Entrepreneurship and Startups

November 27th, 2023

Startups Founded by Ph.D.s Decline: Why One Should Worry

After obtaining their diploma, graduates with a Ph.D. can choose between becoming academics, joining a large company, or founding or joining a start-up. The fraction of Ph.D.s in science and engineering who have started or joined a new firm has declined by approximately 38% in the U.S. since 1997. Entrepreneurship and Innovation Professor Thomas Astebro of HEC Paris, explains this phenomenon, summarizing his article published this summer in the Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal with Serguey Brgauinsky and Yuheng Ding of the University of Maryland.

By Thomas Åstebro

Entrepreneurship and Startups

July 21st, 2023

Lean Startup: Why Do So Many New Startups Follow the Same Development Philosophy?

When we think of startups, we think of fresh, ideas-led businesses that seek to break the mold in how they do things or in what they produce. But when it comes to their business practices and values, it seems that, rather than being pioneers of innovation, many startups adhere to very similar ways of doing things: following the Lean Startup philosophy. A recent study from researchers in management accounting and control Sebastian D. Becker of HEC Paris and Christoph Endenich of ESSEC Business School shows why this is the case.

By Sebastian Becker

Entrepreneurship and Startups

April 21st, 2023

Why Venture Capitalists Should Invest in Start-Ups Led by Diverse Teams

How do diverse European teams fare in gathering investment for their ideas and taking their product or service to market? Amazingly, this question had remained unanswered until now. A study from two HEC researchers and a UK-based venture capitalist marks the first time that gender and ethnic diversity data was gathered on European start-ups attracting venture capital… with some surprising results.

By Carlos Serrano , Thomas Åstebro

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Entrepreneurship and Startups

February 06th, 2023

How to Ensure Entrepreneur Training Really Delivers Business Growth

Vast sums have been pumped into training schemes to boost entrepreneurship and innovation despite mixed reviews of their true impact. As belts tighten in a struggling world economy and further justification is needed, attention returns to this vital question: Do ambitious entrepreneurs benefit more from training? A new study by Anne-Valérie Corboz of HEC Paris, Reddi Kotha and Yimin Lin of the Singapore Management University, and Balagopal Vissa of INSEAD, reveals under which conditions training has a beneficial impact.

By Anne-Valérie Corboz

people brainstorming in an office-knowledge-thumbnail

Entrepreneurship and Startups

June 15th, 2022

To Make Your Organization Resilient, Think Like a Family Business

The ups and downs of economic cycles take most companies for dangerous roller-coaster rides, but family firms weather crises much better than their competitors. That's because they focus on resilience rather than on immediate performance. At a time when the global economy seems to experience crisis after crisis, lessons can be drawn from family firms, or non-family ones that behave (and survive) like them. Alain Bloch, Emeritus Professor in entrepreneurship and co-founder of the former Family Business Centre at HEC Paris, explains.

By Alain Bloch

Entrepreneurship and Startups

May 11th, 2022

When Design Thinking Clashes With the Existing Business Culture

Increasingly firms are seeking new methods to stimulate creativity in a fast-moving business climate. Many turn to design thinking — but with mixed results. New research by HEC Paris Professor Sihem BenMahmoud-Jouini and RISE Senior Researcher Lisa Carlgren sought to find out why this practice is successful for some companies and less so for others. A culture clash may be at the heart of many difficulties.

By Sihem Ben Mahmoud-Jouini

Entrepreneurship and Startups

October 01st, 2021

Gender Difference on Crowdfunding Platforms: What Pitches Work?

On prosocial crowdfunding platforms such as Kiva, which benefit low-income entrepreneurs, women-led campaigns tend to be significantly more successful than men's. To find out which specific gender dynamics explained this difference, HEC Paris professor Santosh B. Srinivas sought to sort out gender differences in the justifications for funding requests entrepreneurs made on the site.

By Santosh Srinivas

Entrepreneurship and Startups

February 04th, 2021

6 minutes

Yes, Social Entrepreneurship Training Works

Social entrepreneurship is characterized by a deep commitment to a social cause and the desire to develop new business models with economic, social, and ecological impacts. But can people be trained to become better at social entrepreneurship? HEC Paris Professors Thomas Åstebro and Florian Hoos found that social entrepreneurship training works, but only if carefully designed.

By Thomas Åstebro , Florian Hoos

Entrepreneurship and Startups

July 21st, 2020

How Unemployment Insurance Can Foster Business Dynamism

Research by Johan Hombert (HEC Paris) recently published in The Journal of Finance shows that well-designed unemployment insurance is key to foster business dynamism. As unemployment is surging in the wake of COVID-19, the post-crisis policy toolkit should take special care of the design of unemployment insurance.

By Johan Hombert

unemployment insurance for entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship and Startups

July 09th, 2020

The 4 Key Stages of Idea Creation in the Creative Industries

Despite the romantic view that artistic genius and organizations are at odds, creativity alone doesn't generate full-blown creations. The creation process needs to be managed so as to translate ideas into new movies, perfumes or novels, and bring them to the market. HEC Paris's Thomas Paris carried out ten in-depth case studies of businesses from the movie industry to haute cuisine and along with Sihem Ben Mahmoud-Jouini, identified the four key stages of the creative process.

By Thomas Paris , Sihem Ben Mahmoud-Jouini