IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/pal/abaman/v22y2023i3d10.1057_s41291-022-00177-3.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Matching disruptive innovation paths with entrepreneurial networks: a new perspective on startups’ growth with Chinese evidence

Author

Listed:
  • Weizhen Yu

    (Zhejiang University City College
    Zhejiang University
    Zhejiang University City College)

  • Shuanping Dai

    (Jilin University
    University of Duisburg-Essen)

  • Feng Liu

    (Shandong University)

  • Yi Yang

    (Yonsei University)

Abstract

This study examines the impacts of entrepreneurial networks on startups’ performance with a sample of 618 startups in China’s Yangtze River Delta region, focusing on matching disruptive innovation paths with network types. The results indicate that entrepreneurial networks (both heterogeneous and homogeneous) are meaningful for startups’ growth performance. The study finds that startups exploring low-end disruption may benefit more from heterogeneous peers and avoid networking with an abundance of homogeneous peers. However, if exploring new markets, both types of networks could provide positive impacts. The asymmetric mediation effects of disruptive innovation paths highlight the core of leveraging entrepreneurial networks, whether homogeneous or heterogeneous, is to activate network resources with proper disruption paths.

Suggested Citation

  • Weizhen Yu & Shuanping Dai & Feng Liu & Yi Yang, 2023. "Matching disruptive innovation paths with entrepreneurial networks: a new perspective on startups’ growth with Chinese evidence," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(3), pages 878-902, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:pal:abaman:v:22:y:2023:i:3:d:10.1057_s41291-022-00177-3
    DOI: 10.1057/s41291-022-00177-3
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1057/s41291-022-00177-3
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1057/s41291-022-00177-3?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. Ranjay Gulati, 1999. "Network location and learning: the influence of network resources and firm capabilities on alliance formation," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(5), pages 397-420, May.
    2. Elfring, Tom & Hulsink, Willem, 2003. "Networks in Entrepreneurship: The Case of High-Technology Firms," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 409-422, December.
    3. Lingfei Wu & Dashun Wang & James A. Evans, 2019. "Large teams develop and small teams disrupt science and technology," Nature, Nature, vol. 566(7744), pages 378-382, February.
    4. Watson, John, 2007. "Modeling the relationship between networking and firm performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 22(6), pages 852-874, November.
    5. Anthony Goerzen & Paul W. Beamish, 2005. "The effect of alliance network diversity on multinational enterprise performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 333-354, April.
    6. Shu, Rui & Ren, Shenggang & Zheng, Yi, 2018. "Building networks into discovery: The link between entrepreneur network capability and entrepreneurial opportunity discovery," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 197-208.
    7. Lee Cronbach, 1951. "Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests," Psychometrika, Springer;The Psychometric Society, vol. 16(3), pages 297-334, September.
    8. Hoang, Ha & Antoncic, Bostjan, 2003. "Network-based research in entrepreneurship: A critical review," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 165-187, March.
    9. Daniel P. Forbes & Patricia S. Borchert & Mary E. Zellmer–Bruhn & Harry J. Sapienza, 2006. "Entrepreneurial Team Formation: An Exploration of New Member Addition," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 30(2), pages 225-248, March.
    10. Stam, Wouter & Arzlanian, Souren & Elfring, Tom, 2014. "Social capital of entrepreneurs and small firm performance: A meta-analysis of contextual and methodological moderators," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 152-173.
    11. Edward Bishop Smith & Tanya Menon & Leigh Thompson, 2012. "Status Differences in the Cognitive Activation of Social Networks," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 23(1), pages 67-82, February.
    12. Younsuk Park & Jaeun Shin & Taejong Kim, 2010. "Firm size, age, industrial networking, and growth: a case of the Korean manufacturing industry," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 35(2), pages 153-168, September.
    13. Alessio Cozzolino & Gianmario Verona & Frank T. Rothaermel, 2018. "Unpacking the Disruption Process: New Technology, Business Models, and Incumbent Adaptation," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(7), pages 1166-1202, November.
    14. Soh, Pek-Hooi & Roberts, Edward B., 2003. "Networks of innovators: a longitudinal perspective," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(9), pages 1569-1588, October.
    15. Karen Wang & Yue Wang & Kai-Ping Huang & Jingsong Deng, 2012. "Heterogeneous networks and resource acquisition of SMEs in emerging economies," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 46(5), pages 1643-1657, August.
    16. Ronald S. Burt & Sonja Opper, 2020. "Political Connection and Disconnection: Still a Success Factor for Chinese Entrepreneurs," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 44(6), pages 1199-1228, November.
    17. Simon Rodan & Charles Galunic, 2004. "More than network structure: how knowledge heterogeneity influences managerial performance and innovativeness," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(6), pages 541-562, June.
    18. Mariëtte Kaandorp & Elco van Burg & Tomas Karlsson, 2020. "Initial Networking Processes of Student Entrepreneurs: The Role of Action and Evaluation," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 44(3), pages 527-556, May.
    19. Zhao, Liming & Aram, John D., 1995. "Networking and growth of young technology-intensive ventures in China," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 10(5), pages 349-370, September.
    20. Justin Tan, 2002. "Impact of Ownership Type on Environment–Strategy Linkage and Performance: Evidence from a Transitional Economy," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(3), pages 333-354, May.
    21. Corey C. Phelps, 2010. "A longitudinal study of the influence of alliance network structure and composition on firm exploratory innovation," Post-Print hal-00528392, HAL.
    22. Konstantinos Grigoriou & Frank T. Rothaermel, 2017. "Organizing for knowledge generation: internal knowledge networks and the contingent effect of external knowledge sourcing," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(2), pages 395-414, February.
    23. Baron, Robert A. & Tang, Jintong, 2011. "The role of entrepreneurs in firm-level innovation: Joint effects of positive affect, creativity, and environmental dynamism," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 49-60, January.
    24. J. H. Wesseling & E. M. M. I. Niesten & J. Faber & M. P. Hekkert, 2015. "Business Strategies of Incumbents in the Market for Electric Vehicles: Opportunities and Incentives for Sustainable Innovation," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(6), pages 518-531, September.
    25. Autio, Erkko & Kenney, Martin & Mustar, Philippe & Siegel, Don & Wright, Mike, 2014. "Entrepreneurial innovation: The importance of context," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(7), pages 1097-1108.
    26. Melissa A. Schilling & Corey C. Phelps, 2007. "Interfirm Collaboration Networks: The Impact of Large-Scale Network Structure on Firm Innovation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 53(7), pages 1113-1126, July.
    27. Ash Amin & Patrick Cohendet, 2000. "Organisational Learning and Governance Through Embedded Practices," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 4(1), pages 93-116, March.
    28. Yuliani Suseno, 2018. "Disruptive innovation and the creation of social capital in Indonesia’s urban communities," Asia Pacific Business Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(2), pages 174-195, March.
    29. Clayton M. Christensen & Rory McDonald & Elizabeth J. Altman & Jonathan E. Palmer, 2018. "Disruptive Innovation: An Intellectual History and Directions for Future Research," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(7), pages 1043-1078, November.
    30. Kerr, Jon & Coviello, Nicole, 2020. "Weaving network theory into effectuation: A multi-level reconceptualization of effectual dynamics," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 35(2).
    31. Wendy K. Smith & Michael L. Tushman, 2005. "Managing Strategic Contradictions: A Top Management Model for Managing Innovation Streams," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 16(5), pages 522-536, October.
    32. Julie M. Hite & William S. Hesterly, 2001. "The evolution of firm networks: from emergence to early growth of the firm," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(3), pages 275-286, March.
    33. Arun Kumaraswamy & Raghu Garud & Shahzad (Shaz) Ansari, 2018. "Perspectives on Disruptive Innovations," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(7), pages 1025-1042, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Liu, Feng & Long, Xiao & Dong, Lin & Fang, Mingjie, 2023. "What makes you entrepreneurial? Using machine learning to investigate the determinants of entrepreneurship in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).

    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. Bilitis Schoonjans & Philippe Cauwenberge & Heidi Bauwhede, 2013. "Formal business networking and SME growth," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 41(1), pages 169-181, June.
    2. Christopher Hayter, 2013. "Conceptualizing knowledge-based entrepreneurship networks: perspectives from the literature," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 41(4), pages 899-911, December.
    3. Milanov, Hana & Fernhaber, Stephanie A., 2009. "The impact of early imprinting on the evolution of new venture networks," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 24(1), pages 46-61, January.
    4. Thommie Burström & Jussi Harri & Timothy. L. Wilson, 2018. "Nascent Entrepreneurs Managing in Networks: Equivocality, Multiplexity and Tie Formation," Journal of Enterprising Culture (JEC), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 26(01), pages 51-83, March.
    5. Hans Löfsten & Anders Isaksson & Heikki Rannikko, 2023. "Entrepreneurial networks, geographical proximity, and their relationship to firm growth: a study of 241 small high-tech firms," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 2280-2306, December.
    6. Susanna Slotte–Kock & Nicole Coviello, 2010. "Entrepreneurship Research on Network Processes: A Review and Ways Forward," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 34(1), pages 31-57, January.
    7. Salih Zeki Ozdemir & Peter Moran & Xing Zhong & Martin J. Bliemel, 2016. "Reaching and Acquiring Valuable Resources: The Entrepreneur's Use of Brokerage, Cohesion, and Embeddedness," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 40(1), pages 49-79, January.
    8. Leif Brändle & Helen Signer & Andreas Kuckertz, 2023. "Socioeconomic status and entrepreneurial networking responses to the COVID-19 crisis," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 93(1), pages 111-147, January.
    9. Jiancheng Guan & Yan Yan & Jingjing Zhang, 2015. "How do collaborative features affect scientific output? Evidences from wind power field," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 102(1), pages 333-355, January.
    10. Lee, Cheng-Yu & Wang, Ming-Chao & Huang, Yen-Chih, 2015. "The double-edged sword of technological diversity in R&D alliances: Network position and learning speed as moderators," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 450-461.
    11. Feng-Wen Chen & Meng-Xian Lin & Ting Wang, 2018. "Sustainable Resource Acquisition Path: A Dynamic Model of Embedded Entrepreneurial Network Governance under Uncertainty," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-25, November.
    12. Mariëtte Kaandorp & Elco van Burg & Tomas Karlsson, 2020. "Initial Networking Processes of Student Entrepreneurs: The Role of Action and Evaluation," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 44(3), pages 527-556, May.
    13. Sean T. Hsu & Susan K. Cohen, 2022. "Overcoming the Incumbent Dilemma: The Dual Roles of Multimarket Contact During Disruption," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(2), pages 319-348, March.
    14. Wu Zhao & Jizhen Li & Xiaohua Li & Thomas Schøtt, 2020. "Implications of Network Diversity for Venture Growth: The Mediation Effect of Entrepreneurial Alertness," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-15, November.
    15. Wenjing Wang & Yiwei Liu, 2021. "Community-level characteristics and member firms’ invention: evidence from university–industry innovation community in China," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(11), pages 8913-8934, November.
    16. Maurizio Cisi & Francesco Devicienti & Alessandro Manello & Davide Vannoni, 2016. "The Impact of Formal Networking on the Performance of SMEs," Working papers 039, Department of Economics, Social Studies, Applied Mathematics and Statistics (Dipartimento di Scienze Economico-Sociali e Matematico-Statistiche), University of Torino.
    17. Thorsten Semrau & Arndt Werner, 2014. "How Exactly Do Network Relationships Pay Off? The Effects of Network Size and Relationship Quality on Access to Start–Up Resources," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 38(3), pages 501-525, May.
    18. Scott Newbert & Erno Tornikoski, 2012. "Supporter networks and network growth: a contingency model of organizational emergence," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 39(1), pages 141-159, July.
    19. Janna Alvedalen & Ron Boschma, 2017. "A critical review of entrepreneurial ecosystems research: towards a future research agenda," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(6), pages 887-903, June.
    20. Simone Santoni & Paolo Ferri & Maria Lusiani, 2013. "Novelty Conduits and Forms of Network Ties: To Bond or to Bridge?," Working Papers 34, Venice School of Management - Department of Management, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.

    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:pal:abaman:v:22:y:2023:i:3:d:10.1057_s41291-022-00177-3. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.palgrave.com .

    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.