Intrapreneurial self-capital and career self-management: A moderated-mediation model of career optimism and protean career orientation

This study examines the impact of intrapreneurial self-capital (ISC) on career self-management (CSM) via career optimism, moderated by protean career orientation (PCO), theoretically originated from the social cognitive model of career self-management (SCM-CSM) (Lent & Brown (2013) and career construction theory (Savickas, 2013). It contributes to the literature in testing a self-sustainable career model applicable to MBA students that can aid in their career planning and management. Using a cross-sectional design, data obtained from 516 final-year MBA students suggest a positive relationship between intrapreneurial self-capital (ISC) and career self-management (CSM), intrapreneurial self-capital (ISC) and career optimism, career optimism, and career self-management (CSM). A partially mediated relationship between intrapreneurial self-capital (ISC), career optimism, and career self-management (CSM) was found to be stronger for participants having higher protean career orientation (PCO). Practical implications and directions for future research have also been discussed in this study.