Pandemic makers: Emergent networks of collective entrepreneurship in
response to crisis
- Russell Browder,
- Stella Seyb,
- Angela Forgues,
- Howard Aldrich
Abstract
In response to COVID-19 and the shortage of personal protective
equipment, the maker community activated local networks in a display of
collective action. We conducted a multiple case study of emergent
networks to understand how makers self-organized for collective
entrepreneurial action while facing resource constraints and legitimacy
deficits. Although the maker community has endeavored to break free from
institutional constraints, they nonetheless formed relationships with
institutions in need. They deployed learned resourcefulness and learned
legitimation strategies with varying degrees of effectiveness. Our
findings contribute to the literature on resourcefulness, legitimation,
and collective action in entrepreneurship processes.