Claudine Kearney

Public and private sector entrepreneurship: similarities, differences or a combination?

Purpose – While the term “entrepreneurship” is not exclusively a private sector phenomenon, it is usually associated with private sector business activity and more specifically with small to medium enterprises. However, over the last two decades it has appeared in the public administration literature with increasing frequency. The recent research in public sector entrepreneurial activity makes an exploratory comparative analysis of the key components that are applicable from private sector entrepreneurship timely as the topic is emerging as an area of academic inquiry and research. The purpose of this paper is to provide a comparative analysis of private and public sector entrepreneurship using an analytical model from private and public sector entrepreneurship.Design/methodology/approach – A clear understanding of the research issues involved requires an appreciation of the nexus between private sector entrepreneurship and the more limited research field of public sector entrepreneurship. The paper ident...

FACILITATING PUBLIC SECTOR CORPORATE ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROCESS: A CONCEPTUAL MODEL

The research to date in the literature has not provided a consensus on the nature of public entrepreneurship. Many authors relate the concept of entrepreneurship to only the private sector and dismiss the idea of public sector entrepreneurship. Others argue that the introduction of entrepreneurship into the public sector is inimical to its basic goals, concept and values. This paper proposes a conceptual model that explains the public sector corporate entrepreneurial process based on a review of past theoretical and empirical research. To date, very little research exists which attempts to establish a theoretical framework or model that illustrates the various components, including environmental and organizational characteristics, that effect the corporate entrepreneurship process within the public sector. The model is intended to depict key corporate entrepreneurial dimensions that relate to entrepreneurial behavior within the public sector organization. The proposed model delineates the antecedents and consequences of corporate entrepreneurship within the public sector.

CHANGE MANAGEMENT THROUGH ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN PUBLIC SECTOR ENTERPRISES

Corporate entrepreneurship has been of interest to academics, business leaders and government officials over the past four decades, particularly in terms of enhancing organizational performance. Although the understanding of corporate entrepreneurship continues to develop, the research usually focuses on private sector business activity. The research to date has not provided a consensus on the nature of public sector corporate entrepreneurship. Even though in recent years the topic has appeared in the public administration literature with increasing frequency, public sector corporate entrepreneurship remains poorly defined and its interpretation fragmented. In this study, public sector corporate entrepreneurship is investigated by developing and testing an integrative model using data obtained from 134 public sector state and semi-state enterprises in Ireland. The results indicate public sector organizations can manage change through entrepreneurship when they adapt to a munificent environment and when the decision-making style and control system is aligned. Public sector organizations focusing on corporate entrepreneurship (renewal) are at least marginally positively associated with organizational performance (growth and development) a primary policy goal particularly in the current economic climate. The article concludes by discussing the implications for theory, practice and future research areas.

Managing innovation and entrepreneurship

1. The Entrepreneurial/Innovative Economy 2. Creativity and Innovation 3. Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Context 4. Building an Innovative and Entrepreneurial Organization 5. Developing Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Both Individuals and Teams 6. Design Thinking and Innovation 7. Developing New Products, Services and Ventures 8. The Global Business Plan 9. International Opportunities for Innovation and Entrepreneurship 10. The Future Impact on Innovation on Consumers, Business and Government About the Authors Index

The mediating role of corporate entrepreneurship for external environment effects on performance

A model is proposed that tests the antecedents and the mediating effect of corporate entrepreneurship on the external environment-performance relationship within private and public sector organizations. Hypotheses were tested using data from a sample of chief executive officers in 51 private sector organizations in the United States, 141 private sector organizations in Slovenia and 134 public sector state and semi-state enterprises in Ireland. Data was analyzed using hierarchical regression analysis. The results show that dynamism and munificence effects on performance are mediated by an organizations corporate entrepreneurship in the private sector and munificence effects on performance are mediated by an organizations renewal in the public sector and that renewal must be in place to maximize the effect of munificence on performance. The results support a model that incorporates an extensive and diverse literature into a single model and helps illuminate similarities and differences of corporate entrepreneurship between the private sector and the public sector. The study shows that an integrative model and the interplay among the constructs yields new insights unavailable to single and focused approaches. It offers new insights about corporate entrepreneurship, not only as a discrete pursuit, but also as a construct that shapes and extends organizational performance.

Directing Corporate Entrepreneurship Strategy in the Public Sector to Public Value: Antecedents, Components, and Outcomes

ABSTRACT Over the last three decades, organizations worldwide have used corporate entrepreneurship (CE) as a means of building new competencies, revitalizing operations, achieving renewal, and/or creating value for stakeholders. However, little is understood about factors triggering corporate entrepreneurship strategy (CES) within organizations not driven by profit motives. The purpose of this article is to conceptualize CES in the public sector in order to synthesize, integrate, and link the key concepts within the CE domain, thereby creating new public value and generating new economic activity for the benefit of multiple stakeholders. The public sector CES model includes (1) the antecedents of public sector CES (external environmental conditions that generate entrepreneurial activity); (2) the key components of CES (entrepreneurial strategic vision, organizational conditions that support entrepreneurial processes and behavior, entrepreneurial orientation (EO) that reflects the overall level of such processes and behavior, and individual levels of entrepreneurial behavior); and (3) outcomes of CES within the public sector (organizational outcomes resulting from entrepreneurial actions, including the development of venturing and renewal that, in turn, leads to enhanced public value). We discuss how our model contributes to the CE literature, followed by implications for scholars and practice and future research directions.

Examining Facilitative Configurations of Entrepreneurially Oriented Growth: An Information Processing Perspective

This study examines how the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and firm growth is shaped by learning orientation in technologically sophisticated environments. We draw upon an information processing perspective that emphasizes alignment between information processing demands and support mechanisms. Using data from 116 small to medium-sized enterprises in the Netherlands, we observe that the ability of entrepreneurial orientation to drive firm growth greatly depends on the joint consideration of technological sophistication and learning orientation. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of how configurations of strategic orientations and environmental considerations work in concert to influence the efficacy of organizational entrepreneurial efforts dramatically.