The pursuit of managerial entrepreneurship: Does organization matter?

While there are extensive interdisciplinary studies on entrepreneurship and there continue to be attempts to introduce entrepreneurship in the public sector, we still lack rigorous empirical studies about entrepreneurship. This study first defines three dimensions of managerial entrepreneurship in public and private organizations: 1) product-based entrepreneurship (enhancing customer satisfaction); 2) process-based entrepreneurship (reducing the level of red tape); and 3) behavior-based entrepreneurship (promoting the propensity for risk-taking). It then examines the effects of organizational characteristics (structural, cultural, and environmental factors) on the nature and level of managerial entrepreneurship. Using the data collected by the National Administrative Studies Project (NASP), a set of hypotheses are tested empirically to enhance our understanding of managerial entrepreneurship and its association with organizational factors. This study suggests that the three sets of organizational characteristics (structure, culture, and environment) are each significant in different ways to dimensions of managerial entrepreneurship. It also indicates that organizations need to promote structural as well as cultural reform to pursue different dimensions of managerial entrepreneurship simultaneously.