Abstract: This study examines the role of founders’ prior employer (parent) in shaping the alliance network of firms founded by employees (spinouts) using an unique panel data of pharmaceutical and medical device firms from 1986 to 2012. I find that the spinouts that differ from their parent, for commercialization ties with firms that have direct/indirect parent ties. While spinouts that are similar for marketing, manufacturing and funding ties with partners that have no ties to the parent.

Abstract: This paper analyzes the efficiency of resource allocation decisions in firms that undertake spinoffs. In general, resource allocation decisions become more efficient following the completion of a spinoff. These gains are more pronounced the more a spinoff improves the focus of managerial attention, but they are less pronounced the more organizational adjustments are necessitated by that deal. When the organizational adjustments required by a spinoff are significant, the costs associated with the dissipation of managerial attention outweigh the benefits of increased focus. The contributions of this study are to identify a set of organizational adjustment costs associated with spinoffs and to explore how the tradeoff between the creation and consumption of managerial attention influences the efficiency of resource allocation decisions within diversified firms.

Abstract: We explore the relationship between post-divestiture firm and innovation performance in the high-tech industries. The article introduces alternative view on divestiture oppose to traditional viewpoint which explains divestiture as a reaction due to resolve internal problems. Detached from such pressure, this paper argues that firms engaging in innovative activities as a proactive action. Research is conducted by examining R&D intensity and patents to discuss R&D input and output that is associated with result of divestiture. Furthermore, firm size and transaction volume were presented to moderate the effect of innovation performance within post-divestiture firms. Our result shows that proactive post-divestiture firms had increase in both R&D input and output. Moreover, as firms were smaller in size and resulted in high transaction volume further improved innovation performance.

Abstract: This study explores corporate spin-off initiatives as core vehicles for strategic renewal in incumbent firms. In contrast to prior research that considers spin-offs as a means to exploit knowledge inherited from the parent firm, we investigate how spin-offs are used for the exploration of knowledge. Research implies that firms will seize novel resources if their attention is directed to the external environment. Following the attention-based view of the firm, a favorable organizational set-up has to be established. Therefore, we first study the organizational structures of four spin-off initiatives, how these affected the regulation of attention and, in turn, influenced the spin-off initiative in acquiring new knowledge.. Based on an in-depth study of four cases, we contribute to literature on strategic renewal, spin-offs and the attention-based view.