The Origin and Evolution of New Businesses

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 432 pages
• Published by: Oxford University Press, USA October 16, 2003
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0195170318
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0195170313
• Book Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Weighs: 1.3 pounds

Reader Reviews
This review is from: The Origin and Evolution of New Businesses (Hardcover) There are two books here. The first book, on the origin of new businesses, is a tour de force. The second book, on the evolution of businesses from fledgling businesses to large enterprises, is not as satisfying. I will confine my review to the first book. The author gives us a new perspective on new business formation. He discusses five types: 1. marginal businesses. These are hair salons, lawn care services, and other businesses that are simple and small-scale. 2. promising businesses. These businesses also start out at a small scale, but they are much more complicated because they are launched in turbulent markets with high levels of uncertainty. You are going into a market before most people even realize that there is such a market. 3. VC funded firms. These firms require more capital and a more solid business plan than promising new businesses. 4. Revolutionary ventures. These are VC funded firms on steroids (the venture funding may have to come from large enterprises), who take large risks while aiming for large profits. 5. Large enterprise innovation. Here, established companies launch new projects, which require large investments but have a high probability of success (think of Intel maintaining its lead in microprocessors). This is an excellent theoretical scaffolding, to which Bhide is able to attach many interesting insights. Some are statistical. For example, in a large sample of successful small businesses, only 12 percent thought that the originality of their idea was what produced success. The rest attributed their success to "exceptional execution of an ordinary idea." p.32 Other insights are anecdotal, such as the descriptions of how companies adapted to customer demands. If I were the type who used a highlighter to mark interesting passages, my copy of the book would be mostly yellow. With its solid theory, statistical support, and anecdotal color, this book sets a new standard for books about entrepeneurship. No professor of business can afford to ignore this work. General readers may find some faults with this book. If an academic tone puts you off, too bad for you. Go read "Seven Habits in Search of Chicken Soup" or something. Another shortcoming is that the Internet receives no real mention. Email me for references to some essays on Internet entrepreneurship that I think are fairly consistent with the thrust of this book. Overall, I give the book my strongest favorable recommendation. Comment | | (Report this)