Abstract

Despite considerable recent interest in the processes and problems of entrepreneurship, very little is known about why new ventures succeed or fail. Even less is known about how the characteristics of organization that determine early success or failure influence later capacities for adaptation. This article presents results of an in-depth study of strategies employed by 108 new firms in the minicomputer industry over the period 1957 to 1981. It examines how different strategies implemented under different industry conditions are linked to early survival and failure. Then, it explores whether and to what extent these strategies persist in the face of changes in the firms' environment.