Digital entrepreneurial intentions and actions in China during the COVID-19 pandemic with policy implications

Despite the rapid development of digital start-ups and market expansion in China, there have been challenges for developing digital business in recent years. Unique economic, institutional, and social factors, as well as the recent COVID-19 pandemic, influence the digital entrepreneurs and their businesses. Yet, the literature on the changing digital entrepreneurial behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic remains limited. The intentions and behaviours of these entrepreneurs in relation to their digital start-ups and the impact caused by exogenous changes require deeper investigation. By adopting an intention-based social cognitive perspective, this study examines the factors influencing digital entrepreneurs' intentions and actions in managing their start-ups. We also present a holistic framework with regard to the changing entrepreneurial behaviour and policy implications for the development of digital start-ups.

Opportunities and Threats Facing Early-Stage Digital Startups During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly influenced entrepreneurship and new venture creation to this point. Besides, it has caused consumer lifestyle modifications as well as alterations in business products and services, leading to paradigm shifts in the market. In this respect, startups have been also coping with numerous challenges and prospects in this period, and COVID-19 has even resulted in the rise and fall of many companies. This condition has been far more for early-stage startups, particularly the ones in their infancy life cycle. On the other hand, thanks to the changes in people’s lifestyles, digital and online businesses have gained much popularity. For this purpose, the present study aimed to identify and analyze opportunities and threats encountering early-stage digital startups during the COVID-19 pandemic. Accordingly, in-depth interviews were conducted with a total number of 30 members working in 13 startup teams, and their data were finally examined using thematic analysis. Ultimately, 13 opportunities and 19 threats within 4 categories of “market and marketing,” “startup team,” “operational and management issues,” and “financial and economic activities” were introduced. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.