TY - JOUR

T1 - Analyzing non-linear dynamics of organic growth: evidence from small german new ventures

AU - Habermann, Harald

AU - Schulte, Reinhard

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2017, Small Business Institute. All rights reserved.

PY - 2017/6

Y1 - 2017/6

N2 - This paper links theories of growth models with the literature on serial autocorrelation of growth. We study the serial autocorrelation of tendencies of growth trajectories of employment and sales for German new ventures over a nine-year period using mosaic plots as a conceptual framework. The autocorrelation of growth tendencies provides important information on firms growth processes. We find that growing new ventures are subject to negative autocorrelation of tendencies of growth trajectories making sustained growth a very rare occurrence. This indicates that the growth of new ventures is non-linear, prone to interruptions, amplifying forces, and setbacks. Therefore, we interpret the commonly used term ‘stages of growth model’ in a different manner. A stage cannot be defined as a time span but rather as a sort of conditions of circumstances that are all present at a point in time and that are conditionally linked to a preceding sort of circumstances.

AB - This paper links theories of growth models with the literature on serial autocorrelation of growth. We study the serial autocorrelation of tendencies of growth trajectories of employment and sales for German new ventures over a nine-year period using mosaic plots as a conceptual framework. The autocorrelation of growth tendencies provides important information on firms growth processes. We find that growing new ventures are subject to negative autocorrelation of tendencies of growth trajectories making sustained growth a very rare occurrence. This indicates that the growth of new ventures is non-linear, prone to interruptions, amplifying forces, and setbacks. Therefore, we interpret the commonly used term ‘stages of growth model’ in a different manner. A stage cannot be defined as a time span but rather as a sort of conditions of circumstances that are all present at a point in time and that are conditionally linked to a preceding sort of circumstances.

KW - Management studies

KW - Entrepreneurship

UR - http://libjournals.mtsu.edu/index.php/jsbs/article/view/582

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85021973117&partnerID=8YFLogxK

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 27

SP - 36

EP - 64

JO - Journal of Small Business Strategy

JF - Journal of Small Business Strategy

SN - 1081-8510

IS - 2

ER -