Insights from Venture Builders: Managing the Collaborative Development of Ventures with Corporates

Abstract: This paper investigates how do venture builders manage the process of developing venture opportunities in collaboration with corporates. This research followed a qualitative approach using a cross-sectional study design. Ten semi-structured interviews with employees from four different venture builder organizations are the primary data source. The data is inductively analyzed using Gioia, Corley, and Hamilton's (2013) approach. This study reviewed existing literature on venture builders, corporate venturing, entrepreneurial opportunity development, and interorganizational collaborations as the core concepts of this research. Although venture builders raise awareness as a new player in the world of corporate venturing, academic literature has barely explored this new phenomenon. This study explores how venture builders manage the development process of venture opportunities in collaboration with corporates and contributes to literature by identifying three key practices. This research determines the importance of leveraging corporate assets, building trust and credibility, and, lastly, finding strategic fit between venture opportunities and corporate strategy for venture builders to facilitate collaborative opportunity development with corporates.