A study by a Stanford [3] academic has concluded that a firm's IPO [4] can put the lid on creativity and innovation. Shai Bernstein of the university's Graduate School of Business [5] studied thousands of startups [6] between 1985 and 2003 to write a paper [7] (PDF file) on the subject, and these are some of his findings:

• Going public causes an exodus of ideas as well as key creative staff.
• Acquired patents after an IPO are almost always of a higher quality than those produced in-house.
• A firm with the same CEO and chairman of the board--think Apple [8] during those amazing Steve Jobs [9] years, Mark Zuckerberg's dual role [10]at Facebook [11]--was more innovative than one with two separate people at the helm.

There is, of course, a middle path--going "prublic [12]," the phablet [13], if you like, of a firm's status. But what do you think? Does going public signify the beginning of the end, or does it herald the start of something bigger and greater for a firm?

[Image by Flickr user heycreation [14]]