Towards a Theory of Serendipity: A Systematic Review and Conceptualization

Abstract

Serendipity – the notion of making surprising and valuable discoveries – plays a major role in the success of individuals and organizations alike. Previous research has established the importance of serendipity and identified important individual‐ and organizational‐level antecedents. However, the literature has been dispersed and the boundaries of the concept have been blurry, leading to a lack of conceptual clarity and structure, and thus limiting validity and managerial actionability. Based on a systematic literature review, I synthesize existing management‐related research on serendipity and explicate the emergence and composition of serendipity in the organizational context. I first identify three necessary conditions that differentiate serendipity from related concepts such as luck or targeted innovation: agency, surprise, and value. Then, I draw from the literature on sensemaking, event‐based theorizing, and quantum‐based approaches to management to conceptualize the process of cultivating serendipity in the organizational context as a process of enabling potentiality and materialization, and develop a multi‐level theory of (cultivating) serendipity. This conceptualization contributes to our collective understanding of how, why, and when (i.e., under what conditions) organizations can leverage the value in the unexpected, which opens up fruitful avenues for further research.

A normative theory of luck

“…A middle-dip version of the normative theory of luck Many theories of luck exist. Some are based on studying the "luckiest" individuals (Wiseman, 2003) or unlucky incidents (Giustiniano et al, 2016); others study how a "serendipity mindset" could enhance the chance of important discoveries (Busch, 2022;Busch and Barkema, 2022); still others claim that most theories of luck are incoherent and by definition "wrong" (Hales, 2016).…”

Serendipity Science: An Emerging Field and its Methods

“…Our review thus established that serendipity is not a singular event, but a process (and related outcome) that requires sagacity. It can be influenced by noticing unexpected moments, and turning them into positive outcomes via proactive decisions (Busch 2022;Busch and Barkema 2020;Denrell et al 2003). The process of serendipity includes a trigger (for example, a person making an unexpected observation), a bisociation (linking the trigger to something relevant), and the cultural and structural features that help to enact that bisociation into an unanticipated outcome (Busch 2020a(Busch , 2021Copeland 2018;McCay-Peet and Toms 2018;Napier and Vuong 2013; also see Merton, 1948).…”

“…While a specific random chance encounter is an event, serendipity is a process and related outcome (Busch 2022;de Rond 2014;Fine and Deegan 1996;McCay-Peet and Toms 2018;Merton and Barber 2004). 4 The process-of trigger, bisociation, and enactment-unfolds at multiple levels of analysis (Busch 2021).…”

“…The purpose of this article was to give an overview of interesting serendipity-related research in the entrepreneurship, strategy, and innovation context. Our review is by no means exhaustive, and much works remains to be done in terms of conceptualising serendipity (see e.g., Busch 2022;Fultz and Hmieleski 2021). Furthermore, while we mapped serendipity as a linear process, it is clear that there are many opportunities for feedback loops within the process as well as the potential that steps within the process might happen simultaneously or, alternatively, draw out over years.…”

Asserting and transcending ethnic homophily: How entrepreneurs develop social ties to access resources and opportunities in socially contested environments

“…Inductive Furthermore, while tie formation can be intentional, ties often emerge unexpectedly (Kilduff & Tsai, 2003), and the value of collaborations is often discovered serendipitously (Busch, 2020;Graebner, 2004). Further research could address questions related to the role of serendipity in tie formation in socially contested settings, for example, by studying how unexpected overlaps with other-tribe actors might or might not emerge during joint activities (cf., Busch, 2022;Irving et al, 2019). Related concepts such as absorptive capacity (e.g., Hughes et al, 2014) might help explain why some companies might be better equipped to make use of these serendipitously emerging relationships (and related ideas) than others.…”