Private Sector Entrepreneurship Research Articles

Public Entrepreneurship: A Literature Review

In many writings the concept of entrepreneurship is frequently associated with the private sector, and with small and medium sized enterprises, and start-ups. However, the public sector also frequently participates in entrepreneurial action, sometimes providing some of the most important services for the economy. Nowadays, the issue of Public Entrepreneurship need to get more attention by researchers, academicians and practitioners, especially in developing countries like Ethiopia. Because it helps to create value for the citizens of a state by bringing together unique combinations of public and/or private resources to exploit social opportunities, and provides many more advantages. At a minimum, public entrepreneurship involves the production, distribution, or innovation of goods/ services for the public. This makes it crucial to the lives of billions of people around the world. For example, entrepreneurial initiatives by public entities include the provision of health care services, water services, emergency services, transportation, and recycling/climate initiatives, among others. The purpose of this review work was to develop a literature review on the mission, key characteristics, types of public entrepreneurship, difference between public and private sector entrepreneurship, and public entrepreneurship strategy to overcome public sector barriers to entrepreneurship and come up with pertinent points. So, to carry on this review work, only 69 articles were chosen based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the reviewer.

Going for Hybrid Crops Breeding in Nepal: Strategies and Policy Dimensions

Crop Breeding programs were initiated in Nepal in 1951 with a focus on the varietal improvement of cereal crops. These varieties, however, have limited impact in the farmers' field due to their low adaptation and low yield potentials. Nepal annually imports hybrid seeds of cereals, vegetables, and flowers from India, China, and elsewhere costing billions of Rupees. It is estimated that approximately 73% of the vegetable seeds and over 60% of the hybrid seeds of maize and rice are imported annually. Hybrid seeds generally produce 20-25% more yield than conventional varieties. Despite this fact, only about 15% of maize and <10% of rice acreage in Nepal has hybrid seeds compared to over 50-60% in China. Nepal is behind in developing policies for genetic innovations, including genetics and breeding, utilizing genetic diversity, and using new biotechnological traits such as golden rice and drought tolerant wheat which could be important for Nepal in the future. Nepal has the technical knowledge, skilled human resources, and appropriate environment to produce hybrid and improved seeds of most of the crops in Nepal, but there is a lack of proper policies in place. Nepal can learn lessons from our neighboring countries, including India, China, Philippines, and Bangladesh, which are highly engaged in new technology of crop genetics, hybrid breeding, proper Plant Variety Protection (PVP) laws, and private-sector entrepreneurship. In addition, Nepal should aim to be self-sufficient and export quality hybrid seeds of cereals and vegetables that can be produced in its diverse geographies and production niches.

Evaluating the potential of innovations across aquaculture product value chains for poverty alleviation in Bangladesh and India

Evidence is presented that innovation across aquaculture value chains can contribute to poverty reduction through income generation and increased consumption of nutritious aquatic foods. Innovation is defined and contextualized in relation to aquaculture development. Opportunities for aquaculture innovation across value chains for poverty reduction and sustainable production are described. Contemporary trends in aquaculture development in Bangladesh and India, with a focus on 2011-2020, are reviewed, as understanding transformative change to aquatic food systems during this period could benefit millions of poor and marginal consumers. Market-led commercial production, instigated by private sector entrepreneurs for domestic markets, has underpinned the surge in freshwater fish culture in key geographical locations. In contrast booms in shrimp production have been associated with export opportunities and related cycles of boom-and-bust have been described, with busts attributed to falling market prices and disease outbreaks. Innovation could safeguard supplies of affordable fish to poorer groups (especially young children and pregnant and breastfeeding women) and enable better health management of aquatic animals including coordination of surveillance and disease control measures. Innovation to effectively promote better management practices and integrated services provision to large numbers of small- and medium-scale producers could contribute to poverty reduction. Opportunities for future innovation to ensure that aquaculture development is sustainable are critically reviewed. Innovative strategies to add value to by-products and utilize waste resources could avoid negative environmental impacts, recycle nutrients and create income generating opportunities. A new paradigm for development assistance that identifies and supports promising innovation trajectories across jurisdictions, product value chains, institutional regimes and food systems is needed. Government agencies must be responsive to the needs of businesses throughout aquatic food systems and devise policies and regulatory regimes that support transformative and sustained growth of the aquaculture sector. Investment in capacity-building, education, research and training and action to promote an enabling institutional environment must be regarded as essential elements to maximize and share equitably the benefits arising and avoid potential negative impacts of inappropriate innovations.

Public- and Private-Sector Entrepreneurship: Similarities and Differences

The concepts of public and political entrepreneurship were introduced in relation to public administration in the 1960s. Early examples were constructed in relation to institutional change (Eisenstadt, 1964; 1980), the bridging role of the entrepreneur between different spheres in local communities (Barth, 1972), and the carrying out of urban redevelopment and social programs in local government (Dahl, 1961; Murphy, 1971). Although the concepts of entrepreneurship were used later to describe a variety of phenomena (Sheingate, 2003), there are few comparisons of the differences and similarities between early contributions to understand public- and private-sector entrepreneurship. The objective of this paper is to contribute to this discourse by comparing the early contributions of Joseph A. Schumpeter and Robert A. Dahl.

Intermingled Interests: Social Housing, Speculative Building, and Architectural Practice in 1970s and 1980s Pune (India)

This article presents case studies of two apartment projects built in the Western Indian city of Pune (formerly Poona) in the 1970s and 1980s. While their architecture is unassuming, the histories of their realisation provide a powerful account of how transformations in building policy shaped notions of professional architectural practice in India at the time. In particular, the cases illustrate how rank-and-file architects found themselves caught in the tension between, on the one hand, a socialist state eager to apply welfare measures but unable to execute them autonomously and, on the other hand, private-sector entrepreneurship looking for opportunities to satisfy increasing demands for home ownership. The article begins with an exploration of how this tension resulted in an intensification of the building bureaucracy. The second part investigates how modes of this bureaucracy, in turn, affected architectural patronage, the daily tasks expected of architects, and built architecture itself. Going beyond traditional architectural references, the study draws upon building regulation, oral history, and bureaucratic correspondence retrieved from the previously undisclosed archives of the architects. The narrative revealed by these sources challenges dominant notions of architectural expertise while highlighting the agency of paperwork―correspondence, administrative forms, and plans―as producers, rather than factual representations, of architectural form. As such, this inquiry into everyday local contexts of production offers a new perspective from which to evaluate buildings that are conventionally dismissed as derivative or lacking any critical thinking.

Entrepreneurship: The Ideas of J.A. Schumpeter and R.A. Dahl

The concepts of public and political entrepreneurship were introduced in relation to public administration in the 1960s. Early examples were constructed in relation to institutional change (Eisenstadt 1964; 1980), the bridging role of the entrepreneur between different spheres in local communities (Barth 1972), and the carrying out of urban redevelopment and social programs in local government (Dahl 1961; Murphy 1971). Although the concepts of entrepreneurship were used later to describe a variety of phenomena (Sheingate 2003), there are few comparisons of the differences and similarities between early contributions on public- and private-sector entrepreneurship. Motivated by few comparisons, this paper compares the contributions of Joseph A. Schumpeter and Robert A. Dahl as early examples by asking the following guiding question: What are the important similarities and differences in their ideas—and what is the relevance of their work today? While Schumpeter is seen as a main figure in the literature on entrepreneurship, Dahl’s very early contributions are less well known. Schumpeter treated the entrepreneur and the entrepreneurial function in at least 15 publications, whereas Dahl (1961) used the concept in his case study of power in the Mayor Lee–era of the city of New Haven. The theoretical discussion is based on key publications by Schumpeter (15 publications) and from the New Haven case (4 publications). The discussion and comparison have at least two implications for research and practice. Schumpeter’s conception of entrepreneurship was broader than expected and also relevant in studying entrepreneurship in the public sector. Future studies should still explore Schumpeter’s ideas in other contexts to enhance our knowledge of what ideas should be developed further. Dahl’s conception of political entrepreneurship may inform policy makers and researchers regarding entrepreneurship in a political context, which is not easy. Future case studies and practical efforts should therefore be aware that many contemporary entrepreneurs may only be partially political entrepreneurs compared to those in Dahl’s conception.

Creating a New Chinese Discourse on Political Economy: The Innovative Development of China’s Private Sector Theory

Ever since China implemented its reform and opening up policy in the late 1970s, it has engaged in theoretical and practice-based innovations in the development of its private sector. China has experienced four evolutionary stages of private sector development and theoretical innovation: from proposing that the private sector was “subsidiary and complementary to the socialist public sector,” to elevating it to the heights of China’s “basic economic system”; from adhering to the principle of “the two unwaverings,” i.e., unwaveringly consolidating and developing the public sector on the one hand, and unwaveringly encouraging, supporting, and guiding the development of the non-public sector on the other; and thence to further stating explicitly that “private enterprises and private sector entrepreneurs are one of us; they are socialist.” New theories of private sector development have been created in response to the inherent requirements of the primary stage of socialism, to the choice of the correct path to common prosperity, and to the human behavioral rationality and the laws governing people’s interest claims. The private sector is an important achievement of the development of the socialist market economy; an important force promoting the development of the socialist market economy; and an important actor in the building of the modern economic system. Creating new theories of private sector development has opened up a new realm for Marxist political economy.

Capitalising on Nepal’s Soft Power Heritage in the 21st Century

As Nepal forges ahead in the 21st century, linked to two Asian powers by thousands of years of shared cultures and histories, it is time for Nepal to capitalise on its heritage and look to the future. Nepal must claim and revitalise our shared histories of Hinduism and Buddhism, and create a soft power potential that emphasises traditional religious practices, natural and cultural heritage, and sustainability in a time of climate change. The paper argues that Nepal should anchor itself in the past - invoking the idea of a shared civilisation - and look to the future. The potential of religious and cultural tourism must be fully realised while being sustainable. Private sector entrepreneurship in culture must be encouraged, especially as culture itself - or the many cultures within Nepal - must be thought of as a tool to emphasise Nepal’s soft power. Nepal stands to lose US$ 460 million in the tourism sector alone due to the Covid-19 pandemic and it must diversify its tourism offerings if a recovery is desired. Building on a study of historical literature and contemporary trends in filmmaking, brand marketing and perception building, this paper argues that Nepal must invest in its culture and heritage to build an export policy around geographical indications (GIs), establish a new film production template, making it easier for foreign filmmaking companies to come to Nepal, and finally, reinvent its tourism policy in a world ravaged by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Kamu-Özel İşbirliği Modelinde Özel Sektör Teşvik Faktörleri: Şehir Hastaneleri Örneği

Kamu özel işbirliği (KÖİ) modeli ile kamu hizmetlerinin etkili, verimli ve kesintisiz bir şekilde sunulmasında rol oynayan iki ana aktörden biri özel sektör girişimcisidir. Asıl amacı kar elde etmek olan özel sektör girişimcileri KÖİ projesine katılmak ve projede kalmak için bir takım motivasyonlara ve garantilere gereksinim duyarlar. KÖİ projelerinde özel sektör girişimcilerine sağlanan teşvik faktörleri, bir yandan motivasyonunun arttırılmasına diğer yandan KÖİ'nin cazip bir yatırım alternatifi olmasına katkı sağlamaktadır. Bu araştırmada, şehir hastaneleri örneğinde KÖİ teşvik uygulamaları incelenmektedir. Bu bağlamda, öncelikle KÖİ ve KÖİ teşviklerinin kavramsal çerçevesi ele alınmaktadır. Daha sonra, şehir hastaneleri projelerinde KÖİ'nin yapısından kaynaklanan veya şehir hastanelerine özel olarak sağlanan teşvik uygulamaları analiz edilmektedir. Bu kapsamda, teşvikler risklerin paylaşımı, kullanım bedeli ve yatırım bedeli ödemeleri, yeni yatırım alanlarına kavuşma, özel sektör girişimcisine üst hakkı verilmesi, finansmana hazine garantisi sağlanması, bazı vergi ve harçlara istisna getirilmesi, özel sektör girişimcilerine verilen garantiler, ticari hizmet alanlarının özel sektör girişimcisi tarafından işletilmesi başlıkları altında incelenmektedir.

Intangible resources and the growth of women businesses

PurposeIntangible assets are widely considered as key success factors for the growth of businesses in various economies. While the relationship between intangible assets or resources and business growth or performance have been extensively researched in advanced economies, there is limited understanding of the complexity of the phenomenon in developing/emerging markets. In Ghana specifically, there is a dearth of research on the impact of intangible assets on the growth of women businesses. Consequently, this paper aims to investigate how intangible assets available to women entrepreneurs contribute to the performance of their businesses.Design/methodology/approachUsing an exploratory sequential research design (a type of mixed methods design), the data collection was organized into two main phases. The first phase was the qualitative phase where nine respondents were interviewed, and the responses were analysed using thematic analysis. The second phase was the quantitative phase where some 264 questionnaires were collected and analysed using multiple regression analysis.FindingsSpecifically, the findings focused on three intangible resources: social capital, human capital and reputational capital. The study found that, social, human and reputational capital all significantly contributed to the growth of women businesses. The study also showed a positive and significant effect of social capital, reputational capital and human capital on business growth.Practical implicationsThese findings have implications for women entrepreneurs in Ghana. If they must grow their businesses, then using intangible assets alone may not be able to deliver growth in the required proportions. Serious consideration must be given to the significant impact of intra and extra industry networking and the social competency skills of the entrepreneur. The rationality of this assertion hinges on the findings made from this study that social competence can be effectively used to further enhance the effects of the value of one’s intangible assets.Originality/valuePolicymakers in Sub-Saharan Africa and specifically Ghana have accorded high priority to private sector entrepreneurship towards reduction in the dependence of the citizenry on government for jobs. Perhaps, this paper adds to the growing body of knowledge on female entrepreneurship in Ghana to understand how intangible assets available to women entrepreneurs contribute to the performance of their businesses.

Visitors Perception about the Entertainment Parks in Dhaka City of Bangladesh

Nowadays, entertainment parks are one of the paramount segments of the tourism industry of any country. Bangladesh is also a country with a full of attractive places for the visitors and tourists. Some of the entertainment parks are also made by the private sector entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. Due to rapid growth of urbanization, people are divested of enjoying natural attractive places, due to their time constraints. Therefore, the concept of entertainment park is becoming vital in developing countries like Bangladesh. Along with natural tourist spots, there are four main private sector entertainment parks that are located in Dhaka and Chittagong, the main cities of Bangladesh. They are: Fantasy kingdom, Nandan Park, Sishu Park, and Foyez Lake. The tourism sector’s contribution to the economy is also increasing day by day. In 2017, it was 4.2 percent of the GDP, increasing to 4.4 percent in 20181 .To develop this sector, a diversified approach with the concentration on theme-based entertainment parks might be more attractive to the urban people of Bangladesh.

THE ROLE OF INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT IN IMPROVING COFFEE COMPETITIVENESS IN THE EU-INDONESIA PARTNERSHIP AND COOPERATION AGREEMENT FRAMEWORK

Indonesia is a crucial trading partner for the European Union (EU) and vice versa. Indonesia as one of ASEAN member countries contributes 36% of ASEAN's GDP with a population of 255 million (equivalent to almost half the ASEAN population). Indonesia and the EU further strengthen economic cooperation through the framework of the EU-Indonesia Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) cooperation. In the framework of the collaboration, most of Indonesia's exports to EU countries are in the form of agricultural and plantation commodities. For plantation commodities, coffee is Indonesia's leading export commodity with the potential to increase national economic growth. However, Indonesian coffee production has not been fully able to control EU market share. Although Indonesia is the third largest coffee producer in the world, Indonesia only controls 4.17% of the EU coffee market share. This is because only a small portion of Indonesian coffee is produced based on EU standards such as sustainability standards. Therefore, the Indonesian Government seeks to improve the competitiveness of Indonesian coffee commodities, such as production, quality of coffee, quality standards, human resources, and government coordination with coffee / private sector entrepreneurs.

Visitors' Perception about the Entertainment Parks in Dhaka City of Bangladesh

Now-a-days, entertainment parks are one of the important segments of tourism industry of any country. Bangladesh is also a country with a full of attractive places for the visitors and tourists. Some of the entertainment parks are also made by the private sector entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. Due to very fast growth of urbanization, people are deprived of enjoying natural attractive places due to their time constraints. Therefore, the entertainment park concept is becoming important in developing countries like Bangladesh. Along with natural tourists’ spots, there are four main private sector entertainment parks in Bangladesh such as, Fantasy kingdom, Nandan Park, Sishu Park, and Foyez Lake that are located in Dhaka and Chittagong. The tourism sector’s contribution to the economy is also increasing day by day. In 2017, it was 2.20 percent of the GDP and is expected to be 6.20 percent in 2018 . To develop this sector, a diversified approach with the concentration on theme-based entertainment parks might be more attractive to the urban people of Bangladesh. A large number of visitors look for entertainment parks especially in Dhaka city. But the parks are extremely inadequate in numbers and also not in a good condition. Hence, this study identifies the visitors’ perceptions about the entertainment parks located in Dhaka city – capital city of Bangladesh. This study has been conducted among the visitors who already visited entertainment parks of Dhaka city. To conduct this study, a total of 214 visitors were interviewed with the help of a structured questionnaire. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Multivariate analysis techniques like factor analysis was performed to identify the factors related to the entertainment parks of Dhaka city. Multiple regression analysis was performed to identify the relationships between the factors and the overall conditions of the entertainment parks of Dhaka city. Results show that there are twelve factors that are important to the people of Dhaka city who frequently visit entertainment parks. The factors are: medical and first aid services, rides price and mobile network, road transport and discount facilities, trees and gardens, park employees behavior & sitting facilities, food and toilet facilities, picnic spot facilities, drinking water facilities, attractiveness of the park, quiet and noiseless, open for all ages of people, and availability of the rides. It is suggested that the park authority should focus on the mentioned factors to make the entertainment parks more attractive to the increased number of visitors of Dhaka city.

Modern Investment Legislation in Egypt

The main purpose of the article is to determine and analyze the essence and role of contemporary investment legislation in Egypt within the process of active “authoritarian modernisation”. The latter has been evolving in the Egyptian political and economic institutional structure in the latter half of 2010s, after the failure of the previous reforms and their driving political forces connected to and supporting the “Arab spring” of 2011-2013. The attention is concentrated on the recent legislative regulating instruments, designed to stimulate the investment activities of both local and foreign businesses, especially with the aim to direct their financial, managerial, technological and other resources, starting with the hard currency inflows, to the execution of new projects selected by the state due to their strategic importance for modern Egyptian economy. Most importance in this context is the analysis of the Investment Law No. 72 of 2017 and the Law No. 72 of 2017 Promulgating the Investment Law. The study reveals that those documents, less than a year after their coming into force, have already proved ample potential to accelerate economic development of the Arab country under review, i.e. serving as a means to increase the attraction of incoming foreign direct investments (FDI). The new laws should compliment other economic reforms, which have been recently implemented, including: 1) the shift from the previous sales tax regime to a comprehensive value added tax (VAT) system; 2) the liberalisation of the foreign exchange system; 3) the adoption of a flexible exchange rate regime; and 4) the gradual reduction of energy subsidies. The author admits that it is rather difficult to separate the effects of each one of the mentioned reforms, the more so that some of the results are not devoid of contradictions. Yet there is hardly any doubt as to their positive synergetic influence improving the overall investment climate in the Arab Republic of Egypt (ARE). The analyses supported by the latest consolidated statistics of the IMF reveal that the growth in ARE accelerated for four consecutive quarters, reaching 5.2% in July-September 2017, compared to 3.4% in the same quarter of the previous year, unemployment has declined, inflation continued to go down from the peaks reached following the pound floatation and energy price reforms, and the external position strengthened, while inflows exceeded original program expectations. Positive market sentiment reflects growing credibility of the economic management. To unlock Egypt’s growth potential, raise export competitiveness and create more private sector jobs, the authorities are enhancing the modern broad-based strategy of market-friendly reforms. In 2017, apart from the mentioned new investment law, the Egyptian parliament passed an industrial land and licensing law. Access to industrial land has become more readily available as nearly 17 mln sqm of land was provided in 2016/17 compared to 9.5 mln for the whole period of 2007-15. Key reforms in the pipeline include a new bankruptcy law and a single proprietor company law that aims to encourage small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). With improved overall confidence and growing credibility of the governmental program, the private sector entrepreneurship become more visible, and there is a growing interest by foreign investors, including in the newly established industrial free zones. Thus Egypt has been highlighted as the fastest growing location for start-ups with growth of over 100 percent in the previous year, reaching over 500 registered startups, and with very promising prospects for rapid growth.

Social Entrepreneurship: Issues and Challenges

Social entrepreneurship (SE), the practice of responding to market failures with transformative, financially sustainable innovations aimed at solving social problems has emerged at the nexus of the public, private and non-profit sectors in India as well as across the world. It is a new breed of entrepreneurship that exhibits characteristics of non-profits, government and businesses-including applying to social problem-solving traditional, private sector entrepreneurship's focus on innovation, risk-taking and large-scale transformation. Although SE is not a new phenomenon, the field has experienced enormous growth over the past 15 years, receiving increasing recognition from journalists, philanthropists, researchers, and policymakers as an important and distinctive part of the nation's social, economic and political landscape. This paper attempts a critical examination of SE in India and the major issues and challenges faced by them.

Promoting Smallholder Adoption of Conservation Agriculture through Mechanization Services

The importance of conservation agriculture (CA) is discussed in the context of producing food for a growing population while, at the same time, conserving and improving the natural resource base: sustainable crop production intensification. CA requires mechanization, and the necessary equipment may be beyond the reach of the majority of smallholder farmers, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. A logical solution to this situation is to provide CA mechanization services from private sector entrepreneurs. These will be well-equipped with appropriate CA equipment and will usually benefit from specific training on the technical aspects of CA machinery operation and on the business skills needed to run a profitable venture. The technical skills to be reinforced include: equipment selection, calibration of planters, seeders and sprayers, field operation, maintenance and repair. Business skills needed include: market research and feasibility studies, business planning, calculation of operational costs, partial budgets, break-even points and cash flows. The case is made for local manufacture to reduce the costs of machinery acquisition and to encourage local adaptation. Start-up costs are discussed together with the options of obtaining finance. Guidelines for marketing and managing the mechanization service provision business are developed. These include the importance of contracts, work planning, regular maintenance schedules and record keeping. Finally the most appropriate vehicle for delivering the training and sustaining support is considered. Formal training courses are a good starting point, but can be expensive to organize and execute. Individual counselling from extension sources is a viable option when the quality of the service is high enough. Study groups of involved entrepreneurs should be encouraged and supported to overcome the problems that will inevitably arise in new business ventures.

Государственно-частное предпринимательство как инструмент динамичного функционирования туристского кластера в условиях территорий опережающего развития (на примере Приморского края РФ)

Государственно-частное предпринимательство как инструмент динамичного функционирования туристского кластера в условиях территорий опережающего развития (на примере Приморского края РФ)

The value of partial state ownership in publicly listed private sector enterprises: evidence from China

This article highlights a certain dimension of political connection, namely partial state ownership in private sector enterprises (PSEs). Using a dataset of publically listed PSEs in China, we empirically investigate the effects of partial state ownership of PSEs upon firm performance. We demonstrate channels through which the benefits of partial state ownership are realised in terms of easier access to resources such as credit and industries to which entry is restricted by formal barriers, which ultimately increases the performance of firms. We also find some evidence that political participation of private sector entrepreneurs, another dimension of political connection, becomes less valuable when partial state ownership of PSEs is present.

Creativity and Entrepreneurship: Changing Currents in Education and Public Life edited by Lynn Book and David P. Phillips

Creativity and Entrepreneurship is an enthusiastically interdisciplinary anthology, with 14 short essays presenting ‘insightful education and policy recommendations’ linking theory with practice, and academia with private sector entrepreneurship. Contributors represent a variety of backgrounds—specialties run from neurology to business to drama—but the emphasis is less on analyzing how and why creativity works, and more on exploring ways it can be encouraged. As such, the academic authors included represent the humanities rather more than the sciences. I found it to be a good, if frustrating book. The goals of the volume are laudable, and I suspect most readers will find several essays of interest, but as a whole it lacks coherence. Perhaps this is somewhat inevitable: it would be an unusual reader indeed who was equally interested in, say, the metaphorical significance of core samples (LaMoreaux’s essay) as creativity training seminars (the essay by Roark et al.). The sheer range of perspectives brought to bear is itself intriguing.

Effectual Processes in Nonprofit Start-Ups and Social Entrepreneurship

While effectual decision making has been studied in the private sector entrepreneurship literature as a way to explain the entrepreneurial start-up process, it also has potential application in the public and nonprofit sectors. Effectuation can be used to explain the decision process used by actors in the nonprofit sector, particularly in understanding how social entrepreneurs make decisions during the development of a nonprofit or social venture. We distinguish between causal and effectual decision making and illustrate the latter through two case studies of nonprofit start-up in the community development arena. These studies indicate that effectual decision making is particularly suited to the start-up social entrepreneurship venture. Differences between causal and effectual decision making influence the way actors prepare for the future and have pedagogical implications for how we teach social entrepreneurship. Training social entrepreneurs in effectual decision making has potential to better mirror real-world applications and may increase a venture’s ultimate success. Effectuation could also potentially explain decision making in other public arenas.