John Freeman: entrepreneurship and innovation defined--a personal remembrance

Abstract

This article is a personal remembrance by the authors, of John Freeman's transition from being a scholar on organization theory to an active contributor to entrepreneurship research, teaching and mentoring. The article reflects on Freeman's work on organizational ecology and entrepreneurship, as faculty director of the Lester Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of California, Berkeley, as he turned the focus of the Center to new venture formation. The article narrates how Freeman came to regard new venture creation as a defined management process for the new class of business manager, the professional entrepreneur, and points out his extension of the entrepreneurial process beyond the individual to the team and even to the ecosystem. Copyright 2012 The Author 2012. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Associazione ICC. All rights reserved., Oxford University Press.