Strong ties, information seeking, and ecosystem brokerage among actors in the Atlantic Canadian entrepreneurial ecosystem

Abstract

Abstract While weak ties have received considerable research attention, less is known about the role of strong ties in this context or the interplay among different types of ties. This study addressed this gap, at least partially, by investigating the outreach made by Atlantic Canadian entrepreneurs to improve their businesses through a survey of knowledge-seeking behaviors of 533 Atlantic Canadian entrepreneurs identified 1666 different ecosystem actors among 3397 separate knowledge-seeking events. The findings from this study highlight the importance of a confluence of strong and weak ties in serving as conduits through which entrepreneurs secure resources from ecosystem support providers. When a breadth of knowledge is required (i.e. both business and technical), entrepreneurial firms establish strong ties with specific government agencies and universities. When primarily business knowledge is needed, entrepreneurial firms form strong ties with government agencies, while government agencies in turn establish strong ties with a wider range of stakeholders across the ecosystem actors. Finally, when primarily technical knowledge is needed the strong ties are leveraged primarily by entrepreneurial firms to embed themselves within the partner organizations, which tend to be universities and professional service organizations. The article concludes with implications for theory and practice.