Research Symposium

BIO

Born and raised in New York City, Queens. I enjoy playing piano and watching anime.

Entrepreneurship during Crisis: Resilience and Recovery in Wartime Ukraine

Abstract

The Ukrainian entrepreneurial ecosystem continues to be significantly and negatively impacted by the war with Russia, resulting in damaged infrastructure, weaker investor interest, a strained mental state, and an overall lack of stability. There is also widespread post-Cold War sentiment that the government is responsible for the economy, and individual entrepreneurial mindsets were rare prior to the Russian invasion. This exploratory study aims to understand the pre-war and current entrepreneurial ecosystem in Ukraine. We use a mixed-method approach consisting of both semi-structured interviews and an open-ended survey, interviewing 15 Ukrainian entrepreneurs. Many of these individuals were still based in Ukraine, though some did relocate out of the country due to the conflict, but continued operating Ukraine-based ventures. These individuals were identified using the Crunch-base database where we randomly sampled those listed as founders or co-founders. In addition to the interviews, given Ukraine being an active conflict zone, 8 additional individuals agreed to be interviewed via a web survey. Preliminary data analysis is scheduled to begin in March 2025.

Keywords: Ukraine, Entrepreneurship, Wartime