The document defines entrepreneurship and discusses entrepreneurs. It states that an entrepreneur is someone who takes on the risk of starting a new business venture. Entrepreneurship involves identifying opportunities, organizing resources, and bearing the risks to generate profits. The document discusses different definitions of entrepreneurship over time from economists such as Cantillon, Smith, Schumpeter, and Drucker. It also outlines the stages of entrepreneurship and benefits to personal growth and the economy.
2. Entrepreneurs: Definitions
Entrepreneur is a ‘proprietary capitalist’ that is a
supplier of capital and at the same time working
as a manager intervening between the labour and
consumer. He effectively coordinates productive
resources to attain profit and growth.
He possesses the vision and foresight of
identifying opportunities in a changing
environment and becomes an economic agent
who transforms demand in to supply for profits.
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3. UNDERSTANDING OF THE TERM
The word is derived from the French word
‘entreprendre’ which means ‘undertakers’.
The word referred to those who undertook the
risk of starting a new enterprise.
The word entrepreneurship has a very wide range
of meaning. In one extreme, an entrepreneur is
one who pioneers a change and in the other
extreme he is one who works for himself.
Entrepreneurship is among the four mainstream
economic factors – land, labour, capital and
entrepreneurship.
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4. According to Richard Cantillon (1755) a French
economist introduced the concept of
entrepreneurship in economics.
As per him an entrepreneur is one who buys a
product, repacks and transforms the farm’s
produce to market and then sells it at uncertain
price.
Thus he takes decisions regarding resource
allocation and bears the consequential risks.
He evidently seeks best opportunities for highest
yields/profit.
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5. According to Adam Smith (1776) entrepreneurs
were ‘economic change agents’ who reacted to
environmental changes.
They were agents who converted new demand in
to supply.
Entrepreneur was a ‘proprietary capitalist’ that
is a supplier of capital and at the same time
working as a manager intervening between the
labour and consumer.
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6. Definition-
Entrepreneurship is a multi-dimensional task
defined differently by different authorities.
There is no indisputable definition of
entrepreneurship. Some are discussed below:
The American Heritage Dictionary defines an
entrepreneur to be "a person who
organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for
business ventures."
Sociologists assert that entrepreneur brings in
overall change through innovation for the good of
the society. He contributes in modernizing society.
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7. According to Joseph Schumpeter (1950)
entrepreneur is one who coverts a new invention or
idea in to successful innovation.
He said that entrepreneurs are the business leaders
not simple owners of capital.
Schumpeter in his definition made the distinction
between entrepreneurs and inventors clear.
The inventor might create a new product but the
entrepreneur gathers resources, organizes talent and
provides leadership to make the venture a
commercial success.
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8. In Peter Drucker’s view (1985) – Entrepreneurship is
neither a science nor a art. It is a practice. It is not just
about making money. It is all about imagination,
flexibility, creativity, willingness to think conceptually,
readiness to take risk.
Acc to H.N.Pathak- Entrepreneurship involves
1.Perceptoin of an opportunities.
2.organizing an industrial unit.
3.Running the industrial unit as profitable, going &
growing concern.
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9. WHO CAN BE CALLED AN ENTREPRENEUR?
Let us first start with some questions:
Is a fruit vendor an entrepreneur?
Were G.D. Birla, Jamnalal Bajaj, Laxmanrao
Kirloskar entrepreuners?
Was Ohno the GM of Toyota Motors who
introduced many innovative measures that
revolutionized automobile industry an
entrepreneur?
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10. Now founders of small industries/ small business,
trading establishments etc are loosely termed as
entrepreneurs.
They might have the attributes of an entrepreneur
but they are not entrepreneurs in the purest
sense of the term, if they have not innovated.
They can just be called businessmen with
entrepreneurial attributes of risk taking and
organizing.
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11. Professionals in corporate organizations often
exhibit high degree of innovativeness. But they
cannot be called entrepreneurs because they are
essentially salaried employees.
This form of corporate entrepreneurship also
called ‘Intrapreneurship’ emerges within existing
enterprise.
Intraprenurs introduce innovative ideas in the
organizations they work for and thus add great
value.
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12. Few examples-
(for a better understanding of the terms entrepreneurship
and innovation)
1. Mary Quant, the English fashion
designer, arguably invented the miniskirt in the
sixties. But she definitely was the first to
name, market and popularize the product. Skirts
were not a new outfit but her redefining the
hemline and popularizing it was innovative
enough to call her an entrepreneur.
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13. 2. Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon (a Web-based
bookstore) was the fist to sell books online on a large
scale and patented the one-click system for online
buying. Though selling books is not an innovation in itself,
Jeff Bezos was innovative in the use of the Internet as a
viable marketing and sales channel for selling books.
So an individual could be termed as an entrepreneur if he
or she sells a product or service using new systems and/
or mediums of marketing, distribution or production
methods as a basis for a new business venture.
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14. 3. Stuart Skorman was the founder of Reel.com, which
is essentially one of the first cyber movie stores. It has
a very large inventory of over a 100 000 videos.
Though setting a movie store was revolutionary then,
Reel.com main distinction was being known as the
first online store to expand by opening an offline
store. Stuart Skorman felt that by doing so, the online
store could be an advertisement for the offline store
and vice versa, thus strengthening this click and
mortar business venture.
It was an example of creativity and innovation in the
field of e-commerce.
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15. STAGES OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Fundamentally there are five (often overlapping) stages:
1. Discovery: In which the entrepreneur generates ideas,
recognizes opportunities, and determines the feasibility of ideas,
markets, and ventures;
2. Concept development: In which the entrepreneur plans the
venture, identifies needed resources using a business plan, and
identifies strategies for penetrating markets or protecting
intellectual property;
3. Resourcing: In which the entrepreneur identifies and acquires
the financial, human, and capital resources needed for the
venture start-up,
4. Actualization: In which the entrepreneur operates the venture
and utilizes resources to achieve its goals and objectives
5. Harvesting: In which the entrepreneur decides on the venture’s
growth, development, or even demise.
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16. BENEFITS OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Benefits of entrepreneurial activities are immense both in terms
of personal growth and contribution to the society. Only a few
have been listed below:
Opportunity of huge personal financial gain.
Scope of high order of Job satisfaction, sense of
achievement, self employment.
Generation of employment / income for others.
Contribution to overall growth in the region/ nation /world
Encourages higher quality products.
Development of new products and markets.
Contribution towards growth and promotion of the use of
modern technology.
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