Using ethnographic methods, we examine faultline processes within a 12-person new venture team (NVT) called Baby Avengers during its inception phase. Our analysis of Baby Avengers reveals important knowledge about faultline processes that shift literature from a positivist perspective to a constructivist one. With this shift in lens, we identify that faultlines (1) can exist in subgroup structures that are unique to previous theory, (2) can be based on non-visible or non-task-related attributes, such as founder status, (3) operate as dimmer light switches that are unique to each individual, as opposed to a singular on-off switch for the entire team, and (4) are dynamic over time as contextually-relevant team events unfold, resulting in a continued integration of unique individual experiences and perceptions as faultline layering occurs. This work fundamentally changes the way faultlines are described and understood, and opens the door to further in-depth theorizing on faultline processes.
