Inara S. Tareque

When does access to social capital reduce entrepreneurial entry, and when does it stimulate it? Guided by this question, developing a unifying theory that explains when and why social capital inhibits versus stimulates entrepreneurial outcomes is the central motivation driving my research.

 

To this end, I employ causal designs using large-scale administrative data and supplement it with in-depth qualitative interviews to perform full-cycle research. Central to this approach, all my ongoing work includes partnerships with practitioners. These collaborations span local, national, and international organizations including the New York State Small Business Development Centers, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), FinnChurch Aid, Immigrants Rising, and CDFI Friendly America.

 

Prior to joining Columbia Business School, I conducted research with the Stanford Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative (SLEI) housed in Stanford Graduate School of Businesses. I collaborated closely with the GSB faculty to advance scholarship on U.S. Latino-owned ventures. Before SLEI, I performed research at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, where my research intersected ecosystem development, venture financing, and diversity in entrepreneurship.

 

I also developed and performed data analysis for Inc. to calculate the Inc. Entrepreneurship Index, a timely measure of American entrepreneurship. Additionally, in collaboration with Startup Genome and Inc., I developed the Inc. Surge Cities index which ranks U.S. metropolitan areas for starting a business using seven key indicators.

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I completed my M.Phil from Columbia Business School, BA from Grinnell College with majors in Mathematics and Economics and a minor in Global Development Studies. My research has been covered in leading news outlets such as Time, Forbes, Bloomberg, and Inc. magazine.