Entrepreneurial Orientation And New Venture Performance

Since entering the era of mobile Internet,the economic environment and technological conditions are undergoing new changes every day,and knowledge is experiencing explosive growth.These external changes have brought great opportunities as well as challenges to enterprise operation.As the main body of exploiting and using opportunities,entrepreneurial enterprises have made great contributions to technological innovation,social employment and economic development with their unique innovation and flexibility and become an important driving force for China's economic development and social stability.It is also closely related to major development goals such as promoting industrial upgrading,deepening supply-side structural reform and building an innovative countryAccording to the resource-based theory,valuable,scarce,difficult to imitate and irreplaceable heterogeneous resources are the main reasons for performance differences between enterprises.The scholars of strategic theory first discussed the necessity of strategic planning,then divided enterprise strategy,and determined the influence of the heterogeneity of enterprise strategy choice on enterprise performance(Peng,Cai,Chen,Yu,2016,Tian&Zhang Y,2012).Drawing on the above two theories,scholars in the field of entrepreneurship put forward the concept of entrepreneurship guidance(Miller,1983),It refers to a strategic decision-making concept and mode adopted by an enterprise that is innovative,forward-looking and brave in taking risks(Covin and Slevin,1989;Zheng,2015).What is the indirect mechanism of entrepreneurial orientation to entrepreneurial performance?According to the theory of organizational stigma,the initial strategy of an organization is consistent and has a lasting impact within many years after the establishment of a startup(Siggelkow,2002;Tian,2010).For start-ups,they are more innovative,risky and forward-looking,which is mainly influenced by the background of entrepreneurs and the special social and political environment of entrepreneurship practice.Start-ups usually choose entrepreneurship orientation as the initial strategy and also the core strategy.In addition,scholars found that other non-core strategies did play a mediating role between the initial strategy and enterprise performance.These non-core strategies include market orientation(Barker and sinkula,2009;Guo and Zhang,2014),learning orientation(Wang,2008;Kang,2015),technology orientation(Hult,Hurley,& Knight,2004),etc.but among them,market orientation and learning orientation are more favored by scholars(Wu,Chen,Li,2015;Chu and Li,2015).Market orientation emphasizes the strategic process from the outside to the inside,while learning orientation emphasizes the strategic process from the inside to the outside(Day,1994;Zhu et al,2014).In the operation of a startup,these two strategies tend to exist at the same time,interact with each other,and play different intermediary roles.However,the existing research focuses on the effect of a single intermediary variable on the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and firm performance(Wang,2008;Ma,2016).This aspect does not fully explain the internal mechanism of entrepreneurial practice.On the other hand,the effect of a single intervening variable is easily confused with that of the regulating variable,which may misjudge the mediation effect as the regulating effect,thus leading to wrong conclusions(Selmi et al.,2018;Wales et al.,2013).Therefore,it is important to understand the existence of multiple intermediary variables in the relationship between entrepreneurship orientation and enterprise performance and their effect on differentiation.In addition,only a small number of scholars discuss the applicable conditions for the adoption of different strategic intermediary paths to influence the performance of enterprises with entrepreneurial orientation(such as Wang,2008).The existing research conclusions are not convergent,and they all start from a single intermediary variable.Existing studies focus more on the boundary conditions that explain the positive influence of strategic orientation,such as market orientation and learning orientation,on performance.There are mainly two types.One is the external environment variables,such as environmental instability(Yang&Chen,2015).One is internal variable,mainly enterprise capacity,including resource integration ability,technical capacity(Wu&Zhang,2015),absorption capacity(Zahra et al.,2002),information and communication technology capacity(Wales et al.,2013),and learning capacity(Grant,1996).Since the external environment of the enterprise is unpredictable and uncontrollable,it is more practical to consider the impact of corporate capabilities on non-core strategies.Therefore,it is more appropriate to discuss the applicable conditions for enterprises with entrepreneurial orientation to choose different intermediary paths from the perspective of enterprise capability.However,the existing research on the role of enterprise capability in the regulation of entrepreneurial orientation-market orientation(learning orientation)-performance is not complete.Based on the above theoretical background,this study focuses on exploring theperformance differences among newly-innovated enterprises,and combines the theoretical knowledge of resource-based view,organizational management theory,and organizational competence theory to examine the mechanism of the implementation of entrepreneurial-oriented new ventures on corporate performance,and focus on the indirect path of entrepreneurial orientation to corporate performance and the applicable conditions of different paths.In summary,the research questions to be explored in this study include:(1)For start-ups,does the implementation of entrepreneurial orientation significantly improve the performance of the company?(2)What is the indirect mechanism of entrepreneurial orientation on corporate performance? What role does market orientation and learning orientation play in this process?(3)What are the applicable conditions for different intermediary paths? What kind of corporate capabilities have played a regulatory role in this process?Based on 182 valid questionnaires,this paper explores the above relationships and the conclusions are as follows:(1)Using multiple regression analysis to explore the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation,market orientation and learning orientation of new ventures and growth performance and profitability performance.The results show that entrepreneurial orientation,market orientation and learning orientation have positive effects on the growth performance and profitability performance of new firms.(2)Using the mediation regression method to explore the mediating role of market orientation and learning orientation.The results show that market orientation plays a mediating role between entrepreneurial orientation-new enterprise growth performance and profitability performance;learning orientation plays a mediating role between entrepreneurial orientation-new enterprise growth performance and profitability performance.That is to say,entrepreneurial orientation has not only a direct impact on the growth performance and profitability performance of new enterprises,but also has an indirect impact through the implementation of market orientation and learning orientation.(3)From the perspective of competence,this paper explores the regulatory role of market forecasting ability and learning ability,and proposes corresponding research hypotheses.The results show that the assumption that market forecasting ability has a positive adjustment effect on the relationship between market orientation and new enterprise growth performance and profitability performance is established.The assumption that the direct impact that entrepreneurial orientation has on new business growth performance and profitability performance through market orientation is positively regulated by market forecasting ability is established.The assumption that learning ability has a positive adjustment effect on the relationship between learning orientation and new business growth performance and profitability performance is established.The assumption that the direct impact that entrepreneurial orientation has on new business growth performance and profitability performance through learning orientation is positively regulated by learning ability is established.The innovation of this paper is mainly reflected in the following aspects:First,it constructs and tests the multiple intermediary model of entrepreneurial orientation to new enterprise performance,and enriches the diversified path of realization of the relationship between the two.Through the integration of previous theoretical and empirical research,this paper establishes an integrated conceptual framework of a multiple mediation model to explore how entrepreneurial orientation affects new firm performance through market-oriented and learning-oriented multiple mediator variables.The relationship enriches the diversified path of realization of the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and performance relationship.It is worth noting that although the single intermediary utility in the existing research can explain the intermediary mechanism of entrepreneurial orientation into performance,its explanatory power is insufficient(Rauch et al.,2009;Wales et al.,2013;Acosta et al,2018).In the multiple mediation model,the introduction of several mediation variables into the model at the same time has the advantage of allowing researchers to simultaneously explore the relative intensity of each mediator variable.The learning-oriented intermediary utility is higher than the market orientation,which further explains the importance of learning for new businesses,and explains the value of learning commitment,open mind and shared vision for new businesses to build learning organizations.This further enriches the theory of organizational learning.Second,market orientation and learning orientation play a mediating role between entrepreneurial orientation and new corporate growth performance and profitability performance,opening a black box for entrepreneurial orientation to new corporate growth performance and profitability performance.Based on the theoretical logic of "entrepreneurship orientation-other strategic orientation-growth performance and profitable performance of new enterprises",taking high-tech enterprises in the three northeastern provinces and Beijing-Tianjin area and theChangjiang-Triangle area as the objects of study,this paper explains the mediating effects of two different types of strategic orientation on the relationship between entrepreneurship orientation and growth performance and profitable performance of new enterprises,and the impact of entrepreneurship orientation on market orientation and learning orientation has been discussed in depth,which will help to make up for the deficiencies of the existing theoretical and empirical studies on strategic orientation and promote further research on entrepreneurship orientation.According to the existing entrepreneurial orientation studies,scholars generally believe that entrepreneurial orientation has a positive impact on the growth performance and profitability performance of new enterprises,and some scholars try to study the relationship between them from the aspects of ability,network and so on.For high-tech enterprises in a rapidly renewing environment,entrepreneurship orientation is an important means for new enterprises to achieve and maintain competitive advantage.Therefore,from the perspective of learning and market,this paper discusses the transformation from entrepreneurial orientation to market-oriented,learning-oriented and growth performance and profit-making performance of new enterprises.The results show that market orientation and learning orientation play a mediating role in the relationship between entrepreneurship orientation and growth performance and profitable performance of new enterprises respectively,which contribute to reveal the underlying mechanism of entrepreneurial orientation on market orientation,learning orientation,growth performance and profit performance in highly dynamic market.Thirdly,it explores the moderating effect of market forecasting capability on market orientation,new firm growth performance and profitability performance.By studying the influence of market forecasting ability on market orientation,this paper puts forward the moderating effect of market forecasting ability,which makes up for the lack of research on market forecasting ability in the field of entrepreneurship.Through the research of moderating effect on market forecasting ability,this paper further clarifies the boundary conditions of market orientation affecting growth performance and profitable performance of new firms,and deepens the relationship between market orientation and new venture performance.The analysis of market forecasting ability will help new firms to better implement market orientation,which will open up new horizons for new firms to achieve competitive advantage and improve performance.Fourthly,it explores the moderating effect of learning ability on learning orientation,growth performance and Profitability Performance of new enterprises.By studying the effect of learning ability on learning orientation,this paper puts forward the moderating effect of learning ability,and studies it from the perspective of interaction between learning ability and learning orientation,which improves the theoretical scope of learning ability.Furthermore,through the study of the adjustment effect of learning ability,this paper further clarifies the contingent conditions under which learning orientation affects the growth performance and profitability performance of new enterprises,and deepens the research on the relationship between learning orientation and new firm performance.The analysis of learning ability can help new firms to develop and implement learning orientation better,and it will also open up a new path for new firms to achieve competitive advantage and improve performance.Fifth,The mediating effects of market forecasting ability and learning ability are explored respectively and innovativelyThis study proposes two mediating models with moderating effects,and studies the mediating effects of market orientation and learning orientation on entrepreneurial orientation,new firm growth performance and profitable performance under the moderating effects of market forecasting ability and learning ability.Previous studies have overemphasized the direct relationship between entrepreneurial orientation,market orientation and learning orientation on the performance of new enterprises,ignoring the role of market orientation and learning orientation in the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and new enterprise performance.There is a lack of research on the relationship between learning orientation and growth and profit of new enterprises,especially from the perspective of intermediary.This paper,for the first time,studies the mediating role of entrepreneurial orientation-market orientation-New firm performance and market forecasting ability,and the mediating role of entrepreneurial orientation-learning orientation-New firm performance and learning ability.The mediating effect of the adjustment of market forecasting ability and learning ability also further explains the change of intermediary utility of market orientation and learning orientation under the condition of market forecasting ability and learning ability changing respectively.Ability change is an eternal topic of enterprise.This paper emphasizes the ability of market prediction and learning,in the meantime,further explains the influence of ability on the diversification of strategic direction.As an exploratory study,this paper has some theoretical and existing significance,but there are still some limitations,which need to be further explored in the follow-up study.Firstly,most studies advocate the use of longitudinal data(Patel and Terjesen,2011;Reinholt,etc.,2011)because cross-sectional data do not reveal the dynamics of research variables.Although intertemporal data are used in this study,the data of all variables themselves are not longitudinal data,but the performance of independent variables and dependent variables at different stages,which has some value for dynamic interpretation of the relationship between variables.It is still impossible to reveal the dynamic changes of independent variables and dependent variables in different stages.Because the data obtained were filled out by the respondents,reflecting the situation of high-tech enterprises at the time of the interview,and the subsequent business activities of the enterprises(except for performance factors)were not followed up,It is impossible to reveal the dynamic changes of variables,such as the failure to distinguish the change of leadership style between the initial stage and the growth stage,and the lack of understanding of the long-term development of high-tech enterprises.Secondly,although the data of this study have passed the reliability and validity tests,and the theoretical assumptions are supported by the data,but due to the limitations of research time and research funds,In the scope of sample collection,only the high-tech enterprises in the three Northeast provinces and the Beijing-Tianjin region are selected as the research objects,while the enterprises in the three Northeast provinces and the Beijing-Tianjin region can not represent the development of high-tech new enterprises in China because of the significant regional characteristics.Therefore,due to the limitations of data,this study needs to be further tested in terms of universality and representativeness.In view of this result,the author thinks that the scope of the research area can be expanded in the future research,so that the research results can be more universal.Thirdly,because there are no laws and regulations in China forcing new ventures to disclose their performance,the performance of high-tech start-ups in this paper is measured by subjective method,which will inevitably lead to evaluation bias.In order to improve the reliability of the scale,the paper combines the face-to-face interview with the on-site questionnaire,and carries on the pre-evaluation of the recovered questionnaire,and gets the final viewpoint measurement scale by eliminating some unqualified items.However,due to the limitation of time and ability,the items of the scale may not completely reflect the variables to be measured.Therefore,the maturity and reliability of the scale will be less than that of the foreign mature scale,and need to be improved in future research.The second is the deviation of the questionnaire.Although this paper carried out a pre-survey before thelarge-scale survey,and deleted the poorly-differentiated items.However,some of the items are not poorly differentiated,but are caused by the problem of expression or the intended deviation of the interviewees.This article will give two representations of these items and test them in future studies.Based on the resource-based theory and other existing theories,this paper explores the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation,market orientation,learning orientation,growth performance and profitable performance of high-tech start-ups in the three northeastern provinces and Beijing-Tianjin area under the influence of market forecasting and learning ability.Although there is plenty of research on entrepreneurship orientation,the research on market orientation and learning orientation as intermediary variable between entrepreneurial orientation and performance is still in the exploratory stage,and there are still many things that need to be improved.Therefore,this article still has certain limitations and shortcomings.Besides,although the theoretical and practical significance of this paper is obvious,but an article can not exhaust all the relevant theories,the three limitations listed above still need to be further improved in future research.