Guidance elements for the entrepreneurial orientation of software firms

Abstract

This article concerns entrepreneurial orientation (EO) in software firms. Its goal is to propose a consolidated set of elements that can provide guidance for the entrepreneurial activities of software firms. To this end, an exploratory research study was carried out using qualitative data. Data was collected by means of in-depth interviews with executives from 13 organizations, to survey actual entrepreneurial orientation practices, in order to understand this behavior in organizations better and to confirm the elements of the conceptual basis of the entrepreneurial orientation used in the study. The result was a set of components of entrepreneurial orientation, consolidated from the literature and the actual practice of organizations. This set of components provides an important guidance reference for the entrepreneurial orientation of software firms. The study closes with the enrichment and detailing of the entrepreneurial orientation's conceptual basis. It proposes categories and adds new elements based on organizational practice and the consolidation of the set of elements, providing important input for software firms that wish to develop this behavior.