Employee with Entrepreneurial Intention: Prospective Leaver or Learner? The Two Conflicting Mechanisms and the Moderating Role of Transformational Leadership

Abstract

Entrepreneurial intention (EI) is widely viewed as a precursor of behaviors relevant to new venture creation. However, the majority of existing research focuses on the transition from entrepreneurial intention to behavior within a single career trajectory, overlooking the period of wage-employment that precedes entrepreneurship. Actually, EI may have mixed implications within the workplace setting.
Employees with entrepreneurial intentions (EI) consider starting their own company as their future destination after leaving their current organization. This intention, while remaining employed, is typically viewed negatively in turnover literature, as it is associated with lower performance and an increase in deviant behaviors, which are detrimental to the organization. Nevertheless, it's important to recognize that wage-employment serves as a significant transitional phase for individuals aspiring to become entrepreneurs. I argue that this envisioned post-leaving destination may initiate a concurrent positive mechanism, particularly a learning mechanism, which enhances these employees' performance in the workplace. Moreover, effective leadership (i.e., transformational leadership) could simultaneously influence both paths to achieve a favorable outcome for both employers and the employees. The dual pathway model was proved by Study 1 and then conceptually replicated in Study 2, which adopted a three-wave, mutual evaluation survey. It further examined the moderating effects of transformational leadership and found that transformational leadership enhanced the positive path while mitigated the negative path. The implications were then discussed.