ABSTRACT Promoting sustainability at the base of the pyramid (BoP) often falls short of inclusive development due to informal and fragmented institutions, creating institutional voids. Although institutions are critical in BoP settings, there is limited clarity on how institutional mechanisms can address sustainability challenges in low‐income contexts with context‐specific setups and diverse stakeholders. Without such understanding, sustainability initiatives risk being ineffective or counterproductive, limiting their potential for long‐term inclusive development. To address this gap, we integrate insights from institutional entrepreneurship (IE) and institutional work (IW) with BoP research. Our analysis reveals four avenues: navigating the institutional environment, institutional bricolage, explanatory‐rhetorical skills and relations and engagement with state actors as critical elements in promoting inclusive and sustainable development. By highlighting how institutional entrepreneurs (IEs) leverage resources, build legitimacy and reconfigure formal and informal institutional arrangements, this study advances BoP literature and provides a roadmap for future empirical research for both practitioners and researchers focusing on emerging economies.

ABSTRACT In this article, we examine the emerging role of women entrepreneurs within changing socio-cultural institutions. The current literature presents limited insight on the processual dynamics of entrepreneurship among socio-cultural change, and so we adopt an inductive theory-building approach, drawing on the concept of institutional entrepreneurship. From this, we see the interaction of women’s entrepreneurial practices with complex social and cultural structures. Our qualitative data draw on 31 interviews with female entrepreneurs operating in Saudi Arabia, phenomenologically capturing their experiences as they engage with the institutions of their societal surroundings. We explore how entrepreneurial enactment takes place within patriarchal constraint and socialized expectations of women. Top-down regulatory change may open space for women’s entrepreneurship, but social change demands careful navigation, with only gradual cultural shifts. We characterize Saudi women entrepreneurs as institutional change agents in a recursive process between their entrepreneurial activities and the dominant social systems of family and societal expectations. Our findings contribute to the understanding of how entrepreneurial agency interacts with the forces of context. Importantly, we move beyond the celebration of emancipated activism and instead see Saudi women’s entrepreneurial activity as part of a multifaceted and gradual change process, evolving towards a progressive entrepreneurial culture.

Activation of values and anchoring of beliefs: How contextually embedded individuals are inspired by an institutional entrepreneur

Purpose The study aims to answer three academic questions: (1) What are the policy mechanisms and the roles of local government in different entrepreneurship stages? (2) What are the boundary conditions under which the market and administrative logic work well in the entrepreneurial growth process? (3) What factors have contributed to the symbiotic evolution of entrepreneurship from a few pioneers to mass entrepreneurs? Design/methodology/approach Given the entrepreneurship process's longitudinal nature and complexity, an embedded longitudinal research design was adopted. This study focuses on back-home migrant worker entrepreneurship in rural China from 2010 to 2022 and selects nine sample enterprises in different entrepreneurship stages in three industries. Data were collected from interviews and archives and then coded, applying the grounded theory approach. Findings The main findings are: (1) The mechanisms of entrepreneurship policies and the roles of local government vary during the different stages of the entrepreneurial process. (2) Either insufficient incentives or excessive intervention by local government will lead to the failure of the mechanisms of entrepreneurship policies. (3) Successful entrepreneurs will attract and help more migrant workers engage in entrepreneurial activities through the three mechanisms of boosting the local economy, constructing favourable institutions and reshaping personal societal roles, thus achieving the symbiotic evolution of entrepreneurship. Originality/value This study's core contribution is to propose a mid-range theory based on the entrepreneurial process, which portrays the mechanism of the entrepreneurial policy portfolio and the dynamics of the role of local government. The study examines the boundary conditions for the substitution or complementarity between the two institutional logics in the entrepreneurial process and its complexity and temporal dynamics, elucidating the symbiotic evolutionary mechanism through which entrepreneurship transitions from individual pioneers to mass entrepreneurship. The study also expands the domain of institutional entrepreneurship research.

Background: This study examined institutional network entrepreneurship, emphasizing the institutional structure and actor strategies to promote resilient food systems in two regions of South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. Methods: The success of the Sustainable Food Yard Program (P2L), as evidenced by case studies and thematic analysis, hinges on two primary factors: the robustness of its institutional structure and its effectiveness of actor strategies. The robust institutional framework demonstrates sufficient access to agricultural resources, stable policies, and effective management of the Women Farmers Group (KWT) through participatory practices. Effective actor strategies emphasize collaboration among stakeholders, enhancement of developmental capabilities, and creativity in marketing. Results: This study identifies various challenges in implementing of P2L, including limited resource availability, inconsistent governmental support, and internal dynamics within KWT. Therefore, a more cohesive and extensive strategy integrating a network of entrepreneurial institutions is necessary to attain local resilience and food sustainability. Conclusion: A solid institutional structure that responsive to local needs and collaborative actor strategies are essential in overcoming local food security challenges. Sustainable local food security requires a more integrated and collaborative institutional entrepreneurial network approach.

ABSTRACT This paper is concerned with the engagement of migrant youth in urban civil society in Antwerp. More particularly, we analyse a small group of migrant youth whose actions in urban civil society can be characterized as ‘institutional entrepreneurship’, a process by which new institutions are created or existing institutions transformed. In order to better understand why and how some migrant youth engage in institutional entrepreneurship in civil society, we combine this institutionalist reading of civil society engagement with ‘racialized organization theory’, which argues that CSOs are not race-neutral. Based on in-depth interviews with migrant youth who act as institutional entrepreneurs, we find that migrant youth frequently experience frustration with the racialized structures of civil society organizations and try to challenge the racialized structures in established CSOs by creating their own initiatives. Our findings show that due to racialized practices in established civil society organization some migrant youth experience their position in civil society as peripheral, which motivates them to set up new organizations and thus innovate the broader field of urban civil society.

Abstract Sixty years ago, Derek de Solla Price’s influential Little Science, Big Science first documented that from 1900 scientific publications doubled every 10–15 years and then predicted that limited resources would end rapid progress leading to an imminent “scientific doomsday”—a strikingly false prediction given that contemporary global mega-science annually yields 3.5 million mainline STEMM journal research papers. Nevertheless, the idea of a coming crisis persists—supposedly current expansion is stagnating quality. Argued instead is that what was missed, then and now, is a worldwide deepening of scientization—the embedding of science as a core social institution, marked by expanded research capacity, diversification into new domains, and increasing specialization. Employing sociological insights about historical institutional development, Price’s empirics are extended to explain why STEMM productivity never plateaued. Fueled by a worldwide education revolution, universities enact three institutionalizing roles: institutional entrepreneurs; main corporate units of research; and a fiduciary of the generalized symbolic medium of papers. Illustrated by analyses from a recent bibliometric study of 3.3 million papers from 1900 to 2020, it is further suggested that instead of decline, through university-driven scientization the scale and capacity of science as a mature institution reshape the dynamics of discovery supporting sustained growth and quality.

Purpose Performance targets may become pressing and thus, particularly when crisis strikes, organizational values may be sacrificed to ensure organizational survival. The study aims to show how being on the edge of survival affects organizational values and targets. Design/methodology/approach The study describes a case company fighting for its very survival. Interviews with company representatives and stakeholders are used as well as archival data. Theory on institutional entrepreneurship is used to show attempts to use values and targets in implementing change. Findings It is shown that in this extreme case, a specific target and a specific value together become the means by which the company tries to survive while fighting against a major competitor. The target is a sales target and the value is that of quality consciousness. This study shows that when organizational survival is considered to be formal going concern status, extreme performance pressure may result in focusing exclusively on company targets and the sacrificing of company values. This study also shows that when organizational survival is considered to be the maintaining of the experienced worthiness of the unique and distinguishing features and purposes of the entity in question, performance pressure may cause organizational values to gain traction relative to targets. Practical implications This study stresses the importance of communicating about both values and targets in times of distress. This study also recommends those wishing to survive in an extreme situation to look at both facets of survival. Originality/value Worthiness may be perceived as relevant from the perspective of stakeholders – in this case, customers. Institutional entrepreneurship is shown to promote a socio-technical control dyad consisting of a target and a value that are meant to assist in survival as a going concern and as worthiness. The target is meant to align with existing institutions, thereby providing resources while the value is intended to help in institutional entrepreneurship more directly.

ABSTRACT This study highlights the potential of institutional entrepreneurship to address supply chain risks, particularly those arising from geopolitical disruptions. While previous research has examined various risks within existing institutional frameworks, geopolitical disruptions have emerged as a novel challenge for supply chain resilience. We argue that geopolitical risk can be considered a ‘boundary misalignment’, positioning institutional entrepreneurs as agents who could address this misalignment effectively. We conduct an inductive qualitative analysis of Japan’s Rapidus Corporation – a representative case in the semiconductor industry – and propose approaches for these entrepreneurs to mobilize resources and reshape institutional frameworks in Japan.

ABSTRACT Purpose This study analyzes professionalization processes and interdisciplinary collaboration of social work professionals within Chilean family and criminal justice systems following judicial reforms implemented in the 2000s. Materials and Methods An exploratory-descriptive qualitative design employed semi-structured interviews with 21 social workers across Metropolitana and Biobío regions (2020–2022). Participants were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling from family courts (n = 14) and criminal justice settings (n = 7). Thematic analysis was conducted using ATLAS.ti software, applying integrated deductive-inductive approaches grounded in sociology of public action, law and society studies, and feminist ethics of care frameworks. Results Three fundamental transformations emerged: social workers introduced gender perspectives and care ethics into judicial practices, catalyzing shifts from punitive toward relational interventions prioritizing human dignity and social complexity; active collaboration developed between social workers and lawyers, generating productive tensions that enhanced each profession’s expertise in addressing complex social-legal issues; differentiated professional roles materialized, with social workers functioning as judicial partners in family cases and community-legal mediators in criminal contexts. Discussion Care ethics integration constitutes a fundamental challenge to traditional juridical capital, promoting contextually-sensitive justice models. Social workers operate as institutional entrepreneurs, employing street-level bureaucratic practices to gradually transform institutional cultures despite persistent professional hierarchies and resource constraints. Conclusion Chilean judicial reforms facilitated social work integration, contributing to justice system humanization through structural transformations. Social workers consolidated their role as agents of institutional change, though sustained investment in human resources and policies prioritizing social perspectives remains essential for advancing paradigmatic shifts toward inclusive, people-centered justice models.

ABSTRACT Diversity marketing is an increasingly popular form of ethical business practice. Marketers are often asserted as pivotal actors in advancing diversity marketing, yet limited research has examined how they do so in practice or the challenges they encounter. Our research uses institutional entrepreneurship to examine how marketers integrate (or not) diversity into their practices. Semi-structured interviews with 19 individuals experienced in marketing functions within Australia reveal the entrepreneurial diversity marketing work they engage in, and how they are enabled or constrained by internal firm conditions. The resulting Diversity Zones Framework categorizes the entrepreneurial work of marketers in diversity marketing based on (1) diversity climate and (2) firm orientation. Marketers are classified as (i) agents of change (productive zone), (ii) maintaining the status quo (unproductive zone), and (iii) diversity washing (destructive zone). The framework offers scholarly insight and practical guidance for fostering conditions that enable marketers to drive diversity initiatives.

The action sports media landscape is dominated by special interest magazines, containing editorial and brand marketing content, which are the main cultural gatekeepers of action sports. As such, this study focuses on the full media-marketing complex to better understand the cultural production practices that reconstitute, or challenge, the established gender order. Through our analysis of 16 interviews with media and marketing professionals, we illuminate that gender-progressive entrepreneurs are attempting to drive change but that practices are variable. They are enacted in the context of emerging societal discourses that reinforce women’s subordination but also champion gender inclusivity, and in relation to institutional logics that resist or support gender-progressive work. Our analysis identifies three processes that shape gender-progressive entrepreneurial practices: reflexive activity; routinized gender-progressive logic, and institutional conflict and constraint. Our findings can shape programmes of proactive industry involvement in fostering inclusive action sports through gender progressive media representation.

ABSTRACTImportant Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEIs) have become a central tool of the European Union's (EU) new industrial policy. IPCEIs derive their peculiar name from an exemption to the general prohibition on state aid that has existed since the Treaty of Rome but has only led to the creation of a stand‐alone policy instrument in 2014. In this paper, we introduce the concept of institutional activation to shed light on both the origins and evolution of this Treaty article. We reconstruct how the article reflected a compromise between different coalitions during the Treaty negotiations; how it remained largely dormant in the absence of a sustained coalitional push to activate it; and how it was finally activated by a coalition of institutional entrepreneurs' intent on using the article's untapped potential for new forms of industrial policy.

Purpose This paper aims to answer the under-researched question: how can brand managers design an age-inclusive brand? Design/methodology/approach An extended case study approach was used to trace the creation of a successful age-inclusive beauty brand (19/99 Beauty) through a variety of data, including archival, social media, interviews and participant observation. Findings This study finds three forms of institutional work institutional entrepreneurs undertake to design an age-inclusive brand by fostering belonging: narrative work that positively reframes stereotypes associated with the stigmatized group, material work that expands the possibilities for the stigmatized group to engage with the market and relational work that gives voice to a range of market actors from the stigmatized group. Research limitations/implications This paper defines age-inclusive branding as fostering a sense of belonging in the marketplace of the traditionally overlooked aging consumer segment. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first empirical studies exploring how branding professionals create age-inclusive brands. It suggests that entrepreneurs and brand managers should treat age-inclusive consumers as an intersectional segment that cuts across traditional segmentation tools. Additionally, it provides an age-inclusive branding checklist for branding professionals.

Amid rapid technological change and intensifying global competition, educational institutions face increasing pressure to integrate digital innovation and entrepreneurial practices to remain competitive and relevant. However, the strategic convergence of these domains remains insufficiently examined, particularly in Southeast Asia. This study aims to explore how digital innovation, and entrepreneurship can be strategically integrated to enhance institutional competitiveness and cultivate future-ready skills among learners. Utilizing a qualitative approach through a systematic literature review, thirteen peer-reviewed articles were analyzed based on contextual relevance and methodological rigor, employing thematic content analysis to identify core insights. The results reveal four critical themes: the transformative role of digital technologies in education; effective entrepreneurial strategies such as project-based learning and Market Day initiatives; the evolving landscape of institutional competition driven by technological advancements; and significant challenges including limited infrastructure, policy gaps, and uneven implementation. The findings underscore the potential of integrated digital and entrepreneurial strategies to foster innovation and adaptability within educational institutions. This study contributes to both academic discourse and practical policymaking by offering a nuanced understanding of how such integration can drive sustainable educational transformation, while also highlighting the need for visionary leadership and collaborative ecosystems. Future research is encouraged to validate these insights through empirical studies in diverse educational contexts.

ABSTRACTInstitutional entrepreneurs abound in sustainability. Although the hybridity and balance of economic, social, and environmental goals have received scholarly attention, we still know little about how these institutional entrepreneurs approach the new norm where business organizations favor social and environmental sustainability over economic sustainability. We examine an established resource‐constrained institutional entrepreneur and how this organization enacts a new norm in its attempt to challenge the dominant one. Drawing on data from a qualitative case study about an outdoor apparel retailer, we examine how the business enacts the norm “sustainability comes first.” This norm is based on two principles: (1) challenge, which alludes to being different, and (2) candor, which alludes to being open. We deliver novel insights about how a business organization can prioritize social and environmental sustainability.

The Grameen microfinance model is globally recognized for its impact on poverty alleviation. This paper examines the factors affecting its adaptability within the socio-regulatory landscapes of the UK and the US. This study employs a qualitative case study approach, synthesizing retrospective and real-time case studies from the UK and the US. Semi-structured interviews with institutional entrepreneurs and key decision-makers were conducted, alongside secondary data analysis. Findings suggest that operational challenges arise from deviations in adhering to the model’s core principles, compounded by local socio-regulatory influences. Grameen America (GA) exemplifies how adherence to these principles can yield successful outcomes. GA’s achievements underscore the supportive role of immigrant entrepreneurship dynamics and a relatively flexible regulatory environment in fostering the model’s efficacy. This study contributes to the literature on social enterprise and institutional entrepreneurship by applying an institutional logics framework to understand the challenges and successes of the Grameen model in developed economies. The research offers insights into how social enterprises can navigate institutional complexities.

This article explores two different types of entrepreneurial ecosystem (EE) – emergent and growing – using the institutional logics perspective. Fields of entrepreneurship within EEs are analysed empirically in two U.K. cities, and the institutional orders that inform the dominant entrepreneurial institutional logic in each ecosystem are uncovered. The study reveals that, in an emergent ecosystem, entrepreneurs notice institutional voids and take part in institutional entrepreneurship to strengthen the institutional order of ‘Profession’ and ‘Community’ institutional orders. In a growing EE, the strength of ‘Community’ and ‘Market’ institutional orders and overlapping activity-based fields helps to strengthen the entrepreneurial institutional logic. This perspective develops and enriches our understanding of EEs as localised contexts in which embedded fields of entrepreneurship are sensitive to local institutional conditions, particularly highlighting divergent institutional logics in different ecosystem contexts. This represents a novel approach to analysing EEs through the lens of the institutional logics perspective, by utilising a framework to understand the interinstitutional system-based institutional orders as influencers that shape the dominant institutional logic in a field of entrepreneurship.

Reinforcing education for entrepreneurship in higher education institutions: Poliempreende—Polientrepreneurship Innovation Network

ABSTRACT This article advances knowledge about the initiation of police innovation in the context of drugs policing. Drawing on the findings of a qualitative research project, it provides an original account of the emergence of police drug diversion schemes in England and Wales by analysing the complex interactions between individual, organisational and environmental determinants. The concept of institutional entrepreneurship is applied to examine the role of diversion entrepreneurs in the innovation process. These are the key police actors behind local schemes who had an interest in changing the institutional status quo. Diversion entrepreneurs wove together various forms of knowledge to frame problems and persuade stakeholders that diversion would address policing priorities and reduce demand by reducing reoffending and the resources needed to deal with people caught committing minor drug-related offences. Police budget cuts had created fertile ground for diversion as police organisations were leaning towards more proactive styles of policing which focus on prevention by addressing the underlying causes of crime. Making the case for diversion also required diversion entrepreneurs to highlight the shortcomings of existing practices and present diversion as a viable alternative to traditional enforcement interventions that seek to tackle drug problems through criminal sanctions. This involved interpretive struggles over the police role and managing perceptions of risk. It is argued that police scholars should pay closer attention to institutional entrepreneurship within police organisations to enhance understanding of processes of innovation and cultural change.