Predicting survival of high-technology initial public offering firms

Abstract

Effectively understanding how technology management influences the performance of organizations requires a more longitudinal time horizon than traditionally used in management research. Further, the study of smaller, technology-intensive firms that are in the growth phase of the development life cycle is lacking in the literature. This exploratory study addresses these deficiencies by analyzing how the breadth and depth of technology management influences high-technology initial public offering (IPO) survival after five years. Content analysis is used to gather data on the technology management dimensions from the IPO prospectus of 95 high-technology firms that went public in the US in 1992. Using logistic regression analysis, the results show that high-technology firms who survive at least five years after an IPO have more intellectual property rights, more experienced senior executives, and spend less on R&D as a proportion of sales at the time of the IPO than their cohorts. These results suggest that enhancing structural inertia early by strengthening core technology resources contribute to survival after an event such as an IPO. Thus, effective management of technology processes may contribute to long-term survival of small- to medium-sized high-technology enterprises.