Collective Value Creation as the Generative Mechanism of Sustainable Entrepreneurial Ecosystems
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66203/econovia.01212Keywords:
entrepreneurial ecosystems, sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems, collective value creation, collaborative resource orchestrationAbstract
Increasing sustainability challenges have exposed the limitations of entrepreneurial ecosystem research, which has predominantly emphasized structural configurations and economic outcomes while providing limited explanation of how ecosystem interactions generate enduring economic, social, and environmental value. This conceptual paper addresses this theoretical gap by developing a middle-range theory that explains the transition from entrepreneurial ecosystems to sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems through the mechanism of collective value creation. Drawing on an integrative synthesis of Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Theory, Sustainable Entrepreneurship, Ecosystem Strategy, and Relational and Stakeholder Theory, the paper develops a theory-building framework that specifies core constructs, causal mechanisms, boundary conditions, and five theoretical propositions. The proposed framework positions collaborative resource orchestration as the enabling capability, collective value creation as the central generative mechanism, institutional reinforcement as the system-level outcome, and adaptive resilience as the long-term capability of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems. By shifting analytical attention from ecosystem composition to ecosystem processes, the framework advances existing scholarship through a coherent explanation of how sustainability emerges from collaborative interactions among heterogeneous actors. The proposed middle-range theory provides a foundation for cumulative theory development and offers a theoretically grounded agenda for future empirical research across diverse entrepreneurial ecosystem contexts.
References
Adner, R. (2017). Ecosystem as Structure. Journal of Management, 43(1), 39–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206316678451
Audretsch, D. B., & Belitski, M. (2021). Frank Knight, uncertainty and knowledge spillover entrepreneurship. Journal of Institutional Economics, 17(6), 1005–1031. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1744137421000527
Audretsch, D. B., & Belitski, M. (2024). Geography of knowledge collaboration and innovation in Schumpeterian firms. Regional Studies, 58(4), 821–840. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343404.2023.2222137
Bischoff, K., & Volkmann, C. K. (2018). Stakeholder support for sustainable entrepreneurship - a framework of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Venturing, 10(2), 172. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJEV.2018.092714
Bridoux, F., & Stoelhorst, J. W. (2014). Microfoundations for stakeholder theory: Managing stakeholders with heterogeneous motives. Strategic Management Journal, 35(1), 107–125. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.2089
Brown, R., & Mason, C. (2017). Looking inside the spiky bits: a critical review and conceptualisation of entrepreneurial ecosystems. Small Business Economics, 49(1), 11–30. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-017-9865-7
Cantner, U., Cunningham, J. A., Lehmann, E. E., & Menter, M. (2021). Entrepreneurial ecosystems: a dynamic lifecycle model. Small Business Economics, 57(1), 407–423. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-020-00316-0
Chaudhary, S., Kaur, P., Alofaysan, H., Halberstadt, J., & Dhir, A. (2023). Connecting the dots? Entrepreneurial ecosystems and sustainable entrepreneurship as pathways to sustainability. Business Strategy and the Environment, 32(8), 5935–5951. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3466
Cohen, B. (2006). Sustainable valley entrepreneurial ecosystems. Business Strategy and the Environment, 15(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.428
Cohen, B., & Winn, M. I. (2007). Market imperfections, opportunity and sustainable entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing, 22(1), 29–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2004.12.001
Content, J., Bosma, N., Jordaan, J., & Sanders, M. (2020). Entrepreneurial ecosystems, entrepreneurial activity and economic growth: new evidence from European regions. Regional Studies, 54(8), 1007–1019. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343404.2019.1680827
Dattée, B., Alexy, O., & Autio, E. (2018). Maneuvering in Poor Visibility: How Firms Play the Ecosystem Game when Uncertainty is High. Academy of Management Journal, 61(2), 466–498. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2015.0869
Dean, T. J., & McMullen, J. S. (2007). Toward a theory of sustainable entrepreneurship: Reducing environmental degradation through entrepreneurial action. Journal of Business Venturing, 22(1), 50–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2005.09.003
DiVito, L., & Ingen-Housz, Z. (2021). From individual sustainability orientations to collective sustainability innovation and sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems. Small Business Economics, 56(3), 1057–1072. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-019-00254-6
Donaldson, T., & Preston, L. E. (1995). The Stakeholder Theory of the Corporation: Concepts, Evidence, and Implications. Academy of Management Review, 20(1), 65–91. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1995.9503271992
Dyer, J. H., & Singh, H. (1998). The Relational View: Cooperative Strategy and Sources of Interorganizational Competitive Advantage. Academy of Management Review, 23(4), 660–679. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1998.1255632
Helfat, C. E., & Raubitschek, R. S. (2018). Dynamic and integrative capabilities for profiting from innovation in digital platform-based ecosystems. Research Policy, 47(8), 1391–1399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2018.01.019
Jacobides, M. G., Cennamo, C., & Gawer, A. (2018). Towards a theory of ecosystems. Strategic Management Journal, 39(8), 2255–2276. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.2904
Khurana, I., & Dutta, D. K. (2024). From place to space: the emergence and evolution of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems in smart cities. Small Business Economics, 62(2), 541–569. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-023-00765-3
Lepak, D. P., Smith, K. G., & Taylor, M. S. (2007). Value Creation and Value Capture: A Multilevel Perspective. Academy of Management Review, 32(1), 180–194. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2007.23464011
Muñoz, P., & Cohen, B. (2018). Sustainable Entrepreneurship Research: Taking Stock and looking ahead. Business Strategy and the Environment, 27(3), 300–322. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2000
Pankov, S., Velamuri, V. K., & Schneckenberg, D. (2021). Towards sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems: examining the effect of contextual factors on sustainable entrepreneurial activities in the sharing economy. Small Business Economics, 56(3), 1073–1095. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-019-00255-5
Schaltegger, S., & Wagner, M. (2011). Sustainable entrepreneurship and sustainability innovation: categories and interactions. Business Strategy and the Environment, 20(4), 222–237. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.682
Shepherd, D. A., & Patzelt, H. (2011). The New Field of Sustainable Entrepreneurship: Studying Entrepreneurial Action Linking “What is to be Sustained” with “What is to be Developed.” Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 35(1), 137–163. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2010.00426.x
Shipilov, A., & Gawer, A. (2020). Integrating Research on Interorganizational Networks and Ecosystems. Academy of Management Annals, 14(1), 92–121. https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2018.0121
Siqueira, E. H. S., Fischer, B. B., Bin, A., & Kickul, J. (2023). Entrepreneurial ecosystems’ readiness towards knowledge-intensive sustainable entrepreneurship: Evidence from Brazil. Technovation, 126, 102820. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2023.102820
Spigel, B. (2017). The Relational Organization of Entrepreneurial Ecosystems. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 41(1), 49–72. https://doi.org/10.1111/etap.12167
Spigel, B., & Harrison, R. (2018). Toward a process theory of entrepreneurial ecosystems. Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, 12(1), 151–168. https://doi.org/10.1002/sej.1268
Stam, E. (2015). Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Regional Policy: A Sympathetic Critique. European Planning Studies, 23(9), 1759–1769. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2015.1061484
Stam, E., & van de Ven, A. (2021). Entrepreneurial ecosystem elements. Small Business Economics, 56(2), 809–832. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-019-00270-6
Steigenberger, N., & Wilhelm, H. (2018). Extending Signaling Theory to Rhetorical Signals: Evidence from Crowdfunding. Organization Science, 29(3), 529–546. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2017.1195
Volkmann, C., Fichter, K., Klofsten, M., & Audretsch, D. B. (2021). Sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems: an emerging field of research. Small Business Economics, 56(3), 1047–1055. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-019-00253-7
Wurth, B., Stam, E., & Spigel, B. (2022). Toward an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Research Program. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 46(3), 729–778. https://doi.org/10.1177/1042258721998948
York, J. G., & Venkataraman, S. (2010). The entrepreneur–environment nexus: Uncertainty, innovation, and allocation. Journal of Business Venturing, 25(5), 449–463. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2009.07.007
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
Categories
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Stella Yulien Sahetapy Engel (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
This journal applies the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are properly credited.
