Steven Klepper: Recipient of the 2011 Global Award for Entrepreneurship Research

Abstract

This article reviews the academic contributions of the 2011 receiver of the GlobalAward for Entrepreneurship Research, Professor Steven Klepper, Carnegie Mellon University. The Global Award consists of 100,000 Euro and a statuette of the internationally renowned Swedish sculpture Carl Milles. Klepper has made breakthrough analyses in the realm of industrial dynamics, emphasizing the regularities in the time paths of entry of new producers, exit of incumbent firms, spin-offs and innovation. His work is predominantly empirical but he has also played an essential role in developing more rigorous theoretical models of phenomena such as spin-offs. Of particular importance is how Klepper has managed to link traditional neoclassical models with evolutionary theory as well as entrepreneurship research with mainstream economics. © 2011 Research Institute of Industrial Economics.