This review maps research on entrepreneurship in transitional economies since the start of institutional reforms. Data came from 129 academic journal articles published between 1990 and 2009. 62 articles reported research on macro (country) level, discussing the nature and speed of reform, credit constraints, assistance programs and the role of small business for economic development. 67 articles studied micro (firm) level factors, but only 14 of them employed data analytical methods to study what explains entrepreneurial success, suggesting a role for networking, industry experience and entrepreneurial orientation. We suggest more research on understanding the context of entrepreneurship, with a special focus on the informal institutional environment and industry structure. Also, future research can explore topics such as strategic agendas, opportunity identification and entrepreneurial cognition, which have been rare to date. We particularly emphasize the need for rigorous and replicable large-scale empirical studies.

This guide discusses the antedents and the effects of managerial networks, incorporating first-hand data and background characteristics of managers working in 36 different countries.

How does social network position affect project managers' perceptions of success or failure? We analyze the networks of project managers in an R&D lab of a Fortune 500 company to investigate how the extent and type of centrality shape the narratives they tell about the outcomes of six technologically innovative projects. Interpretive flexibility in the meaning of success occurs more often among managers who are more central, and have access to a greater variety of information through their network ties. There is a lack of symmetry in discussion of project outcomes; managers more often discuss success than failure, and use a greater variety of narratives to talk about success. The results confirm the innovation management literature that emphasizes the multidimensionality of R&D success, and extends the embeddedness perspective on the social context of organizational behavior. Not only do social ties affect the information to which managers have access, but networks also shape their perspectives on the outcomes of innovative projects.

There is little doubt that higher education is under pressure to transform as outlined succinctly by Heckscher and Martin-Rios. They argue that the “guild” model on which they are built is outlived. The common response in recent times is a shift to an administrative/bureaucratic model to improve efficiency and responsiveness. The authors make an important point by highlighting the inherent paradox of this solution: right as corporations moved away from hierarchy and bureaucracy towards a collaborative model of teamwork, universities would be ill advised to implement a purely administrative solution. Instead, Heckscher and Martin-Rios argue, universities should move from rigid “guild” structures towards a collaborative stakeholder model where customers and suppliers work together to design and deliver a shared educational agenda.