Entrepreneurs: Leaders In Change

Entrepreneurs: Leaders In Change

What is an Entrepreneur? • An Entrepreneur is a person who organizes and manages a business undertaking, assuming the risk for the sake of profit. Any person (any age) who starts and operates a business is an entrepreneur.

Characteristics of an Entrepreneur Ability to deal with a series of tough issues Ability to create solutions and work to perfect them Can handle many tasks simultaneously Resiliency in the face of set-backs

Characteristics Cont’d Willingness to work hard and not expect easy solutions Possess well-developed problem solving skills Ability to learn and acquire the necessary skills for the tasks at hand

Three Aspects of Entrepreneurship • 1. The identification/recognition of market opportunity and the generation of a business idea (product or service) to address the opportunity

Three Aspects of Entrepreneurship • 2. The marshalling and commitment of resources in the face of risk to pursue the opportunity

Three Aspects of Entrepreneurship • 3. The creation of an operating business organization to implement the opportunity-motivated business idea

Successful Characteristics • Drive, which is defined as the most important attribute. Entrepreneurs can expect long hours, high stress and endless problems, as they launch a new business. • Thinking Ability, or the characteristic that encompasses creativity, critical thinking, analytical abilities and originality. • Excel at Human Relations. Recognizes the importance of the ability to motivate employees, sell customers, negotiate with suppliers and convince lenders.

Successful Characteristics • Communication Skills, or the ability to make yourself understood. • Technical Ability speaks to the need of the entrepreneur to know their product and their market. They must consider the long- and short-term implications of their decisions, their strengths and weaknesses, and their competition. In short, they need strategic management skills.

I don't like being told what to do by people who are less capable than I am. I like challenging myself. I like to win. I like being my own boss. I always look for new and better ways to do things. I like to question conventional wisdom. I like to get people together in order to get things done. People get excited by my ideas. I am rarely satisfied or complacent. I can't sit still. I can usually work my way out of a difficult situation. I would rather fail at my own thing than succeed at someone else's. Whenever there is a problem, I am ready to jump right in. I think old dogs can learn — even invent — new tricks. Members of my family run their own businesses. I have friends who run their own businesses. I worked after school and during vacations when I was growing up. I get an adrenaline rush from selling things. I am exhilarated by achieving results. I could have written a better test than this.

Entrepreneurship • Some advantages • You are your own boss • Enjoy the profits from you efforts • Sense of pride in your business • Flexibility in your work schedule

Entrepreneurship • Some disadvantages • Will need to put in long hours • Need money to start • Have to keep up with government rules and regulations • May have to mark hard decisions (hiring, firing, etc.) • May lose money

Competition is Healthy Competition is good for you -Validates and expands the market - Generates market awareness of the need - Makes buyers more secure Opportunity to convert their customers Motivates your employees to work hard and improve

Entrepreneurship U.S. View • SBA reports that small business • Represented over 99% of all employers • Provided 75% of ALL new jobs • Produced 55% of innovations (As of 2000)

Colleges and Universities • With Entrepreneurship Majors • 1970 - 16 • 2000 – over 1400

“E” Education In High Schools • Kauffman Foundation Gallop Poll • 90% of H.S. students rate their “E” Knowledge as very poor or fair. • 7 out of 10 students want to start a business • 84% believe it is important for schools to teach Entrepreneurship!

Tomorrow’s Entrepreneurs are in our schools TODAY!! You can either work for an entrepreneur or be an entrepreneur. Which will it be? **All information provided by BusinessWeek.com

Admiral Zheng He b. around 1371, d. 1433 • In seven voyages from 1405 to 1433, Zheng He spread China's goods across the world and returned with treasures for the Ming Dynasty

Benjamin Franklinb. 1706, d. 1790 • A writer, publisher, inventor, politician and diplomat, he always considered himself a businessman.

Mayer Amschel Rothschildb. 1744, d. 1812 • Rothschild's banking empire would stretch across Europe, essentially becoming the world's first international bank

John Jacob Astorb. 1763, d. 1848 • Came to New York in poverty at age 20 and built a near-monopoly in the global fur trade. • Astor poured his fur profits into New York real estate; the income from the rents and the value of the land combined to make Astor the wealthiest American of his time

John Rockefellerb. 1839, d. 1937 • Rockefeller started his first business selling grain and other goods before he was 20 . • By buying out oil refineries around Cleveland and New York after the Civil War, Rockefeller soon dominated the market

Andrew Carnegieb. 1835, d. 1919 • The Scottish immigrant and weaver's son built a steel empire whose mills churned out the railroads, ships, and structures of post-Civil War America—and created a fortune for himself in the process.

Estee Lauderb. 1907, d. 2004 • In 1946, she founded the company that bears her name to sell makeup and perfume in high-end department stores around the world • Lauder became a giant in the nascent beauty industry by making sure the quality of her products exceeded the expectations of her target market, namely wealthy society women

George Washington Carverb. 1864, d. 1943 • Carver changed the South from being a one-crop land of cotton, to being multi-crop farmlands, with farmers having hundreds of profitable uses for their new crops

Henry Fordb. 1863, d. 1947 • Ford did not invent the automobile, but he made it affordable to the middle class that he helped create • His manufacturing process created the modern car industry, and with it, the car culture of the 20th century

Milton Hersheyb. 1857, d. 1945 • In 1905, Hershey built the world's largest chocolate factory in Pennsylvania • Millions enjoy what once had been reserved for the wealthy. Selling "low-cost luxury" became a viable business model

Harland “Colonel” Sandersb. 1890, d. 1980 • Kentucky Fried Chicken, pioneered by Colonel Harland Sanders, became one of the largest quick service food service systems in the world • A billion "finger lickin' good" KFC dinners served annually in more than 80 countries and territories.

Madam C.J. Walkerb. 1867, d. 1919 • Walker's line of hair-and-beauty products geared toward blacks tapped into a market ignored by other businesses because of racism • She set an example for generations of entrepreneurs in a time when women were still struggling for voting rights

Thomas Edisonb. 1847, d. 1931 • Edison's relentless innovation made him the most prolific inventor of his time • Started as a telegraph operator but soon moved on to refining that technology and creating others that would turn the world on its head: a device to turn power into light, a machine to record and play back sound

Ray Krocb. 1902, d. 1984 • Ray Kroc turned a California burger shack into a brand whose golden arches span the globe • By investing in franchisees, Kroc drove the inexorable growth of McDonald's and created one of the most visible brands in history

Walt Disneyb. 1901, d. 1966 • The first multimedia empire was built on animation • He also founded Disneyland . • His company owns: Buena Vista Pictures Entertainment, ABC TV, ABC Family Channel, and ESPN

Earl Gravesb. 1935 • Founded Black Enterprise magazine in 1970, a publication that recognized the expanding financial power of the black community and helped spur its growth • Boasts a paid circulation of half a million and has been profitable since its 10th issue

Andy Groveb. 1936 • He helped found Intel and navigated the company's shift from making memory chips to microprocessors • During his tenure as CEO from 1987 to 1998, Intel grew at a rate of 30% annually

W. K. Kelloggb. 1860, d. 1951 • Kellogg's accidental discovery, promoted with savvy marketing, transformed the way Americans eat breakfast • Kellogg grasped the idea that kids influence buying decisions—galvanizing the brand's success

Martha Stewartb. 1941 • Started a catering business out of her Westport (Conn.) home in 1976 • Went on to expand into retail, publishing, television, and merchandising

Bill Gatesb. 1955 • By linking his Microsoft software to IBM's first PCs, he dominated the industry • He developed a two-prong strategy of expanding the market while maintaining a strong hold on competitors

Jeff Bezosb. 1964 • Founded Amazon.com, in 1994 • Bezos pioneered techniques that have become staples of online sales.

Michael Dellb. 1965 • Created a new model for PC sales • Cutting out the retail middleman and custom-building computers to suit buyers' needs put Dell at the front of the class of PC makers

Oprah Winfreyb. 1954 • Oprah Winfrey turned her name into one of the most successful and respected brands in the world • Leveraged that fame into other interests: magazines, Web sites, film and television production and Social Entrepreneurship.

Richard Bransonb. 1950 • Richard Branson turned, Virgin, the mail-order record shop he opened in 1970 into a label he sold 22 years later for nearly $1 billion • Brand includes mobile-phone service, bridal gowns, credit cards, and life insurance. Virgin Group encompasses 200 companies in 30 countries and boasted $7.2 billion in sales in 2002

Steve Jobsb. 1955 d. 2011 • The Apple co-founder combined simplicity with innovation to emerge from the Internet boom as one of the lone tech companies that can butt heads with Microsoft

Mark Zuckerburg, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Chris Hughes • Founders of Facebook • Started at Harvard, but decided to spread the program to other Ivy League schools and then beyond.

Ralph Laurenb. 1939 • Like many successful entrepreneurs, Lauren was selling lifestyle more than product • Lauren imagined a market for men's fashion as large as that for women

Sam Waltonb. 1918, d. 1992 • The man who built the world's largest retailer on low prices: Wal-Mart • Bought direct from manufacturers and made his stores as efficient as possible, sending the savings back to consumers

Chad Hurley, 29; Steve Chen, 28 & Jawed Karim, 27 • Founders of YouTube • Broadcasts 100 million short videos daily on myriad subjects • Sold to Google

Pierre Omidyarb. 1967 • Founder of EBay, which made the promise of the Internet a reality by connecting far-flung customers with the goods they wanted to buy

Lee Brown, 23; Lucas Brown, 23 & Lin Miao, 20 • Founded marketing firm Tatto while students at Babson College in 2005 with a $100 investment • Revenues are $25 million for 2007 and expected to grow to $50 million by 2008

Deborah Umunnabuike, 23; Jessica Umunnabuike, 21 & Vincent Choi, 23 • Sisters are co-founders of Avant Gaudy, an online vintage clothing shop • Almost 26,000 visitors from more than 30 countries to their website • Recruited Hong Kong native Vincent Choi to bring a global perspective to the business and better reach shoppers in Asia

Mitch Cohen, 20 • Started his latest company, ClixConnect, to help online retailers improve customer service on their Web sites • Started his first business when he was 16 • The six-employee business, has landed about 70 clients so far

Entrepreneurs: Leaders In Change