9th Paper Development Seminar: Entrepreneurship Research Insights

Jan de Vries · 2026-07-07

On May 28-29, 2026, the University of Seville turned into a buzzing hub for entrepreneurship scholars. The Paper Development Seminar (PDS) on Entrepreneurship Process Research has become a must-attend event on the global academic calendar. Co-organized by the University of Seville and the Observatorio del Ecosistema Emprendedor de Andalucia (OEEA), this seminar keeps pushing how we study the entrepreneurial journey. ### What Makes This Seminar Unique? The main goal of the 9PDS stays simple: give early-career and established researchers a collaborative space to polish their work for top journals. To keep things intimate and productive, participation is capped at just 20 selected proposals. That means every attendee gets real, focused attention. This year, people came from all over Europe and beyond. Over two days, presentations covered a wide range of topics using a process lens. Discussions touched on ADHD symptoms and entrepreneurial bricolage, how frontier-tech ecosystems work in Africa, AI's impact on founder well-being, and failure paths in social ventures. It's a lot, but it's all connected. ### A Spotlight on Gender and Entrepreneurship A big milestone this year was the focus on gender and entrepreneurship dynamics. Working with the CreaVES project, which looks at how social gender stereotypes and personal values shape firm creation, the 9PDS held a special session on this topic. It sparked some deep conversations about masculinity and entrepreneurship. ### Learning from Top Editors What really sets the 9PDS apart is the mentorship from world-class journal editors. Each participant got written and oral feedback from at least two experts. They helped fine-tune papers for top-tier publication. It's like having a personal coach for your research. Here's a quick look at the plenary sessions: - **Profs. Ulla Hytti and Miruna Radu-Lefebvre** kicked things off with "How about men entrepreneurs? Gender, masculinities and entrepreneurship." It was a thought-provoking start. - **Prof. Ute Stephan** from King's College London shared insider tips on "How to publish in top management and entrepreneurship journals." Her framework was gold. - **Prof. Susana C. Santos** from Florida State University gave a powerful talk on "Entrepreneurship amid war." It was urgent and eye-opening. The event wrapped up with a round table on "Emerging topics and practices in entrepreneurship research." Profs. Hytti, Liguori, Santos, and Stephan shared their collective wisdom to help everyone navigate the future of scholarly publishing. ### Celebrating Excellence The closing ceremony highlighted some amazing work. Thanks to the European Council for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (ECSB) for sponsoring it through the ECSB Event Fund. The Best Paper Award went to PhD student Robert Hoyer from Leuphana University. He got a free one-year membership to the ECSB, which is a great boost for his career. ### Why This Matters for Entrepreneurs You might wonder why academic seminars matter for real-world startups. Here's the thing: research like this shapes how we understand entrepreneurship. It digs into what works, what doesn't, and why. For anyone building a business, these insights can be gold. They help you avoid common pitfalls and spot opportunities others miss. If you're in the startup world, keep an eye on events like this. They're not just for academics. They're where the next big ideas in entrepreneurship get born.