Handbook of Management Scales/Proactiveness

Description
The study presents a foreign language version of a popular scale for measuring entrepreneurship and tests the instrument's utility in cross-cultural settings as a means of validating it for use abroad. The dimensions "innovativeness" and "proactiveness" combine to indicate the extent to which a given organization is entrepreneurial.

Definition
Entrepreneurship refers to the pursuit of creative or novel solutions to challenges confronting the firm, including the development or enhancement of products and services, as well as new administrative techniques and technologies for performing organizational functions.

The proactiveness dimension of entrepreneurship refers to the opposite of reactiveness and is associated with aggressive posturing relative to competitors. The emphasis is on aggressive execution and follow through, driving toward achievement of the firm's objectives by whatever reasonable means are necessary.

Items
In dealing with competitors, my firm ...
 * Is very seldom the first business to introduce new products/services, administrative techniques, operating technologies, etc. -- Is very often the first business to introduce new products/services, administrative techniques, operating technologies, etc.

In dealing with competitors, my firm ...
 * Typically seeks to avoid competitive clashes, preferring a "live-and-let-live" posture. -- Typically adopts a very competitive, "undo-the-competitors" posture.

In general, the top managers at my firm ...
 * Have a strong proclivity for low-risk projects (with normal and certain rates of return). -- Have a strong proclivity for high-risk projects (with chances of very high returns).

In general, the top managers at my firm ...
 * Believe that, owing to the nature of the environment, it's best to explore it gradually via careful, incremental behavior. -- Believe that, owing to the nature of the environment, bold, wide-ranging acts are necessary to achieve the firm's objectives.

When confronted with decision-making situations involving uncertainty, my firm ...
 * Typically adopts a cautious, "wait-and-see" posture in order to minimize the probability of making costly decisions. -- Typically adopts a bold, aggressive posture in order to maximize the probability of exploiting potential opportunities.

A seven-point scale was used for the five items.

Source

 * Knight (1997): Cross-cultural reliability and validity of a scale to measure firm entrepreneurial orientation. Journal of Business Venturing, Vol. 12, No. 3, pp. 213-225.

Related Scales

 * Innovativeness