Pivot to Persevere: Temporary Pivots as a Response to Exogenous Shocks

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Authors

Despite much progress in the research on pivots as a response to crisis, the nature of temporary pivots remains unclear. This article investigates how a venture responded to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic by performing a temporary pivot. Drawing on an inductive, longitudinal case study of the fast-growing young venture “Gazelle,” we developed a process model of temporary pivots that encompasses three phases: what evokes a temporary pivot; how it is enacted; and what effects it has on the venture. Our findings suggest that temporary pivots require effectual decision-making and the reversibility of changes made. Our research contributes to the growing literature on pivoting by conceptualizing the temporary pivot as a short-term entrepreneurial response to exogenous shocks and part of a long-term strategy of perseverance.

Original languageEnglish
JournalSchmalenbach Journal of Business Research (SBuR)
Number of pages37
ISSN0341-2687
DOIs
Publication statusAccepted/In press - 24.01.2024

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The research leading to these results partially received funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) under Grant Agreement No. ZW7-85037635.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024, The Author(s).

    Research areas

  • Crisis response, Exogenous shock, Exploratory perseverance, Temporary pivot
  • Management studies