Title: Customers as predictors of rent returns to innovation in small firms: an exploratory study

Authors: Tim Mazzarol, Sophie Reboud

Addresses: Centre for Entrepreneurial Management and Innovation (CEMI), Graduate School of Management, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley WA 6009, Australia. ' Centre for Business Research (CEREN) Groupe ESC Dijon Bourgogne, 29 rue Sambin, BP 50608, 21006 Dijon, France

Abstract: Small to medium enterprises (SME) are frequently associated with high levels of innovation. However, it is difficult for such firms to fully assess the merits of a particular innovation. This study examined the risk-return profile of future investment in innovation by SME with respect to anticipated ||rent|| or financial returns. A survey of highly innovative SME was undertaken that examined management perceptions of the key strategic influences on rent returns. Regression analysis suggests that the firms| assessment of the rent returns from their innovation may be influenced by the value it is likely to deliver to the customer, the customer|s expected use of the innovation to generate new sales and the ease of integrating the new innovation into existing technologies. The findings have implications for how entrepreneurs from early stage ventures are assisted.

Keywords: small businesses; entrepreneurship; innovation; risk assessment; small firms; SMEs; financial returns; rent returns; entrepreneurs; customers.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEIM.2005.007001

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management, 2005 Vol.5 No.5/6, pp.483 - 494

Published online: 02 May 2005 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article