Abstract
This paper considers the impact of ambidexterity, consisting of the relationship between exploration and exploitation, on the development of start-ups. The main goal of the study is to determine the importance of ambidexterity’s critical success factors (CSF) for different phases of start-up development. Research covers 27 different CSFs and 18 items describing ambidexterity. This set of variables were analyzed in terms of the seed, early, and growth stages of start-up development. The statistical verification of research exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was applied with maximum likelihood as a factoring method. The study covers 170 start-ups operating in Poland. Respondents of the survey were general managers and business owners. The most important CSFs for start-up ambidexterity are strategic cooperation, establishing formal cooperation and dynamic capacity. In terms of ambidexterity, crucial activities relate to offering new, unique values for customers and systematically checking customer satisfaction. At the same time, CSFs such as leader’s age and gender or academic training were not significant for start-up ambidexterity. Moreover, research has shown that there is crucial difference between the seed stage and other phases of start-up development, which require one to pay attention to specific areas by the managers.
Most of the limitations are a result of the applied method of the EFA and size of the research sample. Due to the achieved sample size, it was not possible to form a factor for the expansion and exit stages, therefore these stages were not separately analyzed in the empirical research. This paper fills the research gap regarding the use of ambidexterity in start-ups and also deepens the knowledge on how to shape individual stages of start-up development, which allowed for making recommendations for practitioners and policymakers.
References
Achtenhagen L., Melin L. (2003) Managing the Homogeneity-Heterogeneity Duality. In: Innovative Forms of Organizing, An International Perspective (eds. A. Pettigrew, R. Whittington, L. Melin, C. Sánchez-Runde, F. van den Bosch, W. Ruigrok, T. Numagami, L. Achtenhagen, L. Melin), London: Sage, pp. 301–327. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446219386.n13
Akmalia M., Astuti R.D. (2022) The Role of Capability and Ambidexterity in Enhancing the Startup Performance. Paper presented at the 6th International Conference on Family Business and Entrepreneurship (ICFBE 2022, June 2, online).
Alcaide-Muñoz C., Gutierrez-Gutierrez L.J. (2017) Six Sigma and organisational ambidexterity: A systematic review and conceptual framework. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 8(4), 436–456. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJLSS-08-2016-0040.
Argaw Y.M., Liu Y. (2024) The Pathway to Startup Success: A Comprehensive Systematic Review of Critical Factors and the Future Research Agenda in Developed and Emerging Markets. Systems, 12(12), 541. https://doi.org/10.3390/systems12120541
Bauer D., Junge S., Reif T. (2024) May the resources be with you: A systematic review and framework of startup funding options. Management Review Quarterly, 74(3), 1365–1396. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11301-023-00336-6
Blank S. (2013) Why the lean startup changes everything. Harvard Business Review, 91(5), 63–72.
Capizzi V., Carluccio E.M. (2016) Competitive Frontiers in Equity Crowdfunding: The Role of Venture Capitalists and Business Angels in the Early-Stage Financing Industry. In: Crowdfunding for SMEs (eds. R. Bottiglia, F. Pichler), London: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 117–157.
Chen Y. (2017) Dynamic Ambidexterity: How Innovators Manage Exploration and Exploitation. Business Horizons, 60(3), 385–394. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2017.01.001
Cockayne D. (2019) What is a startup firm? A methodological and epistemological investigation into research objects in economic geography. Geoforum, 107, 77–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2019.10.009
Daniel R. (1961) Management Information Crisis. Harvard Business Review, September–October.
Dias Á., Camal C., Sousa B., Pereira L. (2024) The Role of Incubators in Promoting Innovation Ambidexterity Among Start-ups in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry. Tourism and Hospitality Management, 30(4), 569–579. https://doi.org/10.20867/thm.30.4.10
Díaz-Santamaría C., Bulchand-Gidumal J. (2021) Econometric Estimation of the Factors That Influence Startup Success. Sustainability, 13(4), 2242. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13042242
Fang Y., Guan B., Yang G. (2024) From Banks or Venture Capitals? The Financing Choices of Chinese High-Tech Enterprises During the Start-Up Period. SAGE Open, 14(3), 21582440241266021. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440241266021
Harris A., Jones M., Ismail N. (2022) Distributed leadership: Taking a retrospective and contemporary view of the evidence base. School Leadership & Management, 42(5), 438–456. https://doi.org/10.1080/13632434.2022.2109620
Hatzijordanou N., Bohn N., Terzidis O. (2019) A systematic literature review on competitor analysis: Status quo and start-up specifics. Management Review Quarterly, 69(4), 415–458. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11301-019-00158-5
Härtel C.E.J., Krzeminska A. (2024) Paradox theory. In: A Guide to Key Theories for Human Resource Management Research (eds. K. Hutchings, S. Michailova, A. Wilkinson), Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, pp. 185–190. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035308767.ch22
Heuven J., Groen A. (2012) The role of social networks in financing technology-based ventures: An empirical exploration. Venture Capital, 14(2–3), 131–149. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691066.2012.659473
Howard M. (2016) A Review of Exploratory Factor Analysis Decisions and Overview of Current Practices: What We Are Doing and How Can We Improve? International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 32, 51–62. https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2015.1087664
Janssen M.J., Castaldi C., Alexiev A.S. (2018) In the vanguard of openness: Which dynamic capabilities are essential for innovative KIBS firms to develop? Industry and Innovation, 25(4), 432–457. https://doi.org/10.1080/13662716.2017.1414758.
Kafetzopoulos P., Psomas E., Kafetzopoulos D. (2023) An SLR of firm ambidexterity: Organizing a future research path forward. Journal of Management Development, 42(3), 183–200. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-05-2022-0104
Kassotaki O. (2022) Review of Organizational Ambidexterity Research. SAGE Open, 12(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221082127
Khursheed A., Mustafa F. (2021) Role of innovation ambidexterity in technology startup performance: An empirical study. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 36, 29–44. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2021.2020235
Kim B., Kim H., Jeon Y. (2018) Critical Success Factors of a Design Startup Business. Sustainability, 10(9), 2981. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10092981
Korpysa J. (2021) Process Ambidexterity in Startups Innovation. Management Systems in Production Engineering, 29(1), 27–32. https://doi.org/10.2478/mspe-2021-0004
Koryak O., Lockett A., Hayton J., Nicolaou N., Mole K. (2018) Disentangling the antecedents of ambidexterity: Exploration and exploitation. Research Policy, 47(2), 413–427. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2017.12.003
Kuckertz A., Kohtamäki M., Körber C. (2010) The Fast Eat the Slow — The Impact of Strategy and Innovation Timing on the Success of Technology-Oriented Ventures. International Journal of Technology Management, 52, 175–188. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJTM.2010.035861
Lange J., Rezepa S., Zatrochová M. (2024) The Role of Business Angels in the Early-Stage Financing of Startups: A Systematic Literature Review. Administrative Sciences, 14(10), 247. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci14100247
Lewis M.W. (2000) Exploring Paradox: Toward a More Comprehensive Guide. The Academy of Management Review, 25(4), 760–776. https://doi.org/10.2307/259204
March J.G. (1991) Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning. Organization Science, 2(1), 71–87. https://www.jstor.org stable/2634940
Mielcarek P. (2021) Strategic coherence and process maturity in the context of company ambidextrousness, Warszawa: C.H. Beck.
Parra Á., Winter R.A. (2022) Early-stage venture financing. Journal of Corporate Finance, 77, 102291. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2022.102291
Poole M.S., van de Ven A.H. (1989) Using Paradox to Build Management and Organization Theories. The Academy of Management Review, 14(4), 562–578. https://doi.org/10.2307/258559
Quinn R.E., Cameron K.S. (eds.) (1988) Paradox and transformation: Toward a theory of change in organization and management, New York: Harper & Row Publishers.
Ries E. (2011) The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses, New York: Crown Business.
Rockart J.F. (1979) Chief Executives Define Their Own Data Needs. Harvard Business Review, 57(2), 81–93.
Santisteban J., Inche J., Mauricio D. (2021) Critical success factors throughout the life cycle of information technology start-ups. Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, 8(4), 446. https://doi.org/10.9770/jesi.2021.8.4(27)
Santisteban J., Mauricio D. (2017) Systematic literature review of critical success factors of information technology startups. Academy of Entrepreneurship Journal, 23(2), 1–23.
Sevilla-Bernardo J., Sanchez-Robles B., Herrador-Alcaide T.C. (2022) Success Factors of Startups in Research Literature within the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem. Administrative Sciences, 12(3), 102. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci12030102
Singh S., Hillemane B.S.M. (2021) Sources of finance for tech startups over its lifecycle: What determines their approach of sources and its success? International Journal of Emerging Markets, 18(8), 1766–1787. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOEM-06-2020-0705
Skawińska E., Zalewski R.I. (2020) Success factors of startups in the EU — A comparative study. Sustainability, 12(19), 8200. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12198200
Smith W.K., Lewis M.W. (2011) Toward a theory of paradox: A dynamic equilibrium model of organizing. The Academy of Management Review, 36(2), 381–403. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMR.2011.59330958
Teixeira E.G., Moura G.L.D., Lopes L.F.D., Marconatto D.A.B., Fischmann A.A. (2021) The influence of dynamic capabilities on startup growth. RAUSP Management Journal, 56(1), 88–108. https://doi.org/10.1108/RAUSP-08-2019-0176
Tushman M.L., O’Reilly C.A. (1996) Ambidextrous Organizations: Managing Evolutionary and Revolutionary Change. California Management Review, 38(4), 8–29. https://doi.org/10.2307/41165852
Wiewiora A. (2023) Identifying and managing persisting tensions affecting strategic learning from projects. Long Range Planning, 56(1), 102267. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2022.102267
Zakrzewska-Bielawska A. (2018) Enterprise Development Strategies. A New Look, Warszawa: Polskie Wydawnictwo Ekonomiczne (in Polish).
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.