Many entrepreneurial firms risk falling into a cash flow “Valley of Death”‐the stage of a young firmʼs life when seed funding is running dry but the firm has yet to secure…
Abstract
Many entrepreneurial firms risk falling into a cash flow “Valley of Death”‐the stage of a young firmʼs life when seed funding is running dry but the firm has yet to secure sufficient additional funding to carry it through to product commercialization.This is particularly true in the nascent cleantech sector, where investments are often complex and capital intensive. Drawing on an in-depth interview with seasoned entrepreneur Brian Cunningham, CEO of the Wave Energy Conversion Corporation of America, this article explores the role of persistence in entrepreneurship, distinguishing between “calculated” and “blind” persistence.
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Ron Seaver is in a unique position within the sport industry. He has worked on both sides of the sponsorship business, selling sponsorships for teams and assisting corporations in…
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Ron Seaver is in a unique position within the sport industry. He has worked on both sides of the sponsorship business, selling sponsorships for teams and assisting corporations in securing productive sponsorship. In his current role as President and CEO of Seaver Marketing Group, Ron is working to bring all parties in the sponsorhip industry together. Here he talks to Dr David Stotlar, of the University of Northern Colorado, sharing his experience and his insights.
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Amee Joan and Su-Hie Ting
This study examined how social network influences maintenance of the indigenous language of the Kejaman, a small indigenous group living in Sarawak, Malaysia.
Abstract
Purpose
This study examined how social network influences maintenance of the indigenous language of the Kejaman, a small indigenous group living in Sarawak, Malaysia.
Design/methodology/approach
The participants were 123 Kejaman speakers from three generations living in two longhouses in Belaga, Sarawak. Participants were presented with 20 situations relevant to the lives of Kejaman people to find out the people they interact with.
Findings
The grandparents, parents and children’s generations all had more exchange networks (M = 131.7) than interactive networks (M = 110.3). They consulted kin on matters related to family, money, culture, death and taboos, providing the avenue for the use of the Kejaman language. Generation 2 had more interactive networks and Generation 3 consulted non-kin on more matters, and the communication takes place in languages other than Kejaman. Chi-Square tests of independence showed no significant differences in the number of exchange and interactive networks across generations. The three generations were not significantly different in uniplexity (M = 29.5%) and multiplexity scores (M = 20.6%). The Kejamans belong to a low-density, uniplex social network community.
Research limitations/implications
There is a limitation in using social network analysis as a reliable predictor of future language use. This is because social networks are not fixed. They can expand, shrink and change over lifetime, and the fact that the generation of children does not talk about family matters in their mother tongue does not mean that they will not do so in future.
Practical implications
As interactive networks comprise non-Kejaman people, there will be inadequate close ethnic ties to support transmission and maintenance of Kejaman linguistic and cultural norms. Therefore, their language fluency may decline to the extent that they experience language anxiety and feel uncomfortable using it.
Social implications
The quantity and quality of interactive networks for the Kejaman are not conducive for upward mobility. What this means in the sociopolitical context of Sarawak is that, this small indigenous group is still family-centred and does not have adequate social contacts in the wider society, indicating lack of social standing.
Originality/value
The study suggests that in future the Kejaman will rely on interactive networks to talk about life-choices, and the lessened contact with Kejaman people will affect maintenance of Kejaman linguistic and cultural norms.
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Miles Davis and Leyland M. Lucas
Recent attention has been given to organizations that claim to run on faith-based principles. Activities such as at work bible study groups, charitable giving, and the individual…
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Recent attention has been given to organizations that claim to run on faith-based principles. Activities such as at work bible study groups, charitable giving, and the individual practices of the owners are often the focus of such discussions. In such discussions little attention has been paid to those who not only hold strong religious views, but have chosen to put those views into practice‐even when it may not appear to make good business sense.
Since 1946, S. Truett Cathy, founder and chairman of Chick-fil-A Inc., has run his enterprises based on his understanding of Christian principles. Starting with his first restaurant, the “Dwarf Grill,” which he opened with his brother Ben in 1946, continuing when he opened the first “Chick-fil-A” in 1967, and even as he finished the remodeling of the companies headquarters in 1997, S. Truett says he tries “to glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us and to have a positive influence on other people. . . .” In fact, this purpose is engraved in a bronze plaque that rests at the entrance to Chick-fil-A’s corporate headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.
In practice, this purpose has lead S.Truett to never have his businesses open on Sunday, a time in the quick service industry that normally generates 20 percent of revenue. It has caused him to shut down another restaurant venture, Markos in Florida, rather than serve alcohol, which most patrons wanted. Despite his staunch adherent to principles that seem to run counter to “good business sense,” S.Truett Cathy has built a successful, privately held organization that operates in 38 states, has more than 1,300 franchisees, and generates over $2 billion a year in revenue.
In the following interview, S.Truett offers his perspective on why focusing on principles is more important than focusing on profits and what he thinks it takes to succeed in business and in life.
William De Friez and Veronica McCarthy
William (“Bill”) De Friez and Veronica (“Ronni”) McCarthy own and operate Raconteur Film and Television Productions located in downtown Christchurch. Bill serves as part-time…
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William (“Bill”) De Friez and Veronica (“Ronni”) McCarthy own and operate Raconteur Film and Television Productions located in downtown Christchurch. Bill serves as part-time director; his full-time position is faculty lecturer in the Film Department of the University of Canterbury. Ronni is the full-time producer for their small business operation that completes an average of three documentaries per year as well as a network children℉s series and other special projects. She won the prestigious Winston Churchill Fellowship in 1995 to study children℉s television outside of New Zealand.
Many entrepreneurs are able to manage their businesses within relatively contained and familiar geographical and cultural circles. With a world economy shrinking every day amid a…
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Many entrepreneurs are able to manage their businesses within relatively contained and familiar geographical and cultural circles. With a world economy shrinking every day amid a flood of digital information, todayʼs entrepreneur is increasingly confronted with opportunities to consider new ways to secure vendors and recruit customers. Many unfamiliar possibilities emerge. Should the entrepreneur venture beyond “comfortable” surroundings to consider international connections? Specifically, what about China? How practical is this fetching business temptation of larger markets and lower-cost subcontractors? What are the social, trade, financial, and political issues? Should a “China strategy” be a true entrepreneurial offensive, or rather a defensive response to competition? Is this “China strategy” the promise of yet another entrepreneurial nirvana? Or is it perhaps again a case of “Be careful of what you wish for; it may really come true?”
Yu-Ting Lin, Thomas Foscht and Andreas Benedikt Eisingerich
Prior work underscores the important role of customer advocacy for brands. The purpose of this study is to explore the critical role customers can play as brand heroes. The…
Abstract
Purpose
Prior work underscores the important role of customer advocacy for brands. The purpose of this study is to explore the critical role customers can play as brand heroes. The authors developed and validated a measurement scale composed of properties that are derived from distinct brand hero motivational mechanisms.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted one exploratory pilot, using semi-structured interviews, with industry and academic experts, and employed three main studies across varying brands and market settings.
Findings
This study explores and empirically demonstrates how the brand hero scale (BHS) is related to, yet distinct from, existing scales of opinion leaders, market mavens, attachment and customer advocacy. The six-item BHS demonstrates convergent, discriminant, nomological and predictive validity across several different brand contexts.
Research limitations/implications
This research extends the extant body of work by identifying and defining brand heroes, developing and validating a parsimonious BHS, and demonstrating how its predictive validity extends both to a range of key advocacy and loyalty customer behaviors.
Practical implications
The study provides provocative insights for marketing researchers and brand managers and ascertains the important role heroes may play for brands in terms of strong customer advocacy and loyalty behaviors.
Originality/value
Building on the theory of meaning, this study shows that identifying and working with brand heroes is of great managerial importance and offers critical avenues for future research.
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Deaver Brown and Joseph E. Levangie
Many entrepreneurs are enthralled with their company's technologies, products and potential markets. Invariably these emerging ventures present bedazzling business plans with…
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Many entrepreneurs are enthralled with their company's technologies, products and potential markets. Invariably these emerging ventures present bedazzling business plans with industry-wise vernacular, detailed market research, and sophisticated financial spreadsheets. They often flaunt their “optimized business models.” Investors, however, typically want to know when and how the sales will start meeting the Plan. “Whereʼs the purchase order?” is the refrain. In this article, our “Practitionerʼs Corner” associate editor Joe Levangie collaborates with a long-time colleague, Deaver Brown, to address how businesses should “make sales happen.” Levangie warns that Brownʼs elitist education (Choate, Harvard College, Harvard Business School) should not be interpreted as a lack of “street smarts”; Brownʼs more entrepreneurially friendly credentials include winning Golden Gloves boxing medals and selling Fuller Brush products door-to-door! To ascertain how the entrepreneur can wrest an order from a prospective customer, read on.
Herbert Sherman and Daniel J. Rowley
Stephen Hodgetts read the e-mail over and over again and still could hardly believe what he had read. He had just come back from his vacation, well rested and refreshed, and this…
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Stephen Hodgetts read the e-mail over and over again and still could hardly believe what he had read. He had just come back from his vacation, well rested and refreshed, and this e-mail had dampened his high enthusiasm. It took time to absorb such bad news and for Hodgetts to get over his incredulity.Yet in the end Hodgetts accepted the truth‐a deep, dark terrible truth that would not go away. Robert Davis, his business partner’s son, had confirmed in an e-mail his worst fears about their newest business partner, David Russ.Many thoughts were running through his mind simultaneously yet each screamed to be heard.“How could he and his partner Richard Davis have been so blind, so trusting?” “How could Russ not have heeded the advice of his business partner, Richard Davis, Russ’s former English professor?” And most important, “What was now going to happen to their new business?” Yet the one thought that continued to echo among them all was surprisingly a quote from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s beloved character, Sherlock Holmes: “But there are always some lunatics about. It would be a dull world without them.”