The question of how firms differ is paramount to strategy scholars. This question has motivated empirical research on the factors influencing performance differences among close competitors. It also has motivated work on factors that increase or decrease the mean performance of firms in an...

Lean startup and the idea of a business model have become popular in the context of startup experimentation, innovation and strategy. In this paper we discuss and critique the assumptions behind lean startup, specifically how the approach conceives of hypothesis development and startup...