From Orientation to Action: Complementing Entrepreneurial Measurement in Alternative Finance

Abstract

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) has long provided insights into entrepreneurial intent, yet its dispositional focus limits its ability to capture how entrepreneurship unfolds in practice. This opinion argues for positioning entrepreneurial behavior (EB) as a complementary construct to EO, particularly in digitally mediated contexts such as alternative finance, including crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending. In these settings, entrepreneurship can be observed in real time through practices such as product validation, pivoting, and legitimacy building, which are shaped by feedback immediacy, stakeholder interactivity, and platform visibility. I develop a contextual moderation framework in which EO shapes EB, while platform mechanisms both moderate and co-produce entrepreneurial action. The framework highlights that orientation alone is insufficient; behavior emerges as a dynamic process shaped by platform architecture and stakeholder engagement. Conceptually, the contribution lies in linking EO and EB within a contextual lens that reframes alternative finance platforms as an entrepreneurial setting rather than a passive data source. Methodologically, it emphasizes digital trace analysis, behavioral pace, and strategic transparency as novel measures of entrepreneurship. The piece concludes with a research agenda encouraging longitudinal and mixed-method approaches to capture entrepreneurship as adaptive and iterative.