Entrepreneurial patterns and network leveraging in returnee entrepreneurship: a qualitative study of returnee entrepreneurs in Vietnam

Returnee entrepreneurship is one of the significant drivers for economic growth in emerging economies. Although returnee entrepreneurship research has provided a comprehensive picture of who returnee entrepreneurs are, little is known about the motivations behind their decision to return and the decision to engage in entrepreneurship. In addition, while the nature of motivation may affect how entrepreneurs leverage networks during their venture creation, the current returnee entrepreneurship literature has not studied this phenomenon in depth. As such, adopting a qualitative approach, we identified three returnee entrepreneurial patterns and their corresponding network leveraging among 13 cases of returnee entrepreneurs in Vietnam. Our study provides theoretical and practical contributions to the understanding of returnee entrepreneurial paths and network leveraging in returnee entrepreneurship context.