ABSTRACT
Business success remains an enigma. Numerous studies have been undertaken over the years in an attempt to understand what determines business success, but attempts to conceptualize and statistically model this construct remain partial at best. In part this is easy to understand given the huge range of factors which can influence growth. Storey (1994), in his classic book on small business focuses, for example, on three main influences on small business performance — the background and characteristics of the entrepreneur or owner-manager, the nature of the business itself and the strategies adopted by the firm. Is this really the whole story, however, or, does this perspective over-emphasize factors internal to the business (Barkham et al., 1996)? Institutionalist perspectives discussed in previous chapters, for example, would also emphasize the organizational and regulatory context within which the firm is operating, suggesting that firms with similar entrepreneurial resources and characteristics might perform very differently in different national environments (Capelleras et al., 2008). Social networks may also be an important stimulus for growth, influencing the entrepreneur's ability to take advantage of market opportunities and external resources (Hoang and Antoncic, 2003, Zhao et al., 2010). Other studies have emphasized the role of market demand as a driver of business growth, suggesting the importance of business cycles and potentially public procurement (Piva and Vivarelli, 2007, Edler and Georghiou, 2007). A firm's location in a supportive entrepreneurial regional innovation system may also be a potential stimulus to entrepreneurship (Audretsch, 2005) and contribute to innovation and business growth (Roper et al., 2008).
