What are the strengths and weaknesses of effectuation theory for start-ups, entrepreneurship, and micro-enterprises?

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What are the strengths and weaknesses of effectuation theory for start-ups, entrepreneurship, and micro-enterprises?

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Themes

Effectuation theory, Saras D. Sarasvathy, entrepreneurial process, incertainty, entrepreneurial logic, innovation, risk management, management, resource development, methodology, management science research, entrepreneurship, corporate strategy, business plan

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Abstract
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Abstract

Effectuation theory is an entrepreneurial theory developed by Sarasvathy (2001), an Indian researcher trained by Herbert Simon and with a degree in industrial management and information systems from Carnegie Mellon University.
She studies the strategies of successful entrepreneurs in emerging countries. She defines effectuation as an entrepreneurial logic based on the following principles:
Start with the resources available; make decisions based on the risks of loss accepted; accept uncertainty; develop the project by involving a growing number of stakeholders. [...]
The context of effectuation is the evolution of objectives as the project progresses, when the team's roadmap is challenged by events that threaten to demobilise its will.

Extract

[...] (2012), « Corporate Effectuation: Entrepreneurial Action and its Impact on R&D Project Performance », Journal of Business Venturing, 167-184. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0883902611000139 Cantillon, R. (1998), Essai sur la nature du commerce en général, Réimpression de l'édition de 1952 fondée sur le texte original de 1755. Paris : Institut National d'Études Démographiques. Available on Google Books Chabaud, D. and Ngijol, J., (2010), « Opportunités d'affaires et entrepreneuriat : vers une perspective processuelle », Cahiers de recherche du CEDAG Gestion, n° G2010-01. Corner, P.D. and Ho, M. (2010), « How opportunities Develop in Social Entrepreneurship », Entrepreneurship, Theory and Practice, pp. 635-659. [...]

[...] 1.3 Comparison with classical (causal) entrepreneurial strategies Entrepreneurial theories are evolving rapidly and tending towards conceptual autonomy, whereas for many years they relied heavily on concepts from other fields and disciplines. We are now seeing the emergence of specific theories, developed by and for entrepreneurship researchers via the theory of effectuation. This theory is developing rapidly within the management sciences, with a major impact on the scientific community, to the point of becoming a major theory in entrepreneurship, as Fisher (2012) and Fayolle (2017) point out. [...]

[...] She contradicts the traditional paradigm of the entrepreneur-strategist following a linear and calculated approach. It also introduces a new entrepreneurial grammar with key concepts: Effectual (means/control-oriented) vs Causal (goals/prediction-oriented) and Effectuation (emergent logic) vs Causation (deliberate logic). By formalising effectuation, Sarasvathy demonstrates the plurality of entrepreneurial rationalities, legitimises contingent approaches in the face of deterministic models, and offers a framework for understanding creation 'in the making'. This conceptualisation marks a turning point in our understanding of entrepreneurial action, revealing that success is often based on logic that is more organic than mechanical. [...]

[...] It resolutely favours action over analysis, enabling companies to co-construct their market as it emerges. In contexts of extreme uncertainty, entrepreneurial initiatives can even actively shape their environment, forcing the company to manage the consequences of the new landscape it has helped to create. Hoffman and Vian (2011, p. 97) highlight three current limitations of effectuation. Firstly, this theory faces the challenge of putting it into practice. Although theoretically sound, effectuation is not very operational. Indeed, the method does not provide a concrete framework for its application. [...]

[...] and Adhiutama, A. (2013), Design Methodology for Appropriate Technology: Enginering as if People Mattered, Sustainability, 3382-3425. file:///C:/Users/LP-ABF/Downloads/sustainability-05-03382.pdf Silberzahn, P. (2013), « Lean Start-Up : le compagnon idéal de l'effectuation ? », pp. 29-35. https://shs.cairn.info/revue-entreprendre-et-innover-2013-3-page-29?lang=fr Silberzahn, P. (2012), « L'effectuation, logique de pensée des entrepreneurs experts », Entreprendre et innover, 9-16. https://shs.cairn.info/revue-entreprendre-et-innover-2016-1-page-76?lang=fr Simon, H. A. (1955), « A Behavioral Model of Rational Choice », Quarterly Journal of Economics, pp. 99-118. https://mail.cooperative-individualism.org/simon-herbert_a-behavioral-model-of-rational-choice-1955-feb.pdf Toutain, O. [...]

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