The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of entrepreneurship in business performance. A theoretical model has been developed and tested, focused on the inter-relationships that exist between orientation and organizational culture - entrepreneurial orientation, market orientation, and organizational learning - and their respective impact on innovation success and business performance. Based on a sample of 157 organizations, the results indicate that entrepreneurial orientation exerts a strong and direct impact on business performance. The effects of entrepreneurial orientation on performance are greater than those of market orientation, which have a stronger influence over innovation success. Both orientations seem to be complementary, and their joint effect generates results that are consistent with corporate activities. The moderating role of the size of the organization on the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and performance was not confirmed.
Entrepreneurship; entrepreneurial orientation; market orientation; business performance; learning organizations
