Resilient Entrepreneurship: A Creative Approach to Sustaining Startups in Crisis

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Department of Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran

10.22059/jed.2025.400722.654567

Abstract

Objective: Today, more than ever, startups need flexibility and creativity to survive. Resilient entrepreneurship is the key that unlocks innovative solutions during crises and charts a path to sustainability for entrepreneurs. The present study aimed to identify and analyze the causes and consequences of resistive entrepreneurship as a creative approach to sustaining startups in crisis.

Method: This study employs a descriptive and survey approach for data collection, and is classified as mixed research in terms of typology. The statistical population of the study consists of startup business managers and university professors, 19 of whom were selected as sample members based on purposive sampling and the principle of theoretical saturation. In the qualitative part, the data collection tool was a semi-structured interview, and the validity and reliability of the tool were confirmed using content structural validity (after initial analysis, the findings or interpretations of the interviews were shared with the participants themselves and approved). Additionally, intra-coder and inter-coder reliability were assessed. The data collection tool in the quantitative part is a researcher-made questionnaire, which was confirmed using content validity and test-retest reliability. In the qualitative part of this research, the data obtained from the interviews were analyzed using content analysis and Max-QDA software, and the causes and consequences of resistance to entrepreneurship for the sustainability of start-ups were identified. In the quantitative part of the research, the prioritization of factors and their causal relationships was determined using a fuzzy cognitive map.

Findings: The findings indicate that resilience and stress management, access to diverse and multiple markets, growth mindset and flexibility, dynamic competitive environment, learning organizational culture, critical conditions (sanctions, crisis, economic recession), problem-solving skills in crisis, environmental monitoring and foresight, support and backing (network support, government policies), meaningful orientation, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and the ability to use new technologies are effective causes of resistant entrepreneurship. On the other hand, creating sustainable employment in critical conditions, increasing competitiveness, increasing the ability to quickly rebuild, strengthening the culture of entrepreneurship and risk-taking, finding a new position in the market, sustainable growth and survival, attracting high-quality talents, reducing the dependence of start-ups, strengthening flexibility and rapid response, improving creativity and innovation in crisis, increasing investor attraction, strengthening personal and organizational brands, improving resource management, and productivity are also the consequences of resistant entrepreneurship that were identified using content analysis. Also, based on the findings, learning organizational culture, problem-solving skills in crisis, meaningful orientation, resilience and stress management, dynamic competitive environment are the most important factors in resilient entrepreneurship, respectively. Strengthening personal and organizational brand, strengthening flexibility and rapid response, attracting high-quality talents, creating sustainable employment in crisis conditions, and strengthening entrepreneurial culture and risk-taking are also the most important consequences of resilient entrepreneurship in dynamic businesses, respectively, which were determined using fuzzy mapping.

Conclusion: Resilient entrepreneurship is known not only as a mechanism for resilience against crises, but also as a transformative and meaningful approach in the modern entrepreneurial ecosystem. The results of this study show that start-ups, relying on capabilities such as learning culture, creative problem solving, psychological resilience, and technology-centricity, are able not only to overcome the crisis but also to transform it into a platform for reconstruction, innovation, and redefining their position in the market. Resilient entrepreneurship is a bridge between survival and growth; a flow that creates opportunities from threats and creates competitive advantage from limitations. Therefore, developing this approach at the policy-making, educational, and structural support levels is an undeniable necessity for the sustainability and resilience of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in crisis conditions.

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References

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Journal of Entrepreneurship Development
Volume 18, Issue 5
February 2026
Pages 30-56

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