Foundational Paper Award at the Academy of Management for Prof.Gruber

About the award:

This award is given annually for a paper that has had a lasting and positive influence on the field of entrepreneurship. The Foundational Paper Award recognizes a published paper that has significantly and positively changed the conversation in the field of entrepreneurship research. For example, such a paper may have applied a concept or theory in entrepreneurship research in an especially meaningful way; or empirically investigated an important question in a novel way to better clarify or reveal the truth regarding a key concept; or in any way changed the boundaries of the domain of entrepreneurship. To be eligible for this award, the author must be living. Generally, too, foundational papers will have been published for at least 10 years (i.e., prior to 2014).

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About the paper

"Darwinians, Communitarians, and Missionaries: The Role of Founder Identity in Entrepreneurship". Emmanuelle Fauchart and Marc Gruber. Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 54, No. 5. 2011.

Abstract

Drawing on social identity theory, we explore the identities, behaviors, and actions of 49 firm founders in the sports-related equipment industry. Our analysis suggests the existence of three pure types of founder identities and shows how these identities systematically shape key decisions in the creation of new firms, thereby “imprinting” the start-ups with the founders' distinct self-concepts. We synthesize our findings in a typology that sheds light on the heterogeneous meanings that founders associate with new firm creation and that improves understanding as to why fundamental differences in firm creation processes and outcomes exist.