Entrepreneurial Alertness in Opportunity Identification and Opportunity Development

Abstract

ABSTRACTOpportunity recognition, evaluation, and exploitation are considered by many to be the heart of entrepreneurship (Shane & Venkataraman 2000; Zahra, 2008) and a construct well connected to opportunity recognition is entrepreneurial alertness. In this paper, a model is presented to extend the contributions already made in this area, particularly the work of Tang, Kacmar, & Busenitz (2012) and Valliere (2013), by further delineating the components and antecedents of entrepreneurial alertness, connecting the construct to opportunity identification and opportunity development, and introducing entrepreneurial intention as a moderating factor. The proposed model offers a framework for debate, future research consideration, and prescriptive guideline development.Keywords: entrepreneurial alertness, opportunity identification, opportunity developmentINTRODUCTIONOpportunity recognition, evaluation, and exploitation are considered by many to be the heart of entrepreneurship (Aldrich & Ruef, 2006; Shane & Venkataraman, 2000; Zahra, 2008). One construct that is well connected with opportunity recognition is entrepreneurial alertness. Introduced by Kirzner (1973), entrepreneurial alertness refers to flashes of superior insight in discovering opportunities. Since its introduction, entrepreneurial alertness has been the focus of a significant body of research, with the most recent contributions providing clarification of construct antecedents (Valliere, 2013) and development of a multi-dimensional scale (Tang et al, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to extend the work in entrepreneurial alertness, particularly the most recent contributions by Tang et al. (2012) and Valliere (2013) by further delineating the dimensions of entrepreneurial alertness and its antecedents, connecting the construct to opportunity identification and opportunity development, and introducing entrepreneurial intention as a moderating factor.Tang et al. (2012) point out the limited understanding of the role of alertness in the process of identifying new opportunities. I address this concern here by positioning entrepreneurial alertness in the broader context of opportunity development (i.e. creation) versus opportunity identification (i.e. discovery). Also, I extend Ardichvili, Cardozo, and Ray's (2003) work, which placed entrepreneurial alertness as an antecedent to both opportunity discovery and creation, and Zahra's (2008) work, which emphasized an iterative exchange between opportunity discovery and creation. Similar to Tang et al. (2012), I define entrepreneurial alertness as a multi-dimensional, cognitive capability. And using Tang et al.'s (2012) work as a base, and also drawing from Valliere (2013) and Puhakka (2011), I further delineate the components and antecedents of the entrepreneurial alertness construct.Valliere (2013) argues that intentionality influences entrepreneurial alertness through the mechanism of schematic priming. He also discusses how the entrepreneurial intention literature is more focused on the antecedents of intention, based on the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1991), then on how entrepreneurial intention becomes manifest in the ability to spot opportunities. He points out the need to connect the entrepreneurial intention literature with research in opportunity recognition. Tang et al. (2012) also discuss how affect and passion, which can be considered to be related to intention, could lead to cognitive processes such as entrepreneurial alertness, citing Baron (2008), Baron and Tang (2011), and Cardon, Wincent, Sing, and Dmovsek (2009). By positioning entrepreneurial intention as a moderating factor, I address these questions where intention is considered to be a facilitator in the application of entrepreneurial alertness in identifying and developing opportunities.The importance of entrepreneurial alertness to our economy and society in general is well established (Kirzner 1973, 1999, 2008; Tang et al. …

Cite this work

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 21 citations exist upstream.