The efficiency of the German economy is powered by its knowledge-intensive industrial and services sectors. Yet the use of knowledge capital to drive innovation and productivity in Germany is rather low compared to other European countries and the United States. Germany is clearly lagging...

Previous research has established that certain personality traits represent predictors of start-up activity. We argue that similar cognitive processes that affect entrepreneurship also play a role in firm-level innovativeness. For example, open-ness to novelty can be regarded as a key component...

Was ist der "wahre" Wert moderner Unternehmen? Immer weniger wird er durch die materiellen Unternehmensbestandteile, Gebäude, Anlagen, Ausrüstungen repräsentiert. Zunehmend machen immaterielle Vermögenswerte - "intangible assets", intellektuelles Kapital, Humankapital - ihren eigentlichen...

Human capital has been shown to be highly important in the venture creation process. In this study, we account for the fact that human capital on the individual and regional levels may be interrelated in affecting entrepreneurship. We use German survey data, which allow us to focus on a specific...

We extend Lazear's theory of skills variety and entrepreneurship in three directions. First, we provide a theoretical framework linking new business creation with an entrepreneur's skill variety. Second, in this model we allow for both generalists and specialists to possess skill variety. Third,...

We extend Lazear's theory of skills variety and entrepreneurship in three directions. First, we provide a theoretical framework linking new business creation with an entrepreneur's skill variety. Second, in this model we allow for both generalists and specialists to possess skill variety. Third,...

We assess the relevance of formal education on the productivity of the self-employed and distinguish between opportunity entrepreneurs, who voluntarily pursue a business opportunity, and necessity entrepreneurs, who lack alternative employment options. We expect differences in the returns to...

Using a "fuzzy" regression discontinuity design, we examine the short-run impacts of a vocational training program on self-employment, new business plans, entry into entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial traits using data from the Nepal Employment Fund training program, which funds training...