Interview protocol

APPENDIX 2 - Interview protocol

APPENDIX 2 - Interview protocol

APPENDIX 2 - Interview protocol

APPENDIX 2 - Interview protocol

APPENDIX 2 - Interview protocol

APPENDIX 2 - Interview protocol

Semi-structured interview

Introduction: (5 minutes)

Introductions. Thank you for taking the time to meet with us. We know how busy you are and appreciate your willingness to discuss your experience in spin-offs’ performance with us.

As set out in our research statement, we are interested in better understanding how spin-offs from the same parent are evolving and what dynamics underpin the performance of the successful ones.

We are conducting a survey in the field of micro-fluidics and analyzing the clusters for ink jet in France, England and US.

This interview consists of general questions about your spin off experience, particularly in terms of growth and technology choices, the relationships, if any, with the parent company, and specific questions about what have influenced the evolution of your activities.

Calisti).

We’d like to tape record our conversation. This is mainly a way to take notes and ensure

accuracy - I find it hard to both carry on an interesting conversation and take notes at the

same time. Of course, you are free to ask that the tape be turned off at any point during

the interview. [If still uncomfortable, offer the review of transcripts.]

Do you have any questions before we get started?

Subject’s Background: (5 minutes) /10

We’d like to start with some basic information, just to get a feel for your company and your role at XXX (e.g. Jason).

1. What is your official position in the company?

2. What is your background? (education – engineer or otherwise, where primarily worked within firm)

3. What brought you to found a company?

General Company Trends in Development Policy: (15 minutes) / 25

We are primarily interested in Spinoffs’ performance, but would like to get an overall picture of the scope of your project as an entrepreneur and your ambition for Jason first.

1. Can you briefly describe your business?

2. What was your ambition at origin?

3. Did you found Jason alone?

4. Did you intend mainly to create your job or an actual start-up? [individual spinoff vs structured spinoff]

5. Probes :

6. How many employees were working within the company when starting?

7. At date?

8. What were the competencies associated at origin (if any)?

Reasons for Growth, Stagnation or Failure (15 minutes) / 40

1. How do you explain the evolution of the venture? [growth or no growth]

2. Did you expect more or less development / growth that you realized?

3. Was the launching favored by other persons and/or companies from the same cluster outside the company?

4. What were, according to you, the levers and pitfalls to the development of the company?

5. What can you say about :

 Your technological differentiation?

 Your technical choices?

6. How did your turnover evolved during the 5 first years of your company?

[If performance is not good in comparison with parent company, just ask: Why??, if it is ask also why?]

Technology and performance (10 minutes) / 50

1. Ask: in your sector, in terms of technology: How do you measure the performance? (e.g. Dots per Inch or MTBF. … )

2. Did these criteria evolved over time? [That will enable to define the “link” with the parent company in technological terms or the orientation towards

“unrelated industries” . It will also enable to track the path followed by the companies on the continuum between “same industry” and “unrelated industry”]

Reasons for spinning off (15 minutes) / 1h05 Why did the founder left the parent company?

A series of reasons to explain spinoffs’ launching are stated. Which one, if any, do you consider as relevant in your case?

Do you consider that the incumbent was:

- Not able to participate to such a project [the one grounding the spinoff]

1. (Agency theory): because of its cost structure ? i.e. the project couldn’t be profitable in the framework of the parent company

2. (Organizational Capability Theories): because of organizational reasons ? i.e. the organization of the parent company and its dynamics was not in line with the needs of the project.

- Not aware of the project

3. (Employee Learning Theory): you didn’t want the incumbent to be aware of such a project.

- Not willing to conduct the project but ready to help

4. (Heritage of Spinoffs Theories): The project was discussed and supported by the Parent Company

Can you mention a company in your cluster that was particularly successful?

Probes:

a) What factors, in your opinion, contributed to this success?

b) Similarly, can you give an example of a spinoff that was particularly

unsuccessful?

c) Again, what factors do you think prevented this venture from being successful?

d) Do you consider this / some of these companies as “champion(s)” in the field of micro-fluidics?

What about spinoffs in the cluster that were less brilliant but nevertheless ventures that led to improve ink jet technology? Can you mention a name?

Indirect and direct links with the Parent Company (Imaje): (15 minutes) 1h20 To give us a better understanding of how you started and developed, could you tell us about the links with the Parent Company? [If some have already been mentioned, follow up on these ones...]

……..

Probes:

a) Are you subcontracting for the parent company [check the importance and the regularity of this business]?

b) [Qualify the links more precisely] How would you qualify the nature of this link?

- Negative link with parent company?

- No link with parent company?

- Positive link with parent company?

c) [If relevant]: What is / was the purpose of the collaboration? How does it fit into the company’s project? [use whatever terms have come up in describing the collaboration here]

d) Who was involved?

e) In the common work with the parent company you described above, did you have any concerns about negative impacts of this on Jason's competitive position?

f) What about the positive side of this collaboration?

Parent Company / Spinoffs’ cooperations that we've seen elsewhere run the gamut

from narrow, focused projects for immediate business results, to cooperations

aimed at basic technology breakthroughs, sometimes even opening up entirely

new areas for the company. Where would you place Imaje's various cooperations

along this continuum?

To what extent would you say IMAJE uses spinoffs’ cooperation just to "get the job done"

versus actively learning about a new area of technology or operations?