HELLO THERE! Dean Shepherd – recipient of prestigious €100,000 research award

For almost 30 years, he has dedicated his research career to studying the different aspects of entrepreneurship – often the more unusual ones such as entrepreneurial failure or the dark side of entrepreneurship. Dean Shepherd of the Mendoza College of Business, Notre Dame University, has been awarded the Global Award for Entrepreneurship Research for his significant impact on the field.

Congratulations to you! What does this award mean to you as a researcher and on a personal level?

– It’s always nice to receive an award, but this one is special. It represents all the research I have done and the important people I have worked with. I’m grateful to have been able to choose collaborators who are also my friends. We have been productive and creative while having fun, which makes the award even more valuable to me.

How is social entrepreneurship developing in an uncertain and unstable world?

– Uncertainty is a central part of entrepreneurship. It can be both a threat and an opportunity. Social entrepreneurs are affected by financial constraints, but uncertainty can also create new opportunities to create value for society. My research focuses on entrepreneurship in the face of resource scarcity and how it can alleviate suffering and improve society. We therefore need social entrepreneurship more than ever.

You have researched the dark side of entrepreneurship – how is entrepreneurship used in destructive ways?

– I started researching the dark side of entrepreneurship to question the image of the entrepreneur as only a positive force. Entrepreneurial skills are like a superpower – they can be used both for good and for personal gain at the expense of others. If we don’t understand the negative aspects of entrepreneurship, we can’t teach people to avoid them either.

In times of economic uncertainty, what can entrepreneurs do to strengthen their businesses and reduce the risk of failure?

– Economic uncertainty is challenging, but much depends on the attitude of the entrepreneur. If they see uncertainty as a threat, they often try to save resources to survive. But it can also be an opportunity to identify new opportunities. By testing different strategies and quickly adapting to what works, entrepreneurs can increase their chances of success in uncertain times.

You have done extensive research in entrepreneurship. Is there a common thread in how you approach different aspects of the field?

– I often follow my good Swedish friend Johan Wiklund’s motto to start from your own background (“me-search”) and explore topics where you have experience or personal curiosity. I also use a collective approach (“we-search”), where I and my co-authors combine our interests to find new research questions. In addition, I like to reverse the perspective – if everyone studies entrepreneurial success, I look at failures. This helps me to find new, interesting angles.

Which area of entrepreneurship do you think is most important to research in the future?

– No one area is most important to everyone. I think researchers should study what they know or are passionate about. For a long time, researchers have focused on how companies create profits, but now more people are looking at how entrepreneurs create value for themselves, others and society. Much research has also focused on the United States and Western Europe, but most entrepreneurs are located in other parts of the world. That’s why it’s exciting to explore how entrepreneurship works in different countries and environments.

Contact dshephe1@nd.edu

More about the award
The Global Award for Entrepreneurship Research has a prize money of €100,000. The award is sponsored by the Entrepreneurship Forum and the financiers Vinnova (the Swedish innovation agency) and the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA). Read more about the award at e-award.org.

Previous award recipients
2024
2023
2022
2021 – canceled
2020
2019
2018
2017