Entrepreneurs' Decisions to Exploit Opportunities

• Main Authors: Choi, Young Rok, Shepherd, D. A.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2004
• Subjects: Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/lkcsb_research/2361; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jm.2003.04.002
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Opportunity exploitation is a necessary step in creating a successful business in the entrepreneurial process, yet there has been little conceptual and empirical development of this issue in the literature. This study examines the decisions of entrepreneurs to begin exploiting business opportunities from a resource-based view. Our analysis of a sample of entrepreneurs whose businesses are located in incubators suggests that entrepreneurs are more likely to exploit opportunities when they perceive more knowledge of customer demand for the new product, more fully developed necessary technologies, greater managerial capability, and greater stakeholder support. Moreover, the findings of this study shed a light on a less emphasized aspect of the resource-based view: the new product’s anticipated lead time acts as an enhancing moderator in entrepreneurs’ exploitation decision policies. Implications for future research on opportunity exploitation are discussed