Editorial: Entrepreneurial Mindsets, Educator Agency, and Institutional Adaptation in a Changing Educational Landscape

I am delighted to introduce the second issue of 2024 of the Irish Journal of Management. This issue marks the conclusion of the special topic focus on “Enterprise Education: The Path to Entrepreneurial Mindsets?” and continues the journal’s commitment to fostering high-quality scholarship that reflects both academic and practitioner concerns within the management and education fields. I would like to extend sincere congratulations and gratitude to the guest editorial team of this special issue focus—Dr Margaret Tynan (South East Technological University), Paul O’ Reilly (Technological University Dublin), and Professor Felicity Kelliher (South East Technological University)—for their sustained dedication to this project and for curating a collection of work that is both intellectually rich and practically resonant.

Together with the first issue of this year (Vol. 43, Issue 1), this second issue (Vol. 43, Issue 2) completes a significant exploration of the evolving role of enterprise and entrepreneurship (EE) education. Across both issues, the collection situates EE as a critical driver of economic vitality, innovation, and lifelong learning. The contributions reflect a growing European and global consensus on the importance of nurturing entrepreneurial mindsets—not only for launching new ventures, but for navigating complexity, uncertainty, and opportunity in a range of personal and professional contexts. These studies and commentaries reinforce that universities and educational institutions are not only facilitators of entrepreneurial skill development, but are themselves actors within increasingly complex entrepreneurial ecosystems.

While the first issue emphasised student development, multiple pathways to entrepreneurship, and the institutional dimensions of EE education, this second issue pivots to spotlight the educators themselves—their mindsets, pedagogical tools, and influence on learner engagement. The three final papers in the special issue make a distinctive contribution by exploring the personal and professional evolution of educators who teach enterprise and entrepreneurship.

In her thought-provoking discussion piece, “Awakening the Entrepreneurial Mindset”, Breda O’Dwyer challenges us to consider the inner life of the entrepreneurship educator. She makes a compelling case for the need to “pack and repack” our entrepreneurial suitcases, reflecting on the ways educators must continually re-engage with their own entrepreneurial identities. O’Dwyer advocates for authenticity and introspection as essential components of effective entrepreneurship education, encouraging educators to live by the very qualities they aim to cultivate in their students.

Emma O’Brien and Gavan Cleary’s paper, “Knowing the Dancer from the Dance”, provides a more structural lens by examining the role of teaching portfolios as instruments of tutor self-reflection and professional growth. Through these portfolios, educators articulate their learning philosophies and pedagogical strategies, which in turn shape the delivery of entrepreneurship education. The authors highlight the reciprocal relationship between personal development and teaching effectiveness, asserting that portfolios offer a valuable medium for educators to refine and communicate their evolving approach to fostering entrepreneurial learning.

Completing this trio, Roisin Lyons, Ciarán Mac an Bhaird, and Eoghan McConalogue offer an empirical investigation of “The Importance of Creativity and Self-Efficacy in Enterprise Education”. Framed by Social Cognitive Career Theory, the authors explore how creativity and self-belief influence students’ entrepreneurial tendencies and satisfaction with their EE modules. Their findings reinforce the central role of the educator in shaping learner outcomes, particularly through pedagogical strategies that build confidence and support creative exploration.

Complementing these EE-focused articles, this issue also features two papers that broaden the lens to the wider educational context in Ireland. These contributions extend the conversation on institutional responsiveness and educator agency amid contemporary challenges in higher and further education.

Tomás Dwyer’s paper, “Assessing the Market Orientation of Higher Education Institutions in Ireland”, interrogates how HEIs position themselves strategically within an increasingly competitive and outcomes-driven educational landscape. Drawing on a bespoke conceptual framework, Dwyer conducts a content analysis of strategic plans across six Irish HEIs to map their levels of market orientation. The paper provides new insights into how institutional types differ in their responsiveness to market dynamics, and how these orientations can guide future performance enhancing strategies.

Finally, the paper, “Leading During Digital Technology Change and Disruption in a Further Education and Training (FET) Environment: Within and Beyond the Pandemic” by Anne Graham Cagney and Seamus Morris offers a timely exploration of leadership and digital transformation. Based on a phenomenological study, the paper examines the experiences of FET leaders during the COVID-19 pandemic as they supported educators in developing the digital skills, mindsets, and dispositions necessary for sustained professional success. The research illuminates both the enablers and barriers to successful digital adoption, highlighting the importance of strategic leadership, peer learning, and identity development in driving meaningful technological change.

Together, the five articles in this issue—and the broader collection across the 2024 volume of issues—offer a timely and multi-layered contribution to ongoing debates on entrepreneurship and enterprise education, educator development, institutional strategy, and pedagogical innovation. They underscore a crucial insight: the path to fostering entrepreneurial mindsets is not only about the students we teach, but also about the educators we become, the systems we design, and the values we promote in navigating the future of education and work.

As editor-in-chief of the Irish Journal of Management, I hope this issue inspires educators, researchers, and policymakers alike to reflect critically and creatively on their roles within this evolving educational ecosystem.