Previous intrapreneurship experience as a determinant of entrepreneurial activity and performance

We analyze the effect of previous intrapreneurship experience as a key determinant of becoming a new entrepreneur, and the role that it plays in driving innovation and performance in startups, as indicated by employment and exports, and discuss the role of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. We use pooled cross-section data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor for the years 2013–2018, with a focus on Canada and the US. The results indicate that previous intrapreneurship experience plays a key role in the decision to engage in the creation of a startup, and that previous experience brings higher innovation outcomes, and shows a higher impact in terms of generation of new jobs and exports, compared to similar startups by entrepreneurs without intrapreneurship experience. The findings suggest the potential to encourage better schemes that promote the acquisition of expertise in an existing organization, and to address those factors that prevent some population groups from engaging in entrepreneurial activity. We contribute to the discussion by estimating the effect that intrapreneurship plays in the decision to start a new firm, and the impacts generated by the startup in terms of innovation, generation of employment and intensity of exports, differentiating between spinoffs and other-new-entrants.