Strategic Orientation and Performance in Immigrant Firms

Traditionally, research on immigrant entrepreneurship has adopted a somewhat monolithic perspective, often concentrating on the sheer number of immigrant-founded businesses, their internationalization strategies or their economic contributions. In many cases, immigrants are regarded merely as another sample population to which mainstream entrepreneurial theories are applied, rather than being recognized as a distinct phenomenon warranting a tailored approach.

Strategic Orientation and Performance in Immigrant Firms introduces a new conceptual model that considers how the entrepreneur’s migration journey serves as a vital source of entrepreneurial heterogeneity, ultimately accounting for differences in strategic orientation and performance between immigrant- and non-immigrant-founded firms. Recognizing that immigrant entrepreneurs are heterogeneous individuals who adapt differently to new environments, the book offers a more sophisticated understanding of how cultural, individual, and socio-economic factors intersect and impact entrepreneurship.

Policymakers, practitioners, and researchers alike can benefit from an approach that considers not only firm-level metrics but also the personal trajectories that inspire and guide entrepreneurial endeavours. In doing so, the book offers a much-needed framework for understanding how the migration experience can act as a powerful catalyst for strategic orientation and performance outcomes.

This series is dedicated to communicating innovative and multi-disciplinary new research that advances theory and practice in Entrepreneurial Behaviour. The series is focused on expanding the scope of Entrepreneurial Behaviour theory and analysis and enriching practice by encouraging multi-theoretical multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary approaches. Key issues to be explored in the series include cognition decision-making organisational behaviours and identifying creating and exploiting opportunities concerning new products services processes innovations or ventures from entrepreneurial perspective.

Erika Branca is a Senior Researcher in Strategic Management and Entrepreneurship at both the University of Antwerp and Ghent University, Belgium. Her work bridges the gap between individual entrepreneurial traits and firm performance, offering a comprehensive view of how strategy shapes firm outcomes.