Special Issue Editor(s)

Editors

Maud van Merriënboer, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Michiel Verver, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Background

Migrant entrepreneurship is widespread yet often undervalued. Migrant entrepreneurs play a crucial role in fostering economic and social development through job creation and innovation, and contribute to the diversity and resilience of markets and societies (Jones et al., 2018). Vice versa, entrepreneurial activity can have an important emancipatory role for migrants who seek a livelihood, meaningful work or social acceptance in their adopted societies (Villares-Varela & Essers, 2019).

Entrepreneurship can be a promising pathway for migrants to engage with the labour market, both as a result of push factors, such as discrimination and other disadvantages in the labour market, as well as pull factors, such as diverse entrepreneurial resources springing from their embeddedness in home and host country networks (Kloosterman & Rath, 2001; Verver et al., 2020). However, they also face distinct challenges in their entrepreneurial journeys as they often lack knowledge on local regulatory frameworks, have difficulties accessing consumer markets beyond their own ethnic group, experience language barriers, and need to navigate cultural differences (Lassalle& Scott, 2018; Elo et al., 2024)

Trajectories of migration, settling, and venturing into business are idiosyncratic, and migrant entrepreneurship thus takes many forms. Migrant entrepreneurship research has gone beyond the study of traditional ethnic business enclaves or ethnic economies and covers different manifestations in different sectors ranging from corner stores to technology start-ups and from social enterprises to tourism (Vershinina & Rodgers, 2019). Further, individual dimensions such as entrepreneurial motivation, personality traits, and personal background of the entrepreneur (Duanet al., 2023) as well as societal dimensions such as regulatory frameworks and ethnic relations play a role in shaping the entrepreneurial experiences and outcomes of migrant businesses (Ram & Jones, 2016). Lastly, while the early literature mostly considered migrant entrepreneurship in metropolitan areas in the United States and Europe (e.g. Portes & Sensenbrenner, 1993), more recent studies reveal its unique manifestations across the globe (e.g. Bosiakoh, 2017; Cheuk, 2016).

Case study criteria

The overall objective of this case book is to compile a set of real-world teaching cases covering the topic of migrant entrepreneurship that can be used for pedagogical purposes. Together, we anticipate these cases will offer a rich and diverse array of entrepreneurial landscapes, providing teachers and students of entrepreneurship with deeper insights into the multifaceted nature of contemporary migrant entrepreneurship. Each case needs to be followed by teaching notes (including learning objectives and discussion points). Cases can adopt various formats (e.g. empirical, opinion pieces, policy-focused) and draw on a diverse range of disciplines (such as business studies, anthropology, sociology or social geography). Each case will range from 2,000 to 5,000 words.

Deadline and submission details

We invite potential contributors to submit an expression of interest (EOI) outlining the tentative topic, author team, and case description (around 300 words). The acceptance of the EOI will be on a rolling basis and we appreciate it if you send your EOIs before 1 April 2025.

If your EOI is accepted, authors will be required to submit their cases and teaching notes by 1 September 2025. We will also provide more information on the case study format and structure of the teaching notes.  

Kindly send the EOI to m.van.merrienboer@vu.nl and m.j.verver@vu.nl. Please feel free to contact Maud van Merriënboer or Michiel Verver for further information or to discuss potential case study ideas. 

Guest editors:
Gary Chapman, University of Nottingham, gary.chapman@nottingham.ac.uk
Robert Wapshott, University of Nottingham, robert.wapshott@nottingham.ac.uk
Annalisa Caloffi, University of Florence, annalisa.caloffi@unifi.it
Hanna Hottenrott, Technical University of Munich & ZEW, hanna.hottenrott@tum.de
Oliver Mallett, University of Stirling, oliver.mallett@stir.ac.uk

Introduction Background and Focus of the Special Issue:
In supporting small firms to innovate, grow and succeed, governments – and other actors – around the globe have long provided a range of business support (Chapman and Hottenrott, 2024; Mallett and Wapshott, 2020; Jurado and Battisti, 2019). The support on offer is wide-ranging and multi-faceted, including access to finance (Cowling and Dvouletý, 2023), innovation subsidies and grants (Caloffi et al., 2022; Chapman and Hewitt-Dundas, 2018; Hottenrott and Richstein, 2020) and a range of business advice services (Antcliff et al. 2021; Arshed et al., 2021; Bennett and Robson, 1999). The actors providing the support are increasingly wide-ranging (Hunt and Kiefer, 2017),
including national, local, regional, and international government agencies, universities, large businesses, independent consultants, social enterprises and venture capitalists.

Despite the substantial public and private resources devoted to business support across the globe, important unanswered questions and long-standing concerns surrounding its accessibility, design, and effectiveness remain. For example, Hamilton et al., (2024) highlight that differences, on the basis of gender, persist in access to resources and networks. From a historical perspective, Mallett et al., (2024) illustrate the difficulties in implementing innovative solutions to design more effective and inclusive forms of support. More widely, scholars including Curran (2000) and Fotopoulos and Storey (2019) have questioned the overall effectiveness of support interventions.

For this special issue, we invite contributions that advance these ongoing and crucial debates  surrounding the accessibility, design, and effectiveness of different types of business support for entrepreneurs and small firms. These debates include the centrality of business support to the context in which entrepreneurs operate and to prominent debates around research and development, productivity, place-based interventions, inclusivity and practitioner-oriented enterprise education. The audience will include researchers in these areas but also policymakers – and other actors – who are seeking to design, change and deliver more effective, inclusive and accessible business support.

Themes and Questions to be Addressed:
The special issue aims to advance understanding of the accessibility, design and effectiveness of different types of business support. An indicative list of questions that could be explored in the special issue may include:

• Accessibility: Who accesses different forms of business support and who does not? For what reasons and with what implications for business support effectiveness? How does accessibility vary across the types of business support and actors involved in its provision? How can the accessibility of business support be improved?
• Design: What business support is available and what forms does it take across a variety of contexts? How has business support developed over time, and with what implications for support provision today? How can governments and other actors design more inclusive, accessible and effective forms of business support? What factors inhibit the implementation of effective business support?
• Effectiveness: How effective are different forms of business support for supporting smaller firms’ growth, performance, behaviour, survival, innovation and other outcomes? Under what conditions are different forms of business support effective? How do the impacts vary when smaller firms receive multiple forms of business support simultaneously? How do the impacts vary across the different actors involved in the provision of different forms of business support?

Contributions could feature detailed quantitative, qualitative or mixed methods analyses of how different support interventions are associated with outcomes, detailed empirical or theoretical evaluations of programmes and lessons learned, fresh theoretical perspectives on the field, critical analyses of how practices may exclude, and more.

Key dates:
The deadline for submission of papers is June 27, 2025. The Special Issue is scheduled to be published in December 2026. Papers must be original and comply with ISBJ submission guidelines.

Please refer http://isb.sagepub.com/ for submission guidelines and a link to the on-line submission system. In the online system please ensure you submit your paper within Manuscript Type: “Special Issue: Business Support for Entrepreneurs and Small Firms: Access, Design, and Impacts”.

Questions and informal enquiries should be directed to: Dr. Robert Wapshott robert.wapshott@nottingham.ac.uk

Call for papers (pdf)

Guest Editors

David Audretsch, Indiana University Bloomington (USA)
Maksim Belitski, University of Reading (UK), Loyola University New Orleans (USA)
Elettra D’Amico, Politecnico di Torino (Italy)
Jeffrey Martin, University of Alabama (USA)
Giuseppe Scellato, Politecnico di Torino (Italy)
Shaker A. Zahra, University of Minnesota (USA)

Context

In recent years, the global aerospace industry has undergone a profound structural transformation, particularly in Europe and North America. This evolution has been driven by:

• The rapid diffusion of new technologies
• Changes in the role of international space agencies
• Shifts in the geopolitical landscape
• The growing economic impact of the space sector

These significant changes have fueled the rise of the New Space Economy, creating unprecedented opportunities for businesses, entrepreneurs, and researchers.

About the Special Issue

This Special Issue seeks to explore the expanding commercial opportunities in the space sector and their implications for management and organizational research. As the space economy grows, businesses must navigate unique challenges and opportunities, demanding innovative strategies and business models.

Submission Window: July 15, 2025 – August 15, 2025

We invite scholars to contribute to this Special Issue and encourage you to share this opportunity with colleagues who may be interested.

For submission guidelines and further details, visit: Call for Submissions.

—

Paper Development Workshop | “Space Economy”

As part of this Special Issue, we invite researchers to participate in the “Space Economy” Paper Development Workshop, which will be held in Turin, Italy, on May 26, 2025.

Why Participate?

• Gain insights into the “Doing Business in Space” Special Issue and the latest research trends
• Receive valuable feedback from editors and distinguished scholars in the field
• Engage in discussions on entrepreneurship and innovation in the space industry
• Network with leading academics and industry experts

Submission Deadline: May 1, 2025

For more details and submission guidelines, visit:  AOM Event Page.

We look forward to your contributions and participation!

Guest editor(s)

Dr Spinder Dhaliwal, Professor Thomas Cooney, Professor Colette Henry, Professor Kassa Woldesenbet Beta, Professor David Rae

Introduction  

This Special Issue (SI) focuses on diversity and inclusion in entrepreneurship. It is based on the premise that entrepreneurship is for everyone, and that no individual should be left behind (Rolle, et al., 2020). Notwithstanding the robust body of literature accumulated in the field to date, we aim to push the boundaries of existing thinking, knowledge, and theories by focusing on the unknown – what we don’t yet know. Accordingly, this SI seeks to curate new thinking and novel arguments at the cutting edge of inclusive entrepreneurship by considering the following: 

• What’s really new in inclusive entrepreneurship? What don’t we already know? 
• Whose stories are not heard (e.g., displaced, neurodiverse persons)? 
• How global crises such as economic downturns, war, natural disasters, pandemics (e.g., Covid) affected inclusive entrepreneurship? 
• What role does context play in inclusive entrepreneurship? 
• Is there a tension – a contested space – between ‘exclusive’ (for the few) and ‘inclusive’ (for the many) entrepreneurship? 
• What are the constraints and enablers of inclusive entrepreneurship? 
• What is the role of entrepreneurial leadership in widening diversity & inclusion? 
• How can policy frameworks help? 
• Is there currently an element of ‘policy neglect’? For example, following periods of major debates about the need to support specific diverse groups, is there a tendency to think ‘the problem has now been solved’ – no further action is required, and a return to mainstream policy approaches is appropriate? 
• How might networks, communities and organisations influence diversity & inclusion practices in entrepreneurship?  
• How does media, especially social media, influence inclusive and diverse entrepreneurship? 
• Are current methodological approaches appropriate to fully explore the full spectrum of inclusive entrepreneurship? 
• Is there scope to develop novel methodologies in this field? 
• Why have previously highlighted groups been ignored in current political strategy?

Inclusive entrepreneurship aims to promote economic participation and growth for underrepresented groups, including persons with disabilities, refugees, and the elderly (Bakker & McMullen, 2023). It intersects with sustainability and social entrepreneurship (Rodrigues et al., 2022) and is seen as crucial to achieving inclusive growth (Baskaran et al., 2019; Abosede & Onakoya, 2013). Business incubators, academia, and social enterprises play significant roles in fostering inclusive entrepreneurship (Baskaran et al., 2019). However, debates surround its implementation and outcomes. While entrepreneurship can stimulate economic development, poorly designed policies and programmes may dilute the quality of entrepreneurs and hinder growth (Abosede & Onakoya, 2013). Additionally, weak institutions coupled with alert entrepreneurs may lead to destructive outcomes if policies and programmes focus solely on economic indicators (Hall et al., 2012).  

Recent research on diversity and entrepreneurship highlights the need for a more comprehensive understanding of entrepreneurial diversity. Studies emphasise the importance of acknowledging heterogeneity in entrepreneurship research (Aluthgama-Baduge & Rajasinghe, 2022) and call for an intersectional approach to address key challenges in conceptualising diversity (Meyer et al., 2021). Entrepreneurship can be a mechanism for achieving inclusion and diversity, but its effectiveness is complex and context dependent. While entrepreneurship offers opportunities for social inclusion, especially for underrepresented groups (Ratten, 2019; Alexandre-LeClair, 2014), overreliance on it as a solution may be overly optimistic (Blackburn & Ram, 2006). Factors such as culture, ethnicity, gender, and social networks influence entrepreneurial engagement (Alexandre-LeClair, 2014; Owalla et al., 2021). Women and minorities face greater barriers in entrepreneurship, including access to capital and biased evaluations (Henry et al., 2024; Collis et al., 2023; Pines et al., 2010, Dhaliwal 1998).  

Furthermore, researchers advocate for developing “the economics of spatial diversity” to better understand the relationships between diversity, innovation, and entrepreneurship (Karlsson et al., 2019). Additionally, the need for theoretical reflections on concepts of diversity and difference has been identified (Janssens & Steyaert, 2003).  

Despite the robust body of research accumulated to date, there remains a need to address knowledge gaps and unresolved issues in entrepreneurship and diversity studies (Ferreira et al., 2015; Parker, 2005). This Special Issue aims to fill this gap by focusing on the “unknowns” – what we don’t yet know about diversity and inclusion in entrepreneurship. 

List of topic areas 

Indicative list of themes and key features of the Special Issue  

• Ethnic minorities  
• Persons with disability
• People with criminal convictions
• Entrepreneurs from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds 
• Refugees
• Migrant
• Displaced entrepreneurs 
• Indigenous
• Roma
• Women
• Marginalised youth / NEETs
• Seniors
• LGBTQ+
• Encouraging the venture types, start-up and growth strategies of diverse entrepreneurs
• Encouraging and supporting diverse entrepreneurs through targeted policies, training, technology and AI 

In addition to displacement entrepreneurship, the following themes could also be explored in terms of encouraging “surprises” and “pushing boundaries” – one of the key aims in this SI. 

• Inclusive Technology and Digital Entrepreneurship:  How do the digital divide continues to disproportionately affect entrepreneurs from marginalized communities, especially neuro-diverse individuals, women, rural populations, and those in developing economies  
• Neurodiversity in Entrepreneurship:  What is the potential for neurodiverse individuals to introduce innovation due to their different ways of thinking and problem-solving?
• The role of diverse Entrepreneurial Leadership in the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) Movement and in supporting underrepresented groups by fostering more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems
• Entrepreneurial ventures that explicitly aim to address racial and gender equity
• The role social entrepreneurship can play in driving systemic change and supporting marginalized communities
• The relationship between entrepreneurship and the UN Sustainable Development Goals on Equality (e.g., SDG 8, SDG 10)

Submissions Information 

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available at: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijebr
Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see: https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/journal/ijebr#jlp_author_guidelines
Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal. 

Key deadlines 

Approximate Timeframe: 

Extended abstract (max 900 word/2 pages) to editors: (recommended) before 30th March 2025. Editor details can be found at the top of the page
Submission of full paper via ScholarOne: between 1st September and 1st November 2025 (https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijebr)
1st reviews expected: January/February 2026
2nd reviews expected: June/July 2026
Expected publication: end 2026/early 2027

See: Diversity, Inclusion and Entrepreneurship: What we know and what we don’t know | Emerald Publishing

Special Issue Editor(s)

Huriye Yeröz, De Montfort University, UK 
huriye.yeroz@dmu.ac.uk

Sibel Ozasir Kacar, Radboud University, The Netherlands
sibel.ozasirkacar@ru.nl

J. Miguel Imas, Kingston University, UK
j.imas@kingston.ac.uk

Paul Lassalle, University of Strathclyde, UK
paul.lassalle@strath.ac.uk

In this special issue, we argue for entrepreneurial (im)mobilities that are more sensitive to space and time and critical to taken-for-granted assumptions. We can no longer presume similar answers to the fundamental questions of ‘what and who can move and stay,’ ‘for what reasons,’ ‘from where to where,’ ‘how to move and enterprise,’ and ‘with what effects.’ The emerging complexity and dynamism necessitate asking these questions critically again and seeking new theories to understand entrepreneurship in this era. The focus on (im)mobilities encourages expanding conceptual boundaries and understanding of connectedness and interdependencies between entrepreneurial humans and animals, spaces, times, regulations, power relations, and ethical concerns in a broader sense. We call for inquiries to extend our understanding of ‘entrepreneurial (im)mobilities: ideas, people and things on the move.’

Specific inquiries may include but are not limited to the following:

• Within which institutional, economic, political, and societal contexts do entrepreneurial activities take place by the entrepreneurial actors on the move? How do they navigate, interact with and enact context?
• How do the (im)mobilities of ideas, people, and things create and shape entrepreneurial opportunities, resources and processes?
• How should entrepreneurial support mechanisms and ecosystems (incubators, accelerators, co-working spaces, hubs, etc.) be (re)designed considering (im)mobilities of ideas, people, and things?
• How do entrepreneurial (im)mobilities shape entrepreneurial teams and networks?
• How is entrepreneurial education (re)designed along the entrepreneurial (im)mobilities?
• How do (im)mobilities regulate the (re)production and demise of entrepreneurial identities?
• What identity markers and politics become more or less significant for entrepreneurial actors on the move, policymakers and other institutional constituents? When and with what consequences do they enact (or not) their salient identity markers (i.e., gender, class, race, ethnicity, religion, (dis)ability, sexuality and otherwise axes of difference), values, beliefs, and emotions?
• How, when, and to what extent does entrepreneurship become a position of power for entrepreneurial actors on the move?
• How do entrepreneurs on the move respond to crises, such as economic and social inequalities, political disputes and conflicts, and environmental disasters?
• How do entrepreneurial (im)mobilities influence the framing of entrepreneurship as emancipation and peacebuilding?
• What is the dark (and the bright) side of entrepreneurial (im)mobilities considering the ethics of entrepreneurship?
• How do different meta-theoretical approaches, such as (post)colonial, transnational, and posthuman, inform research designs in entrepreneurial (im)mobilities? What challenges and opportunities do each bring, and how do we deal with them?
• How can various entrepreneurship research streams strengthen each other to produce a critical dialogue about understanding and studying entrepreneurial (im)mobilities?

To address these issues, we welcome conceptual and empirical papers that advance the theoretical understanding of ‘entrepreneurial (im)mobilities’ with different levels of analysis and various methodological approaches: quantitative, qualitative, and intervention. This includes novel approaches such as nethnographic, visual, performative, GPS, and sensor data-based methodologies that can capture ideas, people, and things on the move and over time.

Submission Instructions

Meet the Guest Editors Paper Development Workshop (PDW)

The guest editors will organise a special PDW to develop the ideas and papers for submission. The workshop will be in a hybrid format (at the Leicester Castle Business School, De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom, and online). All interested contributors can present their work (at any stage of development) for discussion and feedback. Participation in the PDW is neither a guarantee of acceptance of the paper for the special issue nor a requirement to consider papers for inclusion in the special issue. For more information about the workshop, please contact Huriye Yeröz (huriye.yeroz@dmu.ac.uk) and Sibel Ozasir Kacar (sibel.ozasirkacar@ru.nl).

Working Timeline:

• June 15, 2025: Extended abstracts for Paper Development Workshop (PDW)
• August 15, 2025: Confirmation of acceptance to the PDW workshop
• October 2, 2025: PDW SI Workshop Online
• October 3, 2025: PDW SI Workshop at Leicester Castle Business School, De Montfort University, Leicester, The United Kingdom
• December 31, 2025: Submission deadline
• Publication: 2026

Please see full information on the call for papers.

Special Issue Editor(s)

Catherine Brentnall, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK
C.Brentnall@mmu.ac.uk

David Higgins, University of Liverpool, UK
dhiggins@liverpool.ac.uk

Karen Verduijn, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
karen.verduijn@vu.nl

Ulla Hytti, University of Turku, Finland
ullhyt@utu.fi

This Special Issue will build on and extend the calls made in ERD and elsewhere that entrepreneurship educators engage in collective reflexivity (Berglund & Verduijn, 2018; Dodd et al., 2023). We aim to provide a space to re-think, re-imagine and transform theory, practice and research in EE. Conceptual, theoretical and empirical papers are welcome and imaginative methodological and philosophical perspectives are encouraged. Potential questions could connect to, but are not limited by, the following suggestions:

• What is preventing us from doing things differently? How do certain structures, frameworks and models in Entrepreneurship Education help to maintain the ‘old world’, a dominant but dying system?
• How can these (paradoxes, contradictions and messy entanglements?) be opened up, grappled with and waded through in Entrepreneurship Education? Which beliefs, practices and assumptions are particularly problematic in Entrepreneurship Education? What must we stop doing and why?
• How can alternative philosophical and theoretical foundations inspire transformed research and practice in Entrepreneurship Education? What conceptual innovation and theorising can be mobilised to transform how we think about and approach Entrepreneurship Education? What are the specific processes, activities and assumptions that can be composed and recomposed to transform Entrepreneurship Education?
• To what extent (and in what way(s)) are Entrepreneurship Education policy and programmes reflecting the need for transformation?
• What are the most promising new/transformed practices (e.g. cooperation, commons thinking and practices, bio-regionalism, healthy information ecologies, spiritual, decolonial and indigenous sensibilities), and their consequences for Entrepreneurship Education?
• What are ‘best case scenarios’ (e.g. relating to sense making, capability, legitimacy and meaning) being pursued in Entrepreneurship Education? How can Entrepreneurship Education support the development of a more just and regenerative economy?
• (How) Does Entrepreneurship Education, for better or worse, interact with existential issues such as peace, democracy, health, well-being, food and energy system transformation and such like?

Submission Instructions

The special issue timeline:
– A launch of the call at 3E, the ECSB’s Entrepreneurship Education conference, being held in
Munich, May 2025.
– An ‘EE in a Time Between Worlds’ workshop seminar at IEEC 2025 in Manchester.
– A ‘Meet the Editors’ session at ISBE, Glasgow.
– A ‘Meet the Editors’ session at RENT, in Enschede, the Netherlands, November 2025.
– Three online workshops in April, September and December 2025.
– Two virtual writing retreats to support non-traditional writers in 2025/2026.

Articles must be submitted by 26 April 2026.

See the full call at Entrepreneurship Education in a Time Between Worlds: Transforming Theory, Practice and Scholarship