Entrepreneurial Organizations Research Articles

Entrepreneurial Orientation in Embedding Knowledge-Based Resources in the Organization

Knowledge is a key resource for an organization, serving as a source of sustainable differentiation and thus a competitive advantage. Knowledge-based resources are especially valuable to organizations because they are unique and protected against imitation. The advantages of knowledge-based resources mean that investments in these resources translate into benefits for the enterprise, especially when knowledge becomes an attribute of the company as a whole. The ability to embed knowledge in an organization depends on many factors, including those that directly shape the company's organizational culture. One of such factors may be entrepreneurial orientation as a strategic attitude of the firm presented in a given environment. The construct of entrepreneurial orientation should be treated as a multidimensional construct, where the dimensions are: autonomy, proactivity, competitive aggressiveness, innovation and risk taking. Research on the influence of organizational entrepreneurship on building the organization's knowledge resources is relatively rarely presented in the literature, which underlines the scientific contribution of the paper. The main aim of the paper is to study the impact of the level of entrepreneurial orientation on the level of knowledge-based resources embedded in the organization. The implementation of the goal was based on questionnaire surveys conducted in 2022. on the group of 355 enterprises in Poland. The respondents' opinions were diagnosed using a 5-point Likert scale. A managerial approach was used in the study, which constitutes a certain limitation of the research. The results of empirical studies were statistically analysed using tools such as factor analysis and multiple regression. The main research conclusions indicate a positive correlation, of moderate intensity, between the dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation and the level of knowledge-based resources, where the greatest impact was noted in the case of the following predictors: innovation and competitive aggressiveness. The research has implications for management practitioners who, by promoting entrepreneurial attitudes at the organizational level, can manipulate knowledge resources, especially in the area of ​​HR.

Key pillars in a business ecosystem success

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the dimensions that foster the accomplishment of goals of business ecosystems.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews recent contributions to business ecosystems and identifies the key pillars that support the achievement of good results.FindingsThe paper suggests that entanglement with the customers, value sharing based on a holistic win-win approach, organizational entrepreneurship alignment and continuous smart learning are four dimensions of criticality for designing an effective business ecosystem. These four dimensions nurture the relationships between participants and external actors to make ecosystems successful. Entanglement with the customer is critical to the long-term relevance of the value proposition that reinforces companies’ relationships within the second pillar of value sharing in a win-win system. The development is structured in an organizational alignment where entrepreneurship is the engine, from the employees themselves to the largest corporations, and is enriched with continuous learning based on the exploitation of knowledge and big data.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper identifies a set of four pillars of business ecosystem design for further empirical analysis by ecosystem researchers.Practical implicationsThe paper provides managers and professionals with strategies to develop effective growth within business ecosystems.Originality/valueThe authors contribute a fresh perspective to the business ecosystems literature by identifying four key pillars of success in the current business landscape.

A Consociation Model: Organization of Collective Entrepreneurship for Village Revitalization

This study focused on how rural communities adopted consociational mechanisms to organize collective entrepreneurship, addressing the conflicts across the divergent social groups toward a convergent process that allows different entrepreneurs to fold into a grand coalition. It extended the theory of consociation from political science to the field of social entrepreneurship and inductively theorized the dimensional mechanisms based on the collective entrepreneurial effort of Yuan village in Shaanxi province of China. The results demonstrated four streams of consociational mechanisms: (1) emancipation to empower the vulnerable groups, (2) reconciliation of divergent interests, (3) reflection learning to generate reciprocity, and (4) proportional participation to institutionalize a hierarchical order in the community. These results advance the consociation theory and the organization of social change literature with strong policy implications.

Issues of using bank credits in development of family entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship plays an important role in the sustainable development of the national economy and plays a leading role in solving economic and social problems. In our country, a number of tasks have been carried out in the areas of creating an entrepreneurial environment in every family, their financial support, the allocation of soft loans. This article examines the activities of banks in the use of soft loans allocated for the organization of entrepreneurship in each family, provides analytical data, suggestions and recommendations.

Integration of Gender Aspects into Development of Knowledge Management System in The Entrepreneurial Organizations in Serbia

For entrepreneurial organizations to be able to successfully develop the business strategy, it is necessary to provide optimal resources for unhindered growth, internal coherence, stability of organizational culture, and competitiveness in the market. At the heart of these processes are employees, who directly influence organizational outcomes with their daily efforts, ability, and thinking. Also, the improvement of business functions is necessary for the organization to be competitive with other organizations in the market. In this context, the effectiveness of knowledge management is one of the key aspects in ensuring the development of both individual and group performance. In today’s time of great challenges for entrepreneurs, managing the processes that provide knowledge to both employees and organizations can be a key aspect of business sustainability that is imperative in turbulent circumstances. The purpose of the study was to examine how organizational culture and gender aspects of employees should be put in the function of knowledge management system (KMS). In line with this, this paper attempts to examine the extent to which the processes of improving the knowledge of employees from a gender perspective in entrepreneurial organizations in Serbia are effectively managed. In order for women to realize a greater contribution in entrepreneurial organizations, it is imperative to stimulate the educational process by empowering both women and men to improve their well-being and participate actively in entrepreneurial organizations building. Authors pointed out that when technology and organizational culture are coupled with educational assistance and training, however, adoption improves, and benefits are greater. Finally, they concluded that statistical parameters explicitly show that there are no significant differences on any tested issue, between males and females. This means that their perspective is identical when it comes to the development and use of knowledge management in entrepreneurial organizations.

THE IMPACT OF THE AGILE SYSTEM, KNOWLEDGE SHARING, AND EMPOWERMENT ON ORGANIZATIONAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN ORANGE TELECOMMUNICATION FIRMS

This study sought to investigate the impacts of an agile system, knowledge sharing, and empowerment on the organizational entrepreneurship within Orange, a telecommunications firm. In total, 278 samples were gathered after the sample-checking process was completed. The PLS program was then utilized to process all the data. The findings of this study reveal a set of relationships and linkages that can serve to enhance organizational entrepreneurship. More specifically, the findings indicate that an agile system has a positive and direct impact on entrepreneurship, including leadership and collaboration, self-organizing teams, effective changes, and both complexity and flexibility. In addition, knowledge sharing positively affects entrepreneurship, including work groups, the collaborative environment, knowledge repositories, training, and integration within the work environment. Moreover, empowerment has a direct and positive impact on entrepreneurship, including instruments, self-efficacy, self-advocacy, and competence. Interestingly, the present findings are inconsistent with those of previous studies showing the variables of interest to have no effect on data mining and entrepreneurship. Taken together, the findings of this study suggest that firms should begin to integrate the process of entrepreneurship into all transactional processes, documents, and orders. Firms should also start relying on agile and empowerment systems to effectively deal with knowledge sharing, keep pace with development and competition, develop more competitive advantages and new knowledge, and support and enhance the decision-making process. The novelty of the present study lies in highlighting the key dimensions of an agile system, knowledge sharing, and empowerment when it comes to enhancing organizational entrepreneurship within a telecommunications firm.

The Relationship Between Leadership Style and Organizational Entrepreneurship in the Staff Managers of Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences

Background: Today, the success of organizations depends on creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. One of the appropriate tools for the growth of organizational entrepreneurship is an appropriate leadership style tailored to the concepts of entrepreneurship in the organization. This study aimed to examine the relationship between leadership style and organizational entrepreneurship in the staff managers of Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences in 2019.
 Methods: This was a descriptive-analytic cross-sectional study conducted in 2019. All the staff managers (n= 85) of Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences were approached to participate in the study. Sampling was conducted using the census method. Sixty participants completed the questionnaire. Data were collected using two questionnaires: 1) the leadership style questionnaire, Clark and 2) the organizational entrepreneurship questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS16 descriptive statistics (e.g. frequency, percent, mean ± Standard Deviation (SD)), and statistical tests including t-test, ANOVA and Pearson Correlation Coefficient.
 Results: The mean ± SD of organizational entrepreneurship in staff managers was estimated at 3.18 ± 0.66. The highest type of leadership among managers was related to participative leadership with 3.90 ± 0.51. There was a direction and significant association between autocratic leadership style and organizational entrepreneurship (r = 0.30, P-value = 0.01). In contrast, no significant association was found between participative leadership and organizational entrepreneurship (P-value = 0.05) and between laissez-faire leadership style and organizational entrepreneurship (P-value = 0.62).
 Conclusion: Having a leadership style tailored to the business environment makes the organization an entrepreneurial organization. In order to have an entrepreneurial organization, some measures must be taken so that managers can adopt appropriate leadership styles to provide the necessary environment for creating a successful organization and the presence of creative and entrepreneurial people in the organization.

The Role of Organizational Development in the Effect of Intra-Organizational Entrepreneurship on Innovativeness: A Mixed-Method Study in Higher Education Institutions

The study aims to examine the effect of the level of intra-organizational entrepreneurship in higher education institutions on the level of organizational innovation and to determine whether the perceived organizational development level has a mediating role in this effect. In the research, it is examined whether the academicians’ perceptions of intra-organizational entrepreneurship, organizational innovation, and organizational development differ significantly according to demographical and professional variables. It also examines the subject in depth according to the views of academicians qualitatively in accordance with the results of the quantitative research.
 
 The research is carried out with an explanatory sequential design, one of the mixed design methods. The correlational survey, causal comparison, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) are used to test the theoretical relationships empirically. The qualitative part of the research is conducted according to the phenomenological design.
 
 The quantitative sample of the research is a total of 501 faculty members having various academical degrees selected from foundation and state universities in the 2020-2021 academic calendar through proportional stratified sampling. The qualitative study group of the research is 15 academicians who were selected by using purposive sampling among the participants who constitute the quantitative sample group.
 
 As a result of the research, while the average scores of the Organizational Entrepreneurship Scale were found to be high, the Organizational Innovation Scale and the Organizational Development Level Determination Scale mean scores were found to be moderate. When all the findings were evaluated together, it is found that the academics’ perceptions of intra-organizational entrepreneurship in higher education institutions indirectly affect organizational innovativeness through their perceptions of organizational development.

Social Entrepreneurship and Frugal Innovation: A Composition-Based View

How do social entrepreneurship organisations sustain and innovate to serve base-of-the-pyramid populations in emerging economies? This paper delves into the strategies and processes employed by social entrepreneurship organisations to create both social and economic value via frugal innovation approaches combining cost-effective value creation and social problem solving and thus ensure their sustainability. To elucidate this, a composition-based view is leveraged, which emphasises how organisations possessing ordinary resources can accomplish extraordinary outcomes. Extending the composition-based view to social entrepreneurship research, three new concepts around compositional strategies are introduced: (1) specialist versus generalist compositional offering, (2) temporary versus sustainable competitive advantage based on compositional competition, and (3) value-driven versus task-driven compositional capability. Utilising three examples—India’s Selco, Ghana’s Toyola, and Brazil’s Centre for Digital Inclusion—specific conditions under which social entrepreneurship organisations apply the identified compositional strategies to further their social ambitions in a sustainable manner underpinned by frugal innovation to serve base-of-the-pyramid populations are illustrated.

Features of the organization of the joint-stock entrepreneurship

The article deals with the peculiarities of organizational forms of entrepreneurship: joint-stock companies. On the basis of the study of basic laws and legislative acts on joint-stock company the basic rules on the opening and organization of joint-stock form of enterprise are systematized. The prerequisites for creation and effective functioning of joint stock companies are revealed. The issues of formation of the authorized capital, the main types, features and differences of shares, as well as their role in the activities of the company are considered. The basic constituent documents of a joint stock company, management bodies, conditions of liquidation and reorganization are studied in detail. In this case, the joint stock company is considered as a special form of organizational and legal form of enterprise, and its relationship to the stock market is defined. The main advantages of joint-stock companies are revealed and conclusions about their significance and role in the system of national economy are drawn. The role of joint stock companies in the development of the economy is substantiated by specific conclusions. The importance and necessity of joint-stock company in the development of entrepreneurship in the country were considered. The obstacles to the development of joint stock companies, taking into account their features in comparison with other organizational forms were revealed. Insufficient development of the stock market in Kazakhstan has had a significant impact on the activities of joint stock companies. Therefore, one of the key issues is the development of the stock market, increasing the investment attractiveness of joint stock companies, their liquidity and market value of shares.

Implementation Of Kiai's Leadership Style In Improving Teacher Creativity At The Jawahirul Hikmah Islamic Boarding School Tulungagung

The research in this dissertation is motivated by the kiai as the leader of the pesantren which is an interesting leadership phenomenon. Kiai and teachers innovate with various forms of activities. Kiai improves the quality of Human Resources (HR) for teachers/asatidz and administrators, by instilling faith in the hearts of every student, administrator and board of Asatidz with a sincere attitude of lillahi ta'ala, riyadhoh, uswatun hasanah (exemplary) and patient; changing the mindset of asatidz, developing teacher skills and introducing and strengthening all institutional rules, duties, rights and obligations of asatidz, both as citizens of Islamic boarding schools, communities and citizens. The research approach uses qualitative methods. Data collection techniques are participant observation, in-depth interviews and documentation. The data analysis techniques used are l) data condensation 2) data presentation, 3) conclusion drawing/verification. From the results of this study, it can be concluded that: 1) Ithe implementation of the kiai leadership style in increasing teacher creativity at the Jawahirul Hikmah Islamic Boarding School Tulungagung is carried out by: a) Visionary leadership style is carried out with the kiai being the direction setter, agent of change,good mentor and role modelthe spirit of jihad and the spirit of fighting for and advancing the Jawaahirul Hikmah Islamic boarding school by forming a team in the management of educational institutions and collaborating with external parties in learning activities. b) The entrepreneurial leadership style is carried out by the kiai forming an entrepreneurial organization for Marble mining, carp and catfish farming, freshwater lobster cultivation, AQUAQY Factory to increase teacher creativity. c) Style,Innovative leadership by: (1) Kiai forming Marble mining entrepreneurship organizations, carp and catfish farming, freshwater Lobster cultivation, AQUAQY Factory to increase teacher creativity, (2) Kiai providing guidance by forming small groups with a quarantine model, (3 ) Outdoor class by making small groups in learning. d) Charismatic leadership style consists of: (1) belief in the kiai in providing policies, there are directions and instructions for program implementation to teachers/asatidz and administrators. (2) the kiai in his leadership involves members/followers and gives confidence to his members through all activities. (3) Leaders focus on the performance of their subordinates by providing motivation by providing complex, challenging, initiative, risk so that members become more responsible and diligent. e) The democratic leadership style provides the freedom to accept suggestions, thoughts, ideas from teachers to improve the existing programs at the Jawaahirul Hikmah Islamic Boarding School.

Human resources who competen The Influence Of Human Resource Competence In Spencer's Concept To Organizational Entrepreneurship

Background – Organizational entrepreneurship is one of the solutions used to maintain the existence and sustainability of an organization oriented towards community empowerment in Indonesia. Aim – This study aims to analyze the effect of human resource competence using the Spencer model on organizational entrepreneurship. Design / methodology / approach – The research respondents were all 35 female partners at BUANA. Collecting data using questionnaires and interviews. The modified human resource competency instrument from the Spencer Model, and Organizational Entrepreneurship uses an adaptation instrument from Spencer and Spencer's initial research. The analytical tool used to measure the level of data validity is the correlation coefficient using SPSS17.0 software. Result and Discussion – The results of the study indicate that the competence of Spencer's human resources concept which consists of motivation, nature, attitude, knowledge and skills has a very important role in the effort to develop Organizational Entrepreneurship. Organizational entrepreneurship is found in various organizations in the community and can increasingly provide space in driving economic activity in the community and groups/organizations. Conclusion - Based on the results above, the value of HR Competence with Organizational Entrepreneurship shows a linearity significance so HR Competence was linear with Organizational Entrepreneurship. This coherence with HR Competencies affected Organizational Entrepreneurship.

Social bricolage and social business model in uncertain contexts: insights for the management of minor cultural heritage in Italy

PurposeThis paper aims to analyse how social entrepreneurship organizations that use approach of social bricolage adapt their business model to develop social innovation. The past decade has witnessed a surge of research interest in social entrepreneurship organizations (SEOs). This has resulted in important insights concerning their role in fostering social challenges. The crisis of both public and private profit-driven models meet the arising of new initiatives designed to meet the minor and often abandoned cultural heritage consumption need. Drawing on the domain of SEOs and social bricolage framework, these initiatives are able to pursue the social and the economic mission together and to produce social innovation.Design/methodology/approachThis paper aims to analyze how SEOs that use strategies of social bricolage can improve the development and diffusion of social innovation. Employing in-depth multiple comparative case studies of 15 cultural SEOs in the South of Italy, through the analysis of semi-structured interview, the study enhance current understanding of the social dimension of SEOs.FindingsFirst results show that SEOs in the domain of minor cultural heritage adopt an innovative business model and in particular a social business model unraveling organizational dimensions falling into the social bricolage. The relation between social bricolage dimensions and social business model criteria produces outcomes in which social innovation can be expressed.Originality/valueThis study enhances current understanding of the social dimensions of business model involved in social innovation production of cultural SEOs. This research aims to be a benchmark of the social innovation initiatives in the field of minor cultural heritage management.

Artificial Intelligence as a Tool Supporting Organizational Entrepreneurship – Theoretical Problems and Case Analysis

Purpose: This article aims to present the results of qualitative research on the analysis of the relationship between artificial intelligence (AI) and organizational entrepreneurship. The purpose of this research is to determine, in terms of qualitative analysis, what kind of relationships are taking place. AI is part of a new trend in the development of digital technology, defined by the acronym DARQ. Its elements are the following digital systems: Distributed Ledger, Artificial Intelligence, Extended Reality, Quantum Computing. Methodology: The research procedure consists of the following stages: a literature analysis, qualitative research in the focus group, evaluation by experts, and the presentation of results, conducting three case analyses from various industries during the activity, which present the extent to which AI affects organizational entrepreneurship. Results: The research showed user support for the use of AI technology, especially in the implementation of procedures that support organizational entrepreneurship. The AI applied in the organization enables us to obtain effects on such elements of organizational entrepreneurship as creating new strategic solutions, evaluating these proposals, and monitoring the approach of the organization’s management through the use of tools such as a management cockpit and simulation models. The use of artificial intelligence in a modern organization is necessary to improve multifaceted and interdisciplinary processes that support organizational entrepreneurship. The use of AI shows the usefulness of digital technology in operational and strategic management. Limitations: Due to the lack of empirical, especially quantitative, materials concerning the application of all levels of categorization of the use of artificial intelligence in the discussed cases, supplementary research is required to provide a more comprehensive analysis of its applications. Originality/value: The thesis was justified that IT systems containing AI technology solutions are helpful in the implementation of procedures supporting organizational entrepreneurship. The thesis is complemented by a study consisting of examining the truthfulness of the statement that the consequence of using AI is to obtain in an organization the effects of both generating proposals for new development solutions and verifying the feasibility of the implementation of the procedures proposed by the organization management. The conducted research focuses on the assessment of the relationship between advanced information technologies and organizational entrepreneurship.

Research on the Adjustment Time of Benefit Distribution Scheme in the Dynamic Benefit Distribution Mechanism of Virtual e-Commerce Entrepreneurial Organization

In the field of rapid development of e-commerce, in order to quickly respond to the market to seize the fleeting market opportunities, multi-market players or individuals using modern information technology to constitude trans-regional, cross-industry, benefit sharing, risk sharing virtual e-commerce entrepreneurial organizations. In different stages of entrepreneurship, members play different roles, bear costs and face different risks. Therefore, fixed profit distribution is not enough to stimulate the continuous investment of each member, and the profit distribution scheme should be adjusted timely. This paper mainly analyzed the factors that affect the benefit distribution of virtual e-commerce entrepreneurial organizations, and four time points for adjusting the benefit distribution scheme Have been proposed: when the operating cost of a certain business process changes substantially, when the sales volume changes substantially, when any key members of the organization quit, and when the development direction changes greatly.

Competitive Advantage, Entrepreneurial Orientation, Knowledge Sharing, and SMEs’ Performance: Mediation-Moderation Analysis

The article investigates the impact of knowledge sharing on company performance with a competitive advantage as a mediating variable and entrepreneurial orientation as a moderating variable. This research uses an RBV theory to determine company performance. Knowledge sharing behavior and entrepreneurial organizations can increase competitive advantage and performance. PLS-SEM technique is employed to analyze the data from 126 Small and Medium Enterprises in the food and beverage entrepreneurs in East Java. This research indicates that knowledge sharing has a favorable and substantial influence on competitive advantage and firm performance. Knowledge sharing positively and significantly affects competitive advantage and performance directly and indirectly. Entrepreneurial orientation does not serve as a moderator.

Research on the establishment and operation mode of virtual e-commerce entrepreneurial organization under the background of innovation and entrepreneurship

With the development of E-commerce in China, in order to quickly seize the fleeting market opportunities, many market entities using modern information technology to form trans-regional, cross-industry, benefit sharing, risk sharing Virtual E-commerce Entrepreneurial Organizations. However, many virtual e-commerce entrepreneurial organizations have not successfully completed their entrepreneurial projects and failed due to various reasons. In this paper, the characteristics and operation process of Virtual E-commerce Entrepreneurial Organizations were analyzed, and the operation mode of Giants Alliance Inside with Non-core Members Outside (GAI-NMO) was proposed, which is the members engaged in core business constitute the core of virtual entrepreneurial organization which can maintain competitive advantage, and members engaged in non-core business form a flexible network structure around the kernel.

Birthpangs of Thivra: surmounting the hurdles to launch “Dwani”

Study level/applicability The case focuses on Thivra Info Solutions Pvt Ltd, an entrepreneurial organization incubated by Prasannan (she/her) in 2017. The organization started with a mission to provide technology-based learning solutions for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Thivra Info Solutions Pvt Ltd had developed multiple offerings, including gamified learning, targeted to ASD and general ed-tech users. The firm also launched “Dwani,” the communicative-based learning app for ASD children. The initial feedback by users, parents and teachers had been encouraging. Prasannan was exploring avenues to scale the business when the Covid-19 pandemic affected all the operations.The case presents the multiple dilemmas entrepreneurial firms face in managing resources, finances, growth and product and customer focus. Students are encouraged to debate the organization strategy, product and consumer target segments and solutions to scale the business while managing frugal resources. Subject area This case study can be used in entrepreneurship, leadership, crisis management, business development, organizational behavior and technology. Case overview The case study describes the navigation of Thivra from a Generic Gamified App to its niche of catering for ASD students. The case presents the challenges presented to leadership to manage the crisis and try to grow their entrepreneurial venture. This case has been designed for use in business-to-consumer marketing or entrepreneurship, gender entrepreneurship, ed-tech-based startups, in MBA, executive MBA or executive education programs in the field. The case is suitable for those doing business in Asia, for post-graduate and under-graduate students studying business innovation, entrepreneurship, strategy and marketing. It is also appropriate for courses on gender entrepreneurship; women and crisis management; and product management. The case aims at facilitating classroom discussion on the extension of Indian-based ed-tech startups to ASD children. Expected learning outcomes Students will also be able to explore the following issues: to study the role played by a business model that withstands the competition over a long period and adopting sustainability; to describe the concept and implications of paradoxical leadership, thereby drawing its impact on business decisions; to analyze how a leader acts in terms of crisis from a startup point of view; to draw the phases and constraints of the enterprise development and compare and contrast it based on gender; to demonstrate the value to different constituents (ASD students, parents, teachers and ASD counselors) by understanding their differentiated needs and developing powerful value propositions for each. Articulating and demonstrating this value is key to gaining the buy-in of the various decision-making units; to understand how, having gained traction in one market segment (in this case, tractions with parents of ASD children), a company can develop new market segments; to study the issues and problems faced by startups in developing economies, especially the tech-based ones; and to understand the application of gamification on education and communication for ASD children. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 3: Entrepreneurship

Managing entrepreneurial and corporate contributions to sustainability transitions

AbstractTo achieve an economy within ecological boundaries that meets the needs of all requires societal transitions (i.e. systemic changes of collective cultures, structures and practices). Such a societal and economic transition requires corporate and entrepreneurial organisations to transform their businesses, business models and societal roles. While the importance of companies for sustainable development has been acknowledged in the existing literature the link between transformations at the organizational level and sustainability transitions beyond organizational boundaries needs further investigation. This contribution therefore unpacks the duality of companies in sustainability transitions: they are subject to the transformative changes in the economy and society, and they can be leaders of sustainability transitions of the economy and society. Companies are challenged to proactively manage a simultaneous build‐up of sustainable and phase‐out of unsustainable products, services and practices. Key approaches for sustainability transformation management are discussed and conclusions for research and practice deducted.

Entrepreneurial Orientation and the Performance of the Agro-allied Enterprises in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

It is widely recognized that Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are the major drivers of sustainable economic growth, sources of income generation and panacea for poverty reduction in developing countries. Unfortunately, they are faced with numerous challenges that threaten their existence and survival. This precarity of small entrepreneurial organizations in entrepreneurial ecosystem has prompted widespread attention by scholars and researchers. Hence, it is critical to take into consideration examining the performance of the enterprises. This study analyzed the effect of entrepreneurial orientation dimensions, personal and institutional characteristics on the performance of small and medium agro allied enterprises. Through the multistage sampling procedure, a total of 198 SMEs were selected for the study and data were collected with the aid of questionnaire. Data were analyzed using multiple regression analysis. Results revealed that among the entrepreneurial orientation dimensions, only risking taking and innovativeness significantly and positively affected the performance of SMEs agro allied enterprises. Furthermore, findings showed that except for size of business which was negatively related to the growth of SMEs, educational level of entrepreneurs, managerial and business experience positively and significantly impacted on the performance of SMEs. Policies to encourage SMEs invest in risky investments and create new product and services should be pursued.