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If you don't succeed, should you try again? The role of entrepreneurial experience in venture survival

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  • Gottschalk, Sandra
  • Greene, Francis J.
  • Höwer, Daniel
  • Müller, Bettina

Abstract

There remains considerable scholarly debate about the role that prior entrepreneurial experience plays in new venture survival. Drawing on entrepreneurial learning theories, we use panel data on 8,400 new ventures to investigate the impact of four different types of prior entrepreneurial experience (portfolio, serial, failure (bankruptcy/voluntary dissolution) and a mix of success (portfolio/serial) and failure (prior bankruptcy/dissolution) on venture survival outcomes. We find that previously failed entrepreneurs are less likely to survive and, in common with entrepreneurs with mixed prior experiences, are more likely to experience bankruptcy. We find that portfolio and serial experience is unrelated to survival or avoiding bankruptcy. Conclusions for entrepreneurship scholars, entrepreneurs and stakeholders are discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Gottschalk, Sandra & Greene, Francis J. & Höwer, Daniel & Müller, Bettina, 2014. "If you don't succeed, should you try again? The role of entrepreneurial experience in venture survival," ZEW Discussion Papers 14-009, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:14009
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    Cited by:

    1. Douglas Cumming & Uwe Walz & Jochen Christian Werth, 2016. "Entrepreneurial Spawning: Experience, Education, and Exit," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 51(4), pages 507-525, November.
    2. Canidio, Andrea, 2016. "The Value of Entrepreneurial Failures: Task Allocation and Career Concerns," CEPR Discussion Papers 11295, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    3. Cumming, Douglas & Walz, Uwe & Werth, Jochen Christian, 2015. "The dynamics of entrepreneurial careers in high-tech ventures: Experience, education, and exit," SAFE Working Paper Series 122, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    venture survival; entrepreneurial experience; panel data;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • L25 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Performance

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