Introduction:

In the dynamic ecosystem of startups, funding plays a pivotal role in the success and growth of new ventures. Traditionally, the focus has been on the monetary aspect of funding. However, recent trends indicate that investors are providing more than just financial capital. They offer a range of value-added services (VAS) that can significantly influence the trajectory of startups. These services, which can include mentorship, strategic guidance, networking opportunities, and operational support, are critical in fostering the growth and success of startups. This thesis aims to provide a comprehensive state-of-the-art research overview on these value-added services, delving into their types, benefits, and impact on startup success.

Objectives:

• Literature Compilation: Gather and compile existing research on value-added services provided by investors to startups.
• Critical Analysis: Critically analyze the literature to identify key themes, findings, and gaps in the current research.
• Methodological Exploration: Explore and implement advanced methodologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), natural language processing (NLP), and topic modeling, to enhance the literature review process.
• Synthesis and Conclusions: Synthesize the findings to provide a coherent overview of the current state of research and offer insights into future research directions.

Potential Research Questions:

• What types of value-added services do investors offer to startups beyond financial support?
• How do these services impact the growth and success of startups?
• What are the major themes and trends in the existing literature on value-added services?
• What gaps exist in the current research, and what are the potential areas for future investigation?

Potential Methodology:

Literature Review/ Overview

• Database Selection: Identify and select relevant academic databases (e.g., Google Scholar, JSTOR, Scopus) for sourcing literature.
• Search Strategy: Develop a robust search strategy using keywords such as “startup funding,” “value-added services,” “venture capital,” “investor support,” and “entrepreneurship.”
• Inclusion/Exclusion Criteria: Define criteria for including or excluding literature to ensure the review remains focused and relevant.

Data Analysis

• AI and NLP Techniques: Utilize AI and NLP techniques to analyze the collected literature. These may include: ** Topic Modeling: Employ topic modeling algorithms (e.g., Latent Dirichlet Allocation) to identify prevalent themes within the literature. ** Sentiment Analysis: Use sentiment analysis to gauge the tone and perspective of various research studies regarding value-added services. ** Text Summarization: Implement text summarization techniques to distill key points from lengthy articles.
• Qualitative Analysis: Perform a qualitative analysis to interpret the results from AI and NLP methods, providing context and deeper insights.

Synthesis

• Thematic Synthesis: Organize the findings from the literature into coherent themes and sub-themes.
• Comparative Analysis: Compare and contrast different studies to highlight consensus and divergent views within the field.
• Gap Analysis: Identify gaps in the current research and propose directions for future studies.

Expected Outcomes:

• A detailed and structured literature overview (review) highlighting the current state of research on value-added services in startup funding.
• Insights into the types and impacts of value-added services offered by investors.
• Identification of key trends, themes, and gaps in the existing literature.
• Recommendations for future research directions to address the identified gaps.

Expectations:

• Work in an independent target-oriented manner.
• Good knowledge in English.
• Interest in the specific topic and around startup financing, value co-creation and literature analysis.

Ideally:

• Skills in R or Python
• Experience with text analysis methods and techniques such as NLP
• Attend our Entrepreneurial Finance course

The exact structure of the thesis is not fixed and has a certain flexibility, which can be discussed in advance with Mr. Oliver Specht.

Supervisor: Oliver Specht (Oliver.Specht@tuhh.de)