External Entrepreneurs Research Articles

For and by the People? Internal Versus External Slum Tourism Entrepreneurs’ Impacts

The controversial impacts of slum tourism have sparked debate and raised questions about its benefits for impoverished communities. The potential positive effects of slum tourism often hinge on “last mile” strategies and the crucial role of local entrepreneurs who manage the visits and interactions in determining the benefits to these areas. Drawing on a blend of Social Entrepreneurship Theory and Economic Development Theory, we explore and compare the contributions of both internal and external slum tourism entrepreneurs. Our findings reveal striking differences in their strategies and orientations. For example, internal entrepreneurs are deeply rooted in the focal slum and prioritize long-term poverty alleviation through the creation of permanent jobs and innovative approaches, whereas external entrepreneurs tend to focus on profit maximization and diversification of their offer outside the slums. However, both internal and external entrepreneurs actively challenge stereotypes, catalyze skills’ development, and channel resources back into the slum communities. This research sheds light on the multifaceted impacts of slum tourism entrepreneurship, providing critical insights for future endeavors in community development and slum tourism studies.

Venture Studios: Beyond Entrepreneurial Support Organisations? A Case Study Analysis and Framework

We examine and discuss the rise of the Venture Studio phenomenon (also called Startup Studio), which is receiving increasing attention across the globe. Venture Studios promises to mitigate the high failure rates faced by new ventures by engaging earlier in the new venture creation process, contributing from ideation at pre-venture stage. Venture Studios generate business ideas, and then partner with external entrepreneurs to build and validate the new businesses. Despite their increasing prominence, little is known regarding the design choices, activities, and outcomes of Venture Studios, as well as how they differ from other established organisations such as incubators and accelerators. This research aims to fill this gap, by conducting an exploratory case study involving interviews with 14 Venture Studios in Italy. We introduce an I–P–O framework that provides a comprehensive set of design choices and activities that characterise Venture Studios. Findings reveal significant heterogeneity in design choices, indicating no one-size-fits-all approach. Despite this, consistency exists in their processes and entrepreneurial orientation. Second, we question the nature of Venture Studios as Entrepreneurial Support Organisations (ESOs), proposing that they represent a new category with a more active, co-founder-like role. This study also seeks to equip Venture Studio managers with a framework to understand and strategically navigate the diverse approaches within their field. Also, we offer insights to entrepreneurs, investors, and other stakeholders, enabling them to understand the functioning of this novel form of organisation.

Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Homestays on Chongming Island: A Systemic Analysis in the Context of World-Class Eco-Island Development

As the development of world-class eco-islands progresses, the homestay sector on Chongming Island has burgeoned, emerging as a pivotal catalyst for rural tourism and economic prosperity. This study, leveraging Chongming Island as a case study, systematically analyzes the spatiotemporal distribution of homestays across island-wide, township, and village scales, employing methodologies such as the spatiotemporal evolutionary tree model. It delves into the intricate systemic framework underpinning homestay development, elucidating the dynamics of interaction mechanisms. Furthermore, it examines the evolving roles of diverse stakeholders throughout various developmental phases, grounded in stakeholder theory. The study reveals that (1) Chongming’s homestays on the island, townships, and village scales show very obvious agglomeration characteristics, mainly concentrated in the A-level scenic spots and in and out of the island traffic junction. (2) The growth of homestays in Chongming shows an increasing trend year by year, with the growth rate slowing down after 2020, and can be divided into four main phases, which are closely related to the construction phase of the eco-island. (3) The evolution of Chongming Island’s homestay is a multifaceted natural–human system intricately shaped by a confluence of five interdependent subsystems: natural ecology, social culture, multiple stakeholders, geographical location, and transport infrastructure. At different stages of development, under the synergistic effect of multiple stakeholders, the homestays on Chongming Island eventually formed a governance structure led by the government and co-managed by the development company, external entrepreneurs, and local villagers. These insights not only augment the scholarly discourse on stakeholder dynamics within the homestay industry but also offer pragmatic enlightenment for strategic planning and the advancement of holistic urban–rural integration in Chongming and the broader Shanghai region.

Nurturing Entrepreneurial Excellence: The Transformative Journey Of Entrepreneurship Week (Entrepweek)

Entrepreneurship Week (EntrepWeek) at the Kulliyyah of Economics and Management Sciences (KENMS), International Islamic University Malaysia, has undergone a transformative journey from its origins as a physical bazaar in 2013 to a hybrid model. Organized by collaborative efforts, the event empowers KENMS entrepreneurship students through practical showcases, real-time learning modules, and solutions to employability challenges. Utilizing a digital presence on various platforms, the program spans 14 weeks, integrating digital business training, online and physical bazaars, and a business pitching competition. Training modules cover essential entrepreneurial skills, and strategic partnerships with industry experts enhance students' learning experiences. Beyond the university, EntrepWeek reaches external entrepreneurs through flagship programs, contributing to RM 1.6 million in student sales and gaining recognition through awards. This initiative actively supports Sustainable Development Goals 4, 8, and 9, emphasizing quality education, decent work and economic growth, and innovation. EntrepWeek stands as a dynamic initiative fostering entrepreneurship and making a multifaceted impact on education, economic growth, and innovation.

From absorption to action: unraveling the entrepreneurial path in external rural tourism through bricolage and social support perception

ABSTRACT External rural tourism entrepreneurs play a pivotal role in fortifying the local economy through the creation of employment opportunities, stimulation of consumer spending, and the generation of income. In consonance with social capital theory, this study systematically gathered data over four stages to analyze the absorptive capacities and entrepreneurial actions of 213 external rural tourism entrepreneurs in Yuanjia Village, Shaanxi Province. Key findings include: (1) The significantly and positively impact of individual absorptive capacity on entrepreneurial performance; (2) The positive influence of entrepreneurial bricolage on performance, concurrently serving as a partial mediator in the nexus between individual absorptive capacity and entrepreneurial performance; (3) The critical moderating role played by social support perception in shaping the relationship between individual absorptive capacity and entrepreneurial performance. This study augments the existing theoretical discourse surrounding external rural tourism entrepreneurs, providing valuable insights that inform strategic decision-making aimed at cultivating an environment conducive to the success of such external entrepreneurs.

Why entrepreneur sourcing matters: the effects of entrepreneur sourcing on alternative types of business incubation performance

This paper investigates the effects of entrepreneur sourcing on business incubation performance. We distinguish between internal and external sourcing concerning the organisation that sponsors business incubation activities. Entrepreneurs can be internally sourced, originating from the parent organisation to become startup founders or externally sourced and recruited from outside the parent organisation to lead and build the startup. Both in the literature and incubation practice, the entrepreneur's trajectory is usually taken for granted. We contribute to research by investigating the effects of entrepreneur sourcing on business incubator performance and by offering an alternate categorisation of these performance outcomes. We characterise three basic types of performance outcomes: learning, earning, and returning. During this study, we identified a fourth outcome, namely branding. We examined eight cases at two corporate business incubators. Our findings suggest that internally and externally sourced entrepreneurs affect performance outcomes differently. Contrary to our expectations, we found that internal entrepreneurs contribute to exploratory learning, whereas external entrepreneurs contribute to exploitative learning. Furthermore, our results suggest that internal entrepreneurs generate earnings for the sponsorship organisation and external entrepreneurs contribute to a returning outcome by benefitting society at large. We conclude this study with a tentative conceptual model for future research into incubator design and for managers to align the setup of their incubator programmes to their specific purposes.

Оценка вклада предпринимателя в эффективность предприя-тия

The article substantiates the possibility and value of involving an entrepreneur in the work of certain enterprises outside the narrow framework of the firms they founded as managers with extensive entrepreneurial experience, thereby helping such enterprises to succeed in competition. It is proposed to take into account the size of the enterprise, because a unified approach to appointment of a manager is not suitable for all economic entities. The purpose of the article is to determine the value of attracting entrepreneurs to the board of directors who have created other firms, and their ability to increase the value and efficiency of companies that they have not created. Some enterprises in certain industries are more suitable for management by external entrepreneurs, while in other firms the effectiveness of their involvement will be low. This thesis should form the basis of corporate decisions concerning appointment of external entrepreneurs to their board of directors. Studies have shown that enterprises headed by owners perform better than those run by external professional managers. Based on the resource point of view when analyzing the firm, it was shown that entrepreneurs who have created other firms that act as external directors are more focused on increasing investments in research and development and higher sales growth rates. Their impact on the value of enterprises is greater among firms in industries with intensive use of research and development work and in competitive industries. Such business directors from the outside increase the value of the company due to their risk inclination and ability to anticipate demand patterns and create new markets.

Entrepreneurial Process and a Supportive System for External Entrepreneurs in Poverty-Stricken Rural Areas

Entrepreneurial Process and a Supportive System for External Entrepreneurs in Poverty-Stricken Rural Areas

Organizational influence systems as a function for strategy building: An applied study in Jordanian economic sectors

The study aims to identify the reasons driving internal and external entrepreneurs to use their power to produce the intended effects in organizations, and how this power affects the methods of building strategies they seek to use, based on Mintzberg’s theoretical assumptions. The research was conducted in 90 large Jordanian companies operating in finance, industry and service sectors. Data were collected from 204 managers using a questionnaire with a high degree of validity and reliability. Analysis and interpretation of the results proved that much of the organizational power held by the head of a company and top management was due to the dominance of the personal, bureaucratic, centralized and formal control systems. As a result, the classical tendency to build strategy in the planning and integrative forms was firmly established, and the participatory and democratic methods in their bargaining and adaptive forms retreated. Based on the results, the researched companies were recommended to design balanced power structures to shift the methods of strategy building from the classical tendency represented by the control of top management and external coalition to the modern tendency represented by integrating workers in democratic ways.

University entrepreneurial ecosystems and spinoff companies: Configurations, developments and outcomes

This paper seeks to explain the variable outcomes from university entrepreneurial ecosystems by observing their structural and spatial configurations in relation to spinoff company development. Four UK university entrepreneurial ecosystems are examined with data collected through interviews with the core actors of university entrepreneurial ecosystems: technology transfer officers, academic founders, external entrepreneurs, investors, and business incubators. It is found that university entrepreneurial ecosystem outcomes are dependent on the processes of connectedness and filtration, underpinned by geography. The effectiveness of these processes is dependent on university entrepreneurial ecosystem calibration, leading to different outcomes in terms of spinoff company formation and survival across the spectrum of universities. Successful university entrepreneurial ecosystems are characterised by strong connectedness and effective filtration, having a strong local and interregional character.

From Patañjali to the “Gospel of Sweat”: Yoga’s Remarkable Transformation from a Sacred Movement into a Thriving Global Market

Movements seeking to infuse markets with moral values often end up utilizing the market mechanism and support from mainstream actors to scale up, even if it comes at the cost of diluting their founding ethos. But this process can be particularly challenging for movements that are explicitly opposed to using a market mechanism as a means of scaling up. Our analysis of yoga between 1975 and 2016 reveals how a countercultural movement fundamentally opposed to a capitalist market economy but seeking to grow can paradoxically become syncretic with or infiltrated by concepts and beliefs that are core to the market system but incompatible with the movement’s original ethos. We show how, before such a movement can be commodified, it must be de-essentialized, a process that requires stripping away key aspects of its history, context, and religious commitments and transforming collective goals into individual ones. This process involves not only external entrepreneurs looking to mine the movement but also movement leaders seeking wider enrollment of resource-rich actors to scale the movement up. We show how codes borrowed from parallel movements and templates borrowed from markets can be instrumental in driving such a movement’s transformation. Through this extreme case of the yoga movement, we advance understandings of how movements can become syncretic with values and practices they fundamentally oppose.

Modelo de quíntuple hélice en la generación de ejes estratégicos durante y postpandemia 2020

La investigación tiene como propósito validar el modelo de quíntuple hélice identificando ejes estratégicos como factores que influyen la formación de los estudiantes de la universidad Francisco de Paula Santander-Cúcuta-Colombia, de acuerdo a su perfil, percepciones y necesidades; para este estudio se realizó una encuesta en la población total de estudiantes matriculados en I-2020, así como egresados, empresarios externos. La metodología estudio descriptivo, de análisis de contenido. Resultado: En el marco de la emergencia sanitaria generada por el Covid surgen tres categorías emergentes considerados como ejes estratégicos: generación de cadena de valor, saber y generación de conocimiento; Identidad y Universidad circular para la comunidad, moderna e inteligente; con subejes Universidad con gestión de calidad en la formación, universidad con gestiòn investigadora, productiva e innovadora, universidad sustentable, resiliente con equidad y hábitat de calidad, universidad multicultural con gestiòn para la convivencia, protección del ser humano, la paz, el deporte y bienestar; con gestiòn en redes, disruptiva, competitiva e internacional; categorías fenomenológicas presentes son equidad, sostenibilidad, global, integrada e inclusiva.

The survival of academic spinoff companies: An empirical study of key determinants

The formation of university spinoff companies has been studied extensively, yet limited attention has been devoted to their survival. Consequently, little is known about spinoff’s later stage developments. Spinoff companies exist in university networks where they access resources through different types of actors. However, it remains unclear on which actors specifically these firms should focus their networking efforts, especially in relation to their success. It is also poorly understood how the regional economic environment affects spinoff survival. This article examines the core determinants of survival of academic spinoff companies. The article analyses a unique sample of 870 UK spinoff companies from 81 universities formed between 2002 and 2013. The results show that spinoff company survival is dependent on three core university network actors: investors, external entrepreneurs and technology transfer offices (TTOs). In addition, spinoff companies born into less industrially diversified regions enjoy greater probability of survival.

2527 Mount Sinai health hackathon: Harnessing the power of collaboration to advance experiential team science education

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Innovation in healthcare is increasingly dependent on technology and teamwork, requiring effective collaboration between disciplines. Through an intensive team-based competition event, Mount Sinai Health Hackathon 2017, aimed to harness the power of multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration to foster innovation in the field of cancer. Participants were immersed in an intensive weekend working in teams to develop technology solutions to important problems affecting patients and care providers in the field of cancer. The learning objectives were to enable participants to: Identify cancer-related healthcare problems which lend themselves to technology-based solutions. Delineate key behaviors critical to multidisciplinary team success Identify optimal strategies for communicating in multidisciplinary teams. Engage and inspire participants to apply knowledge of technology to meaningfully impact clinical care and well-being. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: The Mount Sinai Health Hackathon is an annual 48-hour team-based competition, using a format adapted from guidelines provided by MIT Hacking Medicine. The 2017 event gathered a total of 87 participants (120 registered), representing 17 organizations from as far away as California, with a diverse range of backgrounds in bioinformatics, software and hardware, product design, business, digital health and clinical practice. The overall participation model included: Phase 0: Health Hackathon 101 summer workshops; Phase 1: pre-Hackathon priming activities using online forums Trello and Slack; Phase 2: a 48-hour onsite hackathon to catalyze innovation through problem sharing, solution pitches, team formation and development of prototype solutions; Phase 3: competitive presentations to judges and prize awards; Phase 4: a suite of post-hackathon support to stimulate continued development of innovations. The event sponsored by ConduITS, was also co-sponsored by Persistent Systems, IBM Watson, Tisch Cancer Institute, Sinai AppLab, Sinai Biodesign and other ISMMS Institutes. Mentors circulated throughout the event to support the teams in the technical, clinical, and business development aspects of their solutions. In total, the 14 teams formed during the Hackathon, created innovations ranging from diagnostic devices, networking apps, artificial intelligence tools, and others. The top 3 teams were each awarded $2500 to support their projects’ future development. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Qualitative and quantitative post-event survey data revealed the Hackathon experience fostered collaborative attitudes and a positive experience for participants, providing insight into the potential benefits of team science. In the post-event survey (n=24) 92% of participants reported that the experience increased their ability to solve problems and 96% made new professional or personal connections. In addition, 96% of respondents would attend future Hackathon events and 75% reported they were likely to continue working on their project after the Hackathon. Qualitative feedback from 1 participant reported it was: “a wonderful event that really highlighted how much interdisciplinary team science can achieve.” Along with intermediate support interactions, including the winning teams participating in a Shark Tank style event with pitches to external entrepreneurs and investors, all teams will be followed up in 6 months time to determine if participants continue to work on projects, file new patents, create new companies, or leverage the new connections made through the Health Hackathon experience. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: Our experience indicates that a Health Hackathon is a compelling and productive forum to bring together students, trainees, faculty, and other stakeholders to explore tech-based solutions to problems in cancer and other areas of biomedicine. It is a valuable tool to foster collaboration and transdisciplinary team science and education. Follow-up analysis will determine to what extent the Mount Sinai Health Hackathon is contributing to an ecosystem that encourages professionals and trainees in healthcare and in technology development to work together to address unmet needs in healthcare with innovative technology solutions.

�COME TO OUR TOWNSHIP TO OVERCOME POVERTY�: ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN SOUTH AFRICAN TOWNSHIP TOURISM, A MULTIPLE CASE STUDY

ABSTRACT This study empirically analyzes the issues and challenges of local entrepreneurship in the industry of South African township tourism in Cape Town. Economic, political and social issues have been identified in this industry, harming entrepreneurship activities in this sector, but also all the stakeholders, namely the communities. Indeed, this is a highly competitive saturated market dominated by large tour operators leaving little room for small local companies. Moreover, entrepreneurs, who are internal to townships, often have few financial and material resources to run their business with efficiency, in addition to gaps in entrepreneurship skills. Benefit sharing is also challenged with a disputed contribution from the companies to the communities. Finally, the climate in this sector remains uncertain and complex with very limited support from the government and persistent disparities between black, white and colored entrepreneurs. All of these problems led us to question about the point of view of local entrepreneurs, often missing in the literature review. The aim of this study is to understand how the tourism chain is organized and how the business model is adapted to this thorny context. The study used qualitative research through semi-structured individual interviews from 11 entrepreneurs running their business in townships in Cape Town city. This research is particular because it makes a distinction, among the respondents, between internal status (if they come from the township) and external status (if they don't come from the township) in the township. The goal was to know if the results would reveal similarities or differences between the two status. The research focused on 5 external entrepreneurs, living out of townships, and 6 internal entrepreneurs living inside the townships. The study population is characterized by small firms mostly managed by men, the majority being mature men with a higher education level than the country's general average. This sample selected by reasoned choice is subject to the principles of replication and saturation. The questionnaires were analyzed using a classification method with a typological analysis. The results show that both internal and external entrepreneurs in townships have quite the same motivations and challenges as each other, and even similar as those faced by entrepreneurs in developed countries. These incentives include the desire to work for oneself, seizing an opportunity, low financial and administrative constraints to enter the market, and the desire to make the township known. The mentioned difficulties are the constant need for funding, the intense competition, the insufficient level of skills to run a business, and the lack of support from the South African government. However, a distinction is observed between the two status in the way of contributing to the communities. Whereas the contribution is more economic for the external entrepreneurs through job creation, the contribution is both economic and social for the internal entrepreneurs through training, education, mentoring and donation. These results have enabled to identify new research avenues and implications for both internal and external entrepreneurs to improve the local entrepreneurship situation in South African township tourism. Keywords Township Tourism, Entrepreneurship, Poverty Reduction, Emerging Countries, Case Study

DILEMAS DA INDÚSTRIA NA PARAÍBA: LEITURAS DAS PERCEPÇÕES DO SETOR EMPRESARIAL

This paper presents the results of an investigation into the industry dilemmas and challenges in Paraiba, taking as empirical object the perception of the local business community. The aim is to investigate the perception of such actors on the main challenges of the industrialization process in Paraiba. Methodologically, the research is qualitative, with non-probability sampling, in which the ears participants were chosen intentionally from groups of businessmen from Joao Pessoa municipalities, Campina Grande, Patos, Itaporanga, Sousa and Cajazeiras. In addition to the 14 entrepreneurs interviewed also heard the Federation of Industries of Paraiba, through its president, with the intention of understanding the meaning and the role that these actors attribute to industrialization in the state of the development process, and what factors (internal and external entrepreneurs) favor and / or limit the development of Paraiba industry. Among the obstacles mentioned by respondents it was possible to categorize, due to higher incidence of record, the absence of an industrialization policy as a major challenge for the industrial development of the state. Associated with this was possible to measure: 1) tight supply of services for the industry; 2) poor infrastructure; 3) Lack of water and the economic impacts of the dry season; 4) Human resources with limited or insufficient educational qualifications; 5) tax and labor issues.

Re-interpreting the past to shape the future: The uses of memory discourses in community tourism development

Ideas about collective memory are implicit in tourism development, even when development projects are primarily entertainment-oriented. This paper studies collective memory in the form of community creation myths associated with the transformation of two rural towns from seasonal tourism to casino gaming. Known for their contributions to Colorado mining history, Central City and Black Hawk adopted casino gambling in 1991. This paper presents data from a longitudinal study of creation myth discourses expressed by stakeholders across several decades. Data show that over time, spokespersons more frequently described a nostalgic yearning for earlier mining periods, though the content and form of discourses varied by commentator. Local residents made more emotional appeals, while local leaders’ and external entrepreneurs’ claims were more strategic. This study shows how memory is manipulated, especially during periods of rapid tourism growth, shedding light on under-studied aspects of social and cultural impacts of tourism development.

Early-stage finance and the role of external entrepreneurs in the commercialization of university-generated knowledge

The past decade has seen a plethora of policy initiatives that seek to bridge the chasm between investments in public R&D and its effective diffusion in society. This article uses a case study approach to explore and contrast the effectiveness of different entrepreneur models in financing and developing university spin-offs (USOs). The distinction between different entrepreneur models is based on whether the USOs are championed by university employees that seek to commercialize their own inventions or by external entrepreneurs who are not the original inventors but with acquired rights to develop and commercialize technology originating from university research. Our analysis show that external entrepreneurs have a different mind-set that makes them better equipped to deal with opportunities and obstacles related to financing and developing USOs. However, the development paths of USOs are embedded in a more complex web of path-dependent interactions, where the championship of the USO becomes interwoven with existing and emerging social relationships and opportunities, and challenges related to the technology that is commercialized.

Tourism‐dependent development: the case of Lijiang, Yunnan province, China

This paper explores the effectiveness of tourism as a development policy through a case study of Lijiang, one of the most popular tourism destinations in China. Using both primary and secondary data, the study evaluates the consequences of external investment, external migrant entrepreneurs, and non‐local companies acting as major influences on local tourism development. Two theoretical frameworks are drawn upon: the dependent paradigm and the informal–formal dichotomy. Major issues are observed that challenge the sustainability of current developments. These include: the mass tourism development model together with spatial concentration of the tourist market; market channels controlled by external travel corporations; heavy reliance on external investment in real estate and infrastructure development; outsiders’ domination of Lijiang’s ancient town commercial sector; a mitigating contribution by external migrant enterprises to the local community; and an uneven distribution of benefits among the locals. It is implied from this research that planned and targeted governmental intervention and institutional adjustments are prerequisite conditions for indigenous and ethnic people to obtain greater benefits from tourism development. It also suggests that a reconsideration of the justification of tourism as a vehicle for development in the peripheral areas of China might be appropriate.

Integrating Farming and Páramo Conservation: A Case Study From Colombia

The Colombian environmental policy voted in 1993, which aimed to strengthen the protection of natural resources, particularly biodiversity and water, is totally unfavorable to farming in the strategic páramo ecosystem. However, many rural development practitioners and researchers believe that integrated management of the páramo is possible and that farming activities can be part of the solution along this agriculture–conservation frontier. This issue has become particularly acute on the Rabanal páramo (western cordillera), in Colombia, where the projected expansion of a core protection zone will soon include major areas currently used for agriculture and settlements. Although small-scale farmers have been living there for decades, the environmental authorities are intent on prohibiting farming activities in the entire protection area. A study of local history and aerial photos indicates that this zone has been a dynamic part of local farming systems since at least the 1950s and that the páramo has evolved from a subsistence farming area to a zone that now includes intensive potato production conducted by external entrepreneurs. The presence of these entrepreneurs is mainly due to small-scale farmers' need for a cost-effective solution to maintain the productivity of their pastures. By interviewing participants in the debate, as well as by mapping agricultural land that will soon be included in the protected area, objectives for action were developed that would result in more sustainable farming practices, thus enhancing the conservation of páramo biodiversity and water resources.