We explore the relationship between wealth creation in high-technology ventures and firm-specific resources. We argue that Market Value Added is a particularly appropriate measure of entrepreneurial performance because of its focus on wealth creation, which is the essence of entrepreneurship. We present a model of wealth creation in new ventures based on the resource-based theory of firm behavior. The model suggests that firm-specific research and scientific capabilities are associated with wealth creation. The model is tested on a sample of 89 biotechnology firms. The results provide strong evidence for the hypothesized relationship between firm-specific capabilities and wealth creation in new ventures.
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