#22: Entrepreneurs without startups: Empowering early-stage researchers with an entrepreneurial mindset. A talk with Tanya Escudero (Tallinn University)

ScreenME Podcast

In this episode, host Ulrike Rohn is joined by Tanya Escudero to delve into an often-overlooked area in academic training: the entrepreneurial mindset.

Drawing on their experience designing and teaching a course for PhD researchers at Tallinn University in Estonia, developed within the framework of the C-Accelerate project funded by the European Union, Ulrike and Tanya discuss how entrepreneurial thinking can help early career researchers navigate uncertainty, build resilience, and take ownership of their professional journeys.

Rather than focusing on business creation, their course encourages PhD researchers to apply an entrepreneurial mindset to their own academic paths. Central to the course—and this episode—is Sara Sarasvathy’s concept of the entrepreneurial method, which emphasizes starting with available means and asking: Who am I? What do I know? Who do I know? Ulrike and Tanya also explore how two different logics of action—effectuation and causation— each apply at different stages of an academic career. While causation may be more relevant when goals and resources are clearly defined, effectuation is particularly useful in the uncertain and evolving contexts. They reflect on how these principles resonate with the non-linear, unpredictable nature of academic careers and can empower researchers to act with greater confidence and creativity.

The conversation also highlights how this mindset helps shift researchers’ perspectives—from feeling constrained by institutional structures to recognizing their own agency and capacity for shaping their careers. Ulrike and Tanya emphasize how this reflective approach enables researchers to see their careers as dynamic, self-directed processes.

Whether through classroom experiences or personal stories, this episode makes a compelling case for integrating entrepreneurial thinking more fully into academic training. It demonstrates how even a short intervention can shift perspectives and foster essential skills that are often overlooked in traditional research education—but are crucial for long-term success.

Keywords
entrepreneurial mindset, PhD students, early career researchers, transferable skills, academia, innovation, career development, self-awareness, research funding, network building

Key Quotes

• “Entrepreneurial mindset is not about starting a business. It’s about how you go about your daily work in an adaptive, opportunity-focused way.” – Ulrike Rohn
• “Researchers already have entrepreneurial skills—they just don’t always know they do.” – Tanya Escudero
• “From the beginning, PhD students need to communicate their research, build networks, and recognize their strengths—and that’s exactly what entrepreneurship is about.” – Tanya Escudero
• “Entrepreneurship in academia is less about capital and more about capability.” – Ulrike Rohn

Tanya Escudero

Tanya Escudero is a Research Fellow and Senior Adviser of Doctoral Studies at Tallinn University. Her research focuses on translation, international communication, and migration. She is also deeply engaged in research development, and capacity building. In addition to her own research, she leads and advises on initiatives that support early-career researchers, particularly in developing skills around funding, grant writing, and entrepreneurial mindset. She has contributed to EU-funded initiatives on innovation and entrepreneurship in higher education, including C-Accelerate.

C-Accelerate project:

https://www.c-accelerate.eu/

Host: Ulrike Rohn

Sound engineer: Tanel Kadalipp (episode 1-14), Sangam Panta (episode 15 -

https://bfmentrepreneurhub.tlu.ee/screenme-podcast/