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The Role of Business Students’ Entrepreneurial Intention and Technology Preparedness in the Digital Age

Author

Listed:
  • Isabelle Biclesanu

    (Faculty of Business Administration in Foreign Languages, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 010731 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Marco Savastano

    (Management Department, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy)

  • Cătălina Chinie

    (Faculty of Business Administration in Foreign Languages, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 010731 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Sorin Anagnoste

    (Faculty of Business Administration in Foreign Languages, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 010731 Bucharest, Romania)

Abstract

Innovative digital technologies, together with new sustainable practices, push for new business models and skillsets, pressuring companies to adapt to external change in order to gain competitive advantage. Higher education institutions could offer support. More than 20% of university graduates in the European Union study “business, administration or law”, with some of them being future top-level managers and entrepreneurs. This paper aims to provide an understanding of the factors shaping business students’ perspectives and decisions in the modern business landscape. It reunites their career preferences, personality characteristics and knowledge regarding technology’s utility for business and compares them between two cohorts (i.e., first year bachelor students and second year master students). The results of an online survey with a sample of 154 respondents show that business students’ entrepreneurial intention is influenced by their entrepreneurial confidence, their boldness when considering risks, as well as by being further along their educational journey. While almost 80% of business students are daring, oriented toward results and confident in their entrepreneurial abilities, and around 50% would feel most comfortable having their own business, approximately half of first year bachelor students and 14% of second year master students tend to be “not sure” regarding how eight out of ten modern technologies mentioned in this paper (i.e., robotic process automation, big data, artificial intelligence, computer vision, industrial robots, internet of things, virtual reality, enterprise resource planning) could improve a company’s innovation and performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Isabelle Biclesanu & Marco Savastano & Cătălina Chinie & Sorin Anagnoste, 2023. "The Role of Business Students’ Entrepreneurial Intention and Technology Preparedness in the Digital Age," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-13, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:13:y:2023:i:8:p:177-:d:1208942
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Maria Vincenza Ciasullo & Raffaella Montera & Francesco Mercuri & Shame Mugova, 2022. "When Digitalization Meets Omnichannel in International Markets: A Case Study from the Agri-Food Industry," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-14, June.
    2. Souitaris, Vangelis & Zerbinati, Stefania & Al-Laham, Andreas, 2007. "Do entrepreneurship programmes raise entrepreneurial intention of science and engineering students? The effect of learning, inspiration and resources," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 566-591, July.
    3. Begley, Thomas M. & Boyd, David P., 1987. "Psychological characteristics associated with performence in entrepreneurial firms and smaller businesses," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 2(1), pages 79-93.
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