The Shadow of the Past:Examining the Influence of Prior Founding Experience on Later Venture Success

Abstract

Recent studies on entrepreneurial firms have yielded conflicting results pertaining to the influence of prior entrepreneurial experience on subsequent performance of firms founded by serial entrepreneurs. While some scholars have emphasized the positive results from learning-by-doing and learning from failure on subsequent performance, other scholars have found evidence of performance persistence in entrepreneurship wherein successful entrepreneurs show a high likelihood of succeeding again in later entrepreneurial ventures whereas unsuccessful entrepreneurs do not significantly improve their odds of subsequent success vis-à-vis novice entrepreneurs. In this paper, we unpack and explore various contingencies pertaining to the influence of prior entrepreneurial experience and taking a contingency perspective, offer a more nuanced understanding of the influence of prior entrepreneurial experience and its implications for later venture performance. We combine insights from the literatures on learning, social capital and entrepreneurship to provide a more complete understanding of the ways and means by which experiential knowledge is translated into performance of later ventures founded by serial entrepreneurs.