Dr. Espinoza-Benavides, Jorge

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the role of entrepreneurial ecosystems conditions (formal, informal and social capital) on different types of entrepreneurial re-entry at a global scale. Design/methodology/approach: Given this phenomenon’s nature, this study builds a panel of data of 54 economies covering different (advanced and emerging) countries across the globe during the period 2004–2017 by mixing multiples sources of information (e.g. Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, the World Economic Forum, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund). The statistical analysis consisted of the fixed-effect dynamic generalized method of moments (GMM) estimation for panel data. Findings: Three empirical insights emerge from the study. First, the entrepreneurial ecosystem’s formal conditions are mainly configured to support high-growth entrepreneurship ignoring re-entrepreneurs. Consequently, the formal conditions’ contribution is very limited in emerging economies. Second, the analysis of informal conditions revealed social media’s critical contribution for legitimizing entrepreneurship and supporting those entrepreneurs who want to re-enter the domestic or international market after a business failure. Third, social networks built during previous business angels or entrepreneurial experiences or with other entrepreneurs also play a crucial role for re-entrepreneurs to overcome the weaknesses in the entrepreneurial ecosystems’ conditions. Originality/value: The study contributes to two ongoing academic debates among entrepreneurship scholars. The first is related to how the entrepreneurial ecosystem supports entrepreneurial activity in different economic contexts. The second is related to the study of the contextual determinants of entrepreneurial re-entry after a business failure.

Previous studies have found a close relationship between exit/failure decisions and entrepreneurial/organisational characteristics. In the same line, entrepreneurship literature has recognised that the context matters in any entrepreneurial process, including “exit,” “failure” or “re-entry.” This manuscript proposes a conceptual framework to identify the elements of the entrepreneurial ecosystem that foster or impede the re-entry into entrepreneurship after a business failure. By reviewing the accumulation of knowledge, we identified the individual, the organisational, and the contextual conditions that influence the trajectory of an individual who decides to re-enter after a business failure. This manuscript provides a better understanding of the critical role of agents involved in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. A provocative discussion and implications emerge for this study in order to reduce individual barriers and unfavourable social norms towards business failure.

This study analyses the influence of environmental and individual conditions on the quality and the speed of entrepreneurial re-entries in emerging economies after a business failure. We propose a conceptual framework supported by the institutional economic theory to study the influence of environmental conditions; and human and social capital to study the influence of individuals’ skills, experiences, and relationships. A retrospective multiple case study analysis was designed to test our conceptual model by capturing longitudinal information on occurred events, trajectory, and determinants of twenty re-entrepreneurs. Our results show that the entrepreneurial experience and type of venture influence the accelerating effect of re-entrepreneurship, as well as how environmental conditions moderate the quality and speed of entrepreneurial re-entries. We provoke a discussion and implications for multiple actors involved in the re-entry of entrepreneurs after a business failure.