Entrepreneurial leadership and transformational leadership: a historical-comparative conceptual analysis

Purpose This article provides a historical-comparative conceptual analysis of entrepreneurial leadership and transformational leadership, aiming to critically appraise how the latter has informed the former. Design/methodology/approach A narrative review methodology and three-stage framework is used to develop the analysis and structure the discussion. The framework consists of the following three stages – concept introduction and elaboration, concept evaluation and augmentation and concept consolidation and accommodation. Findings The key ‘narrative’ emerging from the review concerns how entrepreneurial leadership as a concept has evolved into a re-iteration of the transformational leadership approach, absorbing the conceptual merits, and more significantly, conceptual flaws of the latter. Notable critiques of transformational leadership theory, namely, a lack of conceptual clarity, over-reliance on quantitative methodologies and the ‘heroic bias,’ can similarly be raised against existing research on entrepreneurial leadership. To redress these issues, the conceptual, methodological and practical implications of the historical-comparative analysis are outlined, which includes avenues for further research – with and without key elements of transformational leadership theory. Originality/value The article is the first to discuss the historical evolution of entrepreneurial leadership as a concept in relation to transformational leadership theory, which has been influential in research on the former. In particular, the critical analysis illustrates how the conceptual evolution of entrepreneurial leadership has failed to acknowledge the significant limitations associated with transformational leadership theory, despite considerable application of it.