Simon C. Parker

• Vladasel, T.; Parker, S. C.; Sloof, R.; van Praag, M., 2024, "Revenue drift, incentives, and effort allocation in social enterprises", Journal of Economics and Management Strategy, November 33(3): 630 - 651.
  Abstract: Revenue drift, whereby insufficient attention is given to economic, relative to social, goals, threatens social enterprise performance and survival. We argue that financial incentives can address this problem by redirecting employee attention to commercial tasks and attracting workers less inclined to fixate on social tasks. In an online experiment with varying incentive levels, monetary rewards succeed in directing worker effort to commercial tasks; high-powered incentives attract less prosocial employees, but low-powered incentives do not alter workforce composition. Social enterprises combining monetary rewards with a social mission not only attract more workers but are also able to guard against revenue drift.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jems.12590

• Parker, S. C., 2024, "Overcoming internal barriers to new venture growth: The role of employee motivations", Journal of Small Business Management, August 62(3): 1323 - 1346.
  Abstract: A major internal barrier to new venture growth is employee effort that diminishes with expansion of the venture's workforce. This paper advances entrepreneurial growth theory by exploring conceptually how management measures that leverage three distinct employee motivations - extrinsic, intrinsic, and prosocial - affect this barrier. I argue that "agency measures" which leverage employees' extrinsic motivations likely lose their effectiveness as firms grow; in contrast, measures that leverage employees' prosocial motivations are better placed to overcome the internal growth barrier and spur ongoing new venture growth.

  Link(s) to publication:

  https://doi.org/10.1080/00472778.2022.2133129

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00472778.2022.2133129

• Seong, M.; Parker, S. C., 2024, "Does gendered wording in job advertisements deter women from joining start‐ups? A replication and extension of Gaucher, Friesen, and Kay (2011)", Strategic entrepreneurship journal, June 18(2): 286 - 305.
  Abstract: Abstract Research Summary Gaucher, Friesen, and Kay (2011: “GFK” hereafter) found that women perceive jobs to be less appealing when job adverts use masculine wording—a result they attributed to women's lower evaluations of “belongingness.” As masculine wording is used more often in male‐dominated jobs, GFK concluded that gendered wording in job adverts may deter women from entering such jobs. In light of growing general interest in joining new ventures (“start‐ups”), we replicate and extend GFK's study to compare start‐ups and established firms. Interestingly, we find that GFK's original findings are replicated in the context of start‐ups, but not in established firms. We propose and adduce evidence that the unique context of start‐ups may prime women to respond especially sensitively to gendered wording, via positive expectancy violation. Managerial Summary This article builds on a previous study that found masculine wording in job adverts deters women from entering male‐dominated jobs. Our purpose is to try to replicate these findings using a more recent sample of data and distinguishing new ventures (“start‐ups”) from established firms. Interestingly, we show that the prior finding is only replicated in the context of start‐ups and not established firms. Hence, women's responsiveness to gendered wording in job adverts appears to depend on the context. Implications are that incorporating feminine wording in job adverts is likely to be more effective in contexts where women anticipate greater challenges in becoming integrated into the workplace culture. Entrepreneurs' recruitment strategies designed to assemble a diverse workforce should therefore differ from those of established firms.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sej.1489

• Parker, S. C., 2024, "Democracy, corruption, and endogenous entrepreneurship policy", Public Choice, March 198: 361 - 376.
  Abstract: This paper endogenizes pro-entrepreneurship policies in a model where voters choose the strength of these policies and entrepreneurs generate social returns which benefit the median voter. In the model, incumbent firms who are harmed by the greater competition that this policy promotes can push back in two ways: via corruption and persuasion. Specifically, they can bribe elected politicians to break their campaign promises; and they can allocate some of their rents to corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives that also benefit voters. The model predicts that corruption which weakens pro-entrepreneurship policy can be completely neutralized by a forward-looking median voter—without removing the incentive among incumbent firms to bribe politicians. In this way, endogenizing entrepreneurship policy can destroy any relationship between corruption and entrepreneurship. Corporate social responsibility initiatives modify this prediction, which provides a novel rationale for CSR that appears to be new to the literature as well.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11127-023-01133-1

• Parker, S. C.; Åstebro, T.; Audretsch, D. B.; Blackburn, R.; Burke, A.; Coad, A.; Cowling, M.; Davidsson, P.; Fritsch, M.; Greene, F., et al., 2024, "Remembering David J Storey, a pioneer of the entrepreneurship field", Small Bus Econ, January 62(1): 1 - 21.
  Abstract: David Storey was a pioneer of entrepreneurship scholarship. His book, Understanding the Small Business Sector, was fundamental in establishing entrepreneurship as a new field. Looking back at its influence after three decades have passed, this book—and indeed, David’s complete body of work—can be seen as a bridge between the traditional field of small business research, and the emerging field of entrepreneurship (see Roy Thurik’s contribution in the present article for more on this point). Those who knew David personally had been aware for some time that he was fighting a terminal illness. The authors of the present article (‘we’) agreed early in the summer of 2023 to write a joint article to recognize his contribution to the field and honor his memory. Unfortunately, David passed away in August 2023 while our writing efforts were still underway. Nevertheless, we decided to continue with our efforts. Earlier in 2023, we had asked David to share his views about our initiative. With characteristic modesty, David approved, but on condition that instead of writing a ‘puff piece’ we strove to situate and embed his contributions alongside ongoing research efforts. Each of the authors of the present article has tried to honor his wishes by focusing on some specific aspect or theme running through David’s impressive body of research output. It is logical to start with a brief overview of David Storey’s career and numerous accomplishments. After graduating with a first-class degree in economics, a diploma in applied statistics, and a Ph.D. in economics, David worked in several British universities, most notably at Warwick Business School—where he was founder and director of the Centre for Small and Medium Enterprises—and latterly at the University of Sussex. He received two honorary doctorates and was a Visiting Professor at the Universities of Manchester, Reading, and Durham, as well as an International Fellow at Sydney University in 2009. Between 2001 and 2005, he was appointed by the UK Secretary of State for Trade and Industry as a member of the Small Business Council, advising the government on small business policy-making. In 1998, he received the prestigious International Award for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Research from the Swedish Council. David was awarded an OBE (Order of the British Empire) for services to business in 2010, and in 2022, he was elected as a Fellow of the British Academy, the UK’s national academy for the humanities and social sciences, for his contribution to business and management studies. David’s work has had a major impact both on policymakers and on academics, with over 34,000 Google Scholar citations at the time of writing, and an h-index score of 76. The remainder of this article unpacks these impacts on both communities. This article is arranged in sections, each of which was authored by a different scholar or scholar team. The sections are ordered alphabetically by author’s last name(s). Draft sections were completed and received feedback from other members of the author team in Fall 2023: the result is the multi-section tribute article you see below. Hopefully, it gives a sense of the substantial, multi-faceted, and influential body of work that David left behind, as well as conveying a flavor of the unique person that David was. At the same time, given David’s immense influence, it may also provide an overview of the development of our field of small business and entrepreneurship economics in the last three decades.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11187-023-00848-1

• Chung, S. H. D.; Parker, S. C., 2023, "Founder affiliations: jobseeker reactions and impact on employee recruitment by start-up ventures", Small Business Economics, June 61(1): 259 - 283.
  Abstract: Many entrepreneurs face challenges in hiring employees, in part because of information asymmetries between start-ups and jobseekers. This paper argues that the prestigious organizational affiliations of founders act as signals that can convey two distinct unobservable attributes: (1) founder-related attributes and (2) venture-related attributes. We perform a series of randomized controlled experiments with respondents who are searching for jobs or will do so in the near future. Our results show that a founder’s affiliations with prestigious organizations make a start-up venture more attractive to jobseekers, and that they do so by signaling founder-related attributes rather than venture quality. Furthermore, we also find that the effects of prestigious founder affiliations are likely to be particularly strong when recruiting jobseekers straight out of universities.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11187-022-00694-7

• Plummer, L. A.; Parker, S. C.; Reyes, S., 2022, "Regional Path Breaking: The Role of Industry Switching, Industry Diversity, and New Knowledge in New Venture Exit", Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice, September 46(5): 1231 - 1255.
  Abstract: Regions with spatial concentrations of businesses create conditions that spawn new firms, but also undercut new venture survival. Localized competition puts pressure on new firms to exit. Adding to this pressure to exit is regional path dependence, which limits the ability of firms to respond strategically to hostile local conditions. We investigate the extent to which the pressure to exit created by localized competition is moderated by three “path breaking” factors—new knowledge, industry diversity, and industry switching. We test and find broad support for our hypotheses using data from 355 metropolitan statistical areas in the United States spanning 2002 to 2010.

  Link(s) to publication:

  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1042258720952288

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1042258720952288

• Kim, N. K.; Parker, S. C., 2021, "Entrepreneurial homeworkers", Small Business Economics, October 57(3): 1427 - 1452.
  Abstract: Nearly 40% of British self-employees are homeworkers. Using a large representative sample of the UK longitudinal survey data, we explore the determinants of self-employed homeworking, distinguishing between genders. We reject the notion that homeworking is a transitional entrepreneurial state that the self-employed “grow out of”, while establishing that both employer status and business structure play an important role in predicting which self-employed become homeworkers. Our findings also shed light on two outstanding puzzles in entrepreneurship scholarship: why so few of the self-employed create jobs for others, and why on average the self-employed suffer an earnings penalty compared with employees.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11187-020-00356-6

• Sewaid, A.; Parker, S. C.; Kaakeh, A., 2021, "Explaining Serial Crowdfunders’ Dynamic Fundraising Performance", JOURNAL OF BUSINESS VENTURING, July 36(4)
  Abstract: Crowdfunding, and research which studies it, has exploded in the last decade. Every year, we learn more about the different types of crowdfunders, including ‘serial crowdfunders’ – people who go on to launch several campaigns in succession. Nearly one-third all of funds on the leading crowdfunding platform Kickstarter are undertaken by serial crowdfunders. We still know relatively little about whether success at raising funds in one crowdfunding campaign improves serial crowdfunders’ success prospects in subsequent campaigns. Answering this research question promises to enhance our understanding of the financing of a sequence of ventures by the same entrepreneur. Prior work has explored multi-stage lending of venture capital-backed projects, and relationship lending between banks and borrowers, but analysis of the financing of multiple distinct projects by serial entrepreneurs scarce. By exploring sequences of fundraising success among serial crowdfunders, we are able to discover whether or not past success leads to future success – a question of keen interest to entrepreneurs and their backers on crowdfunding platforms. To investigate this topic, we gather data on serial crowdfunders from the world’s largest reward-based crowdfunding platform, Kickstarter. Our dataset is comprised of 29,788 serial crowdfunders who launched 75,654 campaigns since Kickstarter’s inception in April, 2009 and up to November, 2016. In total they raised $859 million, which represents 38.5% of the funds raised on Kickstarter during the same period. Our analysis reveals for the first time that amounts raised by serial crowdfunders exhibit a cyclical pattern over time, with above-average funding success being followed by below-average success, which is then followed by above-average success, and so on. Our empirical investigations suggest that effort-based dynamic reputation management can explain this finding. That is, following an over-performing crowdfunding campaign, entrepreneurs can afford to supply somewhat less costly effort to the next campaign without unduly damaging their reputation with backers, resulting in underperformance; but this underperformance stimulates entrepreneurs to exert higher levels of effort next time to restore their reputation, leading to over-performance. Our findings carry several implications for scholarship and practice. For example, our work highlights the importance of crowdfunders’ reputations and reputation management. Thus, if an entrepreneur anticipates wanting to launch a future project about which they are especially passionate, our results recommend they exert higher effort than they might otherwise supply to that project’s predecessor. This would proactively build a positive reputation which would increase the future project’s chances of getting funded. Additionally, our results suggest that serial crowdfunders may want to develop industry-specific knowledge by launching campaigns in the same industry, since changing industry seems to adversely affect their subsequent fundraising performance. We also highlight the role of timely launches of new campaigns, since waiting for longer periods of time between campaigns seems to adversely affect funding outcomes as well. Finally, our results also suggest that crowdfunding platform operators might want to provide additional guidance to crowdfunders beyond their initial campaigns. Instructions helping crowdfunders to maintain their fundraising performance in subsequent campaigns, or how to reverse unfavorable funding outcomes, could also be of considerable practical value.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2021.106124

• Suàrez, J-L.; White, R. E.; Parker, S. C.; Jimenez-Mavillard, A., 2021, "Entrepreneurship bias and the mass media: Evidence from big data", Academy of Management Discoveries, June 7(2): 247 - 265.
  Abstract: Does the mass media promote entrepreneurship? Using big data in combination with a machine learning aided analysis we discover a positive sentiment bias associated with entrepreneurship present in two major English language media outlets – The New York Times and the Financial Times. Over eight hundred thousand excerpts from a 12 and 16-year period were analyzed. Those containing the words ‘entrepreneur’ and ‘founder’ had much more positive sentiment than did excerpts with the words ‘manager’ and ‘executive’. A parallel analysis of the FANG companies (Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google) in comparison to a set of older and more established Fortune 500 companies produced similar results. While more work is needed to make the link between media biases and career choice, we believe this media bias promotes entrepreneurship, resulting in lower (average) incomes and higher risks for those engaged in this career path. However, because entrepreneurial activity can create positive externalities in the broader economy this bias, while financially disadvantageous for the average entrepreneur, may be beneficial overall for their society.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/amd.2018.0177

• Masucci, M.; Parker, S. C.; Brusoni, S.; Camerani, R., 2021, "How are corporate ventures evaluated and selected?", Technovation
  Abstract: This study provides a fine-grained analysis of the decision-making process and criteria underling the evaluation and selection of nascent corporate ventures. By integrating a small sample case-based analysis and the examination of a longitudinal dataset comprising 14 years of archival data, it explores the selection and funding process of early-stage entrepreneurial initiatives supported by the internal corporate venture unit of a major energy company. Its findings extend prior conceptualizations of the internal venture selection process, uncovering differences in the relevance of the criteria used to evaluate ventures at different stages.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2020.102126

• Gamble, E.; Parker, S. C.; Moroz, P., 2020, "Measuring the Integration of Social and Environmental Missions in Hybrid Organizations", Journal of Business Ethics, November 167(2): 271 - 284.
  Abstract: This paper introduces a new typology and associated measure of social and environmental mission integration (SEMI) by conceptually framing a feature of hybrid organizations—the degree of integration of their revenue model and social–environmental mission. The SEMI measure is illustrated using a hand-collected sample of 256 North American Certified B Corporations. We explore the heterogeneity of SEMI scores by identifying external-facing correlates and demonstrate non-congruence with Certified B Corporation’s audit results. Overall, our findings advance existing knowledge of these hybrid organizations and how they balance their social–environmental missions with their economic objectives.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10551-019-04146-3

• Rosendahl Huber, L.; Sloof, R.; Van Praag, M.; Parker, S. C., 2020, "Diverse cognitive skills and team performance: A field experiment based on an entrepreneurship education program", Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, September 177: 569 - 588.
  Abstract: Verbal and mathematical reasoning are key cognitive skills which individuals use throughout their lives to create economic value. We argue that individuals undertaking entrepreneurial tasks also draw on these skills, and we study how best these skills should be combined in entrepreneurial teams. To that purpose we conduct a randomized field experiment using data from the BizWorld entrepreneurship education program. Four different types of teams are created which differ in terms of their cognitive skill composition. Our results show that balanced skills are beneficial for a team’s venture performance only if it comes from within-person skill balance, and that combining team members with different skills in mixed teams does not compensate for a lack of members who individually possess balanced cognitive skills.

  Link(s) to publication:

  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167268120302183

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2020.06.030

• Parker, S. C.; Gamble, E.; Moroz, P. W.; Branzei, O., 2019, "The Impact of B Lab Certification on Firm Growth", Academy of Management Discoveries, March 5(1): 55 - 77.
  Abstract: We investigate the impact of B Lab certification – a rapidly growing type of third-party certification for organizations with social and/or environmental missions – on the short-term growth rates of certifying firms. To date, this kind of certification has generally been regarded as an unalloyed good for the organizations that adopt it; but prior research has overlooked the possibility that it may also entail attentional deficits and internal organizational disruption, leading to a short-term growth slowdown. Our study reports results based on a novel, hand-collected dataset of 249 mainly privately held North American Certified B Corporations over 2011-2014. Our results, derived from a difference-in-difference framework, and augmented with insights from a set of in-depth interviews, identifies a short-term growth slowdown arising from certification, which is more pronounced for the smallest and youngest firms. These findings highlight the need for management theorists to pay greater attention to internal re-organization costs as well as external benefits flowing from B Lab certification; they also carry important practical implications for organizations contemplating certification.

  Link(s) to publication:

  https://journals.aom.org/doi/10.5465/amd.2017.0068

  http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/amd.2017.0068

• Branzei, O.; Parker, S. C.; Moroz, P. W.; Gamble, E., 2018, "Going pro-social: Extending the individual-venture nexus to the collective level", Journal of Business Venturing, September 33(5): 551 - 565.
  Abstract: The aim of this Special Issue is to demonstrate how drawing on multidisciplinary insights from the literature on prosociality can broaden the individual-opportunity nexus to make room for a variety of actors. Five feature articles emphasize the collective level of the analysis, underscoring the social distance between the entrepreneurs and the different communities they serve. Leveraging construal level theory, we abductively derive an organizing framework that helps us articulate how stretching or compressing social distance can transform initial opportunities into occasions for serving the greater good. We identify two distinct mechanisms present in all five empirical studies that explain how the needs and hopes of many others may add creativity, consistency and connectivity to one's venture. We also connect these abductive insights with the two editorials that follow this introduction and nudge our collective attention towards the research opportunities awaiting our academic community once we begin to relax the egocentric reference point that, until recently, has defined the discipline of entrepreneurship.

  Link(s) to publication:

  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.06.007

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