The Little Engine that Could : Uncertainty and Growth Expectations of Nascent Entrepreneurs

Many factors impact the success of a newventure.This research focuses on the individual characteristics ofnascent entrepreneurs and on how those characteristics influence theirperformance and success.At the center of this study are the followingindividual characteristics of entrepreneurs:age, gender, previous workexperience, business plan formalization, and perceived environmentaluncertainty. A review of past literature is presented, and four propositions are madebased on that research, concerning characteristics likely to predictexpectations of firm growth.The data for this longitudinal study wereprovided by the Entrepreneurship Research Consortium's (ERC) survey of U.S.nascent entrepreneurs, with follow-up telephone and mail surveys conducted todetermine individual progress and outcomes.The results of the dataanalysis indicate support for three of the four propositions. The findings suggest thatformalized business plans predictexpectations of lower financial growth and higher employee growth; perceivedenvironmental uncertainty alleviates expectations of firm growth; and age,gender, and past work experience are poor predictors of financial and employeegrowth expectations. Limitations of the study are discussed, as are areasfor future research.(AKP)