The survival of dedicated Canadian biotechnology firms

We adopt the theory of the resource-based view to study the survival of Canadian biotechnology firms. We hypothesize that these companies may have a longer life expectancy through: 1) presence of star scientists, 2) existence of experienced managers, 3) focus on core competency, and 4) support of venture capital firms. Our longitudinal study on public dedicated Canadian Biotechnology firms (DBFs) (1990-2010), allows us to confirm all hypotheses with the exception of the fourth (support of venture capital). Overall, our results show that listed Canadian DBFs rely mainly on their human resources (Team management and star scientist) in order to survive.