Entrepreneurship Research Group Publications

Decline in Job Satisfaction and How It Relates to Investment Decisions of the Self-Employed

Despite substantial research on job satisfaction in self-employment, we know little about the specific consequences for the venture when job satisfaction declines after an external shock. Taking the COVID-19 pandemic as an example of an external shock and drawing on a sample of nearly 7000 self-employed individuals living in Germany, we investigate how declines in job satisfaction are related to the ...

To Diversify or Not? The Link between Global Sourcing of ICT Goods And Firm Performance

We analyse variation in firm performance as a function of the international diversification of ICT imports by firms. Drawing on administrative data from 2010 and 2014 on nearly 4000 German manufacturing firms, we find that firms with ICT sourcing that is diversified across multiple countries perform better than similar, less-diversified firms. This finding holds true for two performance metrics (value ...

Complementary Funding: How Location Links Crowdfunding and Venture Capital

While Equity Crowdfunding (ECF) platforms are a virtual space for raising funds, geography remains relevant. To determine how location matters for entrepreneurs using equity crowdfunding (ECF), we analyze the spatial distribution of successful ECF campaigns and the spatial relationship between ECF campaigns and traditional investors, such as banks and venture capitalists (VCs). Using data from the ...

Agglomeration Economies: Different Effects on TFP in High-tech and Low-tech Industries

We study the impact of agglomeration effects on firms’ total factor productivity (TFP) for industry groups defined by technology intensity. This allows for non-uniform effects on firms depending on their technological level. We find that urban economies have the largest impact on firm productivity in high-technology industries, while they have no effectin low-technology industries. For firms in the ...

The Role of Regulation and Regional Government Quality for High Growth Firms: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

High-growth firms (HGFs) are important for job creation and productivity growth. We investigate the relationship between product and labour market regulations, as well as the quality of regional governments that implement these regulations, and the development of HGFs across European regions. Using data from Eurostat, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), World Economic ...

SOEP-LEE2: Linking Surveys on Employees to Employers in Germany

This article presents the new linked employee-employer study of the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP-LEE2), which offers new research opportunities for various academic fields. In particular, the study contains two waves of an employer survey for persons in dependent work that is also linkable to the SOEP, a large representative German annual household panel (SOEP-LEE2-Core). Moreover, SOEP-LEE2 includes ...

Access to Digital Finance: Equity Crowdfunding across Countries and Platforms

Financing entrepreneurship spurs innovation and economic growth. Digital financial platforms that crowdfund equity for entrepreneurs have emerged globally, yet they remain poorly understood. We model equity crowdfunding in terms of the relationship between the number of investors and the amount of money raised per pitch. We examine heterogeneity in the average amount raised per pitch that is associated ...

The Internationalisation of R&D: Past, Present and Future

In this perspective paper we discuss major trends that will shape the internationalisation of business R&D in the future. New scientific discoveries will provide new opportunities to innovate; the growing scientific capabilities in emerging economies will create new hot spots for relevant knowledge; new research activities will emerge from the need to combat climate change; digital technologies including ...

German Financial State Aid during Covid-19 Pandemic: Higher Impact among Digitalized Self-Employed

Does Gender of Firm Ownership Matter? Female Entrepreneurs and the Gender Pay Gap

We examine how the gender of business owners is related to the wages paid to female relative to male employees working in their firms. Using Finnish register data and employing firm fixed effects, we find that the gender pay gap is—starting from a gender pay gap of 11 to 12%—two to three percentage points lower for hourly wages in female-owned firms than in male-owned firms. Results are robust to how ...