Abstract
Research on entrepreneurial resourcefulness has provided insights into how entrepreneurs overcome resource scarcity and liability of newness when starting and scaling their ventures. However, our understanding of how ventures navigate weak institutional environments through resourceful practices remains limited. Using data from ventures with affordable products for underprivileged customers in India and Pakistan, this qualitative study investigates how ventures leverage resourcefulness to sustain in weak institutional environments. We develop a process model showing three types of resourcefulness, namely, operational, relational, and symbolic resourcefulness, and revealing the dynamics through which ventures overcome resource and institutional constraints. Our study extends the resourcefulness theory by discovering distinct types of resourcefulness as an adaptive response to weak institutional environments, and highlighting how dynamics can vary in the venturing process.