The Illusions of Entrepreneurship

The Illusions of Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Scott A. Shane

Publisher: Yale University Press

Published: 2008-10-01

Total Pages: 220

ISBN-13: 0300150067

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There are far more entrepreneurs than most people realize. But the failure rate of new businesses is disappointingly high, and the economic impact of most of them disappointingly low, suggesting that enthusiastic would-be entrepreneurs and their investors all too often operate under a false set of assumptions. This book shows that the reality of entrepreneurship is decidedly different from the myths that have come to surround it. Scott Shane, a leading expert in entrepreneurial activity in the United States and other countries, draws on the data from extensive research to provide accurate, useful information about who becomes an entrepreneur and why, how businesses are started, which factors lead to success, and which predict a likely failure. The Illusions of Entrepreneurship is an essential resource for everyone who has dreamed of starting a new business, for investors in start-ups, for policy makers attempting to facilitate the formation and survival of new businesses, and for researchers interested in the economic impact of entrepreneurial activity. Scott Shane offers research-based answers to these questions and many others: · Why do people start businesses? · What industries are popular for start-ups? · How many jobs do new businesses create? · How do entrepreneurs finance their start-ups? · What makes some locations and some countries more entrepreneurial than others? · What are the characteristics of the typical entrepreneur? · How well does the typical start-up perform? · What strategies contribute to the survival and profitability of new businesses over time?

A Brief History of Entrepreneurship

A Brief History of Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Joe Carlen

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Published: 2016-10-11

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 023154281X

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A Brief History of Entrepreneurship charts how the pursuit of profit by private individuals has been a prime mover in revolutionizing civilization. Entrepreneurs often butt up against processes, technologies, social conventions, and even laws. So they circumvent, innovate, and violate to obtain what they want. This creative destruction has brought about overland and overseas trade, colonization, and a host of revolutionary technologies—from caffeinated beverages to the personal computer—that have transformed society. Consulting rich archival sources, including some that have never before been translated, Carlen maps the course of human history through nine episodes when entrepreneurship reshaped our world. Highlighting the most colorful characters of each era, he discusses Mesopotamian merchants' creation of the urban market economy; Phoenician merchant-sailors intercontinental trade, which came to connect Africa, Asia, and Europe; Chinese tea traders' invention of paper money; the colonization of the Americas; and the current "flattening" of the world's economic playing field. Yet the pursuit of profit hasn't always moved us forward. From slavery to organized crime, Carlen explores how entrepreneurship can sometimes work at the expense of others. He also discusses the new entrepreneurs who, through the nascent space tourism industry, are leading humanity to a multiplanetary future. By exploring all sides of this legacy, Carlen brings much-needed detail to the role of entrepreneurship in revolutionizing civilization.

An Introduction to Entrepreneurship

An Introduction to Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Eamonn Butler

Publisher: London Publishing Partnership

Published: 2020-10-01

Total Pages: 149

ISBN-13: 0255367953

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Entrepreneurs play a pivotal role in boosting progress, productivity and prosperity. They drive economic growth and create new opportunities. Their innovations transform people’s lives. Yet their enormous contribution is not widely understood – and is often completely overlooked in economics textbooks. Here, author Eamonn Butler sets the record straight – explaining the vital role of entrepreneurship, exploring its economic and social significance, and examining the conditions needed for it to thrive. Along the way, he considers the kind of “unusual” people who become entrepreneurs. Who knew, for example, that Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and Uber founder Travis Kalanick all dropped out of university? Or that Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson and IKEA founder Ingvar Kampgrad never went to university at all? An introduction to Entrepreneurship spotlights the strengths of entrepreneurship, whilst acknowledging its shortcomings. It discusses (often-misguided) attempts by governments to foster it. And it eloquently states the case for rehabilitating entrepreneurship into mainstream economics and politics. Above all, it provides an appreciation of – and a basic introduction to – what entrepreneurship is, why we need it, and how we can encourage it.

The Invention of Enterprise

The Invention of Enterprise PDF

Author: David S. Landes

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2012-02-26

Total Pages: 585

ISBN-13: 1400833582

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A sweeping global history of entrepreneurial innovation Whether hailed as heroes or cast as threats to social order, entrepreneurs—and their innovations—have had an enormous influence on the growth and prosperity of nations. The Invention of Enterprise gathers together, for the first time, leading economic historians to explore the entrepreneur's role in society from antiquity to the present. Addressing social and institutional influences from a historical context, each chapter examines entrepreneurship during a particular period and in an important geographic location. The book chronicles the sweeping history of enterprise in Mesopotamia and Neo-Babylon; carries the reader through the Islamic Middle East; offers insights into the entrepreneurial history of China, Japan, and Colonial India; and describes the crucial role of the entrepreneur in innovative activity in Europe and the United States, from the medieval period to today. In considering the critical contributions of entrepreneurship, the authors discuss why entrepreneurial activities are not always productive and may even sabotage prosperity. They examine the institutions and restrictions that have enabled or impeded innovation, and the incentives for the adoption and dissemination of inventions. They also describe the wide variations in global entrepreneurial activity during different historical periods and the similarities in development, as well as entrepreneurship's role in economic growth. The book is filled with past examples and events that provide lessons for promoting and successfully pursuing contemporary entrepreneurship as a means of contributing to the welfare of society. The Invention of Enterprise lays out a definitive picture for all who seek an understanding of innovation's central place in our world.

Disciplined Entrepreneurship

Disciplined Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Bill Aulet

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2013-08-12

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 1118692284

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24 Steps to Success! Disciplined Entrepreneurship will change the way you think about starting a company. Many believe that entrepreneurship cannot be taught, but great entrepreneurs aren’t born with something special – they simply make great products. This book will show you how to create a successful startup through developing an innovative product. It breaks down the necessary processes into an integrated, comprehensive, and proven 24-step framework that any industrious person can learn and apply. You will learn: Why the “F” word – focus – is crucial to a startup’s success Common obstacles that entrepreneurs face – and how to overcome them How to use innovation to stand out in the crowd – it’s not just about technology Whether you’re a first-time or repeat entrepreneur, Disciplined Entrepreneurship gives you the tools you need to improve your odds of making a product people want. Author Bill Aulet is the managing director of the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship as well as a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management. For more please visit http://disciplinedentrepreneurship.com/

The Unicorn's Shadow

The Unicorn's Shadow PDF

Author: Ethan Mollick

Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press

Published: 2020-06-23

Total Pages: 117

ISBN-13: 1613630972

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Bringing hard data to the way we think about entrepreneurial success, this bold call to action draws on the latest scientific evidence to dispel the most pervasive startup myths and light a path to entrepreneurship for those eclipsed by the hype. When you think of a successful entrepreneur, who comes to mind? Bill Gates? Mark Zuckerberg? Or maybe even Jesse Eisenberg, the man who played Zuckerberg in The Social Network? It may surprise you that most successful founders look very different from Zuckerberg or Gates. In fact, most startup origin stories are very different from the famous "unicorns" that have achieved valuations of over $1 billion, from Facebook to Google to Uber. In The Unicorn's Shadow: Combating the Dangerous Myths that Hold Back Startups, Founders, and Investors, Wharton School professor Ethan Mollick takes us to the forefront of an empirical revolution in entrepreneurship. New data and better research methods have overturned the conventional wisdom behind what a successful founder looks like, how they succeed, and how the startup ecosystem works. Among the issues he examines: Which founders are most likely to succeed?Where do the best startup ideas come from?What's the most foolproof way of securing the funding needed to take a company to the next level?Should your sales pitch really be something out of Hollywood?What's the best way to grow and scale your company and create a thriving culture that won't hinder expansion? Mollick argues that entrepreneurship is too important, both for society and for the individuals who start companies, to be eclipsed by the shadows of unicorns. He shows we can democratize entrepreneurship—but only by following an evidence-based approach that puts to rest the false narratives that surround it.

Introduction to Entrepreneurship

Introduction to Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Donald F. Kuratko

Publisher: South Western Educational Publishing

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 544

ISBN-13: 9780324590869

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Learn the true process of a successful entrepreneur with Introduction to Entrepreneurship, 8/e International Edition Presenting the most current thinking in this explosive field, this renowned entrepreneurship text provides a practical, step-by-step approach that makes learning easy. Using exercises and case presentations, you can apply your own ideas and develop useful entrepreneurial skills. Cases and examples found throughout the text present the new venture creations or corporate innovations that permeate the world economy today. This book will be your guide to understanding the entrepreneurial challenges of tomorrow.

Little Black Book of Entrepreneurship

Little Black Book of Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Fernando Trias De Bes

Publisher:

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 145

ISBN-13: 1580089321

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A helpful guide to assessing one's personal entrepreneurial aptitude, written for anyone seriously considering starting a business of any kind, includes interviews with successful entrepreneurs, real-life anecdotes and case studies, and a look at fourteen important failure factors that hinder success. Original.

Against Entrepreneurship

Against Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Anders Örtenblad

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2020-10-28

Total Pages: 297

ISBN-13: 3030479374

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This book explores whether there is reason to be against entrepreneurship. Just like literature on the darker sides of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship, the book is an answer to the one-sided, overly positive and uncritical image of entrepreneurship. The “twist” in this book, in comparison with literature on dark sides of entrepreneurship, is to explore being against entrepreneurship. From various perspectives such as lexical semantics, Marxism, philosophy of science and psychology, the contributors contemplate on why there may be reason to be against entrepreneurship discourse as well as entrepreneurship practice. Some chapters are based on first-hand empirical data, others are conceptual. The main overall conclusion is that there are some strong arguments for being against entrepreneurship discourse, as well as for being against certain aspects of entrepreneurship practice. Before it is reasonable to be against entrepreneurship practice in total, a convincing and practicable alternative needs to be developed. This book will be valuable reading for entrepreneurship scholars, as well as academics working in the fields of business ethics, (critical) management, and international business.

Competition and Entrepreneurship

Competition and Entrepreneurship PDF

Author: Israel M. Kirzner

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2015-07-10

Total Pages: 258

ISBN-13: 022637548X

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Stressing verbal logic rather than mathematics, Israel M. Kirzner provides at once a thorough critique of contemporary price theory, an essay on the theory of entrepreneurship, and an essay on the theory of competition. Competition and Entrepreneurship offers a new appraisal of quality competition, of selling effort, and of the fundamental weaknesses of contemporary welfare economics. Kirzner's book establishes a theory of the market and the price system which differs from orthodox price theory. He sees orthodox price theory as explaining the configuration of prices and quantities that satisfied the conditions for equilibrium. Mr. Kirzner argues that "it is more useful to look to price theory to help understand how the decisions of individual participants in the market interact to generate the market forces which compel changes in prices, outputs, and methods of production and in the allocation of resources." Although Competition and Entrepreneurship is primarily concerned with the operation of the market economy, Kirzner's insights can be applied to crucial aspects of centrally planned economic systems as well. In the analysis of these processes, Kirzner clearly shows that the rediscovery of the entrepreneur must emerge as a step of major importance.