Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations Commons^™

The Impact Of Successor Differences In Family Businesses On Firm Performance: An Empirical Analysis Based On China Listed Company Data, Xulong Zhao

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Family businesses are an important pillar of global economic development. Currently, Chinese private enterprises are ushering in an unprecedented wave of intergenerational succession. At this critical historical juncture, "who" takes over and how the succession behavior affects firm performance have become core issues of common concern to academia and practice. Traditional principal-agent theory usually posits that introducing professional managers can break the limitations of family governance and improve corporate efficiency. However, Chinese family businesses are deeply rooted in specific institutional environments and cultural soils, where blood-based "relational trust" and socioemotional wealth (SEW) play irreplaceable roles in power transitions. Therefore, how …

The Seller Valuation Of Family Firm Exits: Socioemotional Wealth And Ceo Equity Ownership, Masahiro Nishii

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

This study examines seller valuation in family-firm exit using the initial asking price from private M&A sales. In the sale of a family firm, it is known that seller valuation may go beyond financial value alone because owners often hold strong emotional attachments to the firm. However, it remains unclear whose judgment brings that non financial value into seller valuation and why this varies across types of family CEOs.

Drawing on socioemotional wealth theory, the study develops the mechanism at the CEO level. I argue that the anticipated SEW loss translates into seller valuation through the CEO’s judgment. When the …

The Impact Of Corporate Venture Capital On Financing And Innovation In Academic Entrepreneurial Firms, Tingting Luo

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Amid the ongoing advancement of China’s innovation-driven development strategy, the effective transformation of scientific research into industrial impact has become a central concern. Corporate Venture Capital (CVC), as a strategic investment mechanism connecting industrial capital with entrepreneurial ventures, is increasingly viewed as a critical external resource for high-technology start-ups. At the same time, Academic Entrepreneurship Firms (AEFs), characterized by their deep research capabilities and original technological trajectories, play a distinctive role as knowledge suppliers in uncertain, emerging industries. However, whether AEFs can effectively attract CVC support and convert it into innovation performance remains an open empirical and theoretical question.

This …

The Impact Of De-Familization Of Governance Structures On Corporate Performance During The Intergenerational Succession Of Family Businesses, Jing Qiao

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Intergenerational succession poses a vital challenge for family firms, with only 10% of global family businesses surviving to the third generation. Chinese family firms, growing alongside reform and opening-up, now face a critical succession period as founders average over 60 years old.

Based on 1932 A-share listed family firms from 2007 to 2024, this study theoretically and empirically examines how intergenerational succession affects corporate performance, investigates the mediating role of governance de-familization (management, ownership, control rights), and tests the moderating effect of intergenerational differences.

First, succession significantly harms financial and market performance: ROE falls by 1.330% and Tobin’s Q drops …

Mindfulness And Entrepreneurship: Looking Back And Moving Forward, Eva Katharina Peters

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

This dissertation spans three chapters covering the topics of mindfulness and entrepreneurship. The first chapter is a literature review summarizing the existing literature on mindfulness in entrepreneurship. The review provides an organizing framework for structuring the knowledge of mindfulness in entrepreneurship, along with an integrative framework and a detailed agenda for future research. Building on the insights generated through the literature review, the following two chapters provide empirical evidence for the role of mindfulness in entrepreneurship. The second chapter is an empirical study exploring how mindfulness relates to entrepreneurial well-being via its relation to co-founding team relationship quality and team …

Optimizing Fulfillment Operations For Online Retailing, Yujie Sun

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

This thesis investigates order fulfillment operations for online retailing. Order fulfillment encompasses the entire process of receiving, processing, and delivering customer orders. The rapid growth of e-commerce has heightened the demand for efficient fulfillment operations. This thesis explores strategies for optimizing order fulfillment in three scenarios. The first scenario studies cellular bucket brigade, a method for coordinating workers in an assembly line or order-picking environment to improve workflow efficiency. The second scenario investigates zone picking, serial bucket brigades and cellular bucket brigades with hand-off times. The third scenario focuses on autonomous robotic systems within package sortation centers.

Chapter 2 investigates …

Who’S More Likely To Do Science Philanthropy? Research On The Factors Influencing Chinese Private Entrepreneurs’ Willingness To Do Science Philanthropy, Tsz Ho Tony Lau

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

China’s investment in scientific research funds feature relatively small amount and unitary structure of source. In recent years, the Chinese government has constantly issued policies to encourage social capital to participate in scientific research, especially fundamental research, by charitable donations or the like, but no significant results have been achieved. China's private entrepreneurs are the main force behind charitable giving. Therefore, it is imperative to engage these private entrepreneurs.

This thesis works on the characteristics of private entrepreneurs who are more likely to donate to scientific research. It can be divided into two parts/studies of research: 1) the impact of …

Exploring The Impact Of Entrepreneurship Coaching And Mentoring Models On Founder Capabilities And Business Performance, Zhixiang Wu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

China's current economic development faces multiple pressures, including contracting demand, supply shocks, and weakening expectations. Coupled with changes in the market environment and structural employment mismatches, entrepreneurship has become a key driver for economic growth, job creation, and the enhancement of social resilience. Against this backdrop, the impact of entrepreneurship coaching on founder development and business performance has drawn increasing attention. This study systematically explores how external coaches, through various coaching methods, frequencies, and competencies, influence entrepreneurs' growth and further improve business performance.

Based on literature review and theoretical analysis, a mediation effect model is constructed to empirically examine the …

Entrepreneurial Orientation In Family Firms: The Role Of Intergenerational Dynamics, Firm Size, And External Working Experience, Wai Sam Kong

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Family firms are key contributors to the global economy, yet their long-term entrepreneurial sustainability remains uncertain, particularly during intergenerational transitions. While entrepreneurial orientation (EO) has been studied widely in general business contexts, the interplay between intergenerational dynamics and EO remains underexplored in family firms. This study addresses the existing gap by methodically studying how family-specific factors influence EO, thereby contributing a novel perspective to entrepreneurship and family business research. Drawing on Constructivist Learning Theory, we conceptualise EO not as a static firm attribute but as a developmental process shaped by intergenerational interactions, governance structures, and external influences. Using a multi-method …

Research On The Technology And Economy Of Intelligent Transformation Of Textile Enterprises, Hongxia Zhang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The Chinese government has proposed to promote the high-end, intelligent and green development of manufacturing in the next step. The China Textile Industry Federation issued the “14th Five-Year Development Outline for the Textile Industry”, emphasizing accelerating the development of intelligent manufacturing system integrators in the textile field to achieve the transformation and upgrading of the industry. At present, the outstanding problems restricting the rapid development of intelligent manufacturing in China’s textile industry include: Imperfect evaluation indicators; The management system does not match; The reconstruction path is not clear.
This topic (1) constructs a big data policy co-word network through quantitative …

Entrepreneurial Spirit And Firm Performance: An Empirical Study Based On Data From The Star Market​, Zhige Zhang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Entrepreneurial spirit, as a vital production factor in contemporary society, plays a leading and guiding role throughout the entire life cycle of a business. In particular, entrepreneurial innovation spirit, a key element of entrepreneurial spirit, is a pivotal engine of economic and societal progress. This paper adopts an empirical research approach to analyze the correlation between entrepreneurial innovation spirit and firm outcome, delving into the impact of entrepreneurial innovation spirit on a firm's operational efficiency, profitability, solvency, and development capabilities. The findings provide theoretical support and practical guidance for enterprise management, ultimately contributing to the creation of greater corporate value …

The Influence Of Venture Capitalists’ Value-Added Service On Capital Financing Outcome: A Research On Chinese Biotech Startups, Hao-Yu Huang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

China’s biotechnology sector has undergone rapid evolution, driven by government policy, capital market reform, and growing global demand for pharmaceutical innovation. Venture capitalists (VCs) have played an increasingly pivotal role not only as financiers but also as strategic partners offering value-added services (VAS). These interventions include operational mentorship, regulatory navigation, talent pipeline facilitation, and strategic repositioning. However, the extent to which such non-financial support influences financing outcomes across startup development stages remains underexplored—particularly in the context of China's unique institutional and industrial environment.

This dissertation examines how VC post-investment interventions affect the financing success of biotech startups in China. Drawing …

Exploring Intelligent Manufacturing: How Artificial Intelligence Affects Productivity And Labor Demand At The Enterprise Level, Jie Gu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Manufacturing is a cornerstone of national economic health and social stability, yet it faces challenges such as declining profits, rising labor costs, and an aging workforce. In China, the manufacturing sector is undergoing a critical transformation, driven by technological advancements like artificial intelligence (AI) and the push for intelligent manufacturing. This study explores how AI revitalizes the manufacturing sector by enhancing enterprise productivity and reshaping labor demand, with a focus on quality inspection processes. Using a leading bearing factory as a case study, the research employs econometric models, A/B testing, and interviews to quantify AI’s impact on production efficiency, costs, …

A Study On Paths And Effectiveness Of Internationalization Of Chinese Apparel Enterprises, Xiaohong Gao

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

As globalization advances, international expansion has become a key strategy for firms to enhance their competitive edge. Nevertheless, current literature predominantly centers on developed countries, often overlooking the distinct obstacles and prospects encountered by companies from emerging markets. This gap is particularly evident in the apparel sector, where the impact of branding strategies on internationalization outcomes remains underexplored. This paper constructs an analytical framework of “internationalization context - internationalization pathway selection - internationalization performance”, combines case studies and empirical analysis to explore this research issue in depth, and applies the results of the research to enterprise practice.

This paper analyzes …

Knowledge Judgment, Managerial Decision-Making, And Firm Performance: From The Perspective Of Entrepreneurial Spirit Reconfiguration In Second-Generation Family Businesses, Xinhua Li

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Since the reform and opening up, Chinese family businesses, as the main body of the private economy, have played a significant role in the development of the national economy. As the first - generation entrepreneurs are entering their later years, inter - generational succession has become an important issue. This doctoral thesis focuses on the dynamic reshaping process of the entrepreneurial spirit of the second - generation entrepreneurs in family businesses and explores how it affects the improvement of corporate performance. Based on the cutting - edge theories of Austrian economics, this study constructs a research framework of "knowledge judgment …

Digital Twin Dynamics: Employee’S Willingness To Adopt Ai Digital-Twin In A Craftsmanship Environment, Seow Hoon Tee

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Singapore’s manufacturing sector, contributing 22% to the nation’s GDP, is undergoing a strategic transformation under the Manufacturing 2030 vision, which aims to increase sector value by 50%. However, a critical challenge emerges in the widening age gap among craftsmen, particularly between 30 and 50 years old, misaligning with succession planning efforts. As senior craftsmen approach retirement, the urgency to transfer specialized expertise significantly increases. In response, initiatives such as the National AI Strategy (NAIS) 2.0 and Industry 5.0 efforts by the Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) and Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre (ARTC) emphasize AI-driven solutions to enhance knowledge retention and …

Research On Digital Platform Capabilities And Entrepreneurship Empowerment Performance Of Science And Technology Industrial Parks, Jieyu Zheng

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

In the era of the digital economy, industries are shifting toward platform-based and ecological trends, with industrial parks similarly adopting digital and platform-based patterns. The systematic planning, functional layout, and service efficiency of science and technology industrial parks (sci-tech industrial parks for short) are designed to address emerging industries’ spatial and organizational needs. This approach aims to create a system where digital transformation is employed as the mechanism and digital platforms empower entrepreneurial enterprises within these parks, fostering high-quality park development. However, despite efforts to build digital platforms for transforming into digital parks, many industrial parks have found their platform …

Exploring The Development Of An Agribusiness Ecosystem For Singapore: Lessons From Taiwan, Kuo-Chang Fu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The COVID-19 pandemic and complex global circumstances have prompted a heightened level of apprehension about food security in Singapore. With a land area of slightly over 700 square kilometers, of which a mere 1% is dedicated to agricultural purposes, Singapore's overall level of food self-sufficiency is less than 10%. Historically, Singapore has relied on imports to address its food deficits. However, due to the pandemic's impact and geopolitical tensions, which have resulted in instability within the global supply chain, Singapore is now compelled to re-evaluate its approach to food security. Consequently, there has been a substantial focus on exploring strategies …

Research On The Relationship Between Service-Oriented Manufacturing Platforms And Customer Enterprise Innovation — Evidence From The 3d Printing Industry, Donglai Zhao

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are highly flexible and creative and play a significant role in the national economy and in employment, innovation, and entrepreneurship. However, due to their relatively small size, low technical level, lack of funds and talent, and backward management, they generally face development predicaments, such as the pressure to survive and weak anti-risk abilities. Therefore, in addition to leveraging their initiative to develop their competitive strength, making full use of external public service resources has become one approach MSMEs can take to find a way out of such predicaments. Various service-oriented manufacturing platform enterprises have …

An Est Approach To Entrepreneurial Exit In Chinese Family Business: A Case Study Of H Company, Lidian Zhang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Previous entrepreneurial exit literature has mostly followed a feature-oriented logic by summarizing the impact of industry and company characteristics and entrepreneurs’ personal traits on entrepreneurial exit decisions, disregarding the decision-making process of entrepreneurial exit and the role of key events in advancing the process. This thesis endeavors to explore the determining factors behind entrepreneurial exit decisions of family businesses and the dynamic decision-making process based on Event System Theory (EST) with a single-case study method and a feature-oriented and process-oriented approach.

This study has conducted an in-depth investigation into Company H, which possesses typical features of Chinese private family businesses. …

A Study On The Ore Grade, Operating Costs And Investment Value Of Iron Ore Miners Amid China's "Dual Carbon" Policy, Shunyi Yao

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

With the growing demand for steel in significant economies, iron ore remains a vital investment in the long run. Although many iron ore miners have recently generated significant returns for investors, some have not performed well financially. The existing literature does not provide an integrated theoretical framework to explain this problem. The study examines the mechanisms determining the investment value of iron ore miners when China establishes carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals ("Dual Carbon" policy). Further, based on the findings, this study also proposes investment strategies for iron ore miners in the future, which also has a high practical …

Under What Circumstances Are Chinese Entrepreneurs Reluctant To Go Public, Ting Huang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

As secondary stock markets often overestimate corporate value, many Chinese entrepreneurs seek to achieve their wealth targets by going public. However, some companies in China do not want to go public. This paper utilises multi-case research methods to develop theories about which factors lead to corporate reluctance to go public. Case studies show that compared with entrepreneurs with lower shareholdings, entrepreneurs with higher shareholdings have stronger long-term orientations and a greater desire for control and are more reluctant to go public. Industry characteristics affect entrepreneurs’ long-term orientation, desire for control, and early listing experience, thus influencing their listing decision-making. Empirical …

Organizational Factors That Facilitate Collective Social Entrepreneurship: An Exploratory Study, Kesarwani Nimisha

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

This research aims to contribute to the literature on collective social entrepreneurship (CSE) by exploring and examining the organizational factors that facilitate and motivate participation in CSE. Data were collected through an interview with the founder of a cooperative, and a survey, wherein respondents presented their expectations of a collective, their motivation to join, and the resources they deem important.

It was found that organizational factors, initialled as RRSI (relevance, resources, likelihood of success and innovativeness) which if met, have a reasonable chance of attracting participation in organizations pursuing CSE. These organizational factors had different appeal to stakeholders, based on …

Developing Social Entrepreneurial Intention: An Intervention Study In Thailand, Kanyaporn Skutalakul

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Social entrepreneurs are key players that could potentially create new initiatives and long-term solutions for our world to sustain the predicted forthcoming crises of overconsumption. Our world needs both kinds of entrepreneurship, both social and business, to collaboratively stimulate growth in a more balanced manner; however, the creation of social entrepreneurs at a higher rate of success and diffusion remains a challenge. This research proposed a number of new antecedents of social entrepreneurial intention (SEI) that were suggested by an exploratory study. The research was conducted in the context of Thailand and was designed to investigate the effects of different …

Predicting Success And Failure Factors Of Thai Start-Ups: An Empirical Study Of Start-Up Success And Its Determinants In Thailand, Ajjaree Limpamont

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Innovation is crucial to economic growth in both developed and emerging countries across the world. Its benefits creates impact on individuals, corporate and government stakeholders in improving quality of lives, increasing income levels and boost up economics. While innovations are important, where, and how they are best conceived of, managed, executed, and brought to the society has been of great debate and has attracted a great deal of scholarly inquiry. There have been numerous research findings discussing the wisdom and impact of each of these pathways. While the business start-up is an effective organizational form for harnessing resources and creating …

The Impact Of Digitalization On International Expansion: A Study On Market Entry Strategy Based On The Integration-Responsiveness Framework, Thian Kiang Tan

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Digitalization has accelerated the growth and creation of new business models. There are more unicorn companies (a non-public company valued at more than US$1B) in the last 10 years than the decades before it. The use of digital technologies presents new opportunities for digitally active firms to capture growth in a new market. This paper studies how digitalization influences the internationalization process of the firm and its mode of entry into a foreign market. Drawing on existing literature on digitalization, this paper creates a novel approach to study the effect of digitalization by classifying firms based on their market business …

Exploring The Impact Of Industry 4.0 On The Business Models Of Small And Medium-Sized Manufacturing Enterprises In Singapore, Surianarayanan Gopalakrishnan

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Triggered by the ongoing transformation of Singapore's manufacturing industries towards 'smart(er)' manufacturing with a focus on digitising and automating production processes and more competitive business models, this study contributes to the limited Asian management literature about the readiness and impact of 'Industry 4.0' (I4.0) on the business models of Singapore's Small and Medium-sized manufacturing Enterprises (SMEs). I4.0 encompasses adopting opportunities from end-to-end digitalisation with connected computers and increasingly autonomous automation systems equipped with intelligent machine learning algorithms that control robotics with minimal human input. As the traditional manufacturing model is increasingly replaced by advanced, high-value manufacturing technologies such as the …

The Impact Of Global Crisis On Innovation And Succession On Family Business From A Socioemotional Wealth Perspective, Lai Kuan Kim Wong

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The ongoing pandemic provides an invaluable opportunity to observe family businesses under extenuating circumstances, especially the Circuit Breaker which forced all non-essential workplaces to close to curb the spread of COVID-19; this in effect mandated that everyone should work from home. (Ministry of Health Singapore, 2020). This meant that for those working in intergenerational family businesses, they could also be living and working in the same confined space for an extended period. Does the accumulation of these circumstances create a phenomenon that leads to interactions that generate innovation and renew family bonds leading to succession?

Family businesses are known to …

Factors Contributing To Innovation Orientation Of Singapore Technology Small And Medium Enterprises (Smes), Kok Beng Neo

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

As Singapore transitioned from economy that was primarily dependent on foreign direct investments (FDI) to a knowledge-based economy driven by indigenously developed science, technology and innovations, it became critical for the local firms to grow and internationalize. The government has thus invested heavily (of $19 billion from 2016 to 2020, and $25 billion from 2021 to 2015) in science and technology research and development. The Committee of Future Economy (CFE) concluded that in an era of rapid technological change where innovation cycles have shortened, one of economic strategy is to support our “high growth” enterprises to “scale up”. However, the …

The Influence Of Incumbent- And Successor-Related Factors On Succession Process In Family Firms: Exploring The Role Of Values In Family Business Succession, Shengqin Zhu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Succession has been a major concern for family business. Although past research studies how to make successful family business succession from factors related to both incumbents and successors, most studies assume incumbents as the key driver of the succession process. Based on the literature about factors contributing to family business succession, the current research adopts a more comprehensive approach by combining qualitative and quantitative research methods to examine what factors lead to succession success and how to manage the succession process. Viewing succession as the process of mutual role adjustments of incumbents and successors, the qualitative research examines the interactions …