Journal of Workplace Learning

Entrepreneurial leadership in retail pharmacy: developing economy perspective

Christian Harrison, Stuart Paul, Kevin Burnard,
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JWL
28,3
Entrepreneurial leadership in
retail pharmacy: developing
economy perspective
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150 Christian Harrison

University of the West of Scotland, Hamilton, UK, and
Received 20 January 2015
Revised 3 August 2015 Stuart Paul and Kevin Burnard
Accepted 16 February 2016
University of the West of Scotland, Paisley, UK

Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to uncover the challenges facing entrepreneurs in a developing economy,
using the retail pharmacy sector in Nigeria. Furthermore, the entrepreneurial leadership attributes that
have proved to be valuable in overcoming the challenges faced in this sector will be identified.
Design/methodology/approach – The study is exploratory. Data collection is based on
semi-structured interviews with retail pharmacy entrepreneurs and their employees. Although there
has been some body of literature on entrepreneurial leadership, (Fernald et al., 2005; Gupta et al., 2004),
none have addressed the nexus of leadership and entrepreneurship (Cogliser and Brigham, 2004) from
the retail pharmacy sector of a developing economy.
Findings – Findings show that retail pharmacy entrepreneurs in a developing economy are faced with
challenges such as inadequate capital and poor infrastructural facilities. However, despite these
challenges, these entrepreneurial leaders were successful because of key attributes, namely, vision,
risk-taking and opportunity recognition and exploitation.
Research limitations/implications – The sample size is a limitation to the study. Future studies
with a larger sampling base as well as a different sector will provide greater insight.
Originality/value – This study is the first qualitative study to explore the impact of entrepreneurial
leadership in the retail pharmacy sector in Nigeria. It identified the training needs for entrepreneurs in
this context. By the participants sharing their experiences, the study identified the prerequisites for
success, hence motivating other retail pharmacy entrepreneurs.
Keywords Entrepreneurs, Leadership, Leaders, Training needs, Entrepreneurship, Learning
Paper type Research paper

Introduction
The area of leadership is continually developing and evolving. The concept of
entrepreneurial leadership represents a key stage in this development and provides a
new paradigm within a growing body of literature from both empirical and conceptual
standpoints (Cogliser and Brigham, 2004; Fernald et al., 2005; Gupta et al., 2004). While
the concept has gained increased prominence in recent years, entrepreneurial leadership
has received little focused attention and, as a result, has remained largely conceptual.
Within the context of a developing economy, this is even further compounded (Chen,
Journal of Workplace Learning 2007). As a result, there is little examination within the literature base of how
Vol. 28 No. 3, 2016
pp. 150-167
entrepreneurs relate to their leadership approach from the developing economy
© Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1366-5626
perspective. The result is a research gap in our knowledge and understanding related to
DOI 10.1108/JWL-01-2015-0004 entrepreneurial leadership both conceptually and empirically. Do entrepreneurs possess
 entrepreneurial leadership attributes? Is it important for the success of their business? Entrepreneurial
How has these attributes been able to help them combat their challenges? How can these leadership
entrepreneurs learn to lead? In light of these questions, the paper focuses towards
addressing entrepreneurial leadership from a developing economy perspective.
Following a theory-building approach, the research presented in this paper
investigates the challenges that entrepreneurial leaders face within a developing
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economy. Focused within the retail pharmacy sector in Nigeria, the research is based on 151
the analysis of 12 semi-structured interviews of both entrepreneurs and employees. The
research seeks to better understand what entrepreneurial leadership attributes are
considered most valuable in overcoming the challenges of managing a business. Based
on the findings of the interview, conclusions are then provided offering new insights into
the phenomenon of entrepreneurial leadership. Risk-taking, opportunity recognition
and exploitation and vision are identified as key entrepreneurial leadership attributes
required in overcoming challenges faced in managing a business in a developing
economy.

Literature review
Given the prominence of both the fields of leadership and entrepreneurship, a diverse
body of literature has developed focusing on the intersection between these two areas.
The emerging concept of entrepreneurial leadership provides a critical insight into how
leaders within entrepreneurial settings are able to achieve improved performance under
considerable challenges. The following literature review focuses on the concept of
entrepreneurial leadership as a distinct leadership approach. The review then extends to
address the challenges entrepreneurs face within a developing economy.

Entrepreneurial leadership
Entrepreneurial leadership is a new paradigm that has emerged from the domains of
leadership and entrepreneurship (Fernald et al., 2005). However, while drawing on these
areas, the concept of entrepreneurial leadership remains distinct. This is reflected within
the plethora of definitions that have emerged about entrepreneurial leadership (Gupta
et al., 2004; Hejazi et al., 2012; Renko et al., 2015). Entrepreneurial leadership has been
defined as a type of leadership that creates visionary scenarios that are used to assemble
and mobilise a “supporting cast” of participants who become committed to the vision,
discovery and exploitation of strategic value creation (Gupta et al., 2004, p. 242). This is
further extended by Renko et al. (2015, p. 55), who define entrepreneurial leadership as
“influencing and directing the performance of group members towards achieving those
organisational goals that involves recognising and exploiting entrepreneurial
opportunities”. However, even with the increasing number of definitions, development
within the area of entrepreneurial leadership has been limited by lack of conceptual
development and the absence of adequate tools to assess characteristics and behaviours
of entrepreneurial leaders (Renko et al., 2015).
Despite the growing interest in the field, academic research into entrepreneurial
leadership lacks an established empirical base. Past research work within the area has
primarily examined entrepreneurial leadership as a convergence of entrepreneurship
and leadership (Cogliser and Brigham, 2004; Fernald et al., 2005). The key work in this
area by Cogliser and Brigham (2004) neither defines the concept of entrepreneurial
leadership (Roomi and Harrison, 2011) nor demonstrates how it could be effectively
 JWL measured (Gupta et al., 2004; Renko et al., 2015). For other researchers, the psychological
28,3 profile of entrepreneurial leaders is paramount; hence, they identified the characteristics
essential in such individuals (Gupta et al., 2004; Nicholson, 1998; Renko et al., 2015).
Characteristics such as risk-taking, envisioning, opportunity recognition were
identified. However, Nicholson (1998) adopted a trait approach which has been criticised
by various researchers as a narrow view (Vecchio, 2003). Additionally, Gupta et al.
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152 (2004) used GLOBE data not initially intended to address the concept of entrepreneurial
leadership, while Renko et al. (2015) developed a scale to measure entrepreneurial
leadership by looking at the follower’s perspective and ignoring how these leaders
perceive their abilities. These approaches mirror the trait perspective in mainstream
leadership research and has been heavily criticised for failing to take into account the
impact of context.
The ways in which entrepreneurs learn to become leaders within their organisations
has also received little attention, especially within a small firm context (Kempster and
Cope, 2010). Though literature on entrepreneurial leadership is diverse and authors have
adopted various approaches within their inquiry, there has been little or no
consideration on how entrepreneurial leadership can be developed (Roomi and Harrison,
2011). Gupta et al. (2004) provides a list of 19 attributes but fails to acknowledge that
such capabilities may be learned over time. His work seems to give credence to the early
trait approaches, implying that entrepreneurial leaders are born with these innate
leadership attributes (Kempster and Cope, 2010).

The developing economy context

Interest in entrepreneurship has grown in almost all parts of the world. There has been
a heightened interest in entrepreneurship in both developed and developing countries.
This is very visible because entrepreneurs have been a dominant image in both the
developed and developing economies (Inyang and Enuoh, 2009). However, the
heightened interest in entrepreneurship may be due to the link between entrepreneurial
activity and economic growth or performance. Studies have shown that increased
entrepreneurial activity can lead to improved economic performance (Berkowitz and
DeJong, 2005; Carree and Thurik, 2010; Robbins et al., 2000). However, the context of the
developing economy presents a range of challenges for entrepreneurs.
Harrison and Paul (2014) in their systematic review on entrepreneurial leadership
demonstrated that prior studies are oriented towards developed economies and have
neglected the developing economy context. However, entrepreneurs in countries with
different levels of gross domestic product per capital face different challenges; as a
result, policies and conditions favourable to entrepreneurship in one country (or region)
may not be effective or favourable in another (Acs, 2006). Challenges such as inadequate
capital, poor infrastructural facilities and corruption have been identified as factors
inhibiting the growth of small businesses in developing countries (Gray et al., 1997;
Kiggundu, 2002; Mambula, 2002; Okpara and Wynn, 2007; Okpara, 2011; Trulsson,
1997; van Dijk, 1995). Nigeria is not an exception.
The study discussed in this paper was conducted in Nigeria. The significance of
examining Nigeria lies in the fact that it is an ideal example of a developing economy
with a gross national income per capita of less than $12,746 (World Bank, 2015). No
sector mirrors the importance of entrepreneurial leadership as much as the Nigerian
retail pharmacy industry. The challenges faced by retail pharmacy entrepreneurs
 resonate with entrepreneurs generally. Many of these challenges include change in Entrepreneurial
stakeholder demands, leadership skills, inadequate capital and infrastructural facilities. leadership
Preliminary analysis suggests that relatively lower requirements of investment, human
resources, knowledge and capital are among the reasons that entrepreneurs in
developing countries focus on the retail sector (Klapper et al., 2010); hence, in developing
countries, cost and time barriers to starting a business favour the retail trade (Adegbite
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et al., 2007). In Nigeria, the retail sector continues to grow. As stated by Euromonitor 153
International (2013, p. 1):
The Nigerian retail environment achieved considerable growth over the review period. This
can mainly be attributed to the growing Nigerian population, which is generating increasing
demand for retailers in the country.
Therefore, the retail pharmacy industry provides a relevant context in which to conduct
empirical research.

Methodology
Approach
The research aims to provide a critical insight into the development of entrepreneurial
leadership attributes. These attributes shape the performance of firms through
providing leaders with an entrepreneurial understanding and skill set. Leaders are then
better able to explore opportunities and develop commercial ventures. The research then
extends to address the challenges entrepreneurs face within the context of a developing
economy. As such, the research addresses three research objectives informed from the
evidence of the literature review. These are as follows:
(1) Research Objective 1: To provide valid empirical evidence that will contribute to
our understanding of entrepreneurial leadership, particularly in the context of a
developing economy.
(2) Research Objective 2: To identify the attributes of effective entrepreneurial
leaders.
(3) Research Objective 3: To consider the impact of entrepreneurial leadership
attributes in combating the challenges faced by entrepreneurs in a developing
economy.

The research paradigm selected for this study was constructionism – interpretivism
(Ponterotto, 2005). Constructionism is grounded in human experiences within their
social-cultural milieu, thus enabling a full account to be taken of the context in which
learning takes place (Guba and Lincoln, 1998). The interpretivist approach stems
from an acceptance that deep meaning and understanding can only be uncovered
through interaction between the researcher and the subject (Gergen, 1985). This
approach, however, poses considerable challenges to researchers if they are unable
to convince their audience of the rigour and reliability of the research process.
Specifically, in an entrepreneurial context, Leitch et al. (2010) remind interpretivist
researchers that it is their responsibility to provide the reader with adequate
information on the design and conduct of their research so that the rigour and
integrity of the process can be easily assessed. As a result, the developed research
design acknowledges these concerns and follows a robust qualitative approach
within data collection and analysis.
 JWL Method and data generation
28,3 The research design followed a qualitative approach through the use of semi-structured
interviews within data collection. As the study was related to developing an
understanding rather than measuring, it was judged necessary to adopt an approach
that gave “voice” (Bluhm et al., 2011, p. 1871) to the individual entrepreneurs. This
allowed respondents to discuss their perceptions and the processes involved (Gartner
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154 et al., 1992; Smircich and Stubbart, 1985). This qualitative and idiographic methodology
reinforced, the exploratory nature of the study (Yin, 2003).
Data were collected through in-depth interviews with respondents supported by an
interview protocol. The use of such an approach facilitates an analysis through which
patterns in the data can be examined and explored (Taylor and Bogdan, 1998). In-depth
interviews also provide an opportunity to collect rich contextual evidence and meanings
in an area that has not been previously explored in depth (Howorth et al., 2004).
Interviews were transcribed and peer reviewed, and where possible, archival and
company documents were used to provide data triangulation.
The research followed a purposive sampling approach set by the following criteria:
• The entrepreneur should own her/his retail pharmacy and the business must have
been in existence for not less than five years. This is important because it indicates
that the entrepreneur has been in the industry long enough to have experienced
the challenges and survived, whereas others went or may still go burst.
• The business has to have achieved significant growth in terms of retail expansion,
namely, having, at the time of the research, more than one outlet.
• The business must have at least five employees of which one would be willing to
be interviewed as part of the research process.

An interview protocol was developed to provide reliability and consistency across the
semi-structured interviews. The protocol was derived from the literature related to
entrepreneurial leadership. The interview then explored both the entrepreneurial
leadership attributes and their context, for example, asking an interviewee to recall the
impact of critical episodes in their business career to date. To encourage interviewees to
speak openly, each interviewee was also assured that, in any publication of research
outcomes, their identities would be anonymised. With the permission of each
respondent, interviews were recorded, and these lasted from 40 minutes to 2 hours and
were conducted at a place of the interviewee’s choosing, often a business office but
locations also included homes and business clubs. The research was conducted over a
six-month period in 2014 during which time there was little change to the
industry-context, a point confirmed by interviewees. Each interview was also peer
reviewed to ensure validity.

Data analysis
All forms of qualitative data analysis are intended to move researchers towards
understanding and insight (Klag and Langley, 2013). However, data can be difficult to
comprehend; boundaries between different issues raised by interviewees are often
ambiguous in terms of precision, relevance and importance. In keeping with the
constructionist–interpretivist paradigm of the study, an inductive approach was
employed whereby the interviews were analysed by looking for recurring themes to
emerge from the data. The sample of this study consisted of four retail pharmacy
 entrepreneurs with two of their employees. It should be noted that a number of studies Entrepreneurial
have utilised semi-structured interviews in investigating entrepreneurial leadership leadership
(Carpenter, 2012; Jones and Crompton, 2009; Kempster and Cope, 2010). However, such
studies have focused only on the entrepreneurs and did not interview the followers. This
is a methodological weakness, as research has shown that entrepreneurs tend to have an
over-exaggerated conception of their abilities (Busenitz and Barney, 1997; Cooper et al.,
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1988). To address this limitation, the research reported in this paper also conducted 155
interviews with two employees in each pharmacy. The major advantage of adopting a
leader/follower approach is data triangulation. Using more than one data source (i.e. the
leader and follower) within a single study to examine a particular phenomenon enhances
the validity of the findings. In providing a dual perspective (leader/follower) of
entrepreneurial leadership, this study thereby provides a distinctive perspective.
Thematic analysis via NVivo was adopted in analysing transcripts. Furthermore, in
the presentation of the results, quotes from the data are utilised to give voice (Ryan and
Bernard, 2003) and authenticity (Bansal and Corley, 2011) to the text. To ensure validity
within the findings, multiple data sources and elements of triangulation were used.

Limitations
While individuals cannot give a complete account of how their thinking and actions
have changed as a result of their experiences (Frankish et al., 2013), what can be
uncovered by engaging face-to-face with entrepreneurs should not be underestimated.
As Morris et al. (2011, p. 230) point out, there is much to be realised by “unpacking the
direct, first-person experience” that cannot be obtained by any other means. In this
study, the most compelling advantage of utilising interviews to generate data is that it
provided the opportunity of reaching a depth of understanding about the subject matter
other methods could not provide.
The sample size is another limitation to the study. The researcher was unable to gain
access to more than 12 respondents (Four retail pharmacy entrepreneurs and eight
employees). Future studies with a larger sampling base as well as a different sector will
provide greater insight into the emerging theory of entrepreneurial leadership.

Findings
The research focuses on the retail pharmacy sector within Nigeria. The significance of
examining Nigeria lies in the fact that it provides an example of an economy facing
considerable challenges prevalent in many developing countries, namely, political
stability, poor infrastructure and corruption (Nkechi et al., 2012). The retail pharmacy
sector was selected for the research because of its importance to the Nigerian economy
as well as the dynamic setting it provides. With the increase in the number of online
stores, retail pharmacy has become increasingly competitive (Jambulingam et al., 2005).
As the health-care system moves increasingly with forces of the market, it becomes a
less predictable setting for both health professionals and consumers alike. Pharmacy
entrepreneurs are then faced with market fluctuations, demographic changes that affect
the health-care system, introduction of new technologies and the increasing drive to
integrate organisational functions and finance into a seamless service.
For this study, success was judged based on the number of branches, age of the
business and the number of employees. This is presented in Table I.
 JWL The selection criteria are consistent with previous works in broad stream
28,3 entrepreneurship literature (Cooper, 1982; Cressy, 2006; Schutjens and Wever, 2000).
Two of the entrepreneurs had 5 branches, while one entrepreneur had 8 and another 22
branches. The companies established by the entrepreneurs had been in existence
between 6 and 24 years. All the entrepreneurs had at least 63 employees, with two
having over 100 employees.
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156 Table II provides demographic details of the entrepreneurs and employees involved
in the study. This is arranged based on the order in which the interviews were
conducted, with Pharmacy A being the first interviewed and Pharmacy D the last. The
pseudonyms used were similar to the entrepreneurs, with Respondents A1 and A2 as
employees of Entrepreneur A.
Towards addressing the research objectives, the results of the study are presented
under two headings. First, the challenges faced by the retail pharmacy entrepreneurs are
provided. Following this, the entrepreneurial leadership attributes considered most
valuable in overcoming these challenges are identified and discussed.

Challenges
Following the analysis of the interviews, two dominant themes emerged in relation to
the challenges that entrepreneur face. These are inadequate capital and poor
infrastructural facilities. These challenges highlight the significant barriers
entrepreneurs face within the success of a firm.

Pharmacy No. of branches Age of business No. of employees Type of location

Pharmacy A 5 6 63 Urban
Table I. Pharmacy B 8 24 102 Rural
Profile of the Pharmacy C 22 20 167 Urban
business Pharmacy D 5 13 74 Rural

Length of Interview
Pharmacy Respondent Age Gender service Qualification length (words)

Pharmacy A Entrepreneur A 42 Female 6 BPharm 6,965

Pharmacy A Employee A1 26 Female 3 BSc 6,071
Pharmacy A Employee A2 31 Male 4 BSc 7,118
Pharmacy B Entrepreneur B 53 Male 24 MBA 6,323
Pharmacy B Employee B1 25 Female 5 BPharm 9,233
Pharmacy B Employee B2 34 Male 6 BSc 4,272
Pharmacy C Entrepreneur C 50 Female 20 BPharm 11,844
Pharmacy C Employee C1 27 Male 2 BPharm 5,719
Pharmacy C Employee C2 35 Female 8 BPharm 6,362
Table II. Pharmacy D Entrepreneur D 44 Male 13 MBA 8,336
Demographic profile Pharmacy D Employee D1 28 Female 3 BSc 6,541
of the respondents Pharmacy D Employee D2 29 Male 5 BPharm 6,870
 Inadequate capital Entrepreneurial
In line with literature on the problems of entrepreneurship in developing economies leadership
(Nkechi et al., 2012; Okpara, 2011), there was much consensus across the respondents on
the challenge of inadequate capital in running their businesses. The respondents
highlighted that their businesses are capital intensive; hence, you must have adequate
capital to fund the business both with the required stock and amenities. Without
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sufficient capital, significant constraints are placed on investment in new technologies, 157
staff development and training as well as location expansion. Indeed, without adequate
capital, it would be difficult to set up the business. Entrepreneur D’s remark illustrates
this:
The major challenge is finance. There is no way you can do this business without finance. First
of all is the finance (Entrepreneur D).
Entrepreneur A stressed she did not even take into consideration the enormity of this
challenge until she had delved into it:
Being in a mall I did not take into account the fees. They have a lot of fees and it is based on the
square footage. I am glad that I did not have a big shop because the amount is really steep.
Balancing everything not making your product too expensive and out of reach for the people
who you really want to take care of has been a challenge. Of course, you have professionals and
you have to pay their salaries and it has to be consistent, I don’t believe in owing people, so that
has been the major challenge, the finance.
All their employees recognised the impact of inadequate capital in the efficient running
of the business by their bosses. They described inadequate capital as one of the greatest
challenges because to satisfy their customers, they had to stock variety of drugs which
are financially demanding. This is summarised by Employee B1’s comment below:
One of the greatest challenges pharmacist face in running their business is finance because of
loans. There are no loans coming and apart from that when you invest in pharmacy business,
it takes time before you start reaping the fruit of your labour. It might take two, three years. I
have worked in some upcoming pharmacies and it is really frustrating because they didn’t
make enough to pay their pharmacists.
However, the effect of inadequate finance may be argued to be one of the challenges
faced in the teething stage of the business. This is to say that as the enterprise grows, the
ability of the entrepreneur to acquire finance increases. This is seen in Entrepreneur B’s
case:
At the beginning it was finance, but as we grew bigger, finance was not a problem again. As
they say money follows a good idea; we have banks. At the beginning it was a challenge
because you are still small, you are risky so as to speak to the bankers. They are not really keen
because they are not sure you are going to pay back any loan. But as we grew bigger and made
a brand for ourselves, now we have banks that come along and say that they will finance this
and finance is no longer the problem.

Poor infrastructural facilities

Poor infrastructure was identified by the respondents as one of the central problems
faced in running their business. These infrastructural deficits place considerable
limitations on the ability of the business to provide services to customers. As a result,
entrepreneurs have to develop contingencies to ensure business functions continue.
 JWL Some of the respondents highlighted bad roads as one of the problems of infrastructure.
28,3 Bad roads had affected their customer loyalty by making their outlets inaccessible as a
result of traffic. This is illustrated in Employee B1’s remark below:
The roads are bad and because of this there is usually traffic and these sometimes affect our
customers coming here. The fear of encountering traffic may prevent them from coming.
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158 Inconsistent power supply was also identified by both entrepreneurs and their
employees as a major challenge of infrastructure in running their business. Employee C2
refers to this as an everlasting problem which is not peculiar to the retail pharmacy
sector but to all businesses which operate in Nigeria. For Entrepreneur B, it is an
Achilles hill in every industry, and Employee B1 believes that it is a failure on the part
of the government. All the respondents felt that the business will be more profitable if
there was less cost incurred on power generation.
Entrepreneur C remarked:
The power, I spend so much money in running the generators. If you see at the end of the day,
what really takes most of the expenses is it. When I usually do my analysis at the end of the
month, there is a group I belong to and we submit our monthly expenses. I find out that the cost
of running the generator and all that is high.
However, these entrepreneurs have realised that to succeed, it is inevitable that you have
to spend a sizable income in infrastructure. The nature of the business ensures that there
is no room for lapse in terms of stock maintenance and customer satisfaction. These
were illustrated in their comments.

Entrepreneurial leadership attributes

Despite the challenges these entrepreneurs faced, they were still able to achieve success
in this environment. Findings from the interviews with both the entrepreneurs and their
employees showed that the presence of specific entrepreneurial leadership attributes
played a key part in addressing these challenges. These attributes are risk-taking,
opportunity recognition and exploitation and vision. These are discussed below.

Risk-taking
Respondents emphasised the need to effectively manage risk and uncertainty within the
operation of their businesses. It is not surprising that risk-taking has emerged as an
important attribute of an entrepreneurial leader. Research has shown that risk-taking is
one of the main components or characteristics of entrepreneurial leadership (Carpenter,
2012; Chen, 2007; Gupta et al., 2004; Renko et al., 2015). In taking risks, respondents first
identified the potential loss that could occur – the “downside” risk. Thereafter, they
considered the probability of such a loss and how it could be minimised. For these
respondents, risk-taking is part of the business.
Entrepreneur A’s remark illustrates this:
Any business man is a risk taker.
For all entrepreneurs and their employees, taking risks is inevitable in business. If you
cannot take risks, then you may not succeed in the business. However, this approach
must be supported by an in-depth understanding of the business and its environment.
Entrepreneur B described how he continues to take risks even when the business is
facing losses:
 You have to be bold to do it. Sometimes I did well and sometimes drugs expire and you lose Entrepreneurial
money. The natural response is for people to get away from them but that is when I make
another order […] You have to be courageous. We have lost a lot of money in expiries.
leadership
However, consensus was not reached on the level of risk-taking. Two of the
entrepreneurs state that they take moderate risks; before embarking on a venture, they
consider the consequences. Entrepreneur D commented:
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I take risks but it is calculated risks. Worst case scenario at least you have your money back. 159
You have your original money, if you cannot make a profit fine but at least you have your
capital. I will not gamble the whole nine yards, capital plus profit. I can’t.
Entrepreneur C remarked:
Some companies come in and say Madam we are giving you this product half price and it
is expiring in December. I look at the profit margin at the end of the year, what I will make
and I key into it. That is a good risk. I quickly go into my system and check what I have
been selling before and ask myself what I have sold for the past six months. Have I sold
this? I check other brands, we don’t have enough and the dates are far. I will push them
aside and embark on it.
This is contrary to the other two entrepreneurs who do not mind losing their money. In
fact, they continue to invest in the same activity even when it continues to bring losses
believing at one point in time it will become profitable. This example is shown in
Entrepreneur A’s comment:
I have experience where I continue to buy a particular drug each time. Each time I buy this
drug it will expire on the shelf. I will not make any profit but instead of giving up I still go and
stock that product again. So I keep on doing this until the time I get a particular patient on this
product.
This was also confirmed by Employee A2:
She takes high risks. Most risks she takes could fail but somehow they don’t. She buys a lot of
drugs even when she knows that they could expire on the shelf. In short she takes a lot of risks;
high risk.
Nevertheless, findings show that in this risky and dynamic environment,
entrepreneurial leaders are willing to take and accept risks when faced with underlying
opportunities.

Opportunity recognition and exploitation

All the entrepreneurs believed that their ability to identify and exploit opportunities was
important to the success of the business. Some opportunities came by sheer providence,
but the ability to exploit them was a key reason for an entrepreneur’s success. This is
illustrated in the comment by Entrepreneur B:
Though I came back home due to family issues, I saw an opportunity available, and decided to
open a shop since it’s what I have always wanted to do […]
Some of the entrepreneurs such as Entrepreneurs A and D expanded the number of
their outlets to fill a gap they had identified. Respondent D opened a branch in an
emerging market believing that “[…] it is a good place to be”. For Respondent A, the
increase in the number of outlets is to meet the demands of customers coming from
far and wide.
 JWL Entrepreneur C stressed the importance of opportunity identification and
28,3 exploitation. She stressed that her success cannot be attributed to solely hard work;
rather, it had been as a result of exploiting opportunities. This is emphasised in her
comment:
You could be working hard based on nothing but also reaching out to seize the opportunities
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around you is the most important thing. So I don’t see myself as […] I work hard in it but I
160 didn’t work hard to earn the locations. Once I found myself, I took up the challenge but not the
other way round.
All employees shared the view that their bosses have the ability to identify and exploit
opportunities Employee C2 attributes their vast expansion to the ability of her boss to
recognise a gap in the market. For Employee A2, his boss is able to spot the
opportunities in the industry because she is constantly developing herself. Sometimes,
these opportunities were not new in the market, but their bosses were always quick to
exploit them. Respondent A2 stresses this in his remark:
There are none of these products that are new. They have been in the market whether it is
oncology or fertility products for years but we are usually one of the first companies to register
market and work hard at pushing these drugs. So much so that it shows the potential in some
of these markets that other people in some cases have come and focused in one particular thing
and will probably have a larger market share than us.
These entrepreneurs took the initiative when required and had the desire to create and
envision a successful future which will be discussed next.

Vision
The findings from the data identified that the entrepreneurs had a vision. They had a
clear and explicit objective of what they wanted their business to become in the period
ahead. This ranged from expansion to greater brand awareness. The data demonstrated
that these entrepreneurs were not just day dreamers but had specific plans to achieve
their vision. Respondent B showed a clear link between planning and envisioning. For
him, to achieve the vision requires an ambitious implementation plan. This is illustrated
in his comment:
[…] we still need to weed out some people because we are looking at 10 (more pharmacies) in
five years it is not too far away. So we have to weed out some people and keep the strategy. Our
plan to build a manufacturing plant is still in the pipeline.
Most of the respondents supported the stance of Entrepreneur B, that envisioning
requires planning. This is summarised in the remark by Entrepreneur A:
My brand is going to be stronger. We are going to some strategic places. We are going to Port
Harcourt. We are in Delta state. We are going to some strategic places. Abuja, we are working
on that. It is going to be a brand to be reckoned with.
As with the entrepreneurs, all the employees recognised that their bosses were
visionary. They had a vivid picture of the future of the business. Employee B2
emphasises this in his comment:
This is a man that sits and compares his business with the big banks not minding how those
banks have been in existence over centuries. He always sees himself ahead.
 On the other hand, the employees agree that there are specific plans in place to achieve Entrepreneurial
the vision of their bosses; hence, a link is established between planning and envisioning. leadership
For Employee C2, to become the pharmacy of choice in the country, they have to be
accessible. They are positioned where people can easily reach them. For her, this drives
and pushes their growth.
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Discussion
161
Following the analysis of the interviews, three key entrepreneurial leadership attributes
were identified. These attributes support how entrepreneurs address challenges and
achieve success within the context of a developing economy. Based on the analysis and
a review of related literature, the following section provides a discussion related to
recommendations for the learning and training needs of entrepreneurs in this context.
To succeed in the context of a developing economy, it is arguable that the entrepreneurs
must improve in the following areas.

Developing and communicating the vision

Vision involves “creating a picture of what the future state will be like” (Flamholtz,
2011, p. 7). In other words, entrepreneurial leaders need to be able to create a vivid
picture of the future for the organisation to create added value. When the vision is
known and shared it creates enthusiasm, motivation and builds the confidence of
people in the organisation (Karanian, 2007; Roomi and Harrison, 2011). As stated by
Darling et al. (2007, p. 10), “Vision grabs attention”. Therefore, entrepreneurial
leaders should be able to communicate the vision to their employees in an exciting
and inspirational fashion to ensure implementation (Abbas and Tatfi, 2010; Cogliser
and Brigham, 2004).
Envisioning the future is fundamental to most approaches of transformational
and charismatic leadership. While leaders can readily grasp the concept of
envisioning, it is a difficult skill to learn and put into practice. Evidence from this
study suggests that envisioning works best when a leader views it as a two-stage
process. Among interviewees, the first stage of envisioning was a largely
introspective activity whereby the individual contemplates her/his business idea.
To take the idea forward, an individual must develop not only a personal vision of
how the idea or concept may be realised but also a deep, personal belief that it will
be successful.
The second stage of the envisioning process requires the individual to sell this vision
to a range of diverse stakeholders. These can include family, investors and staff. To
bring on board both the financial muscle and the talent necessary for a start-up to
succeed places huge demands on an individual to articulate the future in such a way that
it resonates with these diverse groupings.
A similar two-stage envisioning process can readily be applied by leaders in
other industries. A leader needs to invest time conducting a conversation with
herself/himself to refine and construct an image of the future in which she/he truly
believes. Thereafter, the leader must effectively communicate this vision to those
stakeholders who can help make the vision a reality. Putting the skill of envisioning
into practice will be easier when a leader conceives of it as a two-stage process.
Effective use of such skill will help overcome the formidable challenges of capital
 JWL and poor infrastructure, as these entrepreneurial leaders will be able to provide and
28,3 sell their vision to others.

Recognition and exploitation of opportunities

In addition, another training need for entrepreneurs is opportunity recognition and
exploitation. Entrepreneurs need to respond quickly to environmental opportunities
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162 (Surie and Ashley, 2008). As a matter of fact, the growth of any enterprise is based on the
ability of the entrepreneurial leader to recognise market opportunities that others cannot
see and effectively exploit them.
Therefore, developing this attribute is very paramount in the success of any
business. Ways through which such attribute could be developed involves but not
limited to business experience. By making a conscious effort to understand more about
the market in which the individual operates, it increases the understanding of the trends
of the market, thereby increasing the success rate of the enterprise in a developing
economy.

Risk-taking and entrepreneurial leadership

Though no consensus was reached on the level of risk-taking by entrepreneurs in this
study, all the respondents agreed that risk-taking is a necessary attribute of an
entrepreneurial leader. As with opportunity recognition and exploitation, all leaders
have to deal with risks. These risks when embarked on could be successful and, at times,
could lead to failure and disappointment. Such risks entrepreneurial leaders’ face are not
limited to just finances but also includes career, social and psychic risk (Kuratko, 2007).
However, entrepreneurial leaders are not gamblers but take calculated and prudential
risks (Carpenter, 2012). Hence, it is important for entrepreneurs to learn how to take
calculated and prudential risks. Before an entrepreneur embarks on a particular scheme,
a lot of thought process needs to be considered. What are the chances of success? How
much profit will the business generate? If the business fails, will you be able to get your
ploughed capital back? Some of these questions need to be answered before proceeding,
and this could fundamentally affect the perceptions of such risks as being high,
moderate or low.
However, irrespective of the consequence of such risks, entrepreneurial leaders
should be able to look at their disruptions to progress, analyse what went wrong and
move on without giving up (Roomi and Harrison, 2011). This is critical to the survival of
any organisation, especially in countries facing formidable challenges and should be
learnt.

Conclusion
This paper has attempted to critically explore entrepreneurial leadership by identifying
the challenges faced by entrepreneurs within a developing economy. Drawing on 12
interviews conducted with both the entrepreneurs and their employees within the
Nigerian retail pharmacy sector, the paper identified three key entrepreneurial
leadership attributes. These attributes were considered essential within addressing the
outlined challenges of the environment.
The challenges facing entrepreneurs include inadequate capital and poor
infrastructural facilities. There is much evidence of each theme; however,
inadequate capital held prominence over poor infrastructure. This is in line with
studies by Nkechi et al. (2012) and Okpara (2011). However, some researchers have
 disagreed on the extent to which small businesses are affected by capital (Okpara, Entrepreneurial
2011). Kallon (1990) argues based on his findings that the amount of capital needed leadership
to start a business is negatively related to the growth rate of the business. However,
this study has shown that the lack of financial support is a major bane for
entrepreneurs. Indeed, many entrepreneurs have little access to capital and obtain
their funds from family and personal savings. Therefore, access to capital remains
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a significant challenge. 163

In the retail pharmacy sector, significant capital is required. The pharmaceuticals
and other related products distributed and sold are usually expensive. So to break into
this market, a large amount of financial resource is required. Nevertheless, when these
businesses grow and develop, it becomes easier to have access to such finance. But the
question remains how will the businesses succeed if they do not have access to finance
in the first place? It is pertinent that the government steps in to encourage those owners
that do not have access to adequate capital. The government could encourage these
entrepreneurs by lowering interest rates charged by banks as well as reviewing their
stance on collateral. However, this is a much broader issue than covered within the scope
of this research.
Poor infrastructural facilities in form of bad roads and power failure are a recurrent
problem. It has been shown from this study to negatively affect the growth of businesses
and has made the cost of products sold increasingly expensive. Several roads and
transport links across Nigeria are poor; hence, this affects the customer turnout. In
addition, the power supply in Nigeria is unreliable and most retail pharmacies have to
use generators. The cost of this alternative source of generating electricity is high and
most retail pharmacy entrepreneurs cannot meet such financial demand. The
inadequate capital and its inaccessibility as discussed earlier makes it even harder to
remain in business. Moreover, those that remain in the business find it difficult to obtain
profit, thereby discouraging entrepreneurs from engaging in the sector. However,
current investment in provision of good roads and improved power generation and
supply within Nigeria is underway (NPC, 2010).
Despite the challenges identified, entrepreneurial leadership attributes of the
entrepreneurs have made them successful. Reflecting on the insights gained from
the interviews, the paper’s main value lies in its contribution to theory and practice.
This has been valuable in identifying the training needs for retail pharmacy
entrepreneurs to succeed in running their organisations. For entrepreneurs to
succeed in a dynamic environment in a developing economy, they should have a
vision of the future of their business. They should be able to identify opportunities
and effectively exploit them without being risk averse. The study contributes to the
existing literature on entrepreneurial leadership by identifying attributes important
for success. Finally, the research provides an original theoretical and empirical
contribution to entrepreneurial leadership from the retail pharmacy sector of a
developing economy perspective.

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Corresponding author
Christian Harrison can be contacted at: [email protected]

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