IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jobuve/v19y2023ics235267342300001x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Firm growth and profitability: The role of age and size in shifts between growth–profitability configurations

Author

Listed:
  • Mansikkamäki, Susanna

Abstract

To investigate the routes toward profitable growth, this study partially replicates and extends the work of Davidsson et al. (2009) on firm growth–profitability dynamics with multi-industry data on over 66,000 Finnish firms. The results support prior findings on initial profitability being more important than initial growth for achieving high performance in both performance dimensions. Additional investigations on the role of firm age and size reveal further interesting dynamics: Very small young firms face fewer risks from growing at a low profitability level than other firms, and the benefits of firm size for future performance depend on the firm's current profitability. The results advance the understanding of the reasons and consequences of the different modes (i.e., profitable vs. non-profitable) of firm growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Mansikkamäki, Susanna, 2023. "Firm growth and profitability: The role of age and size in shifts between growth–profitability configurations," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 19(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jobuve:v:19:y:2023:i:c:s235267342300001x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbvi.2023.e00372
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S235267342300001X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jbvi.2023.e00372?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Giulio Bottazzi & Giovanni Dosi & Nadia Jacoby & Angelo Secchi & Federico Tamagni, 2010. "Corporate performances and market selection: some comparative evidence," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 19(6), pages 1953-1996, December.
    2. Niklas Kiviluoto, 2013. "Growth as evidence of firm success: myth or reality?," Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(7-8), pages 569-586, September.
    3. Silviano Esteve-Pérez & Fabio Pieri & Diego Rodriguez, 2022. "One swallow does not make a summer: episodes and persistence in high growth," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 58(3), pages 1517-1544, March.
    4. Alex Coad & Sven-Olov Daunfeldt & Daniel Halvarsson, 2018. "Bursting into life: firm growth and growth persistence by age," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 50(1), pages 55-75, January.
    5. Davidsson, Per & Steffens, Paul & Fitzsimmons, Jason, 2009. "Growing profitable or growing from profits: Putting the horse in front of the cart?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 24(4), pages 388-406, July.
    6. Jang, SooCheong (Shawn), 2011. "Growth-focused or profit-focused firms: Transitions toward profitable growth," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 667-674.
    7. Delmar, Frédéric & McKelvie, Alexander & Wennberg, Karl, 2013. "Untangling the relationships among growth, profitability and survival in new firms," Ratio Working Papers 205, The Ratio Institute.
    8. Grillitsch, Markus & Schubert, Torben & Srholec, Martin, 2019. "Knowledge base combinations and firm growth," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 234-247.
    9. Jakob Schlichter & Kim Klyver & Anders Haug, 2021. "The moderating effect of ERP system complexity on the growth–profitability relationship in young SMEs," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 59(4), pages 601-626, July.
    10. Coad, Alex & Karlsson, Johan, 2022. "A field guide for gazelle hunters: Small, old firms are unlikely to become high-growth firms," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 17(C).
    11. Juan Federico & Joan-Lluis Capelleras, 2015. "The heterogeneous dynamics between growth and profits: the case of young firms," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 231-253, February.
    12. Goddard, John & Molyneux, Phil & Wilson, John O S, 2004. "Dynamics of Growth and Profitability in Banking," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 36(6), pages 1069-1090, December.
    13. Alexander McKelvie & Johan Wiklund, 2010. "Advancing Firm Growth Research: A Focus on Growth Mode Instead of Growth Rate," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 34(2), pages 261-288, March.
    14. Gideon D. Markman & William B. Gartner, 2002. "Is Extraordinary Growth Profitable? A Study of Inc. 500 High–Growth Companies," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 27(1), pages 65-75, January.
    15. Rosenbusch, Nina & Brinckmann, Jan & Bausch, Andreas, 2011. "Is innovation always beneficial? A meta-analysis of the relationship between innovation and performance in SMEs," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 26(4), pages 441-457, July.
    16. Darush Yazdanfar & Peter Öhman, 2015. "The growth-profitability nexus among Swedish SMEs," International Journal of Managerial Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 11(4), pages 531-547, September.
    17. Alex Coad & Julian S. Frankish & David J. Storey, 2020. "Too fast to live? Effects of growth on survival across the growth distribution," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(3), pages 544-571, May.
    18. Paul Steffens & Per Davidsson & Jason Fitzsimmons, 2009. "Performance Configurations over Time: Implications for Growth– and Profit–Oriented Strategies," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 33(1), pages 125-148, January.
    19. Marc Cowling, 2004. "The Growth -- Profit Nexus," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 1-9, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Canarella, Giorgio & Miller, Stephen M., 2018. "The determinants of growth in the U.S. information and communication technology (ICT) industry: A firm-level analysis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 259-271.
    2. Juan Federico & Joan-Lluis Capelleras, 2015. "The heterogeneous dynamics between growth and profits: the case of young firms," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 231-253, February.
    3. Alex Coad & Marc Cowling & Josh Siepel, 2017. "Growth processes of high-growth firms as a four-dimensional chicken and egg," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 26(4), pages 537-554.
    4. Cyrine Ben-Hafaïedh & Anaïs Hamelin, 2023. "Questioning the Growth Dogma: A Replication Study," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 47(2), pages 628-647, March.
    5. Lee, Sanghoon, 2014. "The relationship between growth and profit: evidence from firm-level panel data," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 1-11.
    6. Giovanni Dosi & Emanuele Pugliese & Pietro Santoleri, 2017. "Growth and survival of the `fitter'? Evidence from US new-born firms," LEM Papers Series 2017/06, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy.
    7. Alex Coad & Stjepan Srhoj, 2020. "Catching Gazelles with a Lasso: Big data techniques for the prediction of high-growth firms," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 55(3), pages 541-565, October.
    8. Alex Coad & Sven-Olov Daunfeldt & Daniel Halvarsson, 2022. "Amundsen versus Scott: are growth paths related to firm performance?," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 59(2), pages 593-610, August.
    9. Leiv Opstad & Johannes Idso & Robin Valenta, 2021. "The Degree of Profit Persistence in the Tourism Industry: The Case of Norwegian Campsites," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(4), pages 140-155.
    10. Delmar, Frédéric & McKelvie, Alexander & Wennberg, Karl, 2013. "Untangling the relationships among growth, profitability and survival in new firms," Ratio Working Papers 205, The Ratio Institute.
    11. Florian Léon, 2022. "The elusive quest for high-growth firms in Africa: when other metrics of performance say nothing," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 58(1), pages 225-246, January.
    12. Nuscheler, Daniela & Engelen, Andreas & Zahra, Shaker A., 2019. "The role of top management teams in transforming technology-based new ventures' product introductions into growth," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 122-140.
    13. Wennberg, Karl & Delmar, Frédéric & McKelvie, Alexander, 2016. "Variable risk preferences in new firm growth and survival," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 408-427.
    14. Marius Tuft Mathisen & Einar Rasmussen, 2019. "The development, growth, and performance of university spin-offs: a critical review," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 44(6), pages 1891-1938, December.
    15. Alexander McKelvie & Anna Brattström & Karl Wennberg, 2017. "How young firms achieve growth: reconciling the roles of growth motivation and innovative activities," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 49(2), pages 273-293, August.
    16. Hasan Ayaydin & Pinar Hayaloglu, 2014. "The Effect of Corruption on Firm Growth: Evidence from Firms in Turkey," Asian Economic and Financial Review, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 4(5), pages 607-624, May.
    17. Delmar, Frédéric & Wallin, Jonas & Nofal, Ahmed Maged, 2022. "Modeling new-firm growth and survival with panel data using event magnitude regression," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(5).
    18. Massimiliano Cerciello & Francesco Busato & Simone Taddeo, 2023. "The effect of sustainable business practices on profitability. Accounting for strategic disclosure," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 802-819, March.
    19. Yuji Honjo, 2018. "Do profitable start-up firms grow faster? Evidence from Colombia," Revista Cuadernos de Economia, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, FCE, CID, vol. 37(75), pages 727-754, March.
    20. Simon C. Parker & Thomas Åstebro & David B Audretsch & Robert Blackburn & Andrew Burke & Alex Coad & Marc Cowling & Per Davidsson & Michael Fritsch & Francis Greene & Paul D. Reynolds & Roy Thurik, 2024. "“Remembering David J Storey, a pioneer of the entrepreneurship field”," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(1), pages 1-21, January.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jobuve:v:19:y:2023:i:c:s235267342300001x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-business-venturing-insights .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.