From personal to organisational addressability: swift trust in early-stage Romanian ICT ventures

Purpose The goal of this study is to explore how trust manifests in early-stage Romanian ICT ventures and navigates from personal to organisational addressability. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative research examined narrative interviews to investigate experiences related to trust and its formation among ICT entrepreneurs during the company's early stage. The methodological approach is inspired by the theoretical background of social systems theory. Findings Early-stage venture ICT entrepreneurs promote communication as a medium for building swift trust considering six dimensions. Our findings indicate that entrepreneurs leverage their legitimacy and reputation as a scalable “trust currency”. In early-stage venture ICT, entrepreneurs aim to establish more non-addressable trust through the addressability of swift trust. Their goal is to imprint trust-based communication into the organisation's communicative expression. Originality/value The article presents what swift trust involves and how it is transferred into organisational reliability, moving the startup closer to the continued functioning and self-validation characteristic of system trust.