What we want to find out in this discussion

Cultural norms and values affect the performance of founders. Which cultural factors are helpful? Which ones are detrimental?

How can we create and foster more helpful cultural factors? And how can we dispel less helpful ones?

Overview of episode

This episode explores entrepreneurship as a culture rather than just a startup category. Pablo speaks with Ewald Kibler, sociologist and entrepreneurship scholar at Aalto University, about how norms, values, and local context shape who gets counted as an entrepreneur, who gets left out, and why the dominant founder story still centres high-growth startups.

Key topics

· In this episode, Ewald Kibler explains why entrepreneurship should be understood as a set of cultural meanings, norms, expectations, and values, not just a business model.

· The conversation digs into the persistence of regional differences, including moral norms around entrepreneurship and why some places sustain higher entrepreneurial activity over long periods.

· Ewald argues that the current founder narrative overvalues high-growth startups and creates pressure on entrepreneurs to become “big” instead of simply building useful, sustainable businesses.

· He discusses how venture capital, media, and founder celebrity reinforce a narrow image of entrepreneurship, while small and medium-sized businesses are often overlooked despite their long-term importance.

· The episode also examines the “hero founder” myth and why society needs to celebrate different kinds of entrepreneurial contribution, including community-based and social entrepreneurship.

· Ewald highlights overlooked groups such as late-career entrepreneurs, migrant entrepreneurs, refugee entrepreneurs, and women founders, and explains why each deserves more attention in research and support systems.

· The discussion closes with the case for a more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem that lowers the threshold for participation and better reflects how entrepreneurship actually works in everyday life.

The reflection we hope listeners will take away

Entrepreneurship is not mainly about startups. So why do UK policy makers and mass media treat it like it is?

Who is Ewald?

Ewald Kibler is Professor of Entrepreneurship and Head of the Entrepreneurship Unit (ENTU) at Aalto University School of Business.

His research and teaching focus on how entrepreneurship shapes people, organisations, and society, with particular interests in entrepreneurial wellbeing, new venture creation, business failure and recovery, prosocial entrepreneurship, and regional development.

He also works closely with policymakers and international organisations to translate entrepreneurship research into practice.

Want to know more?

Find other videos on the Founders Matter channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@FoundersMatterPodcast

Go here to learn about how we aim to improve our business owner support system with the UK Healthy Capital Coalition: www.mindyourbusiness.uk