Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations Commons^™

Moral Boundaries: How Sacred Values And Cultural Tightness Influence Entrepreneurial Action, Paul Sanchez-Ruiz, Ileana Maldonado-Bautista, Peter G. Klein, Joseph Vaughn

Management Faculty Publications

This study examines how religiously grounded sacred values and cultural tightness shape entrepreneurial action. Scholarship on religious entrepreneurship often emphasizes how practices connected to believed superhuman powers motivate and support entrepreneurial processes and outcomes. We highlight a complementary perspective by theorizing that sacred values work as moral commitments rooted in religious practices that limit the action individuals view as acceptable under uncertainty. We further argue that the influence of sacred values depends on the cultural contexts in which entrepreneurial action is embedded. Using multilevel data from more than 14,000 individuals across 11 countries, we find that sacred values are negatively …

What Are The Factors Affecting The Financial Sustainability Of Social Enterprises In Egypt?, Mina Atta Ghaly

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates what factors affect the financial sustainability of social enterprises (SEs) in Egypt, situating them within a constrained MSME, legal and sectoral context marked by informality, weak innovation and recurrent shocks. Drawing on global and Egyptian literature, it identifies ten candidate factors—business model, financial management, founders’ skills and mindset, revenue structure, sector and mission, legal framework and innovative finance, capacity building, investment mechanisms and “the right investor”, adaptability to shocks, and ecosystem conditions—and integrates them into an extended Social Enterprise Model Canvas. Using a qualitative, exploratory design with semi‑structured interviews of social enterprise founders, incubators/accelerators, investors and experts, …

Entrepreneurial New Firm Survival As A Performance Indicator : A Multi-Level Process Perspective, Szabolcs Németh, Andrea Bikfalvi Phd, Neus Vila-Brunet

Journal of Business & Entrepreneurship

Understanding the survival of new firms requires examining the intricate interplay of internal and external factors across various levels and stages. While existing literature often emphasizes performance metrics, mortality rates, or antecedents of survival, it frequently overlooks the dynamic and continuous nature of entrepreneurial survival. This study extends empirical research on new firm survival through multiple case studies of seven incubated firms within four incubators in Catalonia, north-eastern Spain. aiming to (1) examine new firm survival as a performance indicator by categorizing the elements of the process across various levels and stages; (2) integrate the factors influencing survival by identifying …

Thirsty For Success

DePaul Magazine

While earning an undergraduate finance degree at DePaul’s Driehaus College of Business, Eddie Favela launched a bottled agua fresca startup that’s poised for national success.

The Drivers Of The Gender Gap In Financial Inclusion For Entrepreneurial Development: Empirical Analysis From Tanzania, Cornel Joseph, Chakupewa Joseph Mpambije

Business Management Review

The gender gap in financial inclusion is a significant concern for both the academic community and policymakers, as it represents a critical factor influencing the development of entrepreneurship in Tanzania. Using the World Bank’s Findex database of 2021, this paper examines the drivers of the gender gap in financial inclusion for entrepreneurial development in Tanzania. The study adopts the Fairlie decomposition to examine the contribution of these factors to the gender gap in access and usage of financial services. The empirical results from the Fairlie decomposition analysis confirm the existence of a gender gap in access to financial services in …

An Evaluation Of Structural Gaps And Systemic Barriers In The Entrepreneurship Ecosystem, Iryna V. Lendel, Chloe Wieber, Molly Schnoke

Upjohn Institute Technical Reports

This comprehensive study of Dayton, Ohio’s minority entrepreneurial ecosystem was supported by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Based on a multi-year research effort and in-depth interviews with business support organizations (BSOs) and ecosystem stakeholders, the study examines how Dayton’s extensive network of entrepreneurial services supports minority and underrepresented entrepreneurs, identifies persistent gaps, and documents how the ecosystem has evolved amid COVID-19 disruptions, declining federal funding, and shifting approaches to diversity, equity, and inclusion. The study highlights strengths such as well-built early-stage support and collaborative service networks, alongside challenges including limited later-stage business assistance, fragmented entry points, misaligned performance metrics, and …

Structuring A Practice Sale: The Basics, Daniel Schulte Jd

The Journal of the Michigan Dental Association

This legal column provides an overview of the basic structures involved in selling a dental practice. It distinguishes between equity interest sales, which often favor sellers through capital gains treatment and liability transfers, and asset sales, which buyers generally prefer to avoid liabilities and gain tax depreciation benefits. The author discusses the role of a Letter of Intent, the importance of due diligence, and professional valuation, urging practitioners to assemble a team of specialized legal and financial advisors.

How Much Could You Save Using Mda Services Endorsed Vendors?, Reva Darling

The Journal of the Michigan Dental Association

This column details the financial advantages of utilizing MDA-endorsed vendors to improve practice profitability. It explains the vetting process performed by volunteers to ensure vendors offer meaningful discounts and vetted solutions. The source highlights specific services, such as PPO fee negotiation, dental marketing, and insurance verifications, which can save a practice over $58,000 annually. By leveraging collective bargaining, members gain access to revenue-boosting solutions without exhaustive trial-and-error searching.

How Public Trust Matters To Future Taxpayer Compliance In Indonesia, Shelvi Shelvi, Tutik Rachmawati

BISNIS & BIROKRASI: Jurnal Ilmu Administrasi dan Organisasi

This study examines the role of public trust in shaping future taxpayer compliance, a critical factor for achieving the long-term development vision of Indonesia Emas 2045. While trust has been extensively studied in the context of current taxpayers, research on its role among younger generations as future taxpayers in developing economies remains limited. To address this gap, a mixed-methods approach was employed, combining survey data from 420 students with in-depth interviews. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to test the hypothesis that public trust influences future taxpayer compliance. The results demonstrate that public trust …

Introduction To Jbb Volume 33 Number 1, Muhammad Ramaditya

BISNIS & BIROKRASI: Jurnal Ilmu Administrasi dan Organisasi

No abstract provided.

Extent Of Adopting New Public Management Strategies In The Nigerian Public Service, Oluwaseyi Isaiah Alamu, Wasiu Abiodun Makinde, Bolanle W. Shiyanbade

BISNIS & BIROKRASI: Jurnal Ilmu Administrasi dan Organisasi

The Nigerian public service has faced significant challenges in delivering quality services to citizens, which necessitate the adoption of New Public Management (NPM) strategies. New Public Management focused on improving the quality-of-service delivery and public sector performance through a market-oriented approach of performance measurement, decentralization of decision making, performance contracting, and accountability for results, among others. This study examines the extent of adoption of NPM strategies in the Nigerian public service using the selected federal ministries of Nigeria. Survey research design through qualitative and quantitative (mixed method) approaches was used for data collection and analysis. The population of the study …

Factor And Demand Conditions Shaping Production Effectiveness In Remote Msmes: A Case Study Of Luci Snack In North Kalimantan, Saadiq Alhadi, Hasyim Asyari

Jurnal Vokasi Indonesia

The production effectiveness of agro-industrial MSMEs in remote frontier regions is severely hampered by geographic isolation and lack of basic infrastructure. This study examines the unique case of Luci Snack in North Kalimantan, operating without state electricity or land access. The research aims to analyze how the interaction between Factor Conditions (river logistics and technology) and Demand Conditions influences Production Effectiveness. Employing an embedded single-case study design, data were collected via in-depth interviews with the owner and village officials, participant observation, and documentation, then analyzed using the Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña (2014) interactive model. Findings reveal a paradox: (1) Production …

Enhancing Creativity Through Systematic Teaching: A Case Study In Management Education, Uri Sternberg, Sarit Moldovan

International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

This article presents a case study of an innovative teaching approach within an MBA course titled “Systematic Creative Thinking.” It demonstrates how the course applies the creativity principles it teaches to its own instructional design, embodying theory in practice. By utilizing ideation templates such as the Multiplication and Division, the course incorporates diverse teaching methodologies, including flipped classrooms, multimedia resources, and experiential group activities. This design fosters student engagement by addressing varied learning preferences and encouraging active participation. Qualitative and quantitative evidence indicate increased student satisfaction, improved performance, and deeper understanding, achieved through the synergy of theoretical instruction and …

Why Agtech Startups Fail? Evidence From Global Shutdown Patterns In 2025 And The Cost-Adoption Mismatch Effect, Ankit Chandra, Ishani Lal

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Presentations and White Papers

Agricultural technologies are widely seen as a driver for sustainability, resilience, and food-system transformation. Yet in 2025, agtech startup across North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa experienced multiple shutdowns. Although each company closed for its own reasons, the failures highlight consistent underlying patterns. We analyze 18 publicly reported shutdowns across controlled-environment agriculture (CEA), robotics, insect protein, digital platforms, sensors, and ag-biotechnology. We find that most ventures struggled not with scientific feasibility but with economic and adoption dynamics at the farm level. We identify a Cost-Adoption Mismatch Effect, in which the capital and operational burden of a technology exceeds farmers’ capacity …

The Nexus Between Entrepreneurial Ingenuity Antecedents And Market Penetration Of Tanzanian Formal Retail Businessesmarket Penetration: Entrepreneurial Ingenuity: Formal Retail Business, Salum Makangila, Omari Khalifa Mbura

Business Management Review

The entrepreneurial ingenuity is a fundamental strategy employed by business proprietors and operators to navigate market penetration challenges when formal and informal retail businesses operate simultaneously in the same commercial environments. Guided by positivism research philosophy and cross-sectional design, quantitative data were collected from randomly selected sample size of 520 business proprietors and operators through structured questionnaire. The study hypothesized and tested the relationship between entrepreneurial ingenuity antecedents and market penetration of Tanzanian formal retail businesses using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The empirical results reveals that entrepreneurial ingenuity antecedents namely creative, innovative and open-minded behaviour positively and significantly influences market …

Build A Global Art And Jewelry Auction Ecosystem That Integrates Offline And Online, Xiaochun Cathy Liu

MA Projects

Our success path is clear and executable: through a phased global market penetration strategy, we first deeply cultivate the Asia Pacific region to establish a lighthouse, then enter the European and American hinterland, and ultimately achieve global network interconnection; Deeply bind core collectors through the "elite membership system" and build a high stickiness community; And by competing for academic discourse power and publishing authoritative market indices, gradually mastering the pricing power of the industry, evolving from a participant to a rule maker. Arture's vision is to become a super species that integrates trading platforms, academic institutions, top communities, and industry …

What Makes An Internationalizing Firm Entrepreneurial?, Daniel R. Clark, Robert J. Pidduck, Nicole E. Coviello

Management Faculty Publications

Zahra et al. (2024) argue that prior research has insufficient understanding of the entrepreneurial nature of internationalization. To address this, they integrate theories from management and international business to develop a firm-level typology that incorporates (1) the degree of radicalness of the firm’s entrepreneurial behavior and (2) the firm’s level of foreign market commitment. We advance these efforts by proposing that, to understand what makes an internationalizing firm entrepreneurial, researchers will also benefit from direct insights from entrepreneurship research. We retain Zahra et al.’s (2024) behavioral focus in our arguments but shift attention to the individuals …

Arts Cures: A Business Plan For Integrating Art As A Biometric Tool For Sensory Wellbeing In Commercial Ecosystems, Xinuo Zhang

MA Projects

In an era of heightened connectivity and data-driven metrics, modern society faces a crisis of sensory impoverishment and emotional disconnection. While technology quantifies human experience, it often fails to address the visceral need for authentic feeling. This business plan proposes "Arts Cures," a venture that repositions art from a passive commodity to an active, systemic solution for well-being. By leveraging insights from neuroscience, design theory, and existential philosophy, Arts Cures develops a suite of B2B and B2C services that integrate art as functional, biometric-responsive infrastructure. Our core offerings include AI-driven sensory pods for real-time emotional regulation, data-informed curatorial services for …

90-Day Consulting Engagement Grounded In Authentic And Servant Leadership Approaches–Building Capacity For Small Business, Michon Hicks

Doctor of Strategic Leadership (DSL) Capstone Abstracts

This doctoral capstone project examined a 90-day consulting engagement designed to strengthen organizational capacity in a small, M/WBE-certified professional services firm operating in a government contracting environment. Grounded in authentic and servant leadership frameworks, the engagement used a structured 30-60-90-day intervention model to assess leadership alignment, administrative infrastructure, human resources capacity, data management practices, and marketing readiness. The project employed an organizational health check-up approach to diagnose systemic gaps, co-create solutions with organizational leadership, and implement practical tools to improve operational consistency, compliance readiness, and leadership effectiveness. Outcomes of the engagement included improved leadership alignment, standardized administrative and operational workflows, …

The Adolescent Development Of Small Business Owners’ Entrepreneurial Mindset, Fern Arredondo

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe how small business owners in Southern California interpret experiences before age 20 that influenced the development of the eight domains of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) Entrepreneurial Mindset Index (EMI). This study used a qualitative phenomenological approach to explore how adult small business owners reflect upon and interpret experiences before age 20 that influenced the development of their entrepreneurial mindset. By examining the influence of pre-adulthood on these owners, the study aimed to deepen the understanding of how early experiences shape entrepreneurial mindsets and contribute to long-term entrepreneurial success. …

Sociocultural Outsidership In Entrepreneurship: Rethinking The Double-Edged Role In Marginalisation, Robert J. Pidduck, Susana C. Santos, Eric W. Liguori, Reginald Tucker, Alexander Newman

Management Faculty Publications

This editorial introduces the special issue on marginalisation and entrepreneurship. While entrepreneurship research has long examined the impact of economic deprivation and structural barriers, far less attention has been given to sociocultural elements of outsidership – such as status incongruence, class-based identity conflict or cultural misalignment, among other related facets. We bring these dynamics to the fore, offering a conceptually rich yet ideologically neutral lens through which to understand how outsider dynamics can shape entrepreneurial cognition, legitimacy and venture development. Further, by synthesising emerging work across fragmented literatures, we propose a research agenda that explores sociocultural outsidership not only as …

Don't Walk By: Policy, Advocacy, And The Power Of Reconnection, Ashley Martinez, Isabella Dawkins, Hayley Tarro, Abby Hodge, Lily Stockwell, Grace Culp, Sebastian Lopez, Jesse Hartland

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Through this project, we will utilize dilemma reconciliation to address homelessness in the United States with frameworks implemented from The Netherlands and Finland.

J Am Coll Dent 2026 92 2b

Journal of the American College of Dentists

This special issue of the Journal of the American College of Dentists responds to a growing but long-underrecognized demand for humanities and ethics in dental education, practice, and scholarship. It emerges from the work of the National Collaborative on Humanities and Ethics in Dentistry (NCHED), a multi-institutional partnership formed in 2023 to address the persistent exclusion of dentistry from broader health humanities conversations. Through national webinars and scholarly collaboration, NCHED has demonstrated substantial interest in ethical reflection, historical analysis, narrative inquiry, and the arts as essential to understanding oral health and dental care.

The unexpectedly strong response to the call …

Integrating Social Media And Entrepreneurship: A Study Of Social Media, Creativity, Strategy, And Innovation In Building A Successful Brand Presence In The Digital Era, Lys Ishiari

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Social media has completely changed what it means to start a business. It was once just a place for personal interactions but is currently a powerful channel that drives the growth of multiple industries (Felicia, 2022). Now, anyone can use their personal creativity and hobbies to build a brand, especially on apps like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. The purpose of this study is to identify the common themes behind social media entrepreneurs’ success, which allows individuals to become both creators and business owners in the digital age. Furthermore, a key part of writing this paper is personal; it connects to …

Identifying And Prioritizing Essential Healthcare Services For A Private Start-Up Healthcare Hub In Laxmipasha, Bangladesh, Ferdous Ara Mostofa

Dissertations

This quantitative study identifies and prioritizes essential healthcare services for developing a private start-up healthcare hub in Laxmipasha, Bangladesh, a rural community with significant gaps in healthcare access. Using secondary data from national and international sources, the research analyzed disease burden, population characteristics, and service availability to determine the most urgent health priorities. A structured, evidence-based framework was used to evaluate services based on mortality and morbidity, service gaps, and potential health impact. The findings indicate that Maternal and Child Health (MCH), Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) management, and infectious disease control represent the most critical priorities for initial implementation. The study …

The Differential Impacts Of Internal And External Corporate Social Responsibility Activities On Consumer Trust After Covid-19, Kennadi C. Mccoy

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation explores the strategic role of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in helping small businesses recover from crises, with a specific focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. Different from many traditional studies that highlight the ethical or reputational aspects of CSR, this research will examine its practical effects: how CSR initiatives during crises influence business success by enhancing consumer trust, particularly by examining the differential impact of Internal CSR versus External CSR. The study suggests that, compared with internally focused CSR, external CSR activities will have a greater impact on consumer trust. In addition, the dissertation suggests that this effect is …

Heartbeats: Sustainable Practices In Business, Natalie Pham, Shareef Awadallah, Lily Lisco, Logan Blissenbach, Nikolaos Verginis

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

HeartBeats Co. LLC is a premier audio and software technology brand that brings renewed character and performance to a stagnant space, revolutionizing the listening experience by engineering a digital music platform and headphones that possess distinct style and exceptional performance. While our team identifies and tracks trends in the market, we strive to establish market trends rather than to follow them. We are a company founded on innovation, redefining the music streaming market by combining the importance of wellness with the latest audio and software technologies and innovative functionalities. This document outlines a ten-year plan for efficient and impactful scaling, …

Too Warm To Win Big? Unpacking The Backer Dynamics Behind Female Crowdfunding Success Using A Warmth And Competence Perspective, Dan Liu

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

While crowdfunding is often heralded as a democratized funding avenue that empowers women with higher success rates, this study reveals a more nuanced picture of gender dynamics. The Stereotype Content Model suggests that women are often perceived as warmer but less competent. Using a large dataset from Kickstarter, we find that female-led projects can attract more backers, likely due to warmth-driven appeal, but receive smaller average contributions, potentially due to concerns about risk linked to lower perceived competence. However, the total funding raised by female-led campaigns is comparable to that of male-led ones, showing no clear advantage or disadvantage. This …

Design Thinking For Corporate Social Responsibility Program Proposal Creation, Michelle "Mindy" D. Danovaro

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study used action research to explore how the use of design thinking engaged employees in the creation of a corporate social responsibility (CSR) program proposal in a small- to medium-enterprises (SME) in the Sacramento region of California. The purpose of the study was to assess whether employee participation in a design thinking exercise could improve employee perception of engagement, inclusion, and reciprocity during the CSR program proposal creation. The study was grounded in social exchange theory, stakeholder theory, and design thinking methodologies. The iterative research process followed action research cycles (i.e., plan, act, observe, and reflect) integrated with …

A Methodological Framework For Modernizing Engineering Course Content With Large Language Models, Katherine Smith, Dalya Ismael, Otilia Popescu, Murat Kuzlu, Adel El-Shahat, Vukica M. Jovanovic

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

The rapid evolution of technology presents challenges for engineering educators. While the core engineering methods often remain relevant over time, course materials rapidly become outdated in presentation and pedagogical approach. This paper presents a methodological framework for using large-language models (LLMs) to modernize engineering course content with a case study in an advanced technical analysis course.

The methodology follows a phased approach that is designed to be repeatable and verify the accuracy and completeness of course content. During the first phase, an LLM is used to map outdated text-heavy content to a modern format using a LaTeX template. The second …