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Entrepreneur (and an Entrepreneurial Organization) Defined
Entrepreneurship is first
and foremost a mindset.
Entrepreneur is a person who habitually creates
an innovates to build something of recognized value around perceived
opportunities.1
In this definition, all words are key words:
-
'Entrepreneur' - can be
an individual entrepreneur, but also an entrepreneurial team or even
entrepreneurial organization
-
'A person' - emphasizes a
personality rather than a system
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'Habitually' - just
cannot stop being an entrepreneur
-
'Creates' - starts from
scratch and brings into being something that was not there before
-
'Innovates' - able to
overcome obstacles that would stop most people; turns problems into
opportunities; deliver - sees ideas through to final application
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'Builds something' -
describes the output of the creation and innovation process
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'Of recognized value' -
encompasses economic, commercial, social, or aesthetic value
-
'Perceived opportunities'
- spotting the opportunity to exploit an idea that may or may not be
original to the entrepreneur; seeing something other miss or only see in
retrospect1
What Entrepreneurs Are
Like1
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Personality factors
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born/made ratio - 50/50, a synergy
of genetic and environmental influence
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motivation and emotion -
independence, competitive spirit, challenge, wealth
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behavioral characteristics -
perseverance, determination, orientation to clear
goals, need to
achieve, opportunity orientation,
creativity, persistent
problem-solving, risk-taking, integrity, honesty, internal locus on
control
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personality attributes -
extroversion/introversion; sensation/intuition; thinking/feeling; and
judging/perceiving
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Environmental factors
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family background -
entrepreneurial heritage
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age and education - begin
entrepreneurial activity early; are not over-educated
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work experience - most
entrepreneurs first gain some work experience in the line of business
they later start up
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Action factors
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making the difference - initiate
change and enjoy it
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creating and innovating - a
continuous activity, seeing creative idea through to the end, and then
starting climbing another mountain
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exploiting opportunities - able to
see or craft opportunities that other people miss
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finding resources and competencies
- experts at exploiting contacts and sources
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networking - expertise oriented;
know when they need experts and how to use them effectively
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facing adversity - resolve
problems under pressure; turn problems into opportunities
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managing risk - not adventurers,
but manageable risk takers; their success lies in caution, learning,
flexibility and change during implementation
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controlling the business - paying
attention to details and essential ratios; exercising strategic
control over their business
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putting the customer first -
listening to the customer and responding to the customers' feedback
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creating capital - financial,
social, and aesthetic
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