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The beneficial effects of tourism for growth are well known, but the negative ones are also among increasingly investigated issues. One of the open questions relates to the individual channels through which tourism effects translate into local economic outcomes. Using datasets on the population of firms and tourist arrivals over the 2012–2019 period in a small, tourism-led economy, this note shows that seasonality and overall vulnerability of a destination to tourism exert negative effects on the share of high-growth firms, consistent with recent findings of respective effects on housing affordability. Several times stronger effects of seasonality can be associated with capital underutilization, revenue instability, and sensitivity to external shocks. Still, future research is needed to corroborate these issues across space and time.

This paper explores the rise of short-term rental (STR) management companies and reveals the transition from a sharing economy activity to the consolidation of a professional industry hinging on what we call ‘corporate hosts’. By relying on interviews with companies operating in Lisbon and Porto, Portugal, we found: first, that a phenomenon of market concentration occurred in which individual hosts have outsourced the management of their properties to corporate hosts; second, that through the use of digital technology and vertical integration, corporate hosts are able to enhance the profitability of large portfolios of STRs; and, third, that corporate hosts imitate practices from the hotel industry, leading to the formation of a hybrid product in which the lines between hotels and STRs have blurred. We argue that corporate hosts constitute a new layer of intermediation that challenges the way we understand the STR industry and the overall functioning of this market., This research received financial support from the Portuguese Science and Technology Research Council (FCT) within the scope of the SMARTOUR project (Ref: PTDC/GES-URB/30551/2017) and grant numbers: UIDB/GEO/00295/2020; UIDP/GEO/00295/2020. We would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their constructive feedback. We are grateful to Ynnon Rother for his comments on an early version of the paper and to Gloria Dominguez for her help during fieldwork.

Previous studies discovered that high-growth companies help in stimulating innovation, enhancing competition, accelerating job creation, and raising productivity and incomes. Scale-ups are an important player in the renewal of the industry base in most developed countries. But there is still a lack of knowledge and insights about key drivers and challenges companies face in scaling their businesses or building up a scalable business model. Also, there is no definite answer in explaining why scale-ups are mainstreaming now.

This paper explores the structural determinants of high-growth firm shares in Austrian regions. The regional level of analysis allows to uncover regularities which are not detectable in firm-level studies. We find that lower mobility barriers, firm exits and technological opportunities, measured by digitalisation intensities, and, to a lesser extent, agglomeration effects are associated with a larger share of high-growth firms. The results suggest that comparisons of shares of high-growth firms across countries and regions should consider differences in the industrial structures together with the often-emphasised differences in policies and regulations.

This paper analyses the role that R&D and innovation has on the likelihood of a firm becoming a High-Growth Firm (HGF). The microdata is from the Community Innovation Survey provided by Eurostat, it covers the period 2008-2010, and we classify the EU countries into three clusters: Core countries, Mediterranean countries, and New EU Members. Our results show that there are large differences between each cluster. Technological innovations promote the likelihood of Core countries becoming an HGF, non-technological innovations are a key determinant for Mediterranean countries, and in New EU members the drivers are more related to firm characteristics and international trade. JEL: L11, L25, O30, O52. Resumen Este artículo analiza el efecto de la I+D y la innovación sobre la probabilidad de que una empresa se convierta en una High-Growth Firm (HGF) para un conjunto de datos del Community Innovation Survey 2010. Agrupando distintos países de la Unión Europea en tres clústeres --Core, Mediterranean, y New EU countries-- los resultados muestran claras diferencias. En los core countries, las innovaciones tecnológicas facilitan la probabilidad de convertirse en HGF, mientras que las no tecnológicas son determinantes clave en los Mediterranean. En los new EU countries los factores están más relacionados con características de la empresa y el comercio internacional. JEL: L11, L25, O30, O52. Résumé Cet article analyse l’effet de l’innovation, de la recherche et du développement en termes de probabilité pour qu’une compagnie devienne une entreprise à forte croissance. Les microdonnées utilisées proviennent de l’enquête Community Innovation de Eurostat et couvrent la période 2008-2010. Nous classons les pays de l’Union européenne en trois groupes : pays principaux, pays méditerranéens et nouveaux membres. Nos résultats montrent qu’il existe de grandes différences entre chaque groupe. Les innovations technologiques augmentent la probabilité de ce que les compagnies des pays principaux se transforment en entreprises à forte croissance, les innovations non technologiques sont un élément déterminant pour les pays méditerranéens et, pour les nouveaux membres de l’UE, les facteurs de la croissance dépendent davantage des caractéristiques de chaque entreprise et du commerce international. JEL: L11, L25, O30, O52. Resumo Este artigo analisa o efeito da inovação, a pesquisa e o desenvolvimento em termos da probabilidade de uma empresa se tornar uma empresa de alto crescimento. Os microdatos usados vêm da pesquisa Community Innovation de Eurostat e cobrem o período 2008-2010. Classificamos os países da União Europeia em três grupos: países centrais, países mediterrânicos e novos membros da UE. Nossos resultados mostram que existem grandes diferenças entre cada grupo. As inovações tecnológicas promovem a probabilidade de que as empresas dos países centrais se tornem empresas de alto crescimento, as inovações não tecnológicas são um fator determinante para os países do Mediterrâneo e, para os novos membros da UE, os promotores de crescimento estão mais relacionados com as características de cada empresa e com o comércio internacional. JEL: L11, L25, O30, O52.

The role of owners/professional managers has been recognized as a vital in the development processes of high growth firms (HGFs), contributing to countries' productivity and competitiveness. The purpose of the paper is to identify and analyse some of the most significant factors, impacting internationalization of HGFs by investigating the attitudes of owners and professional managers. Theoretical discussion, related to international entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial traits and entrepreneurial perceptions, has led to the development of the research instrument. The analysis is based on a quantitative approach: the survey focuses on Lithuanian HGFs. The sample comprises 353 firms, included in the annual Gazelle list. The study does not reveal the difference between the attitudes of owners and professional managers. The results corroborate previous investigations disclosing that the traits of entrepreneurs and managers, matching entrepreneurial tasks, are good predictor of HGFs internationalization. The importance of external incentives, perceived by the owners and managers, are decreasing while HGFs internationalization is increasing. The joint effect of entrepreneurial traits and perceptions of internal and external barriers are good predictors of HGFs internationalization. The findings of the study are useful for the policy makers in the financial support decision making process and in the development of additional training programs. The implications for the managers of HGFs lie in the possibility to assess their personality traits and conclude about their suitability to that task. The research fills the gap in the extant knowledge by investigating micro-level factors and provides valuable findings on HGFs in Eastern European country., Research Council of Lithuania [MIP-097/2014]

The aim of this study is to investigate the relation between venture capital and the number of high growth firms. Previous research has covered the relation at the firmlevel where the positive effect of venture capital on innovation, firm growth and economic growth has been established. However, the research field have been lacking a more aggregated approach. With a fixed effects panel regression with the number of high growth firms as the dependent variable and the amount of venture capital as the key independent variable, this study is conducted at the country-level with a panel of 20 countries. The study yield no significant results except the positive effect of GDP per capita. The conclusion is that the data available today is not ready for this level of aggregation as it captures to much noise with regards to other factors affecting firm growth in a country. Growth in employment might also be an outdated proxy to measure firm growth as today's modern firms are not as dependent on a large number of employees to scale as in the past. Målet med denna studie är att undersöka relationen mellan riskkapital och snabbväxande företag. Tidigare studier har undersökt relationen på företagsnivå där riskkapitalets positiva effekt på innovation, firmatillväxt och ekonomisk tillväxt har påvisats. Dock har forskningsfältet saknat ett tillvägagångssätt på en mer aggregerad nivå. Med en fixed effects-modell applicerad på paneldata med en beroende variabel bestående av antalet snabbväxande företag och en oberoende variabel bestående av mängden riskkapital, undersöks relationen på landnivå med ett urval av 20 länder. Studien visar inga signifikanta resultat bortsätt från kontrollvariabeln BNP per capita som är positiv och signifikant. Slutsatsen i arbetet är att den data som finns tillgänglig idag inte är mogen för studier på en aggregerad landnivå då brus i form av andra faktorer som påverkar snabbväxande företag i ett land fångas upp. Företagstillväxt mätt i tillväxt i antalet anställda i ett företag kan även vara en föråldrad metod. Dagens moderna företag präglade av affärsmodeller som inte kväver arbetskraft för att skala upp verksamheten på samma sätt som företag traditionellt gjort historiskt.

Scholars have asserted that a key factor that differentiates high growth firms (HGFs) from other firms is their ability to create value for their customers. This paper contributes to the literature by empirically exploring this relationship. Drawing on comparative cohorts of eleven HGFs and ten non-HGFs in Scotland, this paper finds that the HGFs were much more likely than their non-HGF counterparts to be positively influencing customer perceived value, which is considered as an important enabler of firm performance and growth. In addition to its empirical contribution to the high growth entrepreneurship literature, this paper raises issues for future research. JEL: L25; L26; M13; M31. Resumen La comunidad académica ha afirmado que un diferenciador clave de las empresas de alto crecimiento (EAC) es su capacidad para crear valor para sus clientes. Este artículo contribuye a la literatura al explorar de manera empírica esta relación. Basándose en cohortes comparativos de 11 ECA y 10 no-EAC en Escocia, este artículo concluye que las EAC eran mucho más propensas que las no-EAC a la hora de influir positivamente en el valor percibido por el cliente, cuya creación se considera un activador importante de rendimiento y crecimiento de empresas. Además de su contribución empírica a la literatura de emprendimiento de alto crecimiento, este artículo plantea futuras líneas de investigación. JEL: L25; L26; M13; M31. Résumé La communauté académique a déclaré qu’un facteur distinctif essentiel des entreprises à forte croissance (EAC) est leur capacité à créer de la valeur pour leurs clients. Cet article contribue aux publications sur le sujet par une exploration empirique de cette relation. Se basant sur des ensembles comparatifs de 11 EAC et 10 non-EAC en Ecosse, il conclut que les EAC ont bien davantage tendance que les non-EAC à influer positivement sur la valeur perçue par le client, dont la création est considérée comme un activateur important de rendement et de croissance d’entreprises. Outre sa contribution empirique aux publications sur l’entrepreunariat à forte croissance, cet article propose de futures directions de recherche. JEL: L25; L26; M13; M31. Resumo A comunidade acadêmica afirmou que o principal diferencial das empresas de alto crescimento (EAC) é sua capacidade de criar valor para seus clientes. Este artigo contribui para a literatura explorando empiricamente essa relação. Baseado em coortes comparativas de 11 EAC e 10 não-EAC na Escócia, este artigo conclui que as EAC eram muito mais propensas do que as não-EAC a influenciar positivamente o valor percebido pelo cliente, cuja criação é considerada um importante fator de desempenho e crescimento das empresas. Além de sua contribuição empírica para a literatura de empreendedorismo de alto crescimento, este artigo propõe futuras linhas de pesquisa. JEL: L25; L26; M13; M31.

Mestrado em Finanças Empresas gazelas têm sido alvo de muitos estudos dado o seu importante contributo para a economia. Elas são, segundo a OCDE, empresas com menos de cinco anos que, tendo um número mínimo de trabalhadores, atingem um crescimento anualizado de 20% ao ano durante três anos consecutivos. O objetivo deste trabalho é perceber se existem diferenças que distingam a estrutura de capital de empresas gazelas de empresas não gazelas. Mais especificamente, nós avaliamos se as gazelas apresentam maiores necessidades de capital e se as fontes de capital divergem entre os dois tipos de empresa. A fim de cumprimos o objetivo deste trabalho, utilizámos a base de dados "Central de Balanços" que é composta por dados de todas as empresas portuguesas criadas entre 2006 até 2015. Assim, identificámos cerca de 94 066 empresas não financeiras nascidas entre 2006 e 2011 das quais apenas 307 são gazelas. Os nossos resultados sugerem que as empresas gazelas obtêm valores mais elevados de capital total inicial, sugerindo que estas empresas têm maiores necessidades de financiamento do que as não-gazelas. A fim de financiarem as suas atividades, as gazelas tendem a usar mais capitais próprios do que dívida, uma vez que apresentam valores do rácio debt-to-capital inferiores às empresas não gazelas, mesmo considerando que a crise financeira e soberana influenciou a subida deste rácio para empresas nascidas entre 2008 e 2011. Gazelle firms have been the center of many studies given their important contribution for the economy. According to OECD, they are firms with less than 5 years that, have a minimum number of employees, achieve an annualized growth of 20% a year for three consecutive years. The goal of this study is to understand the differences in the capital structure between gazelle and non-gazelle firms. More specifically, we evaluate if gazelle present higher financial needs and if the sources of financing differ from non-gazelle firms. In order to achieve this goal, we used the "Central de Balanços" database that includes data from all Portuguese firms from 2006 to 2015. Thus, we identify 94 066 non-financial firms born between 2006 and 2011, from those only 307 are gazelles firms. Our results suggest that gazelle firms raise higher amounts of initial capital, suggesting that these firms have higher financial needs than non-gazelle firms. To finance their activities, gazelle firms tend to use more internal funds, since they present lower debt-to-capital ratios, even considering that the financial and sovereign crisis tend to increase the D/C ratio for companies born between 2008 and 2011. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

In recent years the construction of a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem has attracted the interest of academics and those working in the world of business and finance. To be able, though, to set the right actions in the startup culture and education fields, it is fundamental to understand what startup companies and their needs are. In this paper we shed light on the definition of startup companies (with the help of two different life cycle theories), and most importantly we try to provide the reader with some basic knowledge on why these innovative, high growth firms are so important to fuel such an ecosystem.

Promoting high growth firms (HGFs) has become a strong fixation within enterprise policy. This is a debate article seeking to examine and challenge the mythology perpetuated by policy makers and embedded within high growth entrepreneurship policy frameworks. Within the article we argue that a number of distinctive ‘myths’ have become deeply embedded within these policy frameworks. Such myths have been built on misconceived preconceptions of HGFs, which has resulted in policy-makers taking a myopic view of these firms. A key aim of the paper is to highlight how false perceptions of HGFs translate into inappropriate policy interventions. The paper challenges some of the most commonly held myths about these firms (that they are predominantly young, small, high-tech, VC-backed, university spin-outs, who grow in an orderly organic fashion, operating similarly irrespective of location) and identifies a clear mismatch between how policy makers perceive HGFs and what they actually look like in reality. Suggestions for the design of future policy approaches are forwarded. Postprint

This paper examines the dynamics of entrepreneurial acquisitions undertaken by UK high growth small and medium enterprises (SMEs). While entrepreneurial acquisitions are increasingly deployed by SMEs, little is known about their antecedents, motivational drivers and organisational outcomes. Drawing on detailed case study evidence from Scotland, the key factor found to be driving these acquisitions was the desire to augment and exploit technological complementarities between the acquiring and acquired firms. Acquisition can therefore be conceptualised as an advanced stage of the outside-in ‘open innovation’ strategies proactively used within these innovative SMEs. Firms executing this strategy typically have an acute propensity for risk, a desire for close customer engagement, effective business models and strong external orientation. The work suggests that greater attention should be paid within M&A theory to the dynamics of these kind of smaller scale entrepreneurial acquisitions. Postprint

International audience; heoretical and empirical studies of firm–industry dynamics have extensively focused on the process of growth. Theory predicts innovation, efficiency, profitability and financial status as the central channels through which firms can possibly achieve outstanding growth performance. The question is whether such high-growth performance is sustained over time and, if so, what are the factors enabling persistent high-growth patterns. Exploiting panels of Italian, Spanish, French and UK firms, we relate high growth, persistent high growth and other growth patterns to measures of efficiency, innovativeness, profitability and financial conditions. We find that high-growth firms are characterized by higher productivity and leverage, and that persistent high-growth firms do not systematically differ from other high-growth firms in none of the considered economic and financial dimensions. The findings are robust across countries, manufacturing and services.

This paper examines the dynamics of entrepreneurial acquisitions undertaken by UK high growth small and medium enterprises (S M E s). While entrepreneurial acquisitions are increasingly deployed by S M E s, little is known about their antecedents, motivational drivers and organisational outcomes. Drawing on detailed case study evidence from Scotland, the key factor found to be driving these acquisitions was the desire to augment and exploit technological complementarities between the acquiring an d acquired firms. Acquisition can therefore be conceptualised as an advanced stage of the outside-in ‘open innovation’ strategies proactively used within these innovative S M E s. Firms executing this strategy typically have an acute propensity for risk , a desire for close customer engagement, effective business models and strong external orientation . The work suggests that greater attention should be paid within M & A theory to the dynamics of these types of smaller scale entrepreneurial acquisitions.

Esta tesis contribuye a la literatura sobre crecimiento en empresas jóvenes al focalizarse sobre su persistencia y su impacto sobre la rentabilidad, dos aspectos donde es necesario un mayor desarrollo teórico y donde la evidencia empírica no sólo es escasa sino también ambigua. A partir de los aportes de E. Penrose, el enfoque de la empresa basado en los recursos y la teoría evolucionista, esta tesis de doctorado examina (i) la relación entre el crecimiento y la rentabilidad, (ii) el nivel de autocorrelación entre las tasas de crecimiento, y particularmente, (iii) el grado de persistencia de los períodos de alto crecimiento y su impacto sobre la rentabilidad empresarial. A partir de bases longitudinales de datos de panel, extraídos del SABI©, esta tesis analiza diferentes cohortes de empresas españolas, tanto manufactureras como de servicios, durante sus primeros años de vida. Esta tesis está estructurada sobre la base de tres artículos, cada uno correspondiente a uno de los tres objetivos mencionados precedentemente. Los resultados del primer artículo muestran que, a diferencia de lo que varias teorías sugieren, los beneficios no afectarían el crecimiento en las empresas jóvenes al tiempo que la relación inversa sí se verifica, desde el crecimiento hacia los beneficios. Un dato interesante es que ambas relaciones se encuentran afectadas por altos niveles de heterogeneidad, tanto entre sectores como dentro de un mismo sector, a nivel de las empresas. El segundo artículo muestra que en general las tasas de crecimiento entre las empresas jóvenes, tienden a mostrar una correlación positiva. Esto es, las tasas tienden a ser persistentes en el tiempo, hecho que contradice varios estudios previos que incluso planteaban que las tasas de crecimiento eran aleatorias. Sin embargo, esta relación positiva está afectada por la edad de la empresa. En efecto, este artículo muestra que a medida que la empres va madurando, su crecimiento se va haciendo más errático y por ende, menos persistente. Específicamente, los resultados muestran que el quinto año de vida representa un punto de quiebre en la trayectoria de crecimiento de las empresas. El tercer y último artículo, demuestra en primer lugar que las empresas de alto crecimiento difícilmente pueden sostener períodos de alto crecimiento sucesivos y que los mismos tienen un leve impacto positivo sobre la rentabilidad. Todos estos resultados tienen importantes implicancias tanto para el desarrollo teórico como para futuras investigaciones sobre el crecimiento de empresas jóvenes, discutiendo teorías previas a la luz de nuevas evidencias empíricas., This dissertation contributes to the research on young firms’ growth by analyzing two major issues, namely growth persistence and its impact on profits, where further theoretical development is needed and the empirical evidence is scarce and inconclusive. Based on Penrose’s approach, the resource-based view and evolutionary economics, this doctoral thesis examines (i) the relationship between firm growth and profits, (ii) the autocorrelation among young firms’ growth, and particularly, (iii) the growth persistence and the impact of growth on profits in the case of high-growth firms. Employing longitudinal panel data extracted from SABI©, this dissertation analyzes different cohorts of Spanish young firms from manufacturing and services sectors, during their earlier years of life. This thesis is organized upon three different papers, each one corresponding to one of the aforementioned objectives. The results of the first paper show that unlike some theories suggest, profits do not affect young firm growth whereas firm growth indeed enhances firm profits. Interestingly, these relationships are highly affected by intra- and inter-industry heterogeneity. The second paper indicates that young firm growth rates tend to exhibit a positive autocorrelation, that is, growth rates are persistent over time, which contrasts several previous studies. Nevertheless, as long as firm matures this positive correlation becomes more erratic, being the fifth year a turning point in a young firm growth path. The last paper, in turn, demonstrates that high growth firms are unlikely to sustain their high growth episode for more than one period and that these episodes show a slightly positive impact on subsequent profits. Additionally, this impact is higher if the high growth episode takes place once the firm surpasses its first few years. All these findings have important implications for theory development and future research on young firm growth, discussing previous theories in the light of the new empirical evidence.

The authors wish to thank Scottish Enterprise and the OECD for funding the research reported in this paper. High growth firms are now a major focus within enterprise policy. This paper provides a theoretically informed analysis of the rationale and effectiveness of targeted public sector support designed to support these firms. Drawing on empirical research undertaken in the UK, this paper challenges the appropriateness of the theoretical assumptions embodied in these state-backed support instruments. It outlines the nature of these programmes and provides a critique of some of their inherent weaknesses, revealing that the assumptions underpinning these programmes are often flawed. The paper examines the limitations of their selection procedures, the thematic nature of support and exit dynamics. It found that offering early stage firms intensive levels of resources may have important unintended consequences previously overlooked by policy makers. The paper offers some suggestions for how policy instruments could be better attuned to the needs of these growth-oriented firms. Publisher PDF

The authors wish to thank Scottish Enterprise for funding the research reported in this paper. In recent years there has been an upsurge of interest by policy makers in high growth firms (HGFs). Interest in these dynamic firms has primarily been driven by their prodigious ability to create new employment. Despite this, very little is known about the complex corporate geographies of these firms and their internationalisation processes. Using quantitative and qualitative data, this paper explores this issue by examining Scottish HGFs. HGFs were found to adopt more aggressive forms of international expansion, such as overseas acquisitions, than their non-HGF counterparts. As a result of these complex growth processes, a large proportion of HGF employment growth is generated outside Scotland. The paper concludes that the regional development impact of HGFs for small peripheral economies in the UK is more limited than originally envisaged. The implications of the study for further research and public policy are examined. Publisher PDF

Enterprise policy is increasingly favouring support for high growth firms (HGFs). However, this may be less effective in promoting new jobs and economic development in peripheral regions. This issue is addressed by a study of HGFs in Scotland. Scottish HGFs differ in a number of respects from the stylised facts in the literature. They create less employment than their counterparts elsewhere in the UK. Most have a significant physical presence outside of Scotland, thereby reducing their Scottish ‘footprint’ and domestic job creation. Scottish HGFs appear to have a high propensity to be acquired, increasing the susceptibility of the head office to closure. The evidence suggests that the tendency towards ‘policy universalism’ in the sphere of entrepreneurship policy is problematic. Postprint

Over the past two decades, considerable interest has grown in high growth firms (HGFs). However, the concept of HGFs still remains controversial. One of the most controversial issues is size and age of these firms. The present study argues that the current literature on HGFs may offer little help in addressing this issue given the constantly changing population of HGFs. This study uses an alternative conceptual framework and proposes a concept of 'High Impact Group of Firms' (HIGF). It explains the HIGFs in the framework of a new stream of literature that focuses on business dynamics, productivity growth and industry evolution, formulates testable hypotheses, and uses a novel methodology to identify it. The empirical analysis is based on the plant level panel data of 22 manufacturing industries in Indian manufacturing during the period 2000-01 to 2005-06. Our empirical results reveal that much depends on the industry/sector specific characteristics.

Over the past two decades, considerable interest has grown in high growth firms (HGFs). However, the concept of HGFs still remains controversial. One of the most controversial issues is size and age of these firms. The present study argues that the current literature on HGFs may offer little help in addressing this issue given the constantly changing population of HGFs. This study uses an alternative conceptual framework and proposes a concept of ‘High Impact Group of Firms’ (HIGF). It explains the HIGFs in the framework of a new stream of literature that focuses on business dynamics, productivity growth and industry evolution, formulates testable hypotheses, and uses a novel methodology to identify it. The empirical analysis is based on the plant level panel data of 22 manufacturing industries in Indian manufacturing during the period 2000-01 to 2005-06. Our empirical results reveal that much depends on the industry/sector specific characteristics.