Research

My research investigates how institutional and individual factors shape entrepreneurship across the arc of the entrepreneurial career: entry, progression, and exit. I examine this through the lens of hybrid entrepreneurs who launch ventures while retaining salaried employment (entry), serial entrepreneurs who repeatedly found new ventures (progression), and inventor entrepreneurs who return to paid employment (exit). These studies contribute to key theoretical debates on entrepreneurship as a career shaped by both external constraints and individual characteristics, and as a process of experimentation, learning, and innovation. Methodologically, my work is quantitative, drawing on longitudinal microdata and leveraging quasi-natural experiments to identify causal effects wherever possible. Thematically, my work bridges entrepreneurship with the fields of innovation, strategy, and public policy, contributing to a more integrated and interdisciplinary understanding of the entrepreneurial phenomenon.

Key words: Entrepreneurship; Entrepreneurial Innovation; Institutional Influences on Entrepreneurship; Public Policy and Entrepreneurship; Human Capital and Careers in Entrepreneurship; Entrepreneurial Behavior.

with Eduardo Melero (University Carlos III of Madrid) & Adrián Mérida (University of the Balearic Islands)

Prior research has explored whether serial entrepreneurs effectively learn from one venture to the next, revealing that such learning is often hindered when they launch subsequent firms in industries different from their prior founding experience. A critical factor influencing entrepreneurial learning is the founder’s Locus of Control (LOC), a personality trait that determines whether individuals generally attribute outcomes to their own actions or to external factors such as luck or environmental conditions. Despite being one of the most extensively studied traits in psychology and its well-documented role in learning, the specific impact of LOC on the learning processes of serial entrepreneurs—particularly in contexts where knowledge cannot be directly applied across ventures—remains unexplored. Using longitudinal data from the NLSY79, this study demonstrates that entrepreneurs with an internal LOC are more likely to learn from prior entrepreneurial experiences. Notably, an internal LOC proves particularly beneficial in contexts where past knowledge is not easily applicable, such as when entrepreneurs open a new firm in a different industry. However, its effect is negligible for entrepreneurs who repeatedly start ventures within the same industry. These findings deepen our understanding of the interplay between personality traits and entrepreneurial learning, offering novel insights into how serial entrepreneurs can successfully leverage past founding experience even when transitioning to an unfamiliar context. 

with Pooyan Khashabi (ESSEC Business School), Eduardo Melero (University Carlos III of Madrid) and Ali Mohammadi (Copenhagen Business School)

Ongoing project.

INFORME GEM LA RIOJA 2023-24 

Ruano Marrón, L.; Domínguez Ortega, J.M.; Rodríguez-Osés, E.; Mata Martínez, L.; Rodríguez-Garnica, S.; Silva Valencia, A.M.; Queiruga Dios, D. A. (2024). Informe GEM La Rioja 2023-24, Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. Logroño (La Rioja). Asociación Observatorio del Emprendimiento y el Desarrollo Empresarial de La Rioja.

INFORME GEM LA RIOJA 2022-23 

Ruano Marrón, L.; Domínguez Ortega, J.M.; Calvo Martínez, S.; Rodríguez-Oses, E.; Mata Martínez, L.; Morales Pachón, A., Rodríguez-Garnica, S. (2023). Informe GEM La Rioja 2022-23, Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. Logroño (La Rioja). Asociación Observatorio del Emprendimiento y el Desarrollo Empresarial de La Rioja.

INFORME GEM LA RIOJA 2021-22 

Ruano Marrón, L.; Domínguez Ortega, J.; Calvo Martínez, S.; Rodríguez-Oses, E.; Mata Martínez, L.; Morales Pachón, A., Rodríguez-Garnica, S. (2022). Informe GEM La Rioja 2021-22, Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. Logroño (La Rioja) Asociación Observatorio del Emprendimiento y el Desarrollo Empresarial de La Rioja.