An empirical analysis of the strategic implications of type of entrepreneur in the restaurant industry

The primary purpose of this study was to empirically test Smith's (1967) typology of entrepreneurial type and Miles and Snow's (1978) typology of strategy in the restaurant industry, and then to establish whether or not there is a relationship between type of entrepreneur and type of strategy. A total of 1,000 entrepreneurs were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. One hundred and thirty three entrepreneurs participated in the study, yielding a response rate of 14.76%. From the basis of the objectives and research questions, four hypotheses were derived to identify the presence of Smith's (1967) typology of entrepreneurs (craftsman and opportunistic entrepreneurs), Miles and Snow's (1978) typology of strategy (defenders, prospectors, analyzers and reactors), and the relationship between type of entrepreneur and type of strategy in the restaurant industry. The findings of the hypotheses tests indicated that Smith's two entrepreneurial types may not be mutually exclusive and that there is probably a third group of entrepreneurs, combining characteristics from both Smith's craftsman and opportunistic types. Support was found for Miles and Snow's four generic strategies of defender, prospector, analyzer and reactor. Through the use of discriminant analysis, it was possible to demonstrate a relationship between type of entrepreneur and type of strategy. Furthermore, two moderating variables were found to also be associated with the realationship between type of entrepreneur.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management

Department dc:contributor.department

Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Tech

Year dc:date.issued

1991

Author dc:creator

• Elwood, Clare M.

Chair dc:contributor.committeechair

• Tse, Eliza C.

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Weaver, Pamela A.
• Kohl, David M.

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Language dc:language.iso

en

Dc Identifier Other

etd-11242009-020040

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/45989