Entreprenurial Leadership

Entrepreneurial Leadership at the Crossroads

John Pisapia, ProfessorFlorida Atlantic University and Founder

The Strategic Leadership Network (SLN)

Keith Feit, Research Assistant

Florida Atlantic University

Access the paper here

Presented at the 60th International Council of Small Business World Conference

June 6-9, 2015 - Dubai, UAE

https://www.academia.edu/12648891/Entreprenurial_Leadership_at_the_Cross_Roads

The CrossroadsTWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel bothAnd be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I couldTo where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,Because it was grassy and wanted wear;.

. . I shall be telling this with a sighSomewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.The Road Not Taken

Robert Frost (1874–1963).American Poet – Winner of 4 Pulitzer Prizes

Definitions

Leader 1. A person who influences

a group of people towards the achievement of a goal.

2. A person who produces change and movement, establishes direction, aligns people and structures, and focuses on results.

Leadership1. Leadership is a process

of social influence which maximizes the efforts of others, towards the achievement of a goal.

2. Leadership is the process of persuasion or example by which an individual induces a group to pursue objectives held by the leader and shared by followers.

04/15/2023 Pisapia, J. 2009. The Strategic Leader

The Strategic Leader Netowork (SLN) 4

At its core, leadership revolves around several key elements: • Establishing direction (e.g. creating a

vision, clarifying the big picture; and setting strategies);

• Connecting with People (communicating goals and creating conditions which encourage commitment, and building teams and coalitions; and

• Focusing on results (Pisapia, 2009).

The Core Tasks of Leaders

Definitions

Entrepreneur1. A person who starts a

business and is willing to risk loss in order to make money.

2. A person who takes an idea, product or service and does whatever is necessary to introduce it to the marketplace where it can produce revenue.

EntrepreneurshipEntrepreneurship is the pursuit of opportunity without regard to resources currently controlled. (Howard Stevenson Harvard professor, 1975)

Entrepreneurship involves the nexus of three phenomena: The presence of an opportunity, and enterprising individuals Who can ‘see it’ and are capable enough to respond it to it, Irrespective of existing resources (Shane & Venkataraman, 2000, p. 218



At its core, entrepreneurship revolves around several key elements: • Presence of Opportunity

• Presence of someone who can “see it.”

• Presence of someone who is capable to respond to it irrespective of existing resources (Shane & Venkataraman (2000, p 218)

• Scholarly opinion suggests that the entrepreneur is at the center of EL

The Core Tasks of Entrepreneurship

Superordinates Bosses, Boards, Superiors

CustomersInternal and External Users

SubordinatesDirect and Indirect ReportsStaff , Teams, Subunits

Supporters/BlockersApprovers, Politicians, Competitors, Partners

The Audiences for Leaders

Pisapia, J. 2009. The Strategic Leader04/15/2023


Supervisory (Traditional) Leadership

(Blake & Mouton, 1964; Fiedler, 1967; Hersey & Blanchard, 1969

Transformational Leadership

(Burns, 1978; Bass, 1985)

Strategic Leadership

(Pisapia, 2009)

Entrepreneurial Leadership

(Covin & Slevin, 1986, 1988; Miller, 1983)

Hierarchical; command and control Hierarchical; heroic leadership Horizontal leadership structure; coordination and collaboration

Flattened leadership; empowerment and autonomy

Establishes vision Establishes vision Establishes vision and direction; aligns members and structures toward established direction

Establishes vision and inspires others to “join cause”

Develops culture of limited empowerment focused on process; all authority in central leadership

Develops culture of high expectations; focus on self-actualization of individuals’ higher level needs; authority centered in heroic leader

Develops supportive culture focusing on outcomes; tolerance for ambiguity; decision-making strategic; authority dispersed

Develops culture of risk-tolerance and experimentation in pursuit of innovation; tolerance for ambiguity; always looking for competitive advantage; authority dispersed

Many rules, regulations, procedures, guidelines

Emphasis on trust, empowerment, and autonomy

Minimum specifications; autonomy and flexibility

Emphasis on autonomy and flexibility

Focus on maintaining status quo; internal consistency

Focuses on achieving more than expected

Focus on outcomes; frame-sustaining and frame-breaking change

Focus on creating value; innovative change

Focuses on internal environment – processes and procedures to ensure efficiency

Focus internal – emphasis on helping members to realize higher level needs and improve individual performance

Anticipates internal and external environmental changes; focuses on organization and external relationships as well as followers needs

Anticipates environmental demands and proactively seeks to create opportunity; looks to be first to market

Leadership at top of organization Leadership at top of organization

Leadership exists in all levels of organization

Leadership exists in all levels of organization

Managing dominant Leading dominant Managing and leading co-dominant Leading dominant

THE ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP CROSSROADS

9

One group of scholars take the path of leadership: Establishing direction; Connecting with People, and Focusing on environmental fit, competitive advantage and result. These entrepreneurial leaders are advantage seeking.A second group of scholars take the path that refocuses on roots - the entrepreneur who makes a direct difference in growth and wealth creation by recognizing and exploiting opportunities without regard to resources available. These entrepreneurial leaders are opportunity seekers.A smaller third group of scholars take a path that emphasizes both opportunity seeking and advantage seeking. These entrepreneurial leaders are ambidextrous.

What is missing in Entrepreneurial Leadership Research is

a focus on the entrepreneur-

someone who sees, recognizes and exploits opportunities as a leader of individuals, teams and

organizations-

until this happens EL is a type of leadership that occurs inside or outside of an existing organization

(Vecchio, 2003; Kuratko, 2007)


We all know what leadership is until someone asks us to define it

Authentic Leadership Servant Leadership

Transformational LeadershipBalanced Leadership

Distributed LeadershipStrategic Leadership

Ethical Leadership

Relational Leadership

The Leadership Challenge

Level 5 Leadership

Transactional Leadership

Charismatic Leadership Situational Leadership


Entrepreneurial Leadership

Opportunity Recognition

Entrepreneurial Orientation

Opportunity Exploitation.

Entrepreneur G r o w t h Wealth Creation

The Key Elements of Entrepreneurial Leadership

The Strategic Leader Network (SLN)04/15/2023

The Problem we see is that while most entrepreneurs work in ambiguous situations, not all work in formalized structures, thus they may be entrepreneurial but not entrepreneurial leaders.

We propose that at the center of entrepreneurial activity is an entrepreneur bringing a new venture into existence by starting with what they have, sharing the risk by finding likeminded individuals who pre-commit, determining what they can afford to lose, and co-creating the future (Sarasvathy 2001).

Entrepreneurs in formalized structures must act like a leader/entreprenuers - identify a new direction, build a team, and bring a new idea, methods, or product to fruition… but they also must face changing internal and external conditions whether they be opportunities or threats to which they must adapt their organizations

Entrepreneurs in less formalized structures must act like an entrepreneur/leader. They use entrepreneurial predispositions, behaviors, and skills to spot opportunities and exploit them irrespective of existing resources and contexts. But they must be alert to new opportunities brought by dynamic external conditions.

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• Pisapia, J. (2009). The strategic Leader: New tactics for a globalizing world. Charlotte: NC.

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First, we situate entrepreneurial leadership within the extant theoretical leadership literature. Then, we present the definitional confusion within

the literature and describe three paths. One road leads to an independent style of leadership. The other leads to an integrated

leadership theory that melds it with other forms of leadership. We end by suggestion that entrepreneurial leadership research return to its roots and refocus on the entrepreneur – someone who sees, recognizes, and

exploits opportunities without regard to resources - as a leader of ideas, projects, individuals, teams, and perhaps organizations.

There is confusion in the extant literature over the connection of entrepreneurial leadership and leadership. Is entrepreneurial leadership a theory or a style? Is its focus on setting direction, gaining commitment and achieving results? Or, is it focused on influencing others or recognizing and exploiting opportunities? This paper attempts to answer those questions and to position entrepreneurial leadership as an adaptable, creative, and innovative leadership style that matches the dynamism of today’s organizational environments.


The question we pose is this:Does a leader whose attributes allow him or her to effectively seek out and exploit previously unforeseen opportunities to create a new future have the leadership qualities required to sustain and grow an organization once the future is no longer new and the environment changes?

Current entrepreneurial leadership theory does not address these issues. We would, however, agree that organizations and their leaders can adopt an

entrepreneurial style much like servant leadership.

Making it Happen!

Pisapia, J. 2009. The Strategic Leader

Mission Focus

Opportunity Focus

Leadership Behavior

Entrepreneurial Behavior

We Have a Plan

04/15/2023

Define Strategic LeadershipAt its core, strategic leadership is the ability,( as

well as the wisdom), to make consequential decisions about ends, strategy, and tactics. . . . It

marries management with leadership, and strategic intent with tactics and actions. (Pisapia,

2009, p. 7)It requires that leaders think, act, and work in a

strategic way.


TO ‘SEE IT’, YOU MUST BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY NEW MEANS-ENDS RELATIONSHIPS.

“OPPORTUNITY” implies an offering that is novel in one or more of four ways:

1. Pioneering a truly innovative product;

2. Devising a new business model; 3. Creating a better or cheaper version

of an existing product; or service;4. Targeting new sets of customers.


Entreprenurial Leadership

Leadership & Management

Transcript of Entreprenurial Leadership