This paper builds a deeper understanding of critical experiences during the growth of a small business. Based on qualitative, case study research, it suggests that greater clarity is needed in defining what makes an event 'critical'. The concept of 'critical episodes' is introduced, as the term...

In recent years, the field of entrepreneurship has witnessed an emerging body of research that operates within an interpretive paradigm. In contributing to this research tradition, this article explicates an interpretive, phenomenological form of inquiry, described by Thompson et al (1989) as...

Theorising about entrepreneurial learning is examined in this paper to determine key learning processes within this body of research. It explores how these processes might be simulated in a student-learning environment and highlights the role of emotional exposure, situated learning,...

The purpose of this paper is to explore different themes within entrepreneurship education via the use of a systematic literature review (SLR). Systematic literature reviews are recognised methods for conducting evidence-based policy (Tranfield et al., 2003). The particular approach to the SLR...

One view of the manager is as a ‘practical’ scientist. In contrast to this image, many managers do not see themselves in this light and are uncomfortable with the notion that to be successful they should act in purely a mechanistic ‘scientific’ way. Alternative to this view is to see the...

The paper explains Dr Jason Cope's work on entrepreneurial learning, and illustrates his approach and how it can be applied to deepen understanding of, and practice in, entrepreneurship education. It begins with a biography of Cope, which summarises his academic life and offers a timeline for...

This paper explores the meaning of the state-sponsored initiative for people management, Investors in People (IiP), through deconstruction of the signifiers that represent its articulation. Semiotic analysis is employed in order to consider the sign-value that is associated with IiP and to...

The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature and process of leadership in a mid-sized, family-controlled bank in Singapore in order to understand how it grew and developed under family control. The paper draws on distributed leadership as a theoretical framework in exploring how a major...

This special issue addresses a number of the key themes that have been surfacing from the literature on distributed leadership (DL) for some time. Together with those papers selected to be included in this special issue, the authors set out both to explore and contribute to a number of the...