout the business creation process.</p><p><strong>Background</strong></p><p>Numerous researches have been done on new venture creation and business incubation. However, these two areas of research are rarely combined. When it comes to venture creation, most theories focus either solely on the start-up process or on the entrepreneur and the environment. The novelty of this thesis lies in combining those two different fields of research and at the same time focusing on the entrepreneur, the environment and the start-up process. The authors aim at investigating the start-up process in connection with the business incubator Science Park Jönköping. This paper is opposing new venture creation process theory with empirical findings and further examining the influence of the business incubator Science Park Jönköping.</p><p><strong>Method </strong></p><p>The authors of this paper followed a qualitative approach which was implemented in the form of personal interviews. The participants of this study are entrepreneurs who created their venture in cooperation with Science Park Jönköping as well as one representative from Science Park Jönköping.</p><p><strong>Conclusion</strong></p><p>Contrary to previous research, the participants of this study do not perceive the business creation process and its stages as linear. Moreover, influential factors like the attributes of the entrepreneur and the environment have to be taken into account when speaking about the start-up of a company. Science Park Jönköping offers services at all stages of the process whereas the most intense contact between the business incubator and the entrepreneur takes place in the very beginning.</p>

Being entrepreneurial is pathly being creative. This Master thesis presents a business plan of BEFCO Trading Ltd geared towards solving a problem in the Cameroonian Economy. The English speaking Cameroonians of South West and North West provinces of Cameroon are presently underserved with car sales offerings as there is presently no registered Company in this section of the Country. An attempt is presently being made through this business plan thanks to the peaceful and favourable circumstances sorrounding the entrepreneurs and the opportunity gap of a niche market. The business plan shows a win to win situation in which the founding entrepreneurs become self employed by solving a problem in the market through novel business combinations.

Syfte: Syftet med studien är att berika litteraturen kopplad till hur etablerade företag kan överkomma de svårigheter som är förknippade med organisationsstrukturerna under implementeringsfasen av Internal Corporate Venturing. För att uppnå syftet undersöker vi följande forskningsfrågor: RQ1: Hur och varför skapar organisationsstrukturer svårigheter under implementeringsfasen för de etablerade företagen när de bedriver Internal Corporate Venturing RQ2: Hur kan etablerade företag övervinna svårigheter med organisationsstrukturer när de deltar i implementeringsfasen för Internal Corporate Venturing? Metod: Studien är en kvalitativ enskild fallstudie, där ett etablerat företag inom fordonsindustrin i Göteborg, Sverige har undersökts. Sammanfattningsvis har 31 intervjuer genomförts under tre vågor och analyserats via en tematisk analysmetod. Resultat: Resultatet av denna studie är ett ramverk och en färdplan som illustrerar svårigheter, konsekvenser och åtgärder avseende organisationsstrukturer under implementeringsfasen av Internal Corporate Venturing. De mest framträdande svårigheterna är bristen på lack of internal support systems och organizational behavior obstacles. De mest kritiska konsekvenserna är venture strategy obstacles och innovation failure. De viktigaste åtgärderna är att create a supportive culture och develop a learning organization. Implikationer: Denna studie bidrar med insikter i den bristande litteraturen om organisationsstruktursvårigheter under implementeringsfasen av Internal Corporate Venturing. För chefer bidrar den här studien med ett ramverk för hur företaget kan upptäcka och överkomma svårigheterna med hjälp av specifika åtgärder vid implementering av Internal Corporate Venturing. Slutligen presenterar studien en konceptuell färdplan för hur etablerade företag kan utveckla sin Internal Corporate Venturing process, vilket kan nyttjas av företagets chefer. Begränsning och framtida forskning: Denna studie är begränsad till att undersöka implementeringsfasen av Internal Corporate Venturing på ett enskilt företag, i en specifik bransch, vilket indikerar att framtida forskning kan undersöka andra branscher.  Nyckelord: Corporate Venturing, Internal Corporate Venturing, New Venture Creation, Organizational structures / Purpose: The purpose of the study is to enrich the literature connected to how incumbent firms can mitigate the difficulties connected to the organizational structures during the implementation phase of internal corporate venturing. To fulfill the purpose, we examinethe following researchquestions: RQ1: How and why doorganizational structures create difficulties during the implementation phase for incumbent firms when engaging in internal corporate venturing? RQ2: How can incumbent firms overcome difficulties with organizational structureswhen engaging inthe implementation phase of internal corporate venturing? Method: The study is a qualitativesingle case study, where one incumbent firm within the automotive industry situated in Gothenburg, Sweden has beeninvestigated. In sum, 31interviews havebeen conductedduring three waves and were analyzed via a thematic analysis approach. Findings: The result of this study is a framework and aroadmap illustrating the difficulties, consequences and mitigating actionsregardingorganizational structures during the implementation phase of internal corporate venturing. The most prominent difficulties are lack of internal support systemsand organizational behavior obstacles.The most critical consequences are venture strategy obstacles and innovation failure. The most important actions would be to create a supportive culture and develop a learning organization. Implications: This study contributes with insightsto the scarce literature on organizational structure difficultiesin the implementation phase of internal corporate venturing. For managers this study contributes with a frameworkon how to detect andmitigate the difficulties with specific actions that emergewhen implementing internal corporate venturing. Lastly, this study assist managers with a conceptual roadmap for how incumbent firms could develop theirinternal corporate venturingprocess, the roadmapcould be improved and refined over time. Limitation and future research: This study is limited to investigate theimplementation phase of internal corporate venturing on a single company, in a single industry, indicating that future research could investigate other industry settings. Keywords: Corporate Venturing; Internal Corporate Venturing; New Venture Creation;Organizational structures

Weathering the entrepreneurial storm is considered by many an art form in itself but an undeniable, universal truth is the unilateral impact of an extraordinary leader on the chances of triumph in the face of great adversity. Yet the focus of academic studies all too often concerns the understanding of the weather patterns, the choice of captain and the direction of the ship rather than how to turn the wheel, raise the mast or set the sails. This study has the aim of deciphering the routines, actions and methods of entrepreneurial leaders so as to produce tangible, actionable knowledge which real practitioners can bestow upon themselves. This is a collective case study which examines ten entrepreneurial leaders from various cities throughout Sweden using semi-structured, in-depth interviews. The findings pertain to routines, activities and methods that they use to fulfil five roles of effective entrepreneurial leadership which are further boiled down to 52 thematic strategies. These strategies are then aligned into five fundamental skills; encompassing a collective approach, building individual relationships, fragmentation, dynamic perspective and utilising feedback. We believe that through developing these skills that entrepreneurial leaders can better cultivate their own routines, activities and methods contingent to their particular circumstance and transaction set.