Sustaining Entrepreneurial Intention Beyond the Founding Threshold: A Desirability–Feasibility–Legibility Framework from Operating Founders in India
Abstract
Abstract: Purpose: Research on entrepreneurial intention has been built almost entirely on people who have not yet established their ventures. This study asks what sustains the intention of founders who already operate young ventures and develops a framework linking that intention to new venture development and sustainable performance (SP). Design/ Methodology/ Approach: Survey data from 457 founders running ventures of approximately two years’ standing in Delhi, Gurugram, and Noida (India) were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modelling. Seven antecedents were organized into three forces: desirability, feasibility, and institutional legibility. Founders also rated the severity of 15 challenges in new venture development. Findings: Six of the seven antecedents predicted sustained intention (R² = 0.727; Q² = 0.705), while one did not. Feasibility factors had the highest explanatory weights. Attitude was the strongest single predictor, whereas social influence had no effect (β = 0.003). The factors that the founders endorsed most strongly were not the ones that best predicted their future intention. Access to finance was the second strongest driver of intention and the most significant challenge faced by the entrepreneurs. Research Limitations and Implications: The data were cross-sectional, self-reported, and drawn from a single metropolitan area. The links between intention, venture development, and performance are proposed for future research. Practical Implications: Support for early stage founders should shift from promoting entrepreneurship to making ventures feasible, particularly through non-bank finance channels and founders’ investor communication capabilities. This study re-examines entrepreneurial intention after founding, adds institutional legibility as an individual-level antecedent, and distinguishes what founders possess from what distinguishes them from others.