Entrepreneurial Effectuation theory was developed by Saras V. Sarasvathy . The theory is about what makes entrepreneurs entrepreneurial and in its simplest terms it describes the idea that entrepreneurs fabricate opportunities from the resources that they have available to them. This idea is in opposition to the "planned'" business strategies that are taught in most business schools.

Insted of asking  "why do some people become entrepreneurs?" using effectuation theory you would ask the question "with what I know, and whom I know , and the resources that I have access to what kind of entrepreneur can I become?"

Another way of explaining effectuation theory would be to compare the completion of a jigsaw puzzle to the completion of a stunning patchwork quilt. The jigsaw is completed from an understanding that there is a correct answer at the end of the process. The beautiful patchwork quilt  is made by piecing together the pieces of materiel that are available at any given time.  Sarasvathy explains that the entrepreneur is comfortable moving from the planned to the emergent and back to the planned.