Authors:

K.A. Bogatyreva

Graduate School of Management, Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg, Russia

Abstract:

The influence of entrepreneurial values on strategic decision-making has received increasing attention. Nevertheless, the interplay between deeply held philosophical orientations and emotional engagement in forming founders' strategic priorities remains underexplored. This study examines how entrepreneurial values and entrepreneurial passion combine to shape strategic decision-making in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The research is grounded in Ayn Rand’s objectivist philosophy and the concept of entrepreneurial passion. Data were collected from 200 entrepreneurs across BRICS countries and analysed using ANOVA to examine relationships between objectivist value orientation, entrepreneurial passion, and strategic prioritization of commercial and social initiatives. Our findings show that entrepreneurs with strong objectivist orientation tend to prioritize commercial activities, which is consistent with the philosophy’s focus on self-interest. However, regarding social activities, entrepreneurial passion played a decisive role: highly passionate objectivists demonstrated greater openness to social initiatives than their low-passion counterparts. These findings imply that passion enables objectivism-oriented entrepreneurs to reinterpret social engagement as enlightened long-term investment rather than departure from self-interest. The study identifies a mechanism through which philosophical value orientations and emotional engagement jointly shape entrepreneurial strategic priorities. The findings refine existing understandings of entrepreneurial motivation by revealing that passion can moderate or transform the expression of deeply held values in strategic choices.

Keywords: strategic choice; objectivism; entrepreneurial passion; social activities; commercial activities; rational egoism; BRICS.

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For citation: Bogatyreva K.A. (2026). Atlas gives back: How objectivist entrepreneurs balance profit and purpose. Upravlenets / The Manager, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 92–104. DOI: 10.29141/2218-5003-2026-17-2-6. EDN: GRPVGU.