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Temporality and meaningful entrepreneurship

Author

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  • S. Fremeaux

    (Audencia Business School)

  • F. Henry

Abstract

Temporality is an under-researched area in entrepreneurship and business ethics, even though entrepreneurs are particularly afected by a fast-paced work environment. How do they position themselves in relation to the acceleration of time in order to construct meaning for their activity? We draw on ffty-four semi-structured interviews with entrepreneurs to outline the diferent ways in which they perceive a faster pace of work. We show how the meaning they give to their activity varies according to whether they accept or resist the acceleration of time: (1) By claiming to accept a high work rate, entrepreneurs may see work as a way of keeping busy, having fun, forgetting, or achieving efciency; (2) by asserting that they resist the acceleration of time, they view work as a way of setting ethical goals, doing their job better, experiencing unexpected encounters, or being creative. These two diferent perspectives on time and meaning are not incompatible: It is possible that achieving a harmonic balance between periods of acceleration and deceleration of time may foster the construction of meaningful entrepreneurship.

Suggested Citation

  • S. Fremeaux & F. Henry, 2023. "Temporality and meaningful entrepreneurship," Post-Print hal-04336897, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04336897
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-023-05502-0
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-04336897v2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Mukerjee, Jinia & Thurik, Roy & Verheul, Ingrid, 2024. "Temporal Focus and Entrepreneurial Orientation of Solo Self-Employed Workers," IZA Discussion Papers 17571, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Wendelin Kuepers & David M. Wasieleski & Gunter Schumacher, 2023. "Temporality and Ethics: Timeliness of Ethical Perspectives on Temporality in Times of Crisis," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 188(4), pages 629-643, December.
    3. Susana C. Santos & Eric W. Liguori & Michael H. Morris & SherRhonda R. Gibbs, 2025. "A racial identity approach to entrepreneurship: the lived experiences of African American and Black entrepreneurs," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 64(2), pages 599-623, February.

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