How indigenous entrepreneurs negotiate cultural and commercial imperatives: insights from Aotearoa New Zealand

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to explore how Maori entrepreneurs in Aotearoa New Zealand negotiate cultural and commercial imperatives in their entrepreneurial practice. Culture is integral to Indigenous entrepreneurship, an example being tikanga Maori (Maori cultural values) and Maori entrepreneurship. This study discusses the tensions and synergies inherent in the negotiation of seemingly conflicting imperatives both theoretically and practically. Design/methodology/approach This study reports on a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews involving ten Maori enterprises of the Ngati Porou tribe on the east coast of Aotearoa New Zealand. Findings This study finds that depending on their contextual and cultural orientation, Maori entrepreneurs use tikanga to help negotiate cultural and commercial imperatives. The contingency of entrepreneurial situations and the heterogeneity of Maori perspectives on whether (and in what way) tikanga influences entrepreneurial practice appear influential. The authors propose a typology of Maori entrepreneurs’ approaches to explain the negotiation of cultural and commercial imperatives comprising the “culturally engaged Maori entrepreneur”; the “culturally responsive Maori entrepreneur”; and the “culturally ambivalent Maori entrepreneur.” Originality/value This study proposes a typology to analyse entrepreneurial practices of Indigenous entrepreneurs’ negotiation of cultural and commercial imperatives.