An assembly perspective of entrepreneurial projects: Social networks in action

• Author: David Obstfeld,Marc J. Ventresca,Greg Fisher
• Published date: 01 June 2020
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/sej.1343
• Date: 01 June 2020

RESEARCH ARTICLE

An assembly perspective of entrepreneurial

projects: Social networks in action

David Obstfeld

1

| Marc J. Ventresca

2

| Greg Fisher

3

1

Department of Management, Mihaylo College of Business and Economics, California State University, Fullerton, California

2

Department of Strategy, Innovation and Marketing, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

3

Department of Entrepreneurship, Kelley School of Business, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana

Correspondence

David Obstfeld, Department of Management,

Mihaylo College of Business and Economics,

California State University, Fullerton, CA.

Email: dobstfeld@fullerton.edu

Abstract

Research abstract:We introduce an assembly perspective of

entrepreneurial action in early-stage projects, developed in a

process model of microsocial network dynamics. The model

comprises four conceptual elements: (a) an initial entrepre-

neurial projection or goal, which motivates and guides

network-based action, and evolves as the venture unfolds;

(b) knowledge articulation to make the entrepreneurial projec-

tion relevant to diverse stakeholders; (c) combinatorial action,

which entails joining people and resources in new combina-

tions and that may reshape the project; and (d) network

expansion by which stakeholder relationships develop and

generate distributed momentum. This approach integrates and

extends foundational theoretical perspectives in entrepreneur-

ship studies—bricolage, effectuation, and opportunity

creation—and draws on recent developments in social network

process theory to specify the model.

Managerial abstract:How do entrepreneurs use social net-

works in early-stage projects? We introduce a conceptual

model for how entrepreneurs initiate and adapt network activ-

ity as they pursue their entrepreneurial project. In its early

stages, a new venture begins with the crystallization of an

“entrepreneurial projection”that motivates and guides action.

Then, the entrepreneur's action consists first of the articulation

of that projection to appeal to potential stakeholders such as

Received: 16 January 2015 Revised: 22 August 2019 Accepted: 20 September 2019 Published on: 5 February 2020

DOI: 10.1002/sej.1343

© 2020 Strategic Management Society

Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. 2020;14:149–177. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/sej 149

investors, employees, and other collaborators. Second, the

entrepreneur is simultaneously connecting diverse stake-

holders in different clusters of support critical to the project's

continued growth. Finally, the entrepreneur generates

momentum by expanding her network by recruiting new

stakeholders. As this entrepreneurial activity unfolds, the

entrepreneur continually adjusts her projection and subse-

quent actions in response to diverse stakeholder feedback.

KEYWORDS

creative projects, entrepreneurial processes, entrepreneurial

projects, entrepreneurship theory, social networks, tertius iungens

1|INTRODUCTION

Entrepreneurs rely on connections to get things done. Research perspectives on the actions and behaviors underpin-

ning early-stage entrepreneurial projects recognize the relevance of networks and social interaction to such projects.

Approaches such as effectuation (Sarasvathy, 2001), bricolage (Baker & Nelson, 2005), and opportunity creation the-

ory (Alvarez & Barney, 2007) identify an entrepreneur's connections to and interactions with other individuals and

entities as a key input and enabler of the entrepreneurship process. For example, Alvarez and Barney (2007, p. 19)

suggest that opportunity creation entails “recruiting flexible general human capital from pre-existing social net-

works.”Sarasvathy (2001, p. 2001) describes effectuation in entrepreneurship as a process in which entrepreneurs

leverage “whom they know…the social networks they are a part of.”Baker et al. (2003, p. 250) describe how entre-

preneurs engage in bricolage by relying on “pre-existing networks as their primary means of access to the welter of

resources needed during and after (venture) founding.”

These foundational perspectives underscore the importance of social networks to the entrepreneurial process,

but they depict network ties primarily as an existing resource and treat social networks and their operational con-

texts as relatively stable over the life of a venture. None of these perspectives explicitly account for the assembly of

such networks or how networks evolve as an entrepreneurial project unfolds—and in turn, how those changed net-

works alter the unfolding project. Yet, individuals who initiate entrepreneurial projects regularly cultivate their net-

works and, in so doing, change the project context, engaging with others to forge new collaborations (Fang, Chi,

Chen, & Baron, 2015). This “connecting”activity is an important omission in the research literature.

Recent empirical and theoretical work on social networks highlights the dynamic, ongoing cultivation by which

entrepreneurial actors grow and leverage venture networks (Long Lingo & O'Mahony, 2010; Obstfeld, 2012;

Obstfeld, Borgatti, & Davis, 2014). Social networks are seldom stable, and in the dynamic context of entrepreneur-

ship, they emerge and evolve with a great deal of fluidity (Fang et al., 2015; Vissa, 2012). Entrepreneurs depend

heavily on their social networks for information (Ozgen & Baron, 2007; Sarasvathy, 2001), resources (Alvarez & Bar-

ney, 2007; Baker & Nelson, 2005; Eisenhardt & Schoonhoven, 1996; Uzzi, 1999), and access to markets (Robinson,

2006). These empirical studies provide a rich set of new insights and merit analytic attention. We build from these

studies, to propose a model that integrates this work on the assembly and evolution of entrepreneurial networks.

This conceptual model and accompanying arguments specifically account for the creation and evolution of network

ties and social connections in the pursuit of an entrepreneurial project over time. In the assembly-based perspective of

entrepreneurial action, our model foregrounds ideas from research on social action in entrepreneurship to highlight the

active, situated assembly of opportunities over time. The model integrates and extends treatments of social ties in

150 OBSTFELD ET AL.