The Silicon Valley Edge: A Habitat for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Published by Stanford University Press 2000

The Silicon Valley Edge

A Habitat for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Edited by: Chong-Moon Lee , William F. Miller , Marguerite Gong Hancock and Henry S. Rowen

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781503619180

Overview
Contents

About this book

The enormous and sustained success of Silicon Valley has excited interest around the globe. Startup companies the world over are attempting to emulate its high tech businesses, and many governments are changing their institutions in order to foster Silicon Valleys of their own. What accounts for the Valley’s leading edge in innovation and entrepreneurship? This book gives an answer by insiders, by prominent business leaders and academics from the heart of the Valley. They argue that what distinguishes the Valley is not its scientific advances or technological breakthroughs. Instead, its edge derives from a “habitat” or environment that is tuned to turn ideas into products and take them rapidly to market by creating new firms. This habitat includes supportive government regulations for new firm formation, leading research universities that interact with industry, an exceptionally talented and highly mobile work force, and experienced support services in such areas as finance, law, accounting, headhunting, and marketing, all specializing in helping new companies form and grow. Not least is a spirit of adventure and a willingness to take risks. The elements of this habitat are packed into a small geographic area. In it, networks of specialists form communities of practice within which ideas develop and circulate and from which new products and new firms emerge. Feedback processes are strongly at work: the successes of Valley firms strengthen the habitat, and the stronger it becomes, the more new, successful firms are created. Among industries, electronics came into the Valley first, followed by semiconductors, computers, software, and, in the 1990s, biotechnology, networking, and the Internet. This extraordinary ability to keep adding new industrial sectors itself affects the prospect for the Silicon Valley's future. What lies ahead? From within, the Valley faces serious challenges in defining a new generation of entrepreneurs, addressing a growing digital divide, and maintaining quality of life. At the same time, the Valley must redefine its global role with respect to other rising innovative regions worldwide. Nevertheless, the proven ability of its highly effective habitat suggests that in both innovation and entrepreneurship, Silicon Valley will maintain its edge.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
PREFACE Publicly Available Download PDF	v
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
CONTENTS Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
FIGURES, TABLES, AND MAP Publicly Available Download PDF	xiii
CONTRIBUTOR BIOGRAPHIES Publicly Available Download PDF	xv
1 The Silicon Valley Habitat Chong-Moon Lee, William F. Miller, Marguerite Gong Hancock and Henry S. Rowen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
2 Mysteries of the Region Knowledge Dynamics in Silicon Valley John Seely Brown and Paul Duguid Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	16
PART I Silicon Valley Today
INTRODUCTION Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	43
3 A Profile of the Valley's Evolving Structure Doug Henton Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	46
4 Life in Silicon Valley A First-Hand View of the Region's Growth E. Floyd Kvamme Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	59
5 Innovation in Business Models T. Michael Neyens Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	81
6 Four Styles of Valley Entrepreneurship Chong-Moon Lee Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	94
7 Changing Everything The Internet Revolution and Silicon Valley Steve Jurvetson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	124
PART II The Evolution of Silicon Valley
INTRODUCTION Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	153
8 Fairchild Semiconductor and Its Influence Christophe Lécuyer Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	158
9 Serendipity or Strategy How Technology and Markets Came to Favor Silicon Valley Henry S. Rowen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	184
10 The Role of Stanford University A Dean's Reflections James F. Gibbons Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	200
11 Social Networks in Silicon Valley Emilio J. Castilla, Hokyu Hwang, Ellen Granovetter and Mark Granovetter Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	218
12 Networks of Immigrant Entrepreneurs Annalee Saxenian Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	248
PART III A Clustered Community
INTRODUCTION Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	271
13 Venture Capitalists The Coaches of Silicon Valley Thomas F. Hellmann Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	276
14 The Valley of Deals How Venture Capital Helped Shape the Region Dado P. Banatao and Kevin A. Fong Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	295
15 Fueling the Revolution Commercial Bank Financing John C. Dean Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	314
16 Advising the New Economy The Role of Lawyers Craig W. Johnson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	325
17 Shepherding the Faithful The Influence of Executive Search Firms Thomas J. Friel Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	342
18 Guiding the Innovators Why Accountants Are Valued James D. Atwell Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	355
19 Free Advice Consulting the Silicon Valley Way Regis Mckenna Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	370
Afterword: Sustaining the Edge Chong-Moon Lee, William F. Miller, Marguerite Gong Hancock and Henry S. Rowen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	380
NOTES Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	385
REFERENCES Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	399
INDEX Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	409

Language: English
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Audience: College/higher education;
Pages
- Main content: 456
Illustrations
- Other: 18 figures, 6 tables, 1 map

eBook

Published: October 1, 2000
ISBN: 9781503619180