Corporate Entrepreneurs or Rogue Middle Managers? A Framework for Ethical Corporate Entrepreneurship

Corporate entrepreneurs -- described in the academic literature as those managers or employees who do not follow the status quo of their co-workers -- are depicted as visionaries who dream of taking the company in new directions. As a result, though, in overcoming internal obstacles to reaching their professional goals they can often walk a fine line between clever resourcefulness and outright rule breaking. A framework is presented as a guideline for middle managers and organizations seeking to impede unethical behaviors in the pursuit of entrepreneurial activity. This paper examines the barriers middle managers face in trying to be entrepreneurial in less supportive environments, the ethical consequences that can result, and a suggested assessment and training program for averting such dilemmas. We advise companies that embrace corporate entrepreneurship: (1) establish the needed flexibility, innovation, and employee initiative and risk-taking; (2) remove the barriers that the entrepreneurial middle manager may face to more closely align personal and organizational initiatives and reduce the need to behave unethically; and (3) include an ethical component to corporate training which will provide guidelines for instituting compliance and values components into the state-of-the-art corporate entrepreneurship programs.     

How do threshold firms sustain corporate entrepreneurship? The role of boards and absorptive capacity

As companies move from one stage of their cycle to the next, they often have to revamp their skills and build innovative capabilities to survive, achieve profitability, and stimulate growth. Corporate entrepreneurship (CE) activities give these firms a foundation for building and exploiting these capabilities. In turn, stimulating and sustaining CE requires the infusion of resources and new knowledge into the firm's operations, using multiple external sources. In this paper, we highlight the importance of boards of directors and absorptive capacity for gaining access to varied and current knowledge that enriches CE. We suggest that boards and absorptive capacity complement each other in fueling CE activities. Further, boards can sometimes substitute for poor absorptive capacity and vice versa, influencing the intensity of CE activities. Managing these complementarities (or substitutions) is crucial for sustaining CE initiatives and creating value from them.     

Exploring country-level institutional arrangements on the rate and type of entrepreneurial activity

This study introduces a novel multidimensional measure of the entrepreneurial environment that reveals how differences in institutional arrangements influence both the rate and the type of entrepreneurial activity in a country. Drawing from institutional theory, the measure examines the regulatory, normative, and cognitive dimensions of entrepreneurial activity, and introduces a novel conducive dimension that measures a country's capability to support high-impact entrepreneurship. Our findings suggest that differences in institutional arrangements are associated with variance in both the rate and type of entrepreneurial activity across countries. For the formation of innovative, high-growth new ventures, the regulative environment matters very little. For high-impact entrepreneurship an institutional environment filled with new opportunities created by knowledge spillovers and the capital necessary for high-impact entrepreneurship matter most.     

知识型创业中的复合创业行为：企业家精神的视角

在创业行为的各个部分都达到高效率是非常困难的,因此很多知识型创业企业在很早就失败了。知识型创业者不仅需要对高技术环境中的创新活动非常敏感,也需要创新型管理组织的新活动、市场营销以及商业模式等。这需要创业者在早期的复合创业行为的企业家精神为主要资源来应付新创企业可能的衰退。本文回顾了知识型创业的企业家精神,构建了知识型创业中的复合创业行为的企业家精神的特征与概念框架,并提出了未来知识型创业活动可能的潜在的相关研究领域。     

Properties of balance: A pendulum effect in corporate entrepreneurship

Organizations tend to evolve in ways that are inherently resistant to entrepreneurship. Yet, entrepreneurship is instrumental for ensuring the long-term sustainability of any enterprise. The key to maintaining relatively high levels of entrepreneurship within a company lies in understanding the basic nature of the entrepreneurial experience, recognizing the inherent entrepreneurial potential of all employees, and creating work climates that allow employees to act on that potential. Five primary design elements are identified for facilitating such climates. Underlying these design elements is a set of seemingly conflicting properties. The challenge to companies is to achieve a balance between these properties whereby they are allowed to co-exist. Approaches to implementing this balance are addressed herein.     

How international entrepreneurship characteristics influence Internet capabilities for the international business processes of the firm

This research explores the relationship between international entrepreneurship characteristics and the use of Internet capabilities for the international business processes of the firm. It has been suggested, that the accumulation of a firms Internet capability can assist international operations, especially when operating in fast changing dynamic Internet environments. However, international entrepreneurship characteristics which are seen as a precursor to leveraging Internet capabilities are still vague. Given this finding, eight case studies of small and medium sized travel and tourism firms were selected to investigate the influence of international entrepreneurship characteristics, and Internet capabilities for international business processes. Based on the eight in-depth case studies, the results signify that successful international entrepreneurial firms which encompass high levels of international innovativeness and proactiveness behaviour integrate Internet capabilities to a greater degree. Our findings also indicate that the prior international business experience, international risk-taking propensity and international networking characteristics are not necessarily precursors to successful integration of Internet capabilities for international business processes. On the contrary, international business experience and international networks actually lead to a reliance on traditional mechanisms of internationalisation and can dilute the development of Internet capabilities for international business processes.     

Managers' corporate entrepreneurial actions: Examining perception and position

Are organizational factors that support entrepreneurial action supportive for all? We use the literatures on corporate entrepreneurship and managerial levels to propose that managers differ in structural ability to make the most of their organizational environment. Using a sample 458 managers and moderated Poisson regression analysis we found that the relationship between managers' perceptions of the organizational environment and the number of entrepreneurial ideas implemented varied across managers of different structural levels. Specifically, (1) the positive relationship between managerial support and entrepreneurial action is more positive for senior and middle level managers than it is for lower- (first) level managers, and (2) the positive relationship between work discretion and entrepreneurial action is more positive for senior and middle level managers than it is for first-level managers. These findings suggest that managerial level provides a structural ability to “make more of” organizational factors that support entrepreneurial action.     

To formalize or not to formalize: Entrepreneurship and pro-market institutions

In this paper, we examine the effects of pro-market institutions on both formal and informal entrepreneurship. While formal entrepreneurship has long been studied in economic literature, informal entrepreneurship has been less frequently discussed. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is not only to examine the impact of pro-market institutions, but also to foster a better understanding of, and introduce a method to measure, informal entrepreneurship. For the purpose of this paper, pro-market institutions are broken into their two main components: economic liberalization and governance levels. The arguments posit that economic liberalization positively impacts both formal and informal entrepreneurship while governance levels have a positive impact on formal entrepreneurship but a negative effect on informal entrepreneurship. Furthermore, governance levels reduce informal entrepreneurship to a greater extent than they increase formal entrepreneurship, resulting in a net reduction in entrepreneurial activity. The analyses of a panel covering 51 countries from 2002–2009 provide robust support for these arguments.     

Researching the entrepreneurial behaviour of new and existing ventures in European agriculture

This study analyzes differences existing between new and established agri-entrepreneurs as well as differences in relation to their counterparts in non-agricultural ventures. This study uses the resource-based view and institutional economics as conceptual frameworks and focuses on the analysis of the resources and capabilities; entrepreneurial orientation (risk-taking, proactiveness and innovativeness); and legitimation affecting the entrepreneurial process. The literature points out that the specific characteristics of the sector (strong family links and institutional support) can condition the entrepreneurship process. Thus, hypotheses are developed to test these relationships. We use random effects models to test our hypotheses with the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) for 20 European countries. Results show that agri-entrepreneurs have weaker entrepreneurial capabilities than other sectors. However, new entrants into the agricultural sector are not less entrepreneurial in relation to other sectors. On the other hand, established agri-entrepreneurs are less proactive than other sectors. Results suggest that new entrants into agriculture are more entrepreneurially oriented than established ones. Our study contributes to the entrepreneurship literature by contextualizing the entrepreneurship process and providing valuable insights for policy-makers to enhance farmers’ entrepreneurial skills and entrepreneurial orientation.     

Entrepreneurship and dynamic capabilities: how firm age and size affect the ‘capability enhancement–SME performance’ relationship

The entrepreneurship and dynamic capabilities literature adds to our understanding of how strategic change can drive firm performance. We draw on a recent survey of US SMEs to determine whether entrepreneurial ventures have dynamic capabilities, and, if so, whether differences in the characteristics of those ventures lead to differences in how dynamic capabilities benefit firm performance. We find that most entrepreneurial ventures report having such capabilities and that their differences in age and size lead to differences in how dynamic capabilities affect firm performance. We consider how these results redefine the overlap of the dynamic capabilities view literature with the entrepreneurship literature, because the redeployment of resources to create and adapt to opportunities that defines what are dynamic capabilities lies at the core of what is entrepreneurial activity.     

Crescive entrepreneurship in complex social problems: Institutional conditions for entrepreneurial engagement

This paper explores entrepreneurship in the context of complex social problems (often referred to as ‘social’ entrepreneurship). Most management research in this area studies the entrepreneurs; we explore the institutional conditions which frame the likelihood of entrepreneurial engagement. We name these conditions ‘crescive’ and, following A.O. Hirschman's studies on institutional conditions for development we identify two analytically different sets of conditions: those that can stir up actors' motivations to engage and those that can alter their decision making logic. Our exploration of crescive conditions yields a novel conceptual model for entrepreneurial engagement in the context of complex social problems, which we label ‘crescive entrepreneurship’ and place in a space between functionalist and institutional action.     

Middle managers' perception of the internal environment for corporate entrepreneurship: assessing a measurement scale

This study assesses the measurement properties of a scale that measures the key internal organizational factors that influence middle managers to initiate corporate entrepreneurship activities. In this study, corporate entrepreneurship is used in a broad sense to include the development and implementation of new ideas into the organization. Using this definition, this study describes an instrument used to empirically identify the internal conditions that influence middle manager's participation in corporate entrepreneurship activities. During the last decade, the role of the middle manager in corporate entrepreneurial activity has been recognized in the literature. The empirical research on the internal organizational factors that may foster middle manager activity has been limited, both in volume and scope. However, the literature does converge on at least five possible factors. The appropriate use of rewards: The literature stresses that an effective reward system that spurs entrepreneurial activity must consider goals, feedback, emphasis on individual responsibility, and results-based incentives. This factor, therefore, highlights middle managers' role in this regard. Gaining top management support: The willingness of senior management to facilitate and promote entrepreneurial activity in the organization, including championing innovative ideas as well as providing necessary resources, expertise or protection. This factor captures middle managers' role in this area. Resource availability: Middle managers must perceive the availability of resources for innovative activities to encourage experimentation and risk taking. Supportive organizational structure: The structure must foster the administrative mechanisms by which ideas are evaluated, chosen, and implemented. Structural boundaries tend to be a major stumbling block for middle management in corporate entrepreneurial activity. Risk taking and tolerance for failure: Middle managers must perceive an environment that encourages calculated risk taking while maintaining reasonable tolerance for failure. The literature on the internal factors was utilized to develop an assessment instrument called the Corporate Entrepreneurship Assessment Instrument (CEAI). The instrument contained 84 Likert-style questions that were believed to assess a firm's internal entrepreneurial environment. Understanding middle manager perceptions about the internal corporate environment is crucial to initiating and nurturing any entrepreneurial process. A scale such as the CEAI, therefore, could be very useful for companies that wish to embark on a strategic transformation through corporate entrepreneurship. The measurement properties of the CEAI, including a factor analysis and reliability assessment, were determined. Results confirmed that five distinct internal organizational factors, similar to those suggested in the literature, do exist. Based on how the items loaded on each factor, the factors were entitled management support, work discretion, organizational boundaries, rewards/reinforcement, and time availability. The reliability of each of these factors also met acceptable measurement standards. From a managerial perspective, the results indicate that CEAI can be a useful tool in diagnosing a firm's environment for corporate entrepreneurship, identifying areas where middle managers can make a significant difference, and develop strategies that can positively spur and sustain corporate entrepreneurship efforts. The results of such diagnosis can be useful in designing effective training programs for middle managers.     

企业家才能、营商环境与企业全要素生产率——基于我国上市公司微观数据的分析

文章通过使用2016年35个城市的上市公司微观数据，并匹配相应的营商环境指标和企业家才能指标数据，定量分析了企业家才能、营商环境对企业全要素生产率的影响。实证分析结果表明：企业家才能对企业全要素生产率影响存在着营商环境“门槛效应”，即企业家才能只有与一定的营商环境相结合，才会对企业全要素生产率提升产生积极作用；企业家才能对企业全要素生产率的影响存在着明显的区域差异和产业差异特征：沿海地区企业家才能对企业全要素生产率的影响要强于内陆地区企业家才能对企业全要素生产率的影响；企业家才能对传统产业企业全要素生产率影响大于对战略新兴产业企业全要素生产率影响。     

Factors affecting the performance of entrepreneurial service firms

In the current climate, the importance of the role played by entrepreneurship as a palpable reality that enables economic growth at a macroeconomic level, and as a factor that favours the progress of companies at a microeconomic level, has made it the subject of continual analyses from many different perspectives and in a variety of contexts by researchers from around the world. In this study, Spanish entrepreneurial firms in the service sector are analysed in order to determine the factors that influence their performance.     

A Model of Social Entrepreneurial Discovery

Social entrepreneurship activity continues to surge tremendously in market and economic systems around the world. Yet, social entrepreneurship theory and understanding lag far behind its practice. For instance, the nature of the entrepreneurial discovery phenomenon, a critical area of inquiry in general entrepreneurship theory, receives no attention in the specific context of social entrepreneurship. To address the gap, we conceptualize social entrepreneurial discovery based on an extension of corporate social responsibility into social entrepreneurship contexts. We develop a model that emphasizes mobilization and timing as underpinnings of social entrepreneurial discovery and offer distinct conceptual aspects and theoretic propositions instrumental to future social entrepreneurship research.     

Chinese immigrants in network marketing business in Western host country context

Many Chinese immigrants start their entrepreneurship business by joining major network marketing businesses in Western host countries. The willingness of these Chinese immigrants to undertake network marketing rests on the influence of the social environment of the network marketing organization. Network marketing specific self-efficacy, social competence and motivation for establishing one's own business are also hypothesized to play an important role in their engagement in entrepreneurial actions. Drawing upon Bandura's social cognitive theory and the immigrant entrepreneurship literature, the present study investigates whether the social environmental influence of a network marketing organization affects the extent to which Chinese immigrants develop the self-efficacy, social competence and motivation to establish their own business and how these variables affect the actions undertaken in the host country. The study is based on the sample of 194 Chinese immigrants in their adopted host country, Australia. The findings of the survey suggest that the social environment within network marketing organizations positively affects self-efficacy, which in turn positively affects the entrepreneurial actions undertaken by Chinese immigrants in conducting their network marketing business. Social environmental influence impacts positively on their motivation to establish their own network marketing business and social competence. However the effects of motivation and social competence on entrepreneurial action were not supported. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

Why Hurry? The Slow Process of High Growth in Women‐Owned Businesses in a Resource‐Scarce Context

This article critically uncovers how embeddedness within a resource‐scarce context influences high‐growth women’s entrepreneurship. Research suggests that though highly embedded women entrepreneurs can easily access resources and attain legitimacy, resulting in high‐growth businesses, they can also become locked into existing systems that constrain their growth development paths. Using 16 qualitative cases developed in Cameroon, we unpack and resolve this paradox by analyzing how entrepreneurial path creation by women entrepreneurs enables the realization of growth aspirations. Implications for initiatives to support high‐growth women’s entrepreneurship in resource‐scarce contexts are critically examined.     

The Social Entrepreneurship Zone

Social entrepreneurship is still in the developmental stage as a field of inquiry. In this article we introduce the concept of the social entrepreneurship zone. This new construct positions social entrepreneurship relative to the ways organizations plan to implement social change and the degrees to which they apply business practices to do so. Two new categories of organizations, social transformation entrepreneurial ventures and social improvement entrepreneurial ventures, reside in the social entrepreneurship zone. This categorization separates social entrepreneurial ventures into 2 distinct groups with their own unique set of characteristics. The social entrepreneurship zone construct should help researchers and other stakeholders better understand this emerging field so it can be further studied and developed.     

创业动力及其机制分析

创业是一个发现和捕捉机会并由此创造出新颖的产品或服务以及实现其潜在价值的过程。推动创业的因素包括创新活动的推动,创业利益的驱动,政府政策的鼓励和支持,改善自身环境的愿望,对个人抱负的追求,成功创业者的示范效应等,这些因素共同作用于创业过程,通过创业驱动机制、创业机会搜寻机制、风险投资机制以及创业利益的收获机制等保证创业活动的顺利开展。     

Is your organization conducive to the continuous creation of social value? Toward a social corporate entrepreneurship scale

Over the last decade, explicit emphasis on the creation of social value has grown in profit-seeking firms as well as nonprofits and has even led to the emergence of a new legal organizational classification known as for-benefit corporations. Like financial value, social value is dynamic and therefore subject to perpetual changes in the firm’s external environment, changes that yield opportunities and threats for the firm. Although social entrepreneurship researchers have begun to study the identification and exploitation of opportunities to create social value, this research has taken place primarily within the context of startup organizations. In contrast, corporate entrepreneurship research has emphasized value creation within existing firms, but focused primarily on the identification and exploitation of opportunities to create financial value. Combining the two, we examine the creation of social value within the firm by proposing the social corporate entrepreneurship scale (SCES), a new instrument that measures organizational antecedents for social corporate entrepreneurship and offers managers an opportunity to analyze whether the perceived environment is supportive of corporate entrepreneurial behaviors intended to create social as well as financial value. The article concludes with a discussion of the instrument’s potential contribution to managerial practice.