MODULE 1

INTRODUCTION OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Lesson 1: Understanding Entrepreneurship

MODULE OVERVIEW

Before you prepare a business plan, you need to understand first the macro view of
Entrepreneurship. This module will teach you the basics of entrepreneurship beginning with what
role it plays in society and the economy. You will also know key concepts of common and core
competencies which are required skills to become a successful entrepreneur. You will be able to
understand the pros and cons of being an entrepreneur as compared to being an employee. A total
persona of an entrepreneur will be inculcated to you, including the characteristics, behaviors,
activities, values, and mindset. Last, you will be exposed to various exciting career opportunities in
line with being an entrepreneur.

LESSON OBJECTIVES:

At the end of the lesson, you are expected to:

a. discuss the relevance of the course;
b. identify the key concepts and core competencies of an entrepreneur; and
c. explore the different opportunities in entrepreneurship.

MOTIVATIONAL ACTIVITY:
Discussion Board:
How does a business affect during the time of pandemic?

Topic 1: Entrepreneurship

Whilst there is no universally accepted definition of entrepreneurship, it is fair to say that it is multi-
dimensional. It involves analyzing people and their actions together with the ways in which they
interact with their environments, be these social, economic, or political, and the institutional, policy,
and legal frameworks that help define and legitimize human activities. – Blackburn (2011, p. xiii)

“Entrepreneurship is a dynamic process of vision, change, and creation. It requires an application

of energy and passion towards the creation and implementation of new ideas and creative
solutions. Essential ingredients include the willingness to take calculated risks ¾ in terms of time,
equity, or career; the ability to formulate an effective venture team; the creative skill to marshall
needed resources; and fundamental skill of building solid business plan; and finally, the vision to
recognize opportunity where others see chaos, contradiction, and confusion.” (Kuratko & Hodgetts,
2004, p. 30)

Entrepreneurship is more than the mere creation of business. Although that is certainly as
important facet, it’s not the complete picture. The characteristics of seeking opportunities, taking
risks beyond security, and having the tenacity to push an idea through to reality combine into a
special perspective that permeates entrepreneurs.

This perspective can be exhibited inside or outside an organization, in profit or not-for-profit

enterprises, and in business or non-business activities for the purpose of bringing forth creative
ideas. Thus, entrepreneurship is an integrated concept that permeates an individual’s
business in an innovative manner.

Examples of Definition of Entrepreneur

An entrepreneur can be described as “one who creates a new business in the face of risk and
uncertainty for the purpose of achieving profit and growth by identifying significant opportunities
and assembling the necessary resources to capitalize on them” (Zimmerer & Scarborough, 2008, p.
5).

An entrepreneur is “one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or
enterprise” (Entrepreneur, n.d.).

Definitions of Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship can be defined as a field of business that seeks to understand how opportunities
to create something new (e.g., new products or services, new markets, new production processes or
raw materials, new ways of organizing existing technologies) arise and are discovered or created by
specific persons, who then use various means to exploit or develop them, thus producing a wide
range of effects (Baron, Shane, & Reuber, 2008, p. 4)

A concise definition of entrepreneurship “is that it is the process of pursuing opportunities without
limitation by resources currently in hand” (Brooks, 2009, p. 3) and “the process of doing something
new and something different for the purpose of creating wealth for the individual and adding value
to society” (Kao, 1993, p. 70)

RELEVANCE OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP

The Importance of Entrepreneurship in Economic Development

Entrepreneurs are frequently thought of as national assets to be cultivated, motivated, and
remunerated to the greatest possible extent. Great entrepreneurs can change the way we live and
work. If successful, their innovations may improve standards of living, and in addition to creating
wealth with entrepreneurial ventures, they also create jobs and contribute to a growing economy.

Economic Growth
New products and services created by entrepreneurs can produce a cascading effect, where it
stimulates related businesses or sectors that need to support the new venture, furthering economic
development.

For example, a few information technology companies made up the IT industry in India during the
1990s. The industry quickly expanded, and many other sectors benefited from it. Businesses in
associated industries—such as call center operations, network maintenance companies, and
hardware providers—flourished.

Add to National Income

Entrepreneurial ventures help generate new wealth. Existing businesses may remain confined to
existing markets and may hit the glass ceiling in terms of income. New and improved products,
services or technology from entrepreneurs enable new markets to be developed and new wealth to
be created.
Additionally, increased employment and higher earnings contribute to better national income in
the form of higher tax government spending.

Create Social Change

Through offering unique goods and services, entrepreneurs break away from traditional and
reduce dependence on obsolete systems and technologies. This results in an improved quality of
life, improved morale, and greater economic freedom.

The Importance of Entrepreneurship in Developing Countries

We need more jobs for fresh graduates and degree holders. Entrepreneurs starting a new business
they need highly skilled people for jobs. They are selecting skilled people. Else, if there is no
entrepreneur then there is no business. And no jobs for people that’s why entrepreneurship is
important.

Importance of Entrepreneurship in Society

When they become successful, they inspire social development. They spend part of their income in
the development of education of poor children. They invest in growing natural resources. They
inspire young people to become responsible for their duty toward the nation. They participate in
government initiatives in educational and national development directly or indirectly. That’s why
entrepreneurship is important. But not all do care about nature and national development.

Importance of Entrepreneurship to the Individual

Entrepreneurship is important for financial freedom and wealth. Today, you can see people
working for companies and doing their jobs. That's great, but I don’t think all have the freedom to
choose their working and family hours. They have fix routine. They have fixed income, and most
part of their income is invested in liabilities. Such individuals are very talented, but they are
working hard for banks to pay installments or interest, room owners to pay rent, and governments
to pay taxes. They are spending and using their skills for others and working for money. If they start
their own business, then they can achieve more in less time, even if they do or run a part-time
online business, they can increase their income.

TOPIC 2: SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEURS

Who is an Entrepreneur?
The word “entrepreneur” has a French origin and was coined from the words “entre”, which means
“between,” and prendre, which means “to take.”

An entrepreneur is a unique individual who has the innate ability and extraordinary dedication to
establish and manage a business, acknowledging all the risks and reaping its rewards. Like other
vocations, being an entrepreneur is also a calling. It is not a career that one can just jump into when
he or she decides to. It entails a holistic business talent to be considered one, ranging from product
and marketing expertise to operations agility and financial proficiency.

The definition of an entrepreneur only provides you with a general description or shows you what
is expected from an entrepreneur. However, entrepreneurship is composed of varying degrees or
levels of intensity. According to Action Coach, there are five levels of entrepreneurial development.
 1. The Self-employed. Self-employed persons are, simply put, not comfortable with the
routines of a desk job. They do not want to conform to a fixed working schedule. They want
to do things in their own way and start to feel agitated when controlled by the powers-that-
be. While they can be self-sufficient, their tendency is to become too reliant on themselves,
which leads to exhaustion. They will eventually realize that a successful business should
work for them, not the other way around. If they realize this, they can move on to the next
level.
2. The Manager. At this level, entrepreneurs feel the need to step up and ask for some help
from the people around them. They delegate and hire potential employees to do the work.
However, they may have the tendency to get more people who do not know battle is in the
scale and not the profitability. As a result, entrepreneurs will start knowing their employees
better, assessing their strengths and their areas for business and the employees’ expertise.
3. The Leader. Entrepreneurs in this level already enjoy seeing their people flourish, stepping
up and producing great results with minimal supervision. They already recognized key
leaders in their organization. In effect, these key leaders also enjoy the entrepreneurs’ trust
and are satisfied with the outcome of their careers. Entrepreneurs at this stage now focus
on the big picture and strategic direction of their business rather than in generating sales
and operating the business. At this point, entrepreneurs can now move on to the next level.
4. The Investor. Investors looks for more opportunities for their business to grow. They may
either purchase one or two business that can potentially add value to the company or sell
their established business (as franchise) to potential entrepreneurs. They will delegate a
suitable manager for such operations and will act as directors. When this becomes
successful, they will now become true entrepreneurs.
5. The True Entrepreneur. True entrepreneurs, based on their experience, now aim for quality
and excellence in their work. They have fully learned, and continue to practice, a four-step
process of thinking – starting with idealization, visualization, verbalization, and
materialization. In idealization, entrepreneurs dream enormously and desire to build an
ideal environment. In visualization, entrepreneurs start to create plans to make the dream a
reality. Verbalization involves sharing their ideas with other people, knowing that their
vision is already occurring. Materialization happens when the vision becomes a reality. In
this stage, true entrepreneurs now have an income that keeps on multiplying even if they do
not put much effort.

Common and Core Competencies in Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is a career that requires a plethora of common and core competencies. Therefore,
to be considered a successful entrepreneur, he or she must possess common entrepreneurial
competencies that are needed all throughout the entrepreneurship career. At the same time, he or
she should also possess core competencies that are needed for business sustainability and
management.

Here are the common traits that entrepreneurs should always have.
 1. Proactive. Entrepreneurs are reactive rather than passive. They address issues, problems,
and challenges before they come rather than when they already happened. They ensure that
proper research is done, the risk factors are assessed, and plans are executed on a timely
and most efficient way.
2. Agents of Change. Entrepreneurs are innovation champions. They see opportunities in
hopeless and complex situation. They are always enthused to improve and develop new
products and services and introduce them to the market. They don’t settle for mediocrity
and the status quo.
3. Risk takers. Entrepreneurs will not be successful if they do not take risks. By taking risks,
entrepreneurs do not just grab opportunities left and right; they have to take into
consideration the potential various threats they may encounter. Entrepreneurs calculate
risks; if they think that there is a big chance of succeeding, they push through with the
venture and don’t let the opportunity pass.
4. Have a sharp eye for opportunities. Entrepreneurs have a talent for recognizing an
opportunity even by using the macrolevel data only. They know how to assess the net cause
and effect of an opportunity and decide intelligently if a venture should be considered or
not.
5. Sociable. Soft skills are one of the most important competencies of entrepreneurs as these
establish the relationship with the most important assets of the company—its people and
its customers. Relationship management is the key for employee and customer retention,
which can be achieved by a sociable entrepreneur.
6. Networkers. A networker knows the key people to connect with. Networking can be a very
intimidating task, for it takes a lot of guts to pull it off. Successful entrepreneurs gain trust of
their valuable network and maintain a long-lasting relationship with them.
7. Decisive. Entrepreneurs always have a decision about their business. They do not settle for
gray areas or unclear solutions. They do not leave an issue unsolved without a disposition.
They make sure that all aspects of their business have clear objectives and strategies. Last,
they base their decisions on scientific calculations backed up by their experience and
technical knowledge.
8. Balanced. The minds of entrepreneurs should have a balance between the analytical and the
creative side. Their brains are always playing with “unique ideas” that no one has ever
thought of yet. Entrepreneurs always have “Eureka!” moments and enjoy them.
9. Innovative. The minds of entrepreneurs are rich with big ideas that can add value to their
existing business or could become a game changer in the industry or business where they
belong. They do not stop improving and thinking of new and worthwhile ideas for their
business.

SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEURS
Here are some of the entrepreneurs who aims to bring a change in this world.

Steve Jobs (Apple)

Broadly perceived as a pioneer of the microcomputer upheaval of the 1980s, he was a college
dropout, who even visited India, to follow Buddhism. He was the first to develop mass-produced
personal computers. What’s more, is that Jobs started the advancement of the visual impacts
industry which appealed to people. His key to success was that he had a close eye on his
competitors. Employments worked closely with planner Jonathan Ive to build up a line of gadgets
that would have bigger social implications: the iMac, iTunes and iTunes Store, Apple Store, iPod,
iPhone, App Store, and iPad. Macintosh OS was additionally patched up into OS X (renamed “macOS
in 2016), in light of NeXT’s NeXSTEP stage. He’s proved through is ways that everything is possible!

Bill Gates (Microsoft)

“Harvard’s most successful dropout” and called “ridiculously rich”. Amid his vocation at Microsoft,
Gates held the places of executive, CEO and boss programming designer, and was the biggest
individual shareholder until May 2014. Gates has written and co-composed a few books. He also
reveals his business secret, which is ‘hiring of smart people’. As for college, he has just a few words
to say.

“It was unfortunate that I didn’t get to stay there, but I don’t think I missed any knowledge, because
whatever I needed to learn, I was still in a learning mode” Gates says.

PHILIPPINE SETTING

Janine Chiong (Habi Footwear)

When most students study business or entrepreneurship in college, they merely think of their
education as preparation for the distant future. Chiong did things a little differently. She took her
thesis project and grew it into a real business, or what most people know as Habi Footwear today.
As part of her thesis project at Ateneo de Manila University, Chiong and her two teammates – Paola
Savillo and Bernadee Uy – visited a small community in Quezon City. The mothers that they met
there would eventually upcycle the cloth used in Habi Footwear’s shoes, work for which they are
paid well above standard market rates.

Antonio "Tony" Meloto (Gawad Kalinga)

Tony Meloto is a Filipino entrepreneur and founder of Gawad Kalinga (Gawad Kalinga Community
Development Foundation) which means to ‘give care’. It is a poverty alleviation and nation-building
organization based in the Philippines. Gawad Kalinga has worked with over 2,000 communities in
the Philippines since 1995. Their work has been adopted by other countries such as Cambodia,
Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

Gawad Kalinga tackles poverty by combining multiple solutions through its GK villages. With
sponsorships from various sectors, GK works with impoverished communities to build homes,
schools, clinics, community centers and businesses. Services include educational programs for
youth, formation programs for GK village residents, trained community health workers and
capacity building for solid waste management programs. GK is multifaceted in its approach to
poverty alleviation and development. It seeks to restore dignity by providing shelter and
community infrastructure and ensures that families have security of tenure in the areas in which
GK builds.
Beyond Four-corners: (flipped activity)
Search online for an American show about entrepreneurs called Shark Tank. Watch one episode
from any season of your choice. Try to look for an episode (or a series of episodes) that features
three entrepreneurs.
For some information about the show, go to http://abc.go.com/shows/shark-tank/about-the-show.

Evaluate the entrepreneurs. Compare and contrast them based on the common and core
competencies that they possess (or do not possess).

Make sure that your discussion is thorough. For instance, do not simply say that one entrepreneur is
proactive. Explain why you think he or she is proactive. And if you think another entrepreneur is also
proactive, discuss the similarities and differences between these two entrepreneurs.