Linking entrepreneurial orientation to project success

• Published in: International journal of project management 2018-02, Vol.36 (2), p.255-266
• Main Authors: Martens, Cristina Dai Prá, Machado, Franklin Jean, Martens, Mauro Luiz, Silva, Filipe Quevedo Pires de Oliveira e, Freitas, Henrique Mello Rodrigues de
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Entrepreneurial orientation; Entrepreneurship; Project management; Project success; SmartPLS; Structural equation modeling
• ISSN: 0263-7863; 1873-4634
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijproman.2017.10.005

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) is a strategic posture of an organization, and it is related to basic policies and practices for the development of entrepreneurial actions looking for creating competitive advantages. This study develops and tests a model of the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and project success in Brazilian context. As quantitative research, a survey was used to collect data. A sample of 100 valid answers from project practitioners was treated through the structural equation modeling method. As research implications, the main result points out the positive correlation between the entrepreneurial orientation and the project success, contributing to the development of this research subject and helping to minimize the gap in the literature that addresses the relationship between project success and EO. In practical terms, understanding that innovativeness, risk taking, proactiveness, autonomy and competitive aggressiveness (the dimensions of the EO) can contribute to project success and can also indirectly impact on organizational performance, could help organizations get competitive advantage when developing correlate factors. Finally, the results suggest that practices of project management can be aligned to the firm's entrepreneurial orientation to enable firms to attain better results in their projects and generate a competitive advantage. On other hand, given the proportion of the impact of EO on project success (20.3%) identified in this study, it is critical that project management professionals expand their horizon to recognize other factors that affect project success. •The article contributes to the link between Entrepreneurial Orientation and Project Success.•We show that Entrepreneurial Orientation can influence the Project Success.•Entrepreneurial Orientation in projects includes innovativeness, risk taking, proactiveness, autonomy and competitive aggressiveness.•Entrepreneurial Orientation enables firms to gain better results in their projects and generate competitive advantage.