Business accelerators as learning environments: A mixed methods investigation

<p>This thesis is a study of business accelerators, and the efficacy of accelerators as learning environments. Accelerators are increasingly becoming a popular strategy for delivering a more authentic entrepreneurial learning experience. Accelerators provide a time-bound suite of highly structured educational and business development activities that provide learning support to cohorts of competitively selected high-potential entrepreneurial teams. The participants face considerable uncertainty and are exposed to complex learning and business development processes associated with rapidly building, validating, and scaling investable business models. Intense mentorship and entrepreneurial education are core features by which accelerators support this journey. Thus, an implicit assumption embedded in accelerator programme logic is the accelerator learning environment positively shapes learning and development outcomes. Yet little research has investigated how accelerators influence participant learning and development. This gap motives the current research. A multilevel quantitative and qualitative mixed methods approach was adopted to examine participant learning and development at the three levels of participation embedded within accelerator programme design – cohort, team and participant. Concepts and measures from academic work on accelerators, learning agility, and individual performance behaviour were assembled into a coherent set of investigative tools and lenses. Taken together, they frame the accelerator learning environment as a whole system of actors and elements that operate both independently and interdependently. The research setting is a Global Accelerator Network affiliate programme based in New Zealand. Three strands of data were collected on 29 participants associated with 10 venture teams participating in a single accelerator programme cohort. Strand 1 applied a multiphase quantitative survey approach to capture a longitudinal understanding of how accelerators influence participant learning and development at the cohort level. Patterns of relationships between the key constructs were identified for each phase. Strand 2 utilised a qualitative observation method to investigate the quantitative findings through a team lens. This was done because of the central role teams play in the accelerator programme logic. Each of these stands occurred during the accelerator. Strand 3 used interviews to explore how the accelerator learning environment influenced learning and development at the level of individual participants. Interview data was collected six months after the accelerator to capture participant perceptions in retrospect. The research findings show accelerators do more than shelter emerging organisations; they actively support the development of the new venture, provide an authentic learning environment for the entrepreneurs, and they foster the development of entrepreneurship capacity. However, findings also suggest participant response to the learning environment is dynamic and unpredictable. Specifically, participants perceived the learning and development benefits they received from: a) mentors, as low across all phases; b) managers, as strongest during the middle and last phase of the programme; c) the cohort of participants, as very helpful during all three phases; and, d) accelerator instructional programming was tied closely to the relevance, quality and timing of the resources provided to them. Further, the evidence suggests team composition matters more than the team’s business idea, and task-oriented accelerator programme design negatively influences learning and development by limiting the amount of ‘free’ time participants have for creative interactions, experimentation and reflection. Thus, the availability of accelerator learning opportunities, such as education and mentorship, can both enable and hinder participant learning and development. This study provides insights for entrepreneurship research focused on supporting the development and success of early-stage enterprises. The presented findings and interpretations offer scholars, organisers and stakeholders a greater appreciation of the importance of participant learning and development in accelerators. They also suggest the utility of applying learning agility and individual performance concepts as lenses for understanding individual learning processes and their effects in entrepreneurial contexts beyond accelerators. Research limitations, implications for policy and practice, and future research are discussed.</p>

Business accelerators as learning environments: A mixed methods investigation

<p>This thesis is a study of business accelerators, and the efficacy of accelerators as learning environments. Accelerators are increasingly becoming a popular strategy for delivering a more authentic entrepreneurial learning experience. Accelerators provide a time-bound suite of highly structured educational and business development activities that provide learning support to cohorts of competitively selected high-potential entrepreneurial teams. The participants face considerable uncertainty and are exposed to complex learning and business development processes associated with rapidly building, validating, and scaling investable business models. Intense mentorship and entrepreneurial education are core features by which accelerators support this journey. Thus, an implicit assumption embedded in accelerator programme logic is the accelerator learning environment positively shapes learning and development outcomes. Yet little research has investigated how accelerators influence participant learning and development. This gap motives the current research. A multilevel quantitative and qualitative mixed methods approach was adopted to examine participant learning and development at the three levels of participation embedded within accelerator programme design – cohort, team and participant. Concepts and measures from academic work on accelerators, learning agility, and individual performance behaviour were assembled into a coherent set of investigative tools and lenses. Taken together, they frame the accelerator learning environment as a whole system of actors and elements that operate both independently and interdependently. The research setting is a Global Accelerator Network affiliate programme based in New Zealand. Three strands of data were collected on 29 participants associated with 10 venture teams participating in a single accelerator programme cohort. Strand 1 applied a multiphase quantitative survey approach to capture a longitudinal understanding of how accelerators influence participant learning and development at the cohort level. Patterns of relationships between the key constructs were identified for each phase. Strand 2 utilised a qualitative observation method to investigate the quantitative findings through a team lens. This was done because of the central role teams play in the accelerator programme logic. Each of these stands occurred during the accelerator. Strand 3 used interviews to explore how the accelerator learning environment influenced learning and development at the level of individual participants. Interview data was collected six months after the accelerator to capture participant perceptions in retrospect. The research findings show accelerators do more than shelter emerging organisations; they actively support the development of the new venture, provide an authentic learning environment for the entrepreneurs, and they foster the development of entrepreneurship capacity. However, findings also suggest participant response to the learning environment is dynamic and unpredictable. Specifically, participants perceived the learning and development benefits they received from: a) mentors, as low across all phases; b) managers, as strongest during the middle and last phase of the programme; c) the cohort of participants, as very helpful during all three phases; and, d) accelerator instructional programming was tied closely to the relevance, quality and timing of the resources provided to them. Further, the evidence suggests team composition matters more than the team’s business idea, and task-oriented accelerator programme design negatively influences learning and development by limiting the amount of ‘free’ time participants have for creative interactions, experimentation and reflection. Thus, the availability of accelerator learning opportunities, such as education and mentorship, can both enable and hinder participant learning and development. This study provides insights for entrepreneurship research focused on supporting the development and success of early-stage enterprises. The presented findings and interpretations offer scholars, organisers and stakeholders a greater appreciation of the importance of participant learning and development in accelerators. They also suggest the utility of applying learning agility and individual performance concepts as lenses for understanding individual learning processes and their effects in entrepreneurial contexts beyond accelerators. Research limitations, implications for policy and practice, and future research are discussed.</p>

The mediating effect of self-leadership on the media literacy and learning agility of nursing students based on the experiences of online classes during the COVID-19 pandemic

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the mediating effect of self-leadership on the relationship between media literacy and learning agility in nursing students based on their experiences in online classes during the Coronavirus Disease-19 pandemic.Methods: A descriptive survey was conducted among 165 nursing students from four universities in Busan. Data were collected from June 2 to 13, 2021, and was analyzed using a t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson’s correlation coefficients, and stepwise multiple regression with SPSS/WIN 26.0.Results: Significant relationships were found between learning agility and media literacy (r=.62,p<.001), between learning agility and self-leadership (r=.58, p<.001), and between media literacy and self-leadership (r=.53, p<.001). Additionally, self-leadership had a partial mediating effect on the relationship between media literacy and learning agility (Z=4.30, p<.001); its explanatory power was 46.0%.Conclusion: These results indicate that interventions to increase the level of media literacy, along with self-leadership, are necessary to improve the level of learning agility of nursing students who will be essential human resources in a rapidly changing healthcare field.

Talent agility, innovation adoption and sustainable business performance: empirical evidences from Indian automobile industry

PurposeAlthough Industry 4.0 has created a digital disruption in the business world, there is a huge demand for competent personnel to adapt to innovation in a highly volatile environment. This study aims to develop a conceptual framework on innovation adoption, thus creating a sustainable business performance in the Indian automobile industry.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 272 employees working in the Indian automobile industry was empirically tested to examine the hypothesized relationships. The proposed relationships were further tested using structural equation modelling (SEM) with AMOS 26 software.FindingsResults highlight that knowledge management, climate for innovation, learning agility and internal corporate communication positively affect innovation adoption. Perceived innovation characteristics also have a significant relationship with innovation adoption and sustainable business performance. Furthermore, innovation adoption has a positive relationship with sustainable business performance. However, ambidextrous leadership has a non-significant relationship with innovation adoption.Research limitations/implicationsThis study was confined to the Indian automobile industry, which restricts its generalizability. Thus, future research can be conducted in other sectors and country contexts.Practical implicationsThe paper provides valuable insights to practitioners, HR professionals and managers to develop an agile talent who quickly adapts innovative practices to deliver desired results. Organizations must incorporate digital leadership style, robust knowledge management, climate for innovation, learning agility and corporate communication into their talent development practices that further enhance strategic capabilities and lessen expenditures.Originality/valueThis paper provides a holistic framework of innovation adoption in the Indian automobile industry to attain sustainable business performance.

The inevitable surge of online learning through the lens of English education lecturers during the unprecedented times

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has obliged universities worldwide to shift to other modalities such as e-learning. Lecturers feel obliged to motivate and aspire their students virtually. This study explores the perceptions and experience of English education lecturers on the inevitable surge of virtual teaching during the Pandemic. This study was a qualitative interview study utilized an interpretive description approach. The data were generated by interviewing 19 English education lecturers based on defined evaluation criteria and an online learning environment. Participants were given ten open-ended interview questions to find out how lecturers undertook online teaching during unprecedented times and perceived some changes in the teaching and learning process. The findings showed three themes emerged from lecturers’ perspectives during the shift to online learning; those themes are the need for iterative process, revamp delivery, and the need to advance technology infrastructure. In addition, there were two (themes that characterize the participants’ experiences in implementing online learning: Agility and adaptability, identification of the underlying needs. All themes in this study emerged from obtained sub-themes. These findings indicated that the inevitable surge of online learning shapes lecturers’ teaching skills and attitude in the process of shifting to other modalities.

Learning Agility of Leadership during the Pandemic: An Empirical Study of Life-Sciences Learning &Development Professionals (Preprint)

BACKGROUND COVID-19 pandemic has changed organizations around the world in many ways. Learning & Development (L&D) departments within organizations underwent profound changes during the abrupt shift to remote work, and as a result, envisioned and implemented new work and training practices. Given the complex and dynamic situation of the pandemic, both individuals and organizations needed to learn quickly and apply what they learned to solve new, unprecedented problems. This situation presents an opportunity to study how characteristics of learning agility were evidenced by organizations and individual employees during the abrupt shift to remote learning brought about by the global pandemic. OBJECTIVE In collaboration with the StudySite [name blinded], this study investigated the responses and learning agility of L&D professionals and their organizational leadership within the life-sciences sector to the work changes due to the pandemic. METHODS We adopted a mixed methods approach that included a semi-structured interview and a survey. Interviews were conducted through phone or online conferencing and lasted 30-60 minutes each, covering 22 questions to stimulate ideas that could be used in the survey. The subsequent survey consisted of 37 items regarding 4 specific themes. RESULTS Findings reveal generally positive organizational and individual responses towards the changes brought about by the pandemic. Results also indicate that a disruptive crisis, like the abrupt shift to remote working, required professionals’ learning agility to both self-initiate their own learning and to support the learning agility of others in the organization. CONCLUSIONS This is the second study in a series designed to better understand education and training in the life sciences on a macro level. We discussed several important directions for future research on learning agility of L&D professionals in life-sciences organizations.