The virtuous cycle of discovery and creation of entrepreneurial opportunities

Researchers have debated whether entrepreneurial opportunities are discovered or created. However, they have often overlooked the importance of the contextual variables that stimulate, shape, and define the entrepreneurial act. This article focuses on entrepreneurial activities within technology-based established companies and shows how and why certain contexts are more conducive for discovery, while others promote the discovery and creation of opportunities. The article suggests a virtuous and dynamic cycle where discovery enriches creation which, in turn, fosters the discovery of new opportunities. The focus on the context and key features of entrepreneurial search contributes to the behavioral theory of and the debate on the origins of opportunities. Copyright © 2008 Strategic Management Society.

[1]  J. Barney,et al.  Discovery and Creation: Alternative Theories of Entrepreneurial Action , 2007 .

[2]  Shaker A. Zahra,et al.  Knowledge conversion capability and the performance of corporate and university spin-offs , 2007 .

[3]  Robert A. Burgelman,et al.  Let Chaos Reign, then Rein in Chaos - Repeatedly: Managing Strategic Dynamics for Corporate Longevity , 2007 .

[4]  S. Zahra,et al.  Entrepreneurship and Dynamic Capabilities: A Review, Model and Research Agenda , 2006 .

[5]  Franco Malerba,et al.  Innovation and the evolution of industries , 2006 .

[6]  S. Shane,et al.  Opportunities and Entrepreneurship , 2003 .

[7]  Richard N. Cardozo,et al.  A theory of entrepreneurial opportunity identification and development , 2003 .

[8]  S. Zahra,et al.  Absorptive Capacity: A Review, Reconceptualization, and Extension , 2002 .

[9]  H. Chesbrough,et al.  Making sense of corporate venture capital. , 2002, Harvard business review.

[10]  O. Sorenson,et al.  Science and the Diffusion of Knowledge , 2001 .

[11]  Daniel A. Levinthal,et al.  Demand Heterogeneity and Technology Evolution: Implications for Product and Process Innovation , 2001, Manag. Sci..

[12]  A. Nerkar,et al.  Beyond local search: boundary‐spanning, exploration, and impact in the optical disk industry , 2001 .

[13]  Mark P. Rice,et al.  Opportunity Recognition and Breakthrough Innovation in Large Established Firms , 2001 .

[14]  M. Hitt,et al.  International expansion by new venture firms: International diversity, mode of market entry, technological learning, and performance. , 2000 .

[15]  O. Sorenson,et al.  Science as a Map in Technological Search , 2000 .

[16]  S. Shane.  Prior Knowledge and the Discovery of Entrepreneurial Opportunities , 2000 .

[17]  S. Shane,et al.  The Promise of Entrepreneurship as a Field of Research , 2000 .

[18]  S. Shane,et al.  The Promise of Enterpreneurship as a Field of Research , 2000 .

[19]  W. Bogner,et al.  Corporate Entrepreneurship, Knowledge, and Competence Development , 1999 .

[20]  S. Albers,et al.  Crisis Construction and Organizational Learning: Capability Building in Catching-Up at Hyundai Motor , 1998 .

[21]  O. Granstrand,et al.  Multi-Technology Corporations: Why They Have “Distributed” Rather Than “Distinctive Core” Competencies , 1997 .

[22]  Daniel A. Levinthal.  Adaptation on rugged landscapes , 1997 .

[23]  Israel M. Kirzner.  Entrepreneurial Discovery and the Competitive Market Process: An Austrian Approach , 1997 .

[24]  Shaker A. Zahra,et al.  Goverance, Ownership, and Corporate Entrepreneurship: The Moderating Impact of Industry Technological Opportunities , 1996 .

[25]  M. Kotabe,et al.  The role of strategic alliances in high‐technology new product development , 1995 .

[26]  S. Winter,et al.  Understanding corporate coherence: Theory and evidence , 1994 .

[27]  Robert A. Burgelman.  Intraorganizational Ecology of Strategy Making and Organizational Adaptation: Theory and Field Research , 1991 .

[28]  J. March.  Exploration and exploitation in organizational learning , 1991, STUDI ORGANIZZATIVI.

[29]  H. Stevenson,et al.  A Paradigm of Entrepreneurship: Entrepreneurial Management * , 1990 .

[30]  Daniel A. Levinthal,et al.  ABSORPTIVE CAPACITY: A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON LEARNING AND INNOVATION , 1990 .

[31]  G. Dosi.  Sources, Procedures, and Microeconomic Effects of Innovation , 1988 .

[32]  M. Tushman,et al.  Technological Discontinuities and Organizational Environments , 1986 .

[33]  Robert A. Burgelman.  A Process Model of Internal Corporate Venturing in the Diversified Major Firm , 1983 .