Re-examining Creativity in Entrepreneurship

It is common knowledge now that entrepreneurship plays an important role in any society because it generates economic benefits that are often larger than the private benefits reaped by the entrepreneurs themselves (van Praag, Versloot, 2007). Entrepreneurship creates jobs, enhances workforce dynamics, increases utility, and fosters productivity and socio-economic development (Ghio et al., 2015). In studying this phenomenon, researchers find strong connections between creativity and entrepreneurship (Gilad, 1984). Recently, the United Nations acknowledged the emergence of a new paradigm in which creativity and innovation are the main drivers of the world economy (UNCTAD, 2010; Araya, Peters, 2010). More and more, firms have recognized that creativity plays an important role in the making or reshaping of successful business models. Creativity enables organizations to build competitive advantages and achieve successful performance (Amabile, 1996; Anderson et al., 2014). It allows organisations to take advantage of opportunities resulting from changing environmental conditions (Shalley et al., 2004). It can provide the basis for innovation and business growth, as well as impacting positively on society generally (Bilton, 2007; Burger-Helmchen, 2012). And the list goes on. It is not surprising that creativity in entrepreneurship has been discussed extensively in the related literature. Since future advancement of the field depends on both existing scholarship and new knowledge generated by contemporary contributors, it is necessary to take stock of the contributions to date. This paper reviews the literature related to development of the literature on creativity in entrepreneurship field to suggest key directions for future research.