Post-industrialization and social inclusion: Elite access to high-performing entrepreneurship in Vietnam

Robyn Klingler-Vidra; Adam William Chalmers; Ba Linh Tran

doi:10.1177/10245294251328075

Post-industrialization and social inclusion: Elite access to high-performing entrepreneurship in Vietnam

Robyn Klingler-Vidra^*, Adam William Chalmers, Ba Linh Tran

^*Corresponding author for this work

University of Economics HCMC (UEH)

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

This article examines how high-performing digital entrepreneurship enables wealth generation or perpetuates inequalities. We integrate and extend entrepreneurship and sociology of (transnational) education scholarship to investigate how socio-economic background affects the likelihood of entrepreneurs building high-growth, digital businesses. Specifically, we address whether Vietnam’s transition from industrialization (1986) to post-industrialization (since 2009) broadens entrepreneurial opportunities or concentrates them among the country’s (upper) middle class. Our findings reveal digital entrepreneurs are five times more likely to have tertiary education from costly destinations like the United States, United Kingdom, or Australia, and three times more likely to have worked in English-speaking countries, than the entrepreneurs who built physically oriented businesses during the industrialization era. These findings suggest that the advance of Vietnam’s digital economy reinforces socio-economic divides, as digital entrepreneurship opportunities increasingly depend on access to (upper) middle-class backgrounds that can afford elite transnational education.

Original language	English
Journal	COMPETITION AND CHANGE
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/10245294251328075
Publication status	Accepted/In press - 2025

Keywords

Development
entrepreneurship
post-industrial growth
social inclusion
Vietnam

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1177/10245294251328075

Cite this

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title = "Post-industrialization and social inclusion: Elite access to high-performing entrepreneurship in Vietnam",

abstract = "This article examines how high-performing digital entrepreneurship enables wealth generation or perpetuates inequalities. We integrate and extend entrepreneurship and sociology of (transnational) education scholarship to investigate how socio-economic background affects the likelihood of entrepreneurs building high-growth, digital businesses. Specifically, we address whether Vietnam{\textquoteright}s transition from industrialization (1986) to post-industrialization (since 2009) broadens entrepreneurial opportunities or concentrates them among the country{\textquoteright}s (upper) middle class. Our findings reveal digital entrepreneurs are five times more likely to have tertiary education from costly destinations like the United States, United Kingdom, or Australia, and three times more likely to have worked in English-speaking countries, than the entrepreneurs who built physically oriented businesses during the industrialization era. These findings suggest that the advance of Vietnam{\textquoteright}s digital economy reinforces socio-economic divides, as digital entrepreneurship opportunities increasingly depend on access to (upper) middle-class backgrounds that can afford elite transnational education.",

keywords = "Development, entrepreneurship, post-industrial growth, social inclusion, Vietnam",

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T2 - Elite access to high-performing entrepreneurship in Vietnam

AU - Klingler-Vidra, Robyn

AU - William Chalmers, Adam

AU - Linh Tran, Ba

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2025.

PY - 2025

Y1 - 2025

N2 - This article examines how high-performing digital entrepreneurship enables wealth generation or perpetuates inequalities. We integrate and extend entrepreneurship and sociology of (transnational) education scholarship to investigate how socio-economic background affects the likelihood of entrepreneurs building high-growth, digital businesses. Specifically, we address whether Vietnam’s transition from industrialization (1986) to post-industrialization (since 2009) broadens entrepreneurial opportunities or concentrates them among the country’s (upper) middle class. Our findings reveal digital entrepreneurs are five times more likely to have tertiary education from costly destinations like the United States, United Kingdom, or Australia, and three times more likely to have worked in English-speaking countries, than the entrepreneurs who built physically oriented businesses during the industrialization era. These findings suggest that the advance of Vietnam’s digital economy reinforces socio-economic divides, as digital entrepreneurship opportunities increasingly depend on access to (upper) middle-class backgrounds that can afford elite transnational education.

AB - This article examines how high-performing digital entrepreneurship enables wealth generation or perpetuates inequalities. We integrate and extend entrepreneurship and sociology of (transnational) education scholarship to investigate how socio-economic background affects the likelihood of entrepreneurs building high-growth, digital businesses. Specifically, we address whether Vietnam’s transition from industrialization (1986) to post-industrialization (since 2009) broadens entrepreneurial opportunities or concentrates them among the country’s (upper) middle class. Our findings reveal digital entrepreneurs are five times more likely to have tertiary education from costly destinations like the United States, United Kingdom, or Australia, and three times more likely to have worked in English-speaking countries, than the entrepreneurs who built physically oriented businesses during the industrialization era. These findings suggest that the advance of Vietnam’s digital economy reinforces socio-economic divides, as digital entrepreneurship opportunities increasingly depend on access to (upper) middle-class backgrounds that can afford elite transnational education.

KW - Development

KW - entrepreneurship

KW - post-industrial growth

KW - social inclusion

KW - Vietnam

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Post-industrialization and social inclusion: Elite access to high-performing entrepreneurship in Vietnam

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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