This document summarizes research on the influence of human behavior on startup valuations at early funding stages. Interviews with 58 early-stage investors found that when information is limited to support valuation models, investors rely on heuristics, biases, and previous experiences. This challenges the traditional perspective that valuations are purely rational. The research establishes a theoretical foundation to further explore how human behavior impacts the valuation process and brings attention to the non-financial factors in valuations. Future work could validate current claims through quantitative research and explore valuations from the entrepreneur's perspective.
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Poster - EMS Doctoral Consortium - Luis Almanza - Insights from non-financial factors.pdf
1. What is the in
f
luence of human
behavior in the startup valuation at
an early stage?
Seeking the roots of new venture valuations:
Insights from non-
f
inancial factors.
Findings
Theoretical
framing
Methodology Conclusions Implications Future work
Unit of analysis: Individuals (investors), with an
in
f
luential role in the valuation decision-making
process of tech startups at early-stage funding
rounds (pre-seed, seed and Series A)
Data collection: 58 Semi-structured open
interviews.
Data analysis: Open coding, axial coding,
selective coding and theory construction
• Research has documented the in
f
luence of
human behavior variables in the investor's
perspective at early-stage investments.
• If the information is not available to support
model assumptions, investors recur to
previous experiences or current paradigms
about the future (heuristics & biases).
• Limited rationality and the inconsistent
behavior.
• Challenge traditional perspective about
valuations.
• Brings the attention of researchers,
investors, and entrepreneurs to the non-
f
inancial side of valuations.
• Establish a theoretical foundation for further
exploring this human behavior in
f
luence's
nature and its implications on the valuation
process.
• Introducing a new perspective to explore
valuation methods and their e
ff
ectiveness.
• Question dictation voice.
• Explore the investor decision-making process
using ethnographic research techniques to
validate investor answers.
• Validate current claims with quantitative
research based on surveys, available data in
the industry, and decision-making
experiments.
• Study the entrepreneur's perspective of the
same phenomena.
• Observe whether the e
ff
ect is strengthened
or weakened over di
ff
erent investment
rounds.
Luis Almanza
lma77@case.edu
+52 444 510 9619
Areas of feedback
• Feedback, advice, or new ideas.
• Dissemination options (journals, magazines,
books).
• Interested VCs for behavior experiments
(winter 2021, summer 2022).
• Secondary data access.
• Early-stage investors for data collection
(surveys).
• Research funds or sponsors.