What is it about?
Business and organizational accelerators aim to speed up the startup success. Little research focuses on the downsides of participation. We found that an accelerator may lead to individual suffering via burnout, lack of sleep, overwork, and illness. Afterwards, participants may take different lengths of time to recover. Finally, there is not a universal reaction to the experience. It varies from person to person.
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Why is it important?
Business accelerators are a popular buzzword and organizational type. Individuals or companies sign up for the opportunity to get their big break or at least to "fail fast." Accelerators promise the world. But what is it like for participants? It's pressure, overwork, fighting through sickness, a treadmill that won't turn off and ultimately over at some point. Participants are left to recover on their own. Oftentimes, they take long enough to return to normal speed that any time gained by the acceleration is lost. It's like racing to the gas station and then sitting there to refuel.
Perspectives
Few people believed in this article. I thought it was an important story to tell. I wanted people to know that not everything is sunshine and roses. Also, it's not the same for everyone.
Dr Devon Gidley
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Suffering, recovery and participant experience in a video game development accelerator, Journal of Organizational Ethnography, December 2022, Emerald,
DOI: 10.1108/joe-07-2022-0023.
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