The influence of founders’ human capital on the performance of new technology-based firms in China, South Korea and Japan: an exploratory study

Western-based research suggests a modest influence of founders’ human capital on the business performance of new technology-based firms (NTBFs). Our exploratory, longitudinal study of 40 NTBFs in China, South Korea and Japan reveals that the human capital of their founders helps them to acquire executive talent, finance and customers, and thereby strongly enhances business performance. Furthermore, we find that East Asian NTBF founders leverage their human capital through networks with former colleagues and business partners in order to access key resources. These findings can be explained by cultural background factors such as social stratification and relational orientation.