Decoding the corporate venture capital lifecycle: a systematic review and research agenda

This study presents a systematic review of the Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) literature aiming to synthesize and integrate findings from the fields of strategic management, entrepreneurship, and finance, to address the fragmented nature of existing research with a focus on the CVC lifecycle. As previous research on CVC lacks a comprehensive perspective that captures the interrelatedness across CVC activities from inception until abandonment, we analyse 130 articles from the last 42 years and identify seven developmental stages throughout the CVC lifecycle: CVC foundation, CVC structural set-up, CVC internal operations, knowledge orchestration in CVC, CVC investment processing, CVC post investment impact as well as CVC termination. We examine how these developmental stages interact and influence each other over time. As a result of examining the complex interplay within the temporal, dynamic, and multi-staged CVC phenomenon, we offer a new integrative framework that calls for four bold shifts in the CVC research agenda. Our work lays the foundation for creating cumulative and generalizable findings, essential for further advancement in CVC research.