CEO human capital, top management teams, and the acquisition of venture capital in new technology ventures: An empirical analysis

We combine signalling and human capital theory to analyze how competencies of new venture CEOs impact the amount of money technology ventures acquire in venture capital (VC) financing rounds. Using data on 117 financing events in the biotechnology industry, we show that education in management, founder-based firm-specific experience, international experience, and industry-specific experience of the CEO impact the VCs’ financial commitments. Moreover, we find that the effects of management education and industry experience are moderated by the size of the venture's top management team. We discuss the implications of these findings for the research literature on technology ventures and venture capital.