26. ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP

Entrepreneurial leadership is a modern leadership approach that combines the mindset of entrepreneurship with the principles of leadership. It focuses on innovation, adaptability, proactive decision-making, and calculated risk-taking while guiding teams toward organizational goals. Unlike traditional leadership styles that mainly focus on stability and following established procedures, entrepreneurial leadership encourages creativity, opportunity recognition, and forward-looking thinking. Entrepreneurial leaders are usually proactive, open to change, willing to support new ideas, and capable of helping organizations adapt to uncertainty and complex business environments.

 

An important gap in entrepreneurship and leadership literature is that entrepreneurial leadership is still not widely recognized as one of the major leadership styles within many leadership and project management studies. Most traditional theories continue to focus mainly on leadership styles such as transformational, transactional, laissez-fair, and others, while entrepreneurial leadership remains less discussed and often overlooked. In many studies, entrepreneurial leadership is often associated mainly with entrepreneurs starting and managing businesses, while entrepreneurs may simultaneously apply another leadership style such as transformational leadership. In addition, most previous studies examined entrepreneurial leadership mainly within small and medium enterprises (SMEs), startups, or information technology (IT) businesses rather than recognizing it as a leadership approach applicable within large organizations and complex industrial environments.

 

However, my dissertation titled “The Impact of Entrepreneurial Leadership on Project Management Success through Team Resilience: A Study in the Egyptian Petrochemical Sector” in 2025 (*) attempts to address these gaps by recognizing entrepreneurial leadership as an additional leadership style alongside the traditional ones and arguing that entrepreneurial leadership may also be highly effective in large-scale, capital-intensive, and high-risk industries operating in environments characterized by uncertainty, operational complexity, safety challenges, and continuous market fluctuations. Such environments require innovative thinking, proactive decision-making, and adaptability. Therefore, entrepreneurial leadership should not be limited to entrepreneurs and SMEs only but should also be recognized as a valuable leadership approach for large-scale organizations seeking stronger performance, adaptability, and long-term sustainability.

 

 

(*) Paper:

Abayazeed, A. H., Sadik, M. A., Negm, E. M., & Ragheb, M. A. (2025). The Impact of Entrepreneurial Leadership on Project Management Success through Team Resilience. Business Ethics and Leadership, 9(4), 67-84. https://doi.org/10.61093/bel.9(4).67-84.2025. 

Article By Dr. Eng. Amr H. Abayazeed - June 19, 2026.

25. ASSET MANAGEMENT: MORE THAN EQUIPMENT

An asset, from an accounting perspective, is any resource owned by a business or an economic entity that has value and can be converted into cash. Assets are commonly classified according to their liquidity or their physical existence. For simplification, I adopt a blended classification approach combining both perspectives: 1) Current Assets: Can be converted into cash within one fiscal year (e.g. cash, accounts receivable, inventory). 2) Non-Current (Fixed) Assets: Not readily liquid and cannot be easily converted into cash (e.g. equipment, buildings, land). 3) Intangible Assets: Not physical in nature (e.g. goodwill, franchises, and intellectual property as patents, trademarks, and copyrights).

Asset management in financial organizations differs from that in industrial organizations according to the type of assets they manage. Asset management in financial organizations mainly focuses on managing financial assets such as cash, stocks, bonds, investment portfolios, funds, and other financial instruments. The primary objective is usually to maximize financial returns, optimize investment performance, manage financial risks, maintain liquidity, and achieve sustainable profitability. In contrast, asset management in industrial organizations focuses mainly on physical assets such as production equipment and infrastructure. In many industrial sectors, particularly in oil & gas and chemicals, the term "Asset Integrity" is commonly used to describe a technical discipline within asset management. It focuses on ensuring asset reliability, availability, safety, and operational efficiency throughout the asset lifecycle: 1) Acquire (Research, Design, and Engineering), 2) Build & Commission (Procurement, Construction, and Commissioning), 3) Operate & Maintain (O&M), and 4) Dispose (Decommissioning). 

Accordingly, while both financial and industrial organizations share the common objective of maximizing value from assets, industrial organizations intentionally use the term “Asset Management” as the term “Asset” emphasizes the business value generated from equipment, as they are viewed not just as physical equipment, but as a strategic resource that enables production continuity, operational sustainability, and profitability, which can be translated into financial value and cash flow for the organization. Another perspective in asset management literature that should be mentioned is the consideration of humans as organizational assets that should be properly managed, developed, and maintained to maximize their value and contribution to the organization. From this perspective, which appears reasonable, employees are viewed as valuable assets because their skills, experience, and performance directly influence organizational success and long-term sustainability.

 

 

Article By Dr. Eng. Amr H. Abayazeed - June 05, 2026.