스타트업 창업자의 리더십 정체성 변화에 대한 연구

This study profoundly explores the evolving process of leadership identity among startup founders as their organizations grow. While the successful expansion of a startup necessitates a transition in the founder's role from a business executor to an organizational leader, requiring a re-formation of leadership identity, this process is understood as a complex and dynamic internal journey rather than a mere functional shift. Utilizing a qualitative research approach based on Grounded Theory, this study conducted in-depth interviews with 14 startup founders at various growth stages. Through a rigorous coding process, a four-stage model of founder leadership identity change was derived. The findings reveal that the transformation of founder leadership identity consists of four stages: (1) Organizational Identification, (2) Boundary Recognition, (3) Relational Negotiation, and (4) Co-Evolution of the Organization and Founder. This demonstrates a dynamic process where leadership identity is continuously reconstructed through the interaction between organizational growth pressures and the founder's internal reflection. By reframing founder leadership transition not as a role change but as an in-depth process of identity reconstruction, this research underscores the critical importance of leadership identity work for sustainable growth and leadership effectiveness within the startup ecosystem. This study offers practical implications for startup support programs, investor evaluation frameworks, and leadership development initiatives.