Quando mudar de rumo é a solução : o pivotamento de uma inovação desenvolvida por uma startup dentro de uma grande empresa

Abstract

In technological development, to deal with unpredictability that emerges from contact with the real situation, decisions are made and some generate changes in the product's identity, which may result in pivoting. In the context of an innovation developed by a startup within a large company, freedom in the decision-making process for product transformation is also influenced by stakeholder expectations. Thus, the decision to pivot can affect term and scope agreements and undermine confidence in technology or in the entrepreneur's capabilities. In this sense, this thesis aims to answer how is pivoting perceived as a better solution than giving up on the project or persisting with the initial concept. The literature on pivoting and its triggering factors, entrepreneurial strategies and ways of dealing with uncertainties are used to analyze the decision-making process throughout development, followed ex-ante. With a qualitative and longitudinal character, this research used principles of Grounded Theory, Course of Action and Theory Elaboration to follow the decision making of a startup that had its genesis and development linked to large companies in open innovation projects. From the case, the theoretical category was proposed: “pivoting the way of dealing with uncertainty”, which represents the change from the adapting posture to the shaping posture. The category is an indication that the pivoting uncertainties are not about an unknown path, but a possibility of raising the technology to a new cycle of concretization.