Promoting the Bright Side: Toward an Integrative Model of Start-up Organizational Attractiveness

Abstract

New ventures have to rely on highly skilled employees to overcome initial resource constraints. However, start-ups face hiring difficulties due to lack of visibility and legitimacy and because they often cannot compete with established organizations in offering potential applicants competitive job attributes (e.g., salary). This article develops a theoretical model that focuses on job and organizational attributes throughout the different life cycle stages of new ventures and how they impact a start-up’s organizational attractiveness. The model also shows how applicants’ personalities, values, goals, and needs moderate the relationship between job and organizational attributes and organizational attractiveness. Finally, the model suggests that depending on the individual preferences of the applicant, start-ups can compensate for some disadvantageous attributes by their more positive ones, while showing that other attributes cannot be compensated for.