Human capital and entrepreneurial success: a meta-analytical review Jens M. Unger, Andreas Rauch, Michael Frese, Nina Rosenbusch Journal of Business Venturing, in press This study meta-analytically integrates results from three decades of human capital research in entrepreneurship. Based on 70 independent samples (N = 24,733), we found a significant but small relationship between human capital and success (r_c = .098). We examined theoretically derived moderators of this relationship referring to conceptualizations of human capital, context, and measurement of success. The relationship was higher for outcomes of human capital investments (knowledge/skills) than for human capital investments (education/experience), for human capital with high task-relatedness compared to low task-relatedness, for young businesses compared to old businesses, and for the dependent variable size compared to growth or profitability. Findings are relevant for practitioners (lenders, policy makers, educators) and for future research. Our findings show that future research should pursue moderator approaches to study the effects of human capital on success. Further, human capital is most important if it is task-related and if it consists of outcomes of human capital investments rather than human capital investments; this suggests that research should overcome a static view of human capital and should rather investigate the processes of learning, knowledge acquisition, and the transfer of knowledge to entrepreneurial tasks. The study contributes to the literature in at least three important ways. First, we determine the magnitude of the overall effect of human capital on entrepreneurial success. Second, we test the effects of different human capital attributes, such as task-relatedness and human capital investments versus outcomes of human capital investments. Finally, we identify conditions that moderate the relationship between human capital and success. The study found a significant and small overall relationship between human capital and success (r_c = .098). Moderator analyses indicated that the magnitude of the success relationship depends on conceptualizations of human capital, the context of the firm, and the choice of success measures. The human capital-success relationship was higher for knowledge/skills which are outcomes of human capital investments compared to experience/schooling which are direct human capital investments; the relationship was also higher for human capital that was directly related to entrepreneurial tasks compared to human capital with low task-relatedness, for young compared to old businesses, and for success measured as size compared to growth and profitability. The correlation between human capital and success can be as high as, for example, r_c = .204 (for outcomes of human capital investments) and r_c = .140 (for young businesses). These relationships are strong enough to draw theoretical and practical implications. Our results may guide practitioners in their evaluation of small businesses and may resolve some of the controversies surrounding investment decisions and human capital criteria. In order to maximize predictive validities, decision making should focus on task-specific human capital and outcomes of human capital investments. Moreover, entrepreneurs shouldHuman capital and entrepreneurial success: a meta-analytical review Jens M. Unger, Andreas Rauch, Michael Frese, Nina Rosenbusch Journal of Business Venturing, in press This study meta-analytically integrates results from three decades of human capital research in entrepreneurship. Based on 70 independent samples (N = 24,733), we found a significant but small relationship between human capital and success (r_c = .098). We examined theoretically derived moderators of this relationship referring to conceptualizations of human capital, context, and measurement of success. The relationship was higher for outcomes of human capital investments (knowledge/skills) than for human capital investments (education/experience), for human capital with high task-relatedness compared to low task-relatedness, for young businesses compared to old businesses, and for the dependent variable size compared to growth or profitability. Findings are relevant for practitioners (lenders, policy makers, educators) and for future research. Our findings show that future research should pursue moderator approaches to study the effects of human capital on success. Further, human capital is most important if it is task-related and if it consists of outcomes of human capital investments rather than human capital investments; this suggests that research should overcome a static view of human capital and should rather investigate the processes of learning, knowledge acquisition, and the transfer of knowledge to entrepreneurial tasks. The study contributes to the literature in at least three important ways. First, we determine the magnitude of the overall effect of human capital on entrepreneurial success. Second, we test the effects of different human capital attributes, such as task-relatedness and human capital investments versus outcomes of human capital investments. Finally, we identify conditions that moderate the relationship between human capital and success. The study found a significant and small overall relationship between human capital and success (r_c = .098). Moderator analyses indicated that the magnitude of the success relationship depends on conceptualizations of human capital, the context of the firm, and the choice of success measures. The human capital-success relationship was higher for knowledge/skills which are outcomes of human capital investments compared to experience/schooling which are direct human capital investments; the relationship was also higher for human capital that was directly related to entrepreneurial tasks compared to human capital with low task-relatedness, for young compared to old businesses, and for success measured as size compared to growth and profitability. The correlation between human capital and success can be as high as, for example, r_c = .204 (for outcomes of human capital investments) and r_c = .140 (for young businesses). These relationships are strong enough to draw theoretical and practical implications. Our results may guide practitioners in their evaluation of small businesses and may resolve some of the controversies surrounding investment decisions and human capital criteria. In order to maximize predictive validities, decision making should focus on task-specific human capital and outcomes of human capital investments. Moreover, entrepreneurs should