Doctoral Dissertations

Date of Award

12-1996

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Business Administration

Major Professor

H. Dudley Dewhirst

Committee Members

Suzanne B. Kurth, Robert C. Maddox, Michael C. Rush

Abstract

This dissertation extends research in entrepreneurial characteristics, values held by entrepreneurs, organizational strategies selected by the entrepreneurs, and resulting firm success. Entrepreneurship and small business management literature are used to develop a conceptual basis for the study. Values, which guide human behavior, are included, as are organizational process variables such as strategies. The setting for the study is the automotive glass replacement industry in the southeastern United States. Hypotheses and research questions are derived from the literature in entrepreneurship, strategy, psychology, and sociology. A framework is developed consisting of: (1) values, demographic, and psychological characteristics of the entrepreneur, (2) generic and environmental scanning strategy, and (3) measures of firm success. Information gathering involved the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data, primarily through a two-part structured questionnaire completed in a face-to-face meeting with the entrepreneur of each firm. Open-ended questions were asked seeking depth, color, and verification of the survey data. Other sources included information provided by competitors. suppliers, customers, and insights from the researcher as a past participant observer in the industry. Case studies of the participating firms were prepared to enrich and support the quantitative findings. A statistical analysis of the survey data was the primary method of hypothesis testing and exploring of research questions. Significant differences between successful and unsuccessful firms in the industry were expected in value orientations, demographic and psychological characteristics of the entrepreneur, and in the choice of market-oriented generic and environmental scanning strategies. Initial research in entrepreneur value orientations and relationships to the strategy variables were examined to further the research in this area. The results suggest that there are fewer entrepreneur value orientations and characteristics related to ability in choosing "successful" firm strategy and guiding firm success than was previously thought. An interesting result of this study is that the choice of strategy holds a very strong statistical relationship to level of firm success. In conclusion, this study finds: (a) there are few entrepreneur characteristics that predict either ability to choose "successful" strategies or ability to guide the level of firm success; and (b) that for this industry in particular, strategy choice is a more important and reliable predictor of firm success than entrepreneur value orientations and characteristics. Thus the tendency of entrepreneurship researchers to concentrate on the characteristics of the person in charge to find reasons for firm success is insufficient. Therefore, it seems that entrepreneurship research should emphasize strategy considerations to maximize progress in understanding entrepreneur firm success.

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