Early-stage finance : exploring the financial context of small and young knowledge-intensive firms

Abstract: This thesis essentially explores early-stage finaneing of small and young knowledge-intensive finns. The three studies underlying the thesis deal with the entrepreneurs' attitudes to financing and the creation of spin-affs in a corporate venture capital setting. The major questions posed in the thesis embrace:What variables underlying the business creation process govern the elementary logic behind the entrepreneur's perceived importance of different actors as financiers?Do cognition elements of risk and contral influence the entrepreneur's attitudes towards financing?What is the strategic and financial logic behind a large public corporation initiative to continuously create internal and non-strategic ventures?In the pursuit of answering the above research questions two survey studies and one case study were accomplished. Interesting findings cornprise the significance of the business context, the novelty of the venture idea, existing financing, the entrepreneur's extent of self-efficacy and expectations on externai financiers in determining the entrepreneur's attitudes towards financing.Another insight uncovered in this thesis is the delicate balance between generating short-term financial gains through the creation of non-strategic internal ventures, and at the same time sustaining overall business strategy. In certain conditions, it might even be possible that such venturing activities might function as a strategic trash can reinforcing the business strategy pursued, and at the same time generate short-term profits.