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Journal of Small Business & Entrepreneurship
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Entrepreneurial Leadership Strategies and Values:
Keys to Operational Excellence
John R. Darling , Michael J. Keeffe & John K. Ross
To cite this article: John R. Darling , Michael J. Keeffe & John K. Ross (2007) Entrepreneurial
Leadership Strategies and Values: Keys to Operational Excellence, Journal of Small Business &
Entrepreneurship, 20:1, 41-54, DOI: 10.1080/08276331.2007.10593385
To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2007.10593385
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Entrepreneurial Leadership Strategies and Values:
Keys to Operational Excellence
John R. Darling, McCoy College of Business Administration, Texas
State University
Michael J. Keeffe, McCoy College of Business Administration, Texas
State University
John K. Ross, McCoy College of Business Administration, Texas State
University
ABSTRACT. The future continues to hold the promise for dramatic innovational changes with opportunities for
entrepreneurial leadership typically unheard of in previous eras. And in this environment of entrepreneurial
opportunities, achievement of organizational excellence remains a primary focus. Research by the authors shows
that the major reflections of operational excellence and success in entrepreneurial organizations revolve around
the care of customers, constant innovation, committed people and managerial leadership. An analysis of the keys
to achieving acceptable levels of excellence focuses on the four primary entrepreneurial leadership strategies of
attention through vision, meaning through communication, trust through positioning, and confidence through
respect. Research further suggests that at the heart of successful entrepreneurial leadership strategies is a con-
cern for people and interpersonal values that provide a paradigm of interactive cues and the foundational core
for the successful fulfillment of those strategies.
SOMMAIRE. L’avenir demeure prometteur en ce qui a trait à l’arrivée de changements innovateurs majeurs.
Ces changements entraînent des perspectives rarement vues par le passé pour le leadership entrepreneurial. De
plus, dans cet environnement propice aux opportunités entrepreneuriales, l’accent demeure principalement
l’atteinte de l’excellence organisationnelle. Les études effectuées par les auteurs démontrent que les réflexions
majeures sur l’excellence opérationnelle et la réussite des organisations entrepreneuriales portent surtout sur le
service à la clientèle, l’innovation constante, un personnel engagé et le leadership de gestion. Une analyse des
facteurs-clés nécessaires afin d’atteindre un niveau acceptable d’excellence se concentre sur les quatre princi-
pales stratégies de leadership entrepreneurial : la gestion de l’attention par la vision; la gestion de la significa-
tion par la communication; l’établissement et l’entretien du lien de confiance par le positionnement; l’édifica-
tion de la confiance par le respect. Les études montrent aussi qu’au coeur des stratégies efficaces de leadership
entrepreneurial on s’intéresse aux valeurs personnelles et aux valeurs liées aux personnes qui apportent un
modèle d’exemples interactifs à suivre et qui sont les éléments fondamentaux pour la réussite de ces stratégies.
Introduction
The past century is only a blink of history’s eye. However, during that period of time
the world has been transformed by profound innovations and technological developments.
A century ago, there were no safe and effective antibiotics, no jet travel, no commercial
television, and no computers, to cite a few examples. Many died of routine infections. A
five-day ocean voyage was the main way to travel between North America and Europe,
and “wireless” meant the wood-paneled radio sitting in the parlor. Since then, mastery of
the physical and biological world has strengthened enormously—primarily driven by the
entrepreneurial innovators who were willing to risk and invest their energies for worthy
causes (Mandel, 2004: 92–93). And the world today is a better place, and offers to entre-
preneurial leaders a future full of exciting opportunities for dream fulfillment (Wilkinson,
2003: 70).
Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship 20, no. 1 (2007): pp. 41–54 41

Entrepreneurship is fundamentally a way of thinking that bridges innovative discov-
eries with need fulfillment. For example, to make life easier and add to the family
income, home makers are becoming entrepreneurial in many unforeseen ways
(Zimmerman, 2004: A1, A16). Today, even medical doctors, attorneys and other profes-
sionals are learning to think entrepreneurially—and build better practices and organiza-
tions in the process (Henricks, 2004: 84). This particular historical context offers, as have
few other times in recorded human history, advantages for creative entrepreneurs who
can properly identify these evolving opportunities and translate them into meaningful
organizational achievements.
Concept of Entrepreneurial Leadership
In essence, successful entrepreneurial leadership can generally be thought of as lead-
ing, through direct involvement, a process that creates value for organizational stake-
holders by bringing together a unique innovation and package of resources to respond to
a recognized opportunity. In fulfilling this process, entrepreneurs function within a para-
digm of three dimensions: innovativeness, risk-taking, and proactiveness (Morris,
Schindehutte and LaForge, 2004: 92). Innovativeness focuses on the search for creative
and meaningful solutions to individual and operational problems and needs. Risk-taking
involves the willingness to commit resources to opportunities that have a reasonable pos-
sibility of failure. Proactiveness is concerned with implementation, and helping to make
events happen through appropriate means, which typically include the efforts of others.
This perspective takes into account the entrepreneur, the individuals with whom the entre-
preneur is directly involved, and the broader “community” of supporters in which the
entrepreneur is embedded (Stevenson, 2004: 3). An individual typically identifies an
opportunity to be pursued and then, as an entrepreneur, must surround himself/herself
with individuals to help make it happen and provide the leadership necessary to develop
those individuals while nurturing excellence in the organization.
The practice of successful entrepreneurial leadership is thereby fulfilled within an
array of exciting activities and new creative developments—full of innovations and evolv-
ing concepts, constantly changing, and in many cases eluding classification. The interac-
tive nature of these interpersonal activities means that any organizational framework cre-
ated for them must nurture and allow for constant change and, in many cases, the conse-
quent conflicts that evolve (Welsh and Maltarich, 2004: 57; Darling, Keeffe and Olney,
2005: 52–53).
Entrepreneurial leadership is all about breaking new ground, going beyond the known,
and helping to create the future. It is also about helping people to settle into new oppor-
tunities that give them joy and hope for the future (McLagan and Nel, 1995: 46). What
makes a truly successful entrepreneurial leader is not narrowly focused on only intelli-
gence, education, lifestyle or background. A principal factor that seems to determine suc-
cess is the entrepreneur’s ability to effectively deal with opportunities through the dynam-
ics of an organizational setting, thereby enabling and motivating the people concerned to
be actively and enthusiastically involved and successful. Entrepreneurs who strive to
establish a setting that is supportive of associates and their development also help to instill
within those individuals a loyalty that will serve to enhance the continued achievement of
organizational excellence and the operational success of that organization.
A primary factor that prevents the creation of a culture of excellence within many
entrepreneurial firms is that they are often overmanaged and underled. Entrepreneurs, as
managers within these organizations, may excel in the ability to handle the daily routine,
42 DARLING, KEEFFE AND ROSS

yet never question whether the routine should be done at all. In this regard, there is a pro-
found difference between entrepreneurial management and entrepreneurial leadership, but
one should readily recognize that both are important, and both typically exist in success-
ful entrepreneurs. To manage means to bring about, to accomplish, to have responsibility
for, to conduct. To lead means to influence, to guide in direction, course, action, or opin-
ion (Bennis and Nanus, 1985: 21–23). The distinction is crucial. Entrepreneurial managers
are people who do things right, and entrepreneurial leaders are people who do the right
things. The difference may be summarized as activities of controlling resources, and mas-
tering procedures and routines, which facilitate efficiency as a manager, versus commu-
nication, coordination and extensive networking among people, which facilitate effec-
tiveness as a leader.
Thus, the degree to which entrepreneurial managers are also entrepreneurial leaders
relates to how they understand and carry out their roles. Those who are successful view
themselves as leaders, not just managers. This is to say that they focus their concern on
their organization’s excellence in all respects. Their perspective is vision-oriented.
Therefore, they do not limit their attention to the how-to, the proverbial nuts and bolts, but
include the parameters of action which involves doing the right things.
A primary test of successful leadership as an entrepreneur lies in giving, to the great-
est extent possible, opportunities to others within the situational context of the organiza-
tion. This helps enormously in the process of providing meaning and a sense of worth—
thus, an increased level of commitment—for people in an organization (Frankl, 1959:
8–9). One does not have to be brilliant to be a successful entrepreneurial leader; but entre-
preneurial leaders do have to understand other people—how they feel and the most effec-
tive ways to influence them. For example, in many studies of leadership in an entrepre-
neurship context, it has been shown that the average entrepreneur spends most of the
working day dealing with people. The largest single cost in most entrepreneurial organi-
zations is people. The most important and most valuable asset any such organization has
is its people. All entrepreneurial plans for the enhancement of excellence are carried out,
or fail to be carried out, by people (Nurmi and Darling, 1997: 55–56). Sam Walton, entre-
preneurial founder of Wal-Mart, recognized the importance of this which prompted him
to spend a great deal of his time traveling and meeting with associates in various locations
of Wal-Mart stores (Hisrich, Peters and Shepherd, 2005: 512).
Primary Reflections of Excellence
Research by the authors indicates that the primary bases upon which an entrepreneur-
ial organization is considered to be excellent focus on four primary elements. Whether the
organization is large or small, broadly based in several market segments or only a few,
these primary reflections of excellence are of major importance to success (see Figure 1).
The organization must first focus on the set of customers who are or will be served by the
innovation. Usually these customers are defined as individuals existing in the external
marketplace, but they may also be located in another venue, such as within a particular
operational area of the organization. The organization must also have a consistent inno-
vative culture that nurtures and facilitates creative thinking and development. These are
basic to success in the implementation of successful innovations, to achieving long-term
superior performance, and to sustaining a strategic competitive position and advantage in
the marketplace.
These two elements—care of customers and constant innovation—obviously do not
constitute all that is needed. Sound accounting and financial controls are essential.
ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP STRATEGIES AND VALUES 43

Entrepreneurial organizations that do not
have them fail. Good planning is certainly
not a luxury but a necessity. Moreover,
entrepreneurial-based firms can be tem-
porarily or permanently influenced by
external forces, such as currency values or
the loss of access to needed resources.
Nevertheless, financial controls are vital,
but the firm does not succeed with finan-
cial controls, it succeeds because of the
innovative value it creates in the market-
place. An entrepreneurial firm seldom sus-
tains superior performance through mere
access to resources; it sustains this
through quality innovations in resource
acquisition and use, and subsequent mar-
ket development. The firm may be affected by changes in financial and other indicators,
but it sustains performance by adding enough value to an innovative product or service
that is then profitably saleable despite monetary variability (Drucker, 1985: 155–58).
In reality, however, it turns out that neither superior care of customers nor constant
innovation—two of the three cutting and sustaining edges of excellence in an entrepre-
neurial organization—are built upon the entrepreneur’s genius, unusual operational tech-
niques, or mystical strategic moves or countermoves in the marketplace. Both are built,
instead, upon the existence of committed people which evolves from a solid foundation of
listening, trust and respect for the dignity and the creative potential of each person in the
organization (see Figure 1). This foundation facilitates the establishment of a “winning
team” of people committed to the achievement of the operational goals and objectives of
the organization.
Most entrepreneurial-type firms that are successful in creating a culture of excellence
do so not by their cleverness, but by the fact that each and every aspect of the organiza-
tion is better than is normally expected. So the keys to organizational excellence within
an entrepreneurship setting focus on three variables: care of customers, constant innova-
tion, and committed people. Yet in this model of excellence, something is still missing—
that one element which connects all the others. As Figure 1 shows, that one element is
effective management leadership; and it is through the leadership strategies that the entre-
preneur helps to facilitate the reflection of excellence (Cornesky et al., 1990: 58–59;
Peters and Austin, 1985: 5–6).
For example, in the 20 years that Jack Welch led GE, he imbued his organization with
an energy and culture that brought him recognition as an entrepreneurial leader in the
development of what became known as the deepest array of executive talent in U.S. busi-
ness. Through his own dynamic, interactive personality, use of memorable slogans, and a
rigorous performance system that required every managerial leader to become a mentor,
Welch turned a disparate conglomerate into a global teaching organization. He understood
that great managerial leadership talent was at least as important as great innovative prod-
ucts (Brady, 2004: 20).
Primary Leadership Strategies
Today’s entrepreneurial leader requires a new kind of person who does not depend on
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Figure 1. Model of Keys to Organizational Excellence

organizational superiority and subordina-
tion. These contemporary leaders help to
create enhanced capacity in their people,
who in turn become the stewards of all the
organization’s stakeholders (McLagan and
Nel, 1995: 46–47). In achieving organiza-
tional excellence, an entrepreneurial
leader is thereby a person who inspires, by
appropriate means, a level of competence
necessary to influence a group of individ-
uals to become willing participants in the
fulfillment of innovational goals. But
what are these means? By what means can
mixed or perhaps even negative feelings
be turned into affection and loyalty? What
enables an entrepreneur to lead effective-
ly? The authors’ research has focused on
the foundation of successful entrepreneurial leadership in the achievement of organiza-
tional excellence. Data were collected primarily from well-known entrepreneurs identi-
fied during the past five years in various publications such as Business Week, The
Economist, Entrepreneur, Financial Times, Fortune, Herald Tribune, New York Times,
and The Wall Street Journal.
These are entrepreneurs who have been involved in directing the new trends in oper-
ational success through the enhancement of organizational excellence. These are people
creating new ideas, new products and services, new policies, and new procedures. They
have the reputation for bringing change through the basic foundations of excellence in
their organizations. These leaders are viewed as creative change agents, not simply mas-
ters of basic routines. Although all of these men and women are successful in their own
way, and within their own situational setting, they share, to a large degree, four charac-
teristic leadership strategies. These four entrepreneurial leadership strategies are attention
through vision, meaning through communication, trust through positioning, and confi-
dence through respect (Nurmi and Darling, 1997: 56–62) (see Figure 2).
Attention through Vision
The management of attention through vision creates a focus for the organization. A
manager is expected to carry out assigned functions and responsibilities in any organiza-
tion. But successful leaders in entrepreneurial management do more than that. They are
acutely aware that there are customers in the marketplace for new innovative products and
services, the use of which can help solve their problems. In addition, entrepreneurial lead-
ers are sensitive to the fact that everything related to their responsibilities and the functions
of their organization might be done faster, better, more reliably, with fewer errors, and at a
lower cost. These are the innovative drumbeats to which they march. They carry them con-
stantly in mind, looking for and considering many possible answers. They are continually
looking for problems that need solving rather than merely solving the problems that come
their way. They search for opportunities when others feel that possibilities are exhausted.
They are creative change agents because they want to find better ways of doing things and
really work at it. For example, beginning in the early 1970s Frederick Smith’s FedEx
sparked an innovative revolution in just-in-time delivery that also eventually involved
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LEADERSHIP
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ATTENTION
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VISION
CONFIDENCE
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RESPECT
MEANING
THROUGH
COMMUNICATION
TRUST
THROUGH
POSITIONING
Figure 2. Model of Keys to Organizational Excellence
and Leadership Strategies

other firms such as UPS and DHL. By the late 1970s, America had come to rely on
FedEx’s ability to deliver goods overnight—including such things as spare parts, urgent
business documents, and eleventh-hour birthday gifts (Foust, 2004: 18).
Entrepreneurial leaders have an agenda—a vision that takes their organizations
beyond the horizon. These visions are compelling and pull people towards them like a
gigantic magnet. The intensity of a leader’s vision, coupled with commitment, is exciting
and contagious. And these intense personalities do not have to coerce people to pay atten-
tion; they are so intent on what they are doing that, like a person enthusiastically absorbed
with a new innovative product or service, they draw others in. Vision grabs attention!
Initially it grabs the entrepreneur, but then the appropriate leadership of this attention
encourages others to make a commitment to organizational achievement. Robert Kennedy
made it popular, but George Bernard Shaw said it long ago: “Some see things as they are,
and ask, why? I prefer to see things as they might be, and ask, why not?” Successful
entrepreneurial leaders look at what they consider to be their vision and the possibilities
of what their organizations can achieve, and having done this, commit themselves and
their firms to the discipline that is necessary to make these visions a reality.
Meaning through Communication
Among different entrepreneurial organizations there are many interesting and exciting
visions and noble intentions. Many entrepreneurs have important and very meaningful
objectives—visions of what their organizations can do and become—but without effective
communication very little will be realized. Success in entrepreneurial leadership requires
the capacity to relate a compelling image of a desired innovative achievement—the kind
of image that induces enthusiasm, expectation and commitment in others. The manage-
ment of meaning, focusing on the mastery of communication, is inseparable from effec-
tive leadership and entrepreneurial success (Nurmi and Darling, 1997: 58).
There are a number of issues relating to effective communication (Bennis and Nanus,
1985: 39–41). First, a successful entrepreneurial organization depends on the existence of
shared meanings and interpretations of reality, which facilitate coordinated action.
Individuals become what they think about, and therefore meaningful communication
becomes of major importance in focusing on primary themes of achievement in the organ-
ization. Leaders articulate and define what may have previously remained implicit or
unsaid; then they create perspectives which provide a visionary focus. By so doing, they
consolidate or challenge prevailing wisdom. In short, an essential factor in entrepreneur-
ial leadership is the capacity to influence and organize meaning for the personnel of the
organization.
Second, the methods by which entrepreneurial leaders convey and shape meaning vary
enormously. Despite the variations in style, and whether verbal or nonverbal, every suc-
cessful entrepreneur is aware that an organization is based on a set of shared meanings
which defines roles and authority, procedures and objectives. Third, what is meant by the
creation of meaning goes beyond what is usually meant by communication, focusing on
more than facts or even knowledge. Facts and knowledge have to do with what to do and
how to do things. The unique role of entrepreneurial leadership is the quest for the know-
why ahead of the know-how. J.W. (Bill) Marriott, Jr., son of the founder of the Marriott
Hotels and Resorts, is an exceptional entrepreneurial communicator who has given a great
deal of emphasis and focus to this important element of leadership in his organization
(Marriott and Brown, 1997: 6–8).

The greatest freedom that people have is the freedom to choose; and one of the most
important choices that individuals within an entrepreneurially based firm make is what to
think and believe (Darling, 2004: 1–2). Information provides the context in which people
work. People need to access and use information via the communication process in order
to take charge of their own work life. Such access and use go hand in hand with the com-
mitment and empowerment of people, and their accountability for organizational excel-
lence (McLagan and Nel, 1995: 47–48). Communication is thereby the primary way in
which any group of individuals, small or large, can become aligned behind the over-arch-
ing innovative goals of the organization. Getting the correct and intended message across
at every level is an important key. Basically, it is what the creative process is all about and
what constitutes a primary focus and what, once again, helps to separate entrepreneurial
managers from entrepreneurial leaders.
Trust through Positioning
Discipline is the price that entrepreneurial leaders must pay to be successful—the dis-
cipline to acquire the knowledge, to develop the skills and understanding, and to nurture
a consistency of being that builds trust among people in the organization. Trust is thereby
a facilitator that helps to make it possible for an organization to function effectively. Trust
implies accountability, predictability and reliability. It is what helps to make innovative
products and services successful. Trust provides the foundation that maintains organiza-
tional integrity. It is known when it is present and when it is not; it is also essential that it
be based on predictability. The truth is that people who are predictable—whose positions
are known and have continuity—are trusted. Entrepreneurial leaders who are trusted make
themselves known and make their positions clear in all operational arenas of the organi-
zation. Trust through positioning is achieved by means of a consistency in value-reflec-
tion by entrepreneurial leaders.
In various entrepreneurship situations, it is not what happens, but what entrepreneur-
ial leaders do about it that counts (Darling, 2004: 4). The day-in–day-out activities of lead-
ership have their mountains and valleys, but the successful leader is one who, throughout
these variations in conditions, reflects a high degree of positional consistency. Positioning
encompasses the set of actions necessary to implement the vision of the entrepreneur.
Through establishing his/her position—and, more important, maintaining continuity—the
entrepreneur establishes trust. Herb Kelleher, former entrepreneurial CEO of Southwest
Airlines, an energetic and successful leader of the first order, built one of the most prof-
itable airlines currently operating in the U.S. His philosophy was to establish a trust in his
people and they will return that trust. Kelleher has said, “We follow a policy of ready, fire,
aim, because in our business if you don’t fire you’ll never get the chance to aim. We tell
our people to go ahead and do something—we’ll perfect it later” (Nelson and Bell, 2004:
13).
A major key to the process of establishing trust through positioning is integrity, reflect-
ed in honesty and frankness, properly clothed in tact (Bennis and Biederman, 1997:
200–1). Words associated with integrity are themselves interesting: the quality of being
complete, unimpaired, moral soundness, honesty, freedom from corrupting influence or
practice, and predictable strictness in the fulfillment of contracts and the discharge of
trusts. There is no greater need in entrepreneurial leaders than the need for integrity, for
being true to trust. Integrity is simply something that a person is within. It is, in a sense,
the assurance that what one sees, what is said to be, is something that can be counted on,
without qualification. Integrity in the entrepreneurial leadership position leads to trust by

those individuals counted on to facilitate achievement of excellence in the operations of
the organization.
Confidence through Respect
When the freedom of choice is recognized and accepted in the organization, entrepre-
neurial leaders and followers must accept the right of both to choose (McLagan and Nel,
1995: 219). Respect is thereby a choice. Respect is a choice made by followers, and in
most cases it is based upon the confidence they have in a leader’s knowledge and ability
to make appropriate decisions (choices) regarding the continuing operations of the organ-
ization. It is important to recognize the fact that successful entrepreneurial leaders spend
the vast majority (some more than 90 percent) of their time with others, and concerned
with issues relating to people. An analysis of the leadership style of these entrepreneurs
suggests that a key factor in building confidence through respect focuses on the meaning-
ful deployment of self. The creative deployment of self makes entrepreneurial leadership
a deeply personal activity because of the foundation on which it must exist—a positive
self-regard (Maxwell, 1995: 10–11). A positive self-regard seems to consist of three major
components: knowledge of one’s own strengths; the capacity to develop those strengths;
and the ability to discern the fit between one’s strengths and the organization’s needs
(Bennis and Nanus, 1985: 61–62).
Entrepreneurial leaders who establish and maintain a high degree of respect from their
associates have an unusual ability to bring out the best in others through the inducement
of a positive other-regard in their colleagues and employees. They see latent talent and
encourage it; they listen to those around them, and they realize that a person’s inability to
do one job does not mean that that individual is incompetent in all jobs. The creation of
confidence through respect thereby becomes contagious within the organization.
Regarding this, Thomas Meredith, Managing Director of Dell Ventures, looks for highly
intelligent folks who also are very intellectually and respectfully curious. They must have
a sense of urgency about what they do, be results-driven and communicate clearly. In
addition, they should be driven by a passion for not being just part of the future, but help-
ing create the future. “We want those for whom cultural boundaries don’t exist, who think
globally and act locally, and who excel in specialties but see links with others” (Nelson
and Bell, 2004: 143).
A significant element affected by entrepreneurial leaders focuses on the thought para-
digms established within the organization. Confidence in the ability to achieve worthy
objectives is an important foundational cue, and confidence is nurtured by respect.
Respect is thereby based upon the perspective of self-worth. The verb respect means “to
appreciate the value of.” In the human being, respect is a major characteristic of success-
ful entrepreneurial leadership. It provides the basis for one’s ability to genuinely appreci-
ate the unique talents and abilities of oneself and others in the organization, and to accom-
plish worthy goals in an organization and thereby the reflections of excellence by that
organization.
Key Leadership Values
Values are deep and often invisible controlling forces within an entrepreneurial organ-
ization, and there is no more important set of values than that set recognized as leadership
values. Values are thereby foundational attitudes that affect behaviors or states of affairs
and are of major importance to successful entrepreneurial leadership. In a general sense,
these values may focus on such perspectives as fairness, justice, honesty, discipline,

freedom, equality, humanitarianism, loyalty, patriotism, progress, self-fulfillment, pragma-
tism, courtesy, politeness and cooperation (Yukl, 1998: 234). These are obviously impor-
tant personal as well as professional values, and in most cases are inseparable from the
involvement of a successful entrepreneurial leader in the arena of personal activities as well
as in the professional arena. Accordingly, the place to focus on leadership values is within
the individual—those points of reference that reside deep within that person. As the leader
is centered on correct value-driven principles, and is able to organize and execute around
the priorities of organizational excellence with integrity, that person makes choices to build
meaningful, enduring and productive relationships with his/her operational team of indi-
viduals in the organization.
Value programming is a significant factor in the development of successful entrepre-
neurial leaders. This value programming is a term used to highlight the extent to which
forces outside the individual shape and mold leadership values. An important thing to
keep in mind is the fact that although a person’s values can change throughout one’s life,
these values are relatively firmly established relatively early in life (Hughes, Ginnett and
Curphy, 1999: 167). However, the purpose here is not to discuss the development of val-
ues, but to answer the question, What values are of primary importance to the successful
implementation of leadership strategies that facilitate the achievement of excellence in an
entrepreneurial organization? The authors’ research on entrepreneurial leadership has
determined that there is a paradigm of four basic values that comprise important keys to
strategic success and achievement of organizational excellence—joy, hope, charity and
peace.
The primary measure of quality in entrepreneurial leadership is the degree to which
the leader enables the other individuals in the organization to be successful. In other
words, an important objective of the leader must be that of helping others to achieve suc-
cess in their professional (and to a degree, personal) arena of life. This success is meas-
ured by such factors as personal achievement, professional satisfaction, job fulfillment,
emotional health, and perhaps even the ability to cope with illness and other hardships or
disappointments. Those entrepreneurial leaders who are the most successful in achieving
this do so through the four leadership
strategies noted above. Such entrepreneur-
ial leaders are not necessarily the smartest,
the best educated, the most experienced,
the highest paid, the most gifted, or those
with the greatest combination of talents
and abilities. They are, however, the lead-
ers who possess and reflect in their leader-
ship roles the greatest combination of joy,
hope, charity and peace (also see Batten,
1989: 129–32; and Snyder, 1994: 86–95)
(see Figure 3).
In this context, joy is defined as the
radiation from within of a spirit of genuine
friendliness, cheerfulness and positive-
ness. Hope is defined as the belief that one
can set goals, figure out how to achieve
them, and generate the appropriate
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ATTENTION
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Figure 3. Model of Keys to Organizational Excellence,
and Leadership Strategies and Values

motivation to accomplish them. Charity is defined as one’s reflection to other living things
of a spirit of patience, kindness, appreciation, acceptance and support. Peace is defined as
a general freedom from unnecessary self-imposed conflict, as well as a sense of personal
worth, well-being and security. Successful entrepreneurial leaders realize that these val-
ues should be precision instruments that inspire, unify and stretch. They believe that lead-
ers who are value-driven are not necessarily thought of by their associates as leading the
parade at all; they are followers of the parade. Truly successful entrepreneurial leaders
nurture an organization that is fundamentally value-led.
Values of Joy and Hope
A key to the nurturing of joy within the entrepreneurial leadership setting is the estab-
lishment of a friendly and supportive organizational culture. Individuals working in this
type of environment typically look forward to coming to work and achieving excellence
in their productive activities. The entrepreneurial leaders so involved in this setting
believe that the more people put in—or give—to work and to their life, the more they
receive. Also, giving typically yields more real pleasure. Opportunities that people have
to express their talents and abilities within the organizational setting bring with them the
joy of creating—of producing, as it were, something that is uniquely the product of their
giftedness (Kelley and Spencer, 2000: 18). In addition, entrepreneurial leaders so involved
and committed relish continuously giving earned praise. Leaders in this setting also seek
the involvement of their people in developing their goals and plans, not only because they
want to use all the talents within their organization, but also because they know that peo-
ple will be more committed to meeting these objectives if they have a part in determining
them.
Such entrepreneurial leaders also have the courage to let people make mistakes, there-
by establishing a safe/fail rather than a fail/safe organization. A case in point is Herb
Kelleher of Southwest Airlines, noted earlier. They recognize that people learn by doing
and so if they do anything they are occasionally going to make some mistakes. By recog-
nizing this, successful entrepreneurial leaders also delegate better. In addition, these lead-
ers believe and live the concept that the development of people, as a whole and in depth,
pays real dividends to both the organization and the individual. These leaders enjoy life—
and their people know it! The thought processes of these entrepreneurial leaders focus on
feelings of accomplishment. They increasingly search and seek out new problem-oriented
opportunities and strength-building challenges—and their people genuinely appreciate it.
Steve Jobs, the co-founder and chief executive of Apple Computer, more than anyone
else, has brought digital technology to the masses. As a visionary, this entrepreneurial
leader saw that computers could be much more than drab productivity tools. Instead, they
could help unleash human creativity and sheer enjoyment. A marketing genius, he con-
ceived of innovative products that captured consumers’ imaginations. And as a relentless
perfectionist, he came up with creations that actually delivered on their promise—raising
the bar for competitors. And perhaps most of all, his people believed in him and his entre-
preneurial leadership skills. In addition to his Apple Computer leadership, he has brought
exciting entrepreneurial leadership to such innovative efforts as NeXT and Pixar, and then
returned to Apple where he quickly breathed life back into the organization with the cus-
tomer-oriented iMac, after which came the iPod and then iTunes innovations (Burrows,
2004: 20).
A key to the nurturing of hope in the organization focuses on the creation of an opti-
mistic and “can-do” entrepreneurial culture. Successful entrepreneurs believe the present

is not merely a state of being to be endured, nor is the future to be feared. Rather, in hope
the present is to be transformed and the future welcomed (Spencer, 1996: 22). Leaders in
this setting are anxious for improvement, growth and a better way—and with a founda-
tion that says, “We can do it!” They have a strong commitment to constantly stretching
and reaching for the best. These entrepreneurs have a broad perspective, read widely, and
have their own personal-development program. They believe that a broad and eclectic
fund of knowledge makes for not only a better generalist, but also a better specialist. They
see the broad picture, look beyond their own arena of activity to think in terms of the cus-
tomer—the ultimate reason for their jobs. They also think positively, believing negativism
is seldom justified. They know that there are plus and minus elements in many situations
but that the minus areas can usually be converted into pluses. Entrepreneurs in this setting
manage by example. They know that the actions of a responsible leader are contagious,
and that there is virtually no limit to potential accomplishment if leaders set the example
of looking for strengths and advantages, and expecting the best—a further reflection of
how one becomes what one thinks about. Such entrepreneurs know that perhaps one of
the finest gifts you can give another person is the gift of a “stretching of expectation”
based on hope, and a never-ending appreciation for that person’s strengths and personal
worth and contributions to the organization.
Values of Charity and Peace
To appreciate and sense the importance of oneself and, at the same time, subordinate
oneself to higher purposes and principles is the paradoxical essence of humanity and the
foundation of effective entrepreneurial leadership (Covey, 1992: 19). Thus, a key to the
value paradigm of charity is the perspective that “I’m OK and you’re OK too” (Harris,
1969: 50–53). Successful entrepreneurial leaders demonstrate appreciation and caring.
Their voices and manners project relaxation and a positive concern. These leaders want
associates to grow and benefit, thereby being committed to the development of the indi-
viduals with whom they are organizationally involved. In so doing, successful entrepre-
neurs have a fused and focused oneness of purpose, effort and direction. They meet com-
mitments, keep their word, and can be relied upon, and expect the same from others in the
organization.
In nurturing the value of charity in the organization, entrepreneurial leaders provide
for a psychic as well as a real wage for their people because they recognize psychologi-
cal as well as physical needs. Their focus is on the whole person. Concern and sensitivi-
ty for the well-being and development of others are of major importance. Entrepreneurs
help to create a caring organizational climate through their own role modeling. Discipline
is at the heart of this value. Successful entrepreneurs practice self-discipline and bring a
focus on discipline to the organizational culture. These leaders know that a sensitivity and
recognition of the personal worth of associates is meaningful, realistic and workable, and
that there is no appropriate substitute for it. Candor is an important aspect of concern.
Such leaders practice truth rigorously and reflect a true warmth of feeling toward their
associates. They have the discipline to say what ought to be said, but practice positive
warmth in the process. Charity as a key leadership value is inseparable from accountabil-
ity. Successful entrepreneurial leaders believe people are more efficient and happier when
they understand clearly what results are expected of them and when they are involved in
determining those results.
The core values and enduring purpose of Marriott Hotels and Resorts bring to the sur-
face a particularly interesting focus to this leadership value of charity. The stated and

displayed core values of Marriott are “Concern for Employees, Commitment to
Continuous Improvement and Overcoming Adversity, and Dedication to Hard Work and
Having Fun While Doing It.” In harmony with these core values, Marriott’s stated and
displayed core purpose is to “Make people away from home feel that they are among
friends and are really wanted.” One of the guiding principles of the firm is “Strength
Beyond Presence of Any One Individual.” Marriott thereby also demonstrates the inter-
esting and crucial distinction between a company with visionary leadership and a vision-
ary company. The sign of a recognized entrepreneurial leader such as Bill Marriott is not
in being indispensable, but in building a company that will surpass itself in subsequent
generations (Marriott and Brown, 1997: 4, 72–73).
The entrepreneurial leadership value of peace has its primary focus on positive recog-
nition and appreciation of the personal worth of oneself and others. These leaders enable
their associates to have a sense of personal worth and appreciation for their fit and con-
tributions within the organization. They know that the actions of a responsible entrepre-
neurial leader are contagious, and that there is virtually no limit to potential accomplish-
ments of the organization if leaders set the example of looking for strengths and expect-
ing the best of their people. This does not mean that entrepreneurs nurture peace as a
means for being satisfied with what exists and a substitute for stretch goals and accom-
plishments of innovative developments. Creative and meaningful visionary thinking by
the leader creates a peaceful dissatisfaction with the present, thereby providing the basic
energy, life and stretch for pulling the organization toward the future. Positive people will
intuitively respond to a leader’s positive dreams and expectations built on an appreciation
for what the individuals and organization have been, are, and can be in the future.
Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, reflects this positive attitude and leadership value.
Microsoft, as the world’s largest software company, has often been accused of piggy-
backing on the innovations of other firms rather than inventing itself. It has even been
accused of using its market clout to suppress creations from rivals. However, Gates was
among the first to recognize that all sorts of companies and products would be created if
a computer’s operating system and all the other software programs were separated from
the hardware. With this innovative dream, and organization he developed based upon a
strong commitment to these leadership values, Bill Gates is credited with turning the dis-
organized PC industry of the late 1970s into today’s huge industry, affecting the net worth
of numerous organizations (Greene, 2004: 18).
Excellent entrepreneurial leaders concentrate on creating positive results and the
commensurate reflections of excellence. These leaders believe that people are on the pay-
roll for one primary reason—to make a meaningful contribution to organizational objec-
tives and to develop their own value to themselves and the organization. Therefore, lead-
ers are the means for creating an appreciative and peaceful discontent within the organi-
zation for the status quo. In some cases, implementation of the value of peace requires that
to nurture an excellence-oriented entrepreneurial workplace, the leader must occasionally
make difficult decisions regarding the employment requirements for associates. But this
is done with patience and concern for the well-being of the organization and the individ-
uals involved. And in an orderly and caring manner, the leader continues to reinforce the
basic value structure for the organization. In so doing, the successful entrepreneur is also
an accomplished conflict manager as well as crisis manager (see Darling, Keeffe, and
Olney, 2005: 53).

Summary and Conclusions
Entrepreneurial leadership values and strategies are the primary competitive advan-
tages that differentiate one organization from another (Nurmi and Darling, 1997: xiii).
These values and strategies are, in turn, the keys to achievement of excellence in the entre-
preneurial organization. Success in fulfilling leadership responsibilities in today’s inno-
vative organization is not a destination at which one arrives, but a manner of traveling that
beckons each person into the future. To be a successful entrepreneur today requires from
each one the very best that person has to give, and a constant awareness of one’s own
capabilities and a commitment to oneself and to others to fulfill expectations.
An analysis of the leadership exhibited by successful entrepreneurs in all arenas of
endeavor indicates that there are four primary reflections of excellence which these lead-
ers help to achieve for their respective organizations: care of customers, constant innova-
tion, committed people, and management leadership. Successful leadership, while highly
situational within the context of a particular entrepreneurial organization, has been found
to be based upon four key strategies: attention through vision, meaning through commu-
nication, trust through positioning, and confidence through respect. Successful entrepre-
neurial leaders make sure that their organization’s philosophy, mission, and objectives are
researched, developed and clearly communicated. They believe the philosophy and mis-
sion must pervade and saturate everything in the organization and form the foundation of
its innovation-related culture.
Research by the authors indicates that the leadership values of joy, hope, charity and
peace provide the foundational paradigm for the implementation of successful entrepre-
neurial leadership strategies and the commensurate achievement of excellence by the
organization. Those entrepreneurs who achieve the greatest level of success in fulfillment
of these leadership strategies are not necessarily the smartest, the richest, the most edu-
cated, the most gifted, or those with the greatest combination of talents and abilities. They
are the individuals who seem to possess the greatest combination of these four leadership
values. Successful entrepreneurial leaders are thereby value-based visionaries and com-
municators, functioning from a position of trust and confidence conveyed upon them by
the individuals with whom they’re involved in the organization. They know that the indi-
viduals within the firm will contribute and receive more if they are supported in develop-
ing clear feelings of purpose, direction, dignity and expectation within an organizational
culture of appreciation, recognition and support. The authors welcome the comments and
observations of other scholars and practitioners of entrepreneurial leadership.
Contact Information
For further information on this article, contact
John R. Darling, Distinguished Visiting Professor of Management, McCoy College of Business
Administration, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666
Tel: 512-245-2571/Fax: 512-245-2850
E-mail: jrd@gvtc.com
Michael J. Keeffe, Associate Professor of Management, McCoy College of Business
Administration, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666
Tel: 512-245-3184/Fax: 512-245-2850
E-mail: mk02@txstate.edu

John K. Ross, Associate Professor of Management, McCoy College of Business Administration,
Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666
Tel: 512-245-2465/Fax: 512-245-2850
E-mail: jr05@txstate.edu
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