The influence of firm age and intangible resources on the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and firm growth among Japanese SMEs

With the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and firm performance having broad scholarly acceptance, researchers are now delving with increased focus into the contextual factors that change the nature of the relationship between EO and various manifestations of organizational performance. In this vein, this study adopts the resource based view and investigates the moderating influence of firm age and intangible resources on the EO-firm growth relationship among small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Japan. Further, we propose a three-way interactive model between EO, firm age, and intangible resources to better identify entrepreneurial configurations that promote superior SME growth.

► Entrepreneurial orientation is positively associated with firm growth among Japanese SMEs.
► The EO-performance relationship is stronger among younger firms than among firms that are older.
► The EO-performance relationship is stronger among firms with an intangible resource advantage than among firms that are more resource constrained.
► Firms with an entrepreneurial strategic posture, that are younger, and that possess an intangible resource advantage exhibited the strongest level of growth.