Purpose Passion plays a vital role in entrepreneurship, and examining the role of training in passion development is a recent call. This study aims to examine the impact of entrepreneurial training on occupational commitment and career satisfaction of business owners based on goal content theory. Design/methodology/approach In doing so the role of harmonious passion is tested as a mediating mechanism. A three-wave time-lagged data were collected from 351 business owners operating in Punjab, Pakistan and were analyzed by using SmartPLS. Findings The findings suggested that entrepreneurial training had a positive impact on building entrepreneurial passion, and as a result, they were found to be more committed and satisfied with their entrepreneurial career. The research has theoretical and practical implications for the role of training in the development of entrepreneurial career outcomes. Originality/value Despite a growing interest in entrepreneurial passion, only few studies have explored the entrepreneurial training on occupational commitment and career satisfaction of business owners in context of Pakistan.

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PurposeIn this study, the situation strength theory (SST) has been applied to assess the predictability of empowering leadership (EL) in explaining intrapreneurial behaviour (IB) under the strong situation effect of job autonomy (JA).Design/methodology/approachThe proposed theoretical framework was assessed using cross-sectional survey data from 237 engineers employed in Pakistan's automotive firms. Covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM) was used to analyse the survey data.FindingsThe study's results revealed a positive relationship of EL with JA and IB. Drawing from the conceptualisation of SST, JA serves as an organisational strong situation by offering sufficient cues and significantly intensifies the relationship between EL and IB.Practical implicationsThe study contributes by establishing the requirement of strong organisational situations for nurturing IB in organisations. The study's outcomes are useful for academia, practitioners and industry to identify strong situations for employees' organisational behavioural outcomes like IB to dampen the personality impacts of employees on organisational processes. Hence, the study offered a major shift or an alternative in existing human resource practices, from personality assessments to creating cues from strong situations for fostering human behaviours. This will impact organisational human resource management scope during talent management, selection, promotion and employment.Originality/valueThe present study is novel from the IB investigation due to situational response in organisations, as assessed by employees. The study contributes towards SST by extending its epistemology to explain IB as an outcome of EL. The present study offers important empirical evidence for the role of the strong organisational situation of JA.

Purpose This study aims to examine the key entrepreneurial roles (financial literacy, risk tolerance and competency) in the financial performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Pakistan and the mediating effects of locus of control and spiritual and emotional quotients. Design/methodology/approach The study data was collected from 541 SMEs in Pakistan (the target population) through a survey and analysed with partial least squares structural equation modelling. Findings The findings revealed that the key entrepreneurial characteristics were positively related to locus of control and spiritual quotient and elevated the financial performance in entrepreneurship. It was also reported that locus of control and spiritual quotient mediated between key entrepreneurial characteristics and financial performance. In this regard, emotional quotient strengthened the existing relationships between key characteristics, locus of control and spiritual quotient. Practical implications This study highlighted sustainable implications for SMEs to develop an effective mechanism and improve financial performance through guidelines that emphasized entrepreneurial characteristics and behaviours towards positive entrepreneurial ventures. This study also enabled policymakers to design policies that catalysed SME performance in Pakistan. Originality/value This study contributed a novel concept of key entrepreneurial characteristics by introducing a characteristics tool kit. Consequently, information on a unique framework (by integrating entrepreneurial characteristics and financial performance) and literature on spiritual quotient and locus of control in entrepreneurship were enriched. Contributions to the regulatory focus theory and four-phase Rubicon model in the study context were also made.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to elaborate on the preferences of parent founders within family businesses in selecting a suitable successor with the increase in life expectancy. Design/methodology/approach The study presents alternative decision-making preference models of a suitable succession for parent founders based on the models of microeconomic theory in the context of family businesses. Findings The theories and models of economics in the current study illustrate that the increase in the life expectancy of the parent founders with their decisions toward the preference of a suitable successor under the age constraint may restrict the sustainability of their family businesses. As a result, the opportunity cost theory appears as to be at the ahead of the other theories in microeconomics in order to support the decision making of parent founders on selecting the suitable successor for the future of the family business. Research limitations/implications The paper illustrates the models on the preferences of the parent founder for the future of the family businesses with their perception toward the increase in overall life expectancy. The current study is limited to the perspectives of founder entrepreneurs toward an effective succession decision. Future research may consider the perspectives of in-family as well as non-family successors. Originality/value In the light of alternative preference decision-making models for parent founders for choosing a suitable successor under the age constraint, this study will make a noteworthy contribution to the sustainable growth of their family businesses. The approach of this study through the microeconomics not only methodologically contributes to the body of knowledge in aging and employment in general, but also to the intergenerational relationships of parent founders, especially their succession-related plans at their early stages of career.