Venture Ideas Research Articles

Impact of Grandiose Narcissism and Perspective-Taking on New Venture Idea Quality

Impact of Grandiose Narcissism and Perspective-Taking on New Venture Idea Quality

Erratum: New venture idea incubation: A micro-process view

No abstract available.

Beyond the lone hero: How interpersonal feedback seeking helps entrepreneurs to engage with their social environment

AbstractEntrepreneurs are often depicted as lone heroes. However, they are encouraged to seek and use feedback from their social environment to refine their venture ideas and enhance performance. Surprisingly, systematic research on entrepreneurs' feedback‐seeking is in its infancy, and this nascent research is marked by conceptual vagueness about the feedback‐seeking process and the limitations of related concepts. This article leverages the rich research on feedback seeking from organizational behavior/applied psychology to explicate the nature of entrepreneurs' interpersonal feedback seeking while considering the specific demands of entrepreneurship. We delineate feedback seeking from related concepts and theorize a process model of how entrepreneurs seek feedback to pursue instrumental, ego, symbolic, and relational goals, resulting in outcomes not only for entrepreneurs but also for their ventures and immediate and wider social environments. This article provides a foundation for research on entrepreneurs' feedback seeking that is attentive to their personal goals and vulnerabilities while also considering the impact of this process on their social environment. Our conceptual model also offers new insights for organizational behavior/applied psychology research on feedback seeking in relation to the future of work.

How open innovation can help entrepreneurs in sensing and seizing entrepreneurial opportunities in SMEs

PurposeThis study explores how open innovation (OI) can be instrumental for entrepreneurs in sensing and seizing entrepreneurial opportunities in small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This study also illustrates how OI can help SMEs overcome the liability of smallness.Design/methodology/approachThis is exploratory research using an inductive, multiple-case study approach. This study capitalizes on five in-depth case studies of European SMEs to explore a phenomenon using replication logic and provide a robust basis for theory building.FindingsThis study presents a holistic view of the OI process in SMEs and illustrates the crucial role of entrepreneurs. The study provides a better understanding of how OI can help entrepreneurs sense and seize entrepreneurial opportunities by envisioning venture ideas and implementing business model innovation through the management of innovation partners.Originality/valueThe study emphasizes two critical roles of entrepreneurs in implementing OI in SMEs. First, the entrepreneur can be the instigator of strategic change, and second, he/she can orchestrate the innovation network. The findings emphasize that OI helps avoid knowledge corridors at the venture idea stage, leading to a (re)structuring of the business model and the emergence of a network of innovation partners, which should be managed hands-on. This study discusses in detail the two crucial roles of entrepreneurs.

Finding the sweet spot: Evaluating the role of structured idea-generation framework in generating high-quality new venture ideas

Previous research has predominantly focused on cognitive antecedents related to the quality of new venture ideas (NVIs), resulting in a notable gap in understanding the influence of structural elements on NVIs. Drawing upon activation theory, we examine how the structure of the idea-generation framework, a dimension of routinization, influences NVI outcomes. To investigate this relationship, we conduct two separate studies: the first involving a student sample and the second involving practicing entrepreneurs. Our findings demonstrate an inverse U-shaped relationship between the structure in the idea-generation framework and the quality/quantity of NVIs. These findings contribute to the understanding of the antecedents that shape NVIs.

External Venture Idea Evaluation and Venture Idea Revisions? The Role of Opportunity Confidence

External Venture Idea Evaluation and Venture Idea Revisions? The Role of Opportunity Confidence

Examining the impact of trait grit on aspiring entrepreneur's new venture ideation: Evidence from Ghana

One tool that has long been advocated to promote economic development and reduce poverty in developing countries such as Ghana is entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship, however, is a process that goes through several phases. One of the first hurdles for aspiring entrepreneurs to cross is to come up with a viable new venture idea. Drawing on the social cognitive theory of self-regulation, we hypothesize that the two dimensions of dispositional grit (consistency of interest and perseverance of effort) may enhance aspiring entrepreneurs' new venture ideation via entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Furthermore, the indirect effects of consistency of interest and perseverance of effort on venture ideation via entrepreneurial self-efficacy are proposed to be stronger when entrepreneur identity aspiration is high. Based on a sample of 265 (Study 1) and 338 (Study 2) aspiring entrepreneurs in Ghana, we found consistent and strong support for our hypothesized model. Theoretical and practical implications of our findings are discussed.

A pragmatic perspective on social entrepreneurial opportunities

PurposeScholars have applied a number of theoretical perspectives to enhance understanding of social entrepreneurial opportunities, and have most recently turned to the lens of critical realism. Although this metatheoretical perspective overcomes some problems with previous views and helps to identify the essence of a construct, the level of abstraction required by this approach leaves unanswered questions related to how social entrepreneurs leverage opportunities. The purpose of this paper is to create a framework to describe social entrepreneurial opportunities in a way that facilitates action and decision-making by social entrepreneurs.Design/methodology/approachThrough adapting Davidsson's (2015) deconstruction of the opportunity construct and using it to inform the pragmatist view of entrepreneurs as theory-testing scientists, this paper develops a framework for understanding social entrepreneurial opportunities. The paper explores the idea that social opportunities are composed of external enablers, a new social venture idea, and social opportunity confidence, and integrates the existing literature on social opportunities into this framework.FindingsUsing the framework developed, the authors advance a template of questions, hypotheses and quasi-experimental means that social entrepreneurs can use to determine how to move forward in social opportunity actualization. The authors also expand three categories of research questions that scholars may explore to extend the practical and theoretical understanding of social opportunities.Originality/valueThis work is among the first to adopt the pragmatist lens to elucidate social opportunities in a practical way. It takes an important first step in offering a means for social entrepreneurs to investigate when or where the requisite components of a social entrepreneurial opportunity may exist. Furthermore, it advances the pragmatist perspective of social opportunities by using Davidsson's model to explain the components of theories about what may or may not be a social opportunity.

New venture idea incubation: A micro-process view

Background: In pursuit of new venture idea incubation, motivated entrepreneurs must simultaneously commit to an idea and develop the capacity to translate this commitment into a new venture concept. However, it is not clear how experienced entrepreneurs navigate this complex process. In this study, key phases and competencies emerge from a deep understanding of the lived experience of entrepreneurs engaged in the opportunity development process.Aim: By leaning on empirical insight from seasoned entrepreneurs, this study examines the iterative character of new venture idea incubation. The research conceptualises the lived experience of key constructs and relationships in the new venture idea incubation process.Setting: The primary research was conducted in Johannesburg in South Africa.Methods: Longitudinal, triangulated data from purposively selected cases enabled patterning of idea incubation processes. Computer-aided data analysis (CAQDAS) was used to code inductively and deductively to illuminate activations and sequences.Results: This incubation period was shown to be one in which venture ideas evolve into elementary venture concepts. The data enabled development of a framework that exemplifies this process of incubation.Conclusion: The findings extend the existing theory by describing the micro-processes that are involved in new venture idea incubation. The findings also clarify the distinction between new venture idea incubation and new venture opportunity evaluation, a distinction that has not previously been evident.Contribution: The study contributes by exposing a micro-level view of the new venture idea incubation process that is enacted by entrepreneurs to frame an elementary venture concept.

‘How might we?’: Studying new venture ideation in and through practices

Recent scholarship focuses on new venture ideation—the process of generating and developing new venture ideas—separately from venture development, as the creation of new ventures begins with new venture ideas. In this study, we ask which practices are being enacted to carry out new venture ideation, and how and why are they constituted by aspiring entrepreneurs. By conducting a video ethnography, we find that aspiring entrepreneurs utilize six practices, i.e., ‘how might we’, ‘seeing’, ‘do you mean’, ‘yes, and’, ‘invitation’, and ‘but, what’ linked to the formulation, explaining, extending and questioning of new venture ideas. Our study extends the relational perspective of new venture ideation by detailing the relations between conversation, bodies and visual artefacts that facilitate the joint exercise of entrepreneurial imagination.

Responsible innovation in venture creation and firm development: the case of digital innovation in healthcare and welfare services

ABSTRACT The increasing adaptation of digitalisation has engendered numerous venture ideas and entrepreneurial opportunities. Many of these ideas bear the potential to address grand societal challenges. However, perceived opportunities can be elusive, especially in the context of complex problems. Opportunity confidence (OC) can be essential to venture creation and firm development. OC depends on evaluating socioeconomic, socio-ethical, and socioecological factors, which are not straightforward. Responsible innovation (RI) can be a viable approach to building OC. However, whether or how firms and entrepreneurs pursue RI to build OC needs to be clarified. Accordingly, we explore these issues through a case study of nine for-profit firms in digital healthcare and welfare services. The findings reveal that although the firms do not integrate RI principles in innovation and entrepreneurial activities per se, they practice them to varying degrees. This helps them to build OC. The study contributes to theory, practice, and policy.

Creating Social Ventures: How Social Motivations and Goals Drive Venture Idea Judgments

Research on the formation of prosocial ventures has attracted substantial interest in the field of social entrepreneurship for more than a decade. Yet, the understanding of how prosocial founders use judgments for the assessment of opportunity-related information to create prosocial ventures remains relatively unexamined. We conducted an abductive, qualitative study with 34 first-time founders using verbal protocols and content analysis techniques to explore how founders with ‘other-oriented’ social identities judge venture ideas in contrast to founders with ‘me-oriented’ social identities. As a result, we theorise a model which reveals how the motivation and subjective goals of prosocial founders influence their venture idea judgments and meaning-making processes. We contribute to the social entrepreneurship literature by displaying how founders with social goal-motivations gain opportunity confidence through their choice of judgement criteria during opportunity evaluation.

The magical language of un-realistic venture ideas in social entrepreneurship

ABSTRACT As social entrepreneurship gains maturity, research has begun to explore the less alluring aspects of the field, including the heroic stance of social entrepreneurs, the assumed moral superiority of their intentions, and the misleading emphasis on solutionism. In this paper, we explore a central component of this criticism, which is the construction of un-realistic venture ideas in social entrepreneurs’ pitches for social change. We analysed social venture business plans and the written feedback provided by judges during a social venture competition, and we used speech act theory to analyse the claims and promises triggering judges’ disbelief. We discovered three linguistic artefacts that underlie the construction of un-realistic venture ideas in social entrepreneurship, which we label holism, devotion, and enlightenment. While these artefacts trigger disbelief, they also play an expressive role as they channel both contestation and dreams. We leverage magical realism to forward an alternative explanation of how venture ideas in social entrepreneurship can act as a cultural form of social protest, which can be seen as a historically contingent, modern revolution.

How Non-Managerial Employees Navigate Venture Idea Elaboration: A Cognitive Frame Perspective on CE

Championing, experimenting, and re-adjusting new venture ideas are imperative for successful corporate entrepreneurship (CE). Although these activities are mostly performed by non-managerial employees (NMEs), prior research predominantly focuses on senior and middle managers’ entrepreneurial behavior leaving a gap in understanding NMEs’ role in CE. Drawing on cognitive frame theory, we seek to understand how NMEs’ cognition shapes new venture idea elaboration in the corporate venture inception phase. By means of an inductive qualitative study with 33 informants from two organizations, our analysis reveals that NMEs’ collaboration results in a convergence or divergence of their contracted and expanded frames that, in turn, determine whether a dominant new venture idea emerges and is championed to senior management.

Examining the Nexus Between Entrepreneurial Imagination and Venture Innovativeness

The new venture creation process begins when entrepreneurs come to imagine their venture ideas, yet we lack a comprehensive understanding of the imagination-innovation nexus for entrepreneurial ventures. In this research, we take a dynamic approach and combine entrepreneurial imaginativeness perspective with schema theory to argue that entrepreneurial imaginativeness will influence venture innovativeness and this relationship is likely to be contingent on the founder’s knowledge depth and breadth. Using a two-step process and combining data from a survey of 98 entrepreneurs and secondary sources, we show that entrepreneurial imaginativeness enhances venture innovativeness and the founder’s knowledge component has a differential effect on this relationship. More specifically, we hypothesize that knowledge depth constraints the effect of imaginativeness on venture innovativeness, while knowledge breadth enhances the effect of imaginativeness on venture innovativeness.

Artificial Intelligence Systems: the Influence on Human Entrepreneurial Creativity

This article explores the influence of artificial intelligence (AI) systems on the generation of new venture ideas, answering a direct call from entrepreneurship scholars (Chalmers, MacKenzie, & Carter, 2021). A conceptual framework is built to unearth the underlying mechanisms, drawing on cognitive theories of creativity. The conceptual framework is tested experimentally with 90 participants. Findings show that the use of AI during new venture idea generation is a double-edged sword. Humans can enhance their cognitive flexibility, which leads to generate more high-quality ideas (number of creative, novel and useful ideas) at the expense of average novelty of ideas. Practical implications, academic contributions and future research opportunities are discussed.

Creating Social Ventures: How (Social) Motivations and Goals Drive Venture Idea Judgments (WITHDRAWN)

Research on the formation of prosocial ventures has attracted substantial interest in the field of social entrepreneurship for more than a decade. Yet, the understanding of how individuals use judgments as a meaning-making process for the assessment of opportunity-related information to create prosocial ventures remains relatively unexamined. The authors conducted an abductive, qualitative study with 34 first-time founders using verbal protocols and content analysis techniques. As a result, the study theorizes a model which reveals how the motivation and subjective goals of first-time founders influence their meaning-making processes during venture idea judgments. The discussion contributes to the social entrepreneurship literature by displaying the relevance of goal-related motivations in the creation of different types of ventures, namely for-profit and social purpose ventures. Finally, it also illustrates that the social identity of founders can be considered as an antecedent to social entrepreneurial intentions.

Getting to the one: Prioritizing an idea set using preference-based decision-specific heuristics

ABSTRACT We propose and test a process where potential entrepreneurs (PEs) prioritize a venture idea consideration set using preference-based decision-specific heuristics to assess idea feasibility and desirability. We test our hypotheses through two studies with PEs. The first experiment shows that prioritization occurs, with 113 of 122 PEs voluntarily changing a randomized list of their ideated ventures into a rank-ordered priority list of potential opportunities. Second, we employ a novel “equivocal forced-choice” conjoint design with 250 PEs. We find empirical support that PEs prioritize via relative preferences for experience-based knowledge, strong social ties, and low risk/low reward venture ideas. We contribute to the entrepreneurship literature by theorizing and providing evidence of a prioritization stage for multiple idea sets before evaluation. Further, we demonstrate the influence of individual and social network factors on prioritization and expand our understanding of how PEs conceptualize risk in venturing.

Make me act rapidly: identity perspective to the dynamics of start-up creation process

Purpose High-tech start-up creation is associated with complex challenges originating from quick transformations in technologies and markets. To raise start-up survival and success chances, founders need to ensure a rapid conversion of a venture idea into a working business. This paper aims to explore how identity-related characteristics of founders influence the speed of the start-up creation process. Design/methodology/approach For this study, a longitudinal multiple-case-study design was selected to identify a vivid flow of decisions and actions taken by high-tech start-ups for analysis in depth. Over 20 months, a series of interviews were organized with founders of six start-ups located in the same business incubator in Russia. Also, a set of additional data sources was engaged, including publicly available data and internal documents provided by businesses. Findings The findings reveal contrasting dynamics of start-up creation processes among founders with differing role identities. Identity fit and identity misfit are suggested to be serious pull and push factors in the process of organizational becoming through the impact they have on the situational regulatory focus of founders. Originality/value The current research contributes to the entrepreneurship stream of research by extending the knowledge of how cognition affects the process of new venture creation.

Framing ideas for new venture resources acquisition in crises: An fsQCA analysis

How should new venture ideas be framed in order to acquire human resources and gain support in times of crisis characterized by struggling or failing institutions and governmental organizations? To answer this question, we analyze 316 new venture ideas aimed at alleviating the COVID-19 crisis in 11 countries. We investigate different linguistic framing configurations and test their persuasive power for human resource acquisition. Our fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) and linguistic analysis reveal that a “common enemy framing” is crucial for obtaining resources in crisis contexts. Non-profit venture ideas, specifically, may acquire resources via two additional paths: adding positive emotional content or using an entrepreneurial hustle framing with concrete calls to action. Our findings provide novel insights into entrepreneurial resource acquisition and idea framing during crises.