Using a nationwide sample of 14,424 new firms, we find that attractive human capital traits at business entry for entrepreneurs include high educational attainment, owners who lie in the middle of—as opposed to the tails of—the age distribution, and family business background. Attractive...

We investigate whether venture capitalist (VC) activism is associated with higher investment returns. Advising portfolio firms is time consuming and creates tradeoffs between intensity of VC activism and portfolio size. As the number of assisted firms expands, advice can be stretched too thin,...

Using a nationwide sample of 14,424 new firms, we find that attractive human capital traits at business entry for entrepreneurs include high educational attainment, owners who lie in the middle of—as opposed to the tails of—the age distribution, and family business background. Attractive...

The strong performance of minority-oriented private equity funds in the 1990s drew increased attention and additional funding to this important source of capital for minority-owned businesses. New data from a recent survey of minority-oriented funds allows for an analysis of their investment...