Strategy formalization in emerging companies of technological basis: alternative resources in the liability of newness

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the potential use of alternative methods in supporting the definition, formulation, implementation and follow-up of the strategies in an emerging technology-based company. In a liability of newness context, with limited resources and infrastructure, the process of startups scale gain may be hampered by subjects as managerial inexperience, competitive discrepancy and fragility against the market instabilities. Under this scenario, the search for support for the business strategy in its scalability proves to be vital; however, still considered distant due to the costs involved in the acquisition of such support, it proves to be prohibitive for emerging companies. The study has proposed an intervention based on the absorption of knowledge through a Massive Online Open Course, an alternative mechanism to overcome the challenges listed above. In this manner, the research, whose method is structured in action researches, was based on the identification of the results generated by this support alternative model. The theoretical review pervaded by the topics: (i) the role of strategy in technology-based companies, (ii) technological entrepreneurship and the liability of newness and (iii) open education platforms as a training element in strategy. The results, as well as the surveys collected in a focus group in order to identify the main gains, have appeared in a relative medium term and the company has demonstrated relevant managerial results.