Organizational Survival of Technology-Based Companies after Incubation: A Qualitative Comparative Explanation

• Published in: Revista brasileira de gestão de negócios 2023, Vol.25 (4), p.498-515
• Main Authors: Peron de Paula, Pablo, Denner dos Santos Junior, Carlos, Fróes Couto, Felipe
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Business configuration; FsQCA; incubation; Initial vulnerability; Organizational survival; Post
• ISSN: 1806-4892; 1983-0807
• DOI: 10.7819/rbgn.v25i4.4247

Objective – Analyze the configurations of legitimacy, dynamic capabilities and business resources consistent with the survival of post-incubated companies. Theoretical framework – A Liability of Newness highlights that nascent companies suffer from internal and external factors that make their survival difficult. However, business incubators help new businesses develop. However, post-incubated companies need strategic guidance for survival. Thus, we intend to demonstrate how different configurations between legitimacy, dynamic capabilities and resources can form this strategy. Methodology – The multiple case study strategy was applied with 90 companies and comparative qualitative analysis techniques for fuzzy sets (fsQCA) were used. Results – The results present two configurations of technology-based companies with high perceptions of legitimacy, resources and dynamic capabilities that differ by size and satisfaction. A third configuration of technology-based companies with high perceptions of legitimacy and resources. The fourth configuration involves technology-based companies with high perceptions of legitimacy, larger in size and satisfied with the incubator. Practical and social implications of the research – For managers, the results make it possible to create an incubation environment that is capable of identifying and filling individual gaps in ventures. Furthermore, they indicate that business incubator managers and/or financiers should focus their efforts on incubating technology-based companies. Contributions – The first contribution is to reinforce the central role of legitimacy for survival. The second is to demonstrate that, through different paths, the interrelationship between legitimacy, resources and dynamic capabilities form organizational configurations that are resilient to challenges.