Chapter 3 Entrepreneurial Identity, Career Transformation and the Spin-Out Process

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to explore the creation and maintenance of entrepreneurial identity during the establishment of a high-tech university spin-out (USO) company in the United Kingdom. The chapter is based on a case study of a mature PhD student working initially in a research team, and later in a spin-out company, in a UK university; he then founds his own company. The study tracks his understanding and development of different aspects of his professional identity as he works towards shifting career goals in different formal and informal learning settings. The chapter commences with a discussion of the career tensions that might arise during the spin-out process. The next section argues that purposeful construction of entrepreneurial identity may be a significant element in supporting successful career transformation. The third section presents the case in detail. Following a discussion, conclusions are presented. The practical implications of the study are that better understanding of these processes can be used by educators and support staff in classroom settings and in incubators. Theoretically, the chapter adds specifically to the growing literature on entrepreneurial identity, extending it to the realm of science and engineering; the importance of the dynamic between engineering identity and entrepreneurial identity during the transition from engineer to entrepreneur is examined in depth. Most significantly, the case demonstrates how a complex reworking of what it means to be an entrepreneur and what it means to be an engineer takes place that is enormously significant in the crafting of a personal career trajectory.

Citation

Warren, L. (2009), "Chapter 3 Entrepreneurial Identity, Career Transformation and the Spin-Out Process", Oakey, R., Groen, A., Cook, G. and van Der Sijde, P. (Ed.) New Technology-Based Firms in the New Millennium (New Technology Based Firms in the New Millennium, Vol. 7), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 23-38. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1876-0228(2009)0000007005