Entrepreneurial Resilience Research Articles

Developing Entrepreneurial Resilience in the UK Tourism Sector

Resilience toward social as well as business costs is important in decision‐making for owners of lifestyle‐oriented firms.

The entrepreneurial role within a global firm operating in a niche market

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the significance of entrepreneurial role from the perspective of a global, family-owned firm located in Uruguay and operating in a niche market.Design/methodology/approachThis case study adopts role theory as its theoretical framework. Face-to-face, semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with the firm’s ownership/management. The data were analysed using content analysis.FindingsDuring the interviews, the importance of entrepreneurs’ role was highlighted in various ways. For instance, role emerged in the form of re-developing a business vision, executing strategies and ideas, anticipating events, innovating and internationalising. Together, these key elements helped build entrepreneurial resilience in light of emerging issues. An alignment with various perspectives of role theory, including “functional”, “symbolic interactionist” and “structural” was identified.Practical implicationsThe role of the succeeding generation of the firm’s ownership not only is fundamental in reinforcing an entrepreneurial path established by the firm’s founder but also is critical in building upon the earlier foundation, continue innovating and adapting to contemporary challenges in a very dynamic business environment.Originality/valueThe present study makes an original contribution, by examining the significance of entrepreneurial role through the lens of role theory. In this context, the case of a medium-sized, global Latin American family business is investigated.

Entrepreneurial Resilience: Locus of Control and Well-being of Entrepreneurs

For entrepreneurs, financial adversity is one of the most dominant causes of stress. Such entrepreneurial adversity can, on the one hand, lead to successful coping or, on the other hand, to maladaptive coping, helplessness, and desperation. In this study, author explores locus of control as psychological capital that contributes to entrepreneurial resilience in the face of prolonged economic adversity. Findings from a sample of 135 entrepreneurs show that entrepreneurial adversity is negatively associated with job satisfaction and self-reported health. Secondly, results reveal a significant moderating effect of locus of control on the adversity-well-being relationship.

'Just sisters doing business between us': gender, social entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial resilience in rural Malaysia

As part of a large-scale effort to examine the effectiveness of the Malaysian '1Azam' (literally '1Resolution') poverty reduction and eradication program through entrepreneurship education and support, this paper centres on Sabah, on the island of Borneo (also considered one of the poorest states in Malaysia). Our focus is an 'informal rural social cooperative' of more than 20 women entrepreneurs led by 48 years old homemaker turned entrepreneur 'Annie'. Employing a broad narratological framework to collect and analyse stories of lived experiences, we built a large textual data record of 'Annie's Co-op' for a period of 12 months. The 'thick' findings indicate that within their rural business venture, the participants play important roles as breadwinners for their families and as social entrepreneurs for their community; acting as one unit they demonstrate not just strategies of resilience but also a spirit of social duty despite barriers and challenges to their entrepreneurialism.

Entrepreneurial Resilience: A Biographical Analysis of Successful Entrepreneurs

To be sustainably successful, entrepreneurs need a resilience capacity that enables them to overcome critical situations and even emerge from failures and crises stronger than before. Although acad...

Local entrepreneurial resilience and culture: the role of social values in fostering economic recovery

This paper examines localities in terms of the impact of community culture on the resilience of their entrepreneurial activity. Drawing on a regression analysis of data covering localities in Britain for the period 2004-2011, it is found that an open and diverse culture is likely to aid the renewal and re-orientation of local entrepreneurial activity. Overall, the study indicates that local social values play an important role in fostering entrepreneurial resilience. It is suggested that future policy intervention may be best targeted at the education system, where the tolerance and skill-sets underpinning entrepreneurial resilience can be most effectively developed.

When the going gets tough: Entrepreneurial resilience in the context of venture failure

The paper explores entrepreneurial resilience in the context of venture failure. We implement a qualitative, narrative research design and present a collective story of seven entrepreneurs’ resilie...

Factores resilientes en micro y pequeñas empresas rurales.

En esta investigación se explican los factores resilientes identificados en micro y pequeñas empresas rurales (MIPyMES), a partir de la construcción de un listado de factores obtenidos de proyectos de la Red Nacional Desarrollo Rural Sustentable (RENDRUS) y confirmados mediante estudio de casos de unidades económicas localizadas en el municipio de Ziracuaretiro en el estado de Michoacán, México. Las MIPyMES son medios de desarrollo rural para México y objetos de estudio por su capacidad de sobrevivencia. Las principales contribuciones de este trabajo son: ayudar a establecer una definición de resiliencia empresarial, identificar los factores resilientes, a partir de los factores de riesgo y protectores, y contribuir con una idea del tipo de situaciones críticas que atraviesan las empresas rurales en México. El método de estudio tiene dos partes. La primera consistió en la revisión de literatura y la segunda en la elaboración de estudios de caso, con mayor análisis en la parte sociocultural y en la estructura organizacional de la empresa rural. Los principales factores resilientes identificados fueron: el logro de una mayor coordinación grupal, un mayor compromiso grupal, honestidad, adquirir más disciplina grupal y productiva, así como establecer alianzas estratégicas, entre otras.

The resilience of the entrepreneur. Influence on the success of the business. A longitudinal analysis

The literature regarding entrepreneurship suggests that the resilience of entrepreneur may help to explain entrepreneurial success. In this article, we test whether a connection exists between resilience dimensions and the success of established entrepreneurs in the Spanish tourism sector, and whether any gender-specific differences exist. Resilience of subjects was measured 5years before the follow-up data was collected. The results show that the three dimensions of resilience (hardiness, resourcefulness and optimism) help to predict entrepreneurial success. The key factor in predicting the success of the entrepreneur is resourcefulness. This could be said about both men and women. However, the ability to predict entrepreneurial success of those who have hardiness and optimism is different for men and women. The influence of optimism on the success of their businesses is greater for women than for men.

Psychometric properties of Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale in a Spanish sample of entrepreneurs.

The literature regarding entrepreneurship suggests that the resilience of entrepreneurs may help to explain entrepreneurial success, but there is no resilience measure widely accepted by researchers. This study analyzes the psychometric properties of the Connor and Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) in a sample of Spanish entrepreneurs. A telephone survey research method was used. The participants were entrepreneurs operating in the business services sector. Interviewers telephoned a total of 900 entrepreneurs of whom 783 produced usable questionnaires. The CD-RISC was used as data collection instrument. We used principal component analysis factor and confirmatory factor analysis to determine the factor structure of the CD-RISC. Confirmatory factor analysis failed to verify the original five-factor structure of the CD-RISC, whereas principal component analysis factor yielded a 3-factor structure of resilience (hardiness, resourcefulness and optimism). In this research, 47.48% of the total variance was accounted for by three factors, and the obtained factor structure was verified through confirmatory factor analysis. The CD-RISC has been shown to be a reliable and valid tool for measuring entrepreneurs' resilience.

Entrepreneurial resilience during challenging times

How do business leaders and aspiring entrepreneurs bounce back from uncertainty and start businesses under challenging circumstances? Until recently, little has been known about what drives entrepreneurial decisions during challenging times. Our new research shows that specific personal factors matter greatly for the pursuit of entrepreneurship, especially during periods of adversity. Based on survey data from more than 500 entrepreneurs in the United States and abroad to answer this question, we find that entrepreneurial self-efficacy—defined as a belief in one's ability to be an entrepreneur—and resilience are particularly important. In order to build self-efficacy and resilience, entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs need to (1) engage in business development training to build their belief in their entrepreneurial ability (i.e., entrepreneurial self-efficacy); (2) seek out networking events, special lectures, and mentoring opportunities to learn by modeling others who have been resilient through challenging times; and (3) be active in their entrepreneurial pursuits, practice business acumen, and seek feedback from those who can be objective, critical, and encouraging.

Entrepreneurial resilience

This paper addresses the network process from the individual’s point of view. It aims to explore the individual success in the female entrepreneurial networking process using a mixed methodology. The data were collected 2006-2008 from 25 female entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurial success profiles identified suggest that the female entrepreneurs in the networking process were characterised by good motivation, good persistence, good sense of responsibility, enjoying working with pair/team/peer, learning by doing, and holistic view. Further, peer support, encouragement, and networking created new channels and new opportunities. New products and contacts were developed and resources became available. Learning and new tools for entrepreneurship were identified. The female entrepreneurial networking process also enhanced well-being in life. Keywords: entrepreneurial success; individual experience; female entrepreneurial networking (Published: 25 February 2011) Citation: Annals of Innovation & Entrepreneurship 2011, 2 : 6002 - DOI: 10.3402/aie.v2i1.6002

The role of mentoring in the learning development of the novice entrepreneur

It has been recognized that learning outcomes can be divided into three general categories: Cognitive, skill-based, and affective learning. Moreover, public organizations offer mentoring-inspired support programs to novice entrepreneurs starting a business. This study explores entrepreneurial learning through mentoring. We have coded 53 learning outcomes acquired by novice entrepreneurs through their mentoring relationship. These learning outcomes were analysed using the three general categories and linked with the mentor’s way of promoting learning. Cognitive learning accounts for 62% of total learning outcomes and affective learning makes up 35.9%, which leaves skill-based learning in a marginal position. In addition, methods used by the mentor to ensure mentee learning affect learning content. Mentees were also asked to describe the benefits of their mentoring relationship through discussion groups. From a cognitive learning standpoint, benefits reported by entrepreneurs include an increase in management knowledge and skills, improved vision for their business venture and identifying new opportunities. Benefits resulting from affective learning include a greater sense of self-efficacy, validation of one’s entrepreneurial self-image and a lowered sense of solitude, all factors that could ultimately influence entrepreneur resilience. These results reveal the scope and limitations of mentoring as means to support learning.

Beyond Intent: Antecedents of Resilience & Precipitating Events for Social Entrepreneurial Intentions and ... Action

Researchers have vigorously pursued study of entrepreneurial intentions in the contexts of both commercial and social entrepreneurship (Krueger 1998, 2005; Mair & Marti 2006). Formal models of behavioral intentions offer sound theory and empirical robustness plus well-defined critical antecedents and intentions still remain the best single predictor of human behavior. However, researchers have also long noted that we need a much better understanding of the linkages between intention and action, especially where deeply embedded in a social context (Krueger 2000; Shepherd & Krueger 2002). We have little systematic, theory-driven knowledge about what precipitates entrepreneurial action, let alone social entrepreneurs. We propose here a model to formally and rigorously study the perceived barriers and triggers to social entrepreneurship and the role of entrepreneurial resilience in that process, using a unique and powerful extreme context: Response to natural disaster. We further propose a large-scale research project to test that model. An in-depth study of entrepreneurial cognitions and resilience among those affected by natural disasters should offer us considerable insight into how entrepreneurial resilience helps social entrepreneurs to respond more effectively to natural disasters. Understanding how entrepreneurs conceptualize barriers (triggers) should be brought into sharp relief by the exigencies of a natural disaster. However, given some of the unique challenges that social entrepreneurs face, this should speak more broadly to the pathways by which social entrepreneurs arrive at – and implement - their intent. As such, this study of social entrepreneurship should speak equally to commercial entrepreneurs. Beyond Intent Understanding planned human behavior is difficult enough; predicting it presents even larger challenges. The case of entrepreneurial behavior is no different. We have made considerable progress toward understanding the critical antecedents of entrepreneurial intentions. We have even made progress in understanding the intentions of social entrepreneurs. Even though intentions are causally prior to behavior (i.e., any planned behavior is intentional) the complex, distal nature of career decisions suggests the linkages between intent and action require considerable attention. Intentions may still be the single best predictor of behavior, including entrepreneurial behavior, but we have too long neglected how intention becomes action (Krueger

Entrepreneurial Resilience: Real & Perceived Barriers to Implementing Entrepreneurial Intentions

Researchers have vigorously pursued study of entrepreneurial intentions. Such study has proven useful, both conceptually and practically. Formal models of behavioral intentions offer sound theory and empirical robustness plus well-defined critical antecedents. Intentions still remain the best single predictor of human behavior. However, researchers have also long noted that we need a much better understanding of the linkages between intention and action Krueger 2000; Shepherd & Krueger 2002). Does the failure of an intent to be realized as action (a) reflect a change in one or more of the critical antecedents or (b) reflect a barrier to action that could not be surmounted? This study explores the latter explanation in some depth.