Cultivating and Harnessing Unexpected Opportunities: How Monochronic Orientation Fosters Innovation by Facilitating Serendipity in New Firms

Despite growing interest in serendipity in entrepreneurship, its antecedents, contingencies, and outcomes remain understudied. We find that new firms with a monochronic orientation—a preference for handling tasks sequentially—experience more serendipity, which in turn enhances innovation performance. This is amplified in dynamic environments, where unexpected discoveries are more likely to generate value. Challenging assumptions that systematic search and broad information inputs drive innovation, our study highlights focused attention as a driver of serendipity. By linking serendipity to strategic attention allocation and environmental conditions, we offer insights into how firms can foster and capitalize on unexpected discoveries to drive innovation.