Entrepreneurial Orientation and Entrepreneurs' Intentions and Objectives

Abstract

Entrepreneurship has become an important issue for policy. At one level, enterprise creation is recognised as important for employment growth and effecting structural change; at another, there is concern to encourage existing firms to become more entrepreneurial as a means of enhancing international competitiveness. Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) reflected in recurring organisational behaviour such as innovativeness, pro-activeness and risk-taking is important in the latter context. This paper explores the extent to which differences in motives, intentions and personal objectives held by entrepreneurs were reflected in organisational behaviour relating to the dimensions of EO suggested by Lumpkin and Dess. The paper reports on a group of 153 high-tech CEOs first surveyed in 1998 when information was sought about their family and educational background, antecedents to setting up in business, motivations for doing so and personal objectives. The same CEOs were subsequently surveyed early in 2001. This second study examined ownership structures, perception of competitive issues, market characteristics, innovative behaviour, attitudes towards HRM policies, personal objectives, approaches towards risk and recent performance.