Entrepreneurial Leadership Development in the Digital Age

Abstract

During the second half of the 21^st century, academia has presented different studies to conceptualize entrepreneurial leadership without academic consensus.Although leadership and entrepreneurship are distinct, the literature has come to understand their similarities (Harrison et al., 2020). Despite the large number of publications, the characteristics of a leader should be based on an entrepreneurial profile, mainly to gain competitive differentiation for companies through the productivity of their human capital (Addy et al., 2024). Over the last century, the business world has undergone several transformations intrinsically linked to innovations and developments in Information and Communication Technologies. Over the last few decades, the installed business park has changed in computerization and automation, making it necessary to equip human resources with ICT-related tools and knowledge. This and several generations cooperating in companies have brought new challenges to leadership (Figueiredo and Joaquim, 2023). However, in contemporary times, the business sector has to acknowledge the challenges inherent in meeting ESG indicators to respond to the SDGs, forcing leaders to equip themselves with entrepreneurial skills to involve, motivate, and create strategies for promoting innovation and retaining talent (Addy et al., 2024). According to Omeihe et al. (2023), “the role of entrepreneurial leadership in enhancing positive business outcomes” (2023, p. 1), but the authors also acknowledge that leaders should embrace several attributes and skills to implement this new leadership perspective. The entrepreneur concept has gained new topics to discuss and internalize, including ICT and the sustainable domains paradigms regarding the ESG indicators and the SDG goals. This article aims to understand the challenges and competencies needed to conceptualize entrepreneurial leadership by critically reviewing the existing literature and linking it to the inherent needs of ESG and SDG goals; it seems to be the only way to understand and internalize the processes and procedures involved in entrepreneurial leadership in the digital age.