Discussion: View Thread

Dear Colleague

Please disseminate the Call for Chapters presented below.

Many thanks in advance for helping us with this editorial project.

Looking forward to receiving your proposal.

Best wishes

Joao Leitao


*****
CfC_Springer Edited Volume:

Entrepreneurship along the Industry Life Cycle: The changing role of Entrepreneurial Activities and Knowledge Competencies

Call for Chapters to EDITED VOLUME
Springer Series: The 'Studies on Entrepreneurship, Structural Change and Industrial Dynamics'

http://www.springer.com/series/15330

Editors team:
Serena Cubico (Università degli Studi di Verona), Giuseppe Favretto (Università degli Studi di Verona); Uwe Cantner (Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena); and João Leitão (University of Beira Interior & CEG-IST, University of Lisbon).

Series:
The 'Studies on Entrepreneurship, Structural Change and Industrial Dynamics' series showcases exceptional scholarly work being developed on the still unexplored complex relationship between entrepreneurship, structural change and industrial dynamics, by addressing structural and technological determinants of the evolutionary pathway of innovative and entrepreneurial activity.

Important Dates:
•       March 31, 2017: Proposal of abstract (maximum dimension 300 words + keywords)
•       April 28, 2017: Notification of acceptance
•       July 31, 2017: Full chapter submission
•       September 30, 2017: Review results returned
•       October 31, 2017: Final chapter submission
•       November 10, 2017: Final acceptance notification


CfC_Springer Edited Volume:

Entrepreneurship along the Industry Life Cycle: The changing role of Entrepreneurial Activities and Knowledge Competencies

Introduction:
In our framework, an innovation system is defined as a network of actors who interact in the processes of the generation, diffusion, and utilization of new, economically useful knowledge under a distinct institutional framework (Cantner & Graf, 2003).
Following Cantner & Graf (2006), the dynamics of the system is directed towards an increasing focus on core competencies of the local innovation system; i.e. innovators on the periphery of the network exit and new entrants position themselves closer to the core of the network. Thus, a shared knowledge base prior to cooperation is an important prerequisite for partners in R&D.
Cantner & Graf (2006) revealed that personal relationships, which arise through the job mobility of scientists are an important variable in explaining the formation of cooperation networks.
Crossing literature streams, at the level of entrepreneurial and organizational studies, there has been a growing interest on the connection between human capital and competencies, which are quite complex, multifaceted and multidisciplinary. Nevertheless, there is plenty of room for adding research efforts in order to formalize and explore the concept of knowledge competencies, using an evolutionary lens crossed with human capital and competencies dynamics.
The European Union (2006: p.13) underlines the values of the competencies in the economic and social growth, in particular, entrepreneurship is considered one of the eight key competencies for «personal fulfilment and development, active citizenship, social inclusion and employment».
Considering a suggestion posed by Unger et al. (2011) our volume proposes to investigate the relationship between knowledge competencies in entrepreneurial activities, for addressing the caveat previously identified by the same authors, which resides, until now, in the use of static views on human capital, competencies, entrepreneurial success and industrial dynamics.
Cubico et al. (2016) attempted to address the competencies dynamics subject, in the context of family firms, and they identified mutual competencies and different components that characterize the intergenerational coexistence of entrepreneurs, which is a critical way for managing the generational transition process. It is also important to understand the differences between senior and junior entrepreneurs and whether if they can help along the different stages of their firm's life cycle. In fact, the competencies dynamics influences relationships and the possibility of having a rewarding work life.
This perspective opens the door of a challenging research task, that is, to consider an industry life cycle approach, for analyzing how entrepreneurs, innovation systems and industries change over time, through their own processes of evolution, as first analyzed by Joseph Schumpeter.
What remains to be addressed is the role played by entrepreneurial activities and knowledge competencies on the evolutionary pathway of industries and regions, especially the ones that face turbulence, but demonstrate to be resilient, by revealing special dynamics moving through intrinsic upturns and downturns, which are not necessarily related to the macroeconomic fluctuations. In fact, they could be associated with intrinsic and behavioral features connected to the human capital interacting with different dimensions: environmental; organizational; or individual level; along the industry life cycle.

Objectives and knowledge transfer of the edited volume:
Firstly, the volume aims to present a multidisciplinary approach by providing a state of the art on knowledge competencies and human capital, as well as structural and changing dynamics and their links with the entrepreneurial activities, using both evolutionary and behavioral approaches.
Secondly, it aims to make available a set of international benchmarking case studies (i.e. in developed and developing economies) on initiatives (at the national, regional or individual level) oriented to entrepreneurship development in different environments, systems and life cycle stages, namely: young, established and transition industries and markets; and regions.
Thirdly, it aims to be positioned as a reference guide for scholars, policy makers and practitioners interested on entrepreneurship, knowledge competencies, human resources management, innovation and organizational behavior.
In terms of knowledge transfer, these international benchmarks on entrepreneurship, knowledge competencies, human capital, innovation systems and industrial dynamics, require further research efforts aiming to create efficient, entrepreneurial and innovative units; and to promote organizational change, in different dimensions, such as, environmental (institution, network, policy, financial, infrastructures, information, economic system, region, etc.), organizational (vision, mission, goals, strategy, form of ownership, family legacy, business area, management, resources, etc.) and individual (culture, entrepreneurial education, competence, human capital, etc.), deepening knowledge on their evolutionary pathways along the industry life cycle.




Structure of the volume:
The edited volume is going to be structured as follows:
Part I. Young Industries and Markets;
Part II. Established Industries and Markets;
Part III. Transition Industries and Markets; and
Part IV. Regions.

Examples of questions:
Considering the changing role of entrepreneurship and knowledge competencies, examples of research questions to be addressed are:
•       How entrepreneurs affect established industries and new industries that are facing disruptive innovations along the industry life cycle?
•       How entrepreneurs affect regional development and push technology change?
•       How entrepreneurs are aligned with Smart Specialization Strategies?
•       How the entrepreneur creates and promotes change?
•       How the entrepreneur deals and promotes transitional changes?
•       How to consider small firms as pacemakers for very old and established big firms?
•       ...

Recommended topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

•       Entrepreneur's perspective:
o       Collaboration within international and local innovation networks
o       Crowdsourcing, crowdfunding and alternative finance resources
o       Entrepreneur's innovation strategy
o       Family as an entrepreneurial and socioemotional legacy
o       Knowledge absorption and transference
o       Knowledge and relational capital
o       Mechanisms for change
o       Resilience and intrinsic motivation
o       ...

•       Entrepreneurial human capital dimensions:
o       age
o       aptitudes
o       attitudes
o       career
o       co-creation and innovation
o       competencies
o       coworking experience
o       education
o       experiences
o       gender
o       interests
o       knowledge
o       motivations
o       previous professional experience
o       resilience
o       skills
o       social capital/network
o       traits
o       values

•       Entrepreneurial process dimensions:
o       bureaucracy
o       business models
o       business planning
o       decision
o       environment
o       financial determinants
o       funding/loans
o       generational transition
o       institutions
o       intention
o       investments
o       management
o       public policy
o       start up
o       training

•       Enterprise/industry dimensions:
o       academic entrepreneurship
o       age
o       clean tech firms
o       clusters
o       company networks
o       entry/exit
o       industry dynamics
o       innovation
o       intangible assets
o       life cycle stage
o       performance
o       profit / non profit
o       profitability
o       quality
o       R&D intensity
o       sector
o       size
o       survival
o       sustainability
o       technological profile
o       turbulence
o       turnover


References:
Cantner, U. & Graf, H. (2003). 'Interaction Structures in Local Innovation Systems', Jena Economic Research Papers, #2008 – 40, Friedrich Schiller University and the Max Planck Institute of Economics, Jena, Germany.
Cantner, U. & Graf, H. (2006). 'The network of innovators in Jena: An application of social network analysis'. Research Policy, 35(4):463–480.
Cubico, S.; G. Favretto; P. Ardolino; S. Noventa; D. Bellini; G. Gianesini; and J. Leitão (2017). 'Family Business and Entrepreneurship: Competencies and Organizational Behavior', In Devezas, T.; J. Leitão; and A. Sarygulov (Eds.) (2017). Industry 4.0 – Entrepreneurship and Structural Change in the New Digital Landscape, Series: Studies on Entrepreneurship, Structural Change and Industrial Dynamics, Springer.
European Union (2006). Recommendation of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 on key competences for lifelong learning [online: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32006H0962&rid=3]
Unger, J-M.; Rauch, A.; Frese, M.; and Rosenbusch, N. (2011). Human capital and entrepreneurial success: A meta-analytical review. Journal of Business Venturing, 26: 341-358.


Contact persons (for submissions or information requests):

Serena Cubico <serena.cubico@univr.it>

João Leitão <jleitao@ubi.pt>

*****