Entrepreneurism is something that is becoming more of the norm than it has been in recent history. Likely linked to this increase is innovation, which is another concept that is closely related to entrepreneurism. As it relates to business, society has grown to crave the “new”. They seek improvements to existing technology, processes, and services as well as the development of entirely new forms of these business aspects. Entrepreneurism provides this via the ability and opportunity to develop business ideas and then test them in a business venture, thereby providing society with the innovation that they crave (Bianca, 2015). Of great importance is the consideration of the fact that most entrepreneurial endeavors fail before they are ever able to contribute to the desired consumer base in the manner intended. This reality is demonstrative of the fact that entrepreneurship is defined via a four phase process that defines the conception of ideas to the fruition of those ideas into reality.
The entrepreneurial process is a process that is defined by the pursuit of a new venture that includes more than simple problem solving in a general managerial capacity. Entrepreneurs are required to additionally find, evaluate, and then develop opportunities via the overcoming of forces within the business process and market that are resistant to the development of something new. The four phases of the entrepreneurial process are identification, development, determination, and management (Barringer & Ireland, 2010). Each will be discussed individually.
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The first phase of the entrepreneurial process is identification. This phase involves the identification and the evaluation of the opportunity (Barringer & Ireland, 2010). During the opportunity identification proves the entrepreneur comes up with the core concept of the opportunity that will form the new venture. This phase is one that is very difficult because of the requirement that the entrepreneur actually seeks and identifies an opportunity that does not readily present itself. The difficulty of this phase has resulted in the creation of tools and resources to aid in the process. One such tool is an opportunity analysis. An opportunity analysis (or opportunity assessment plan) is a tool that is used to evaluate an opportunity to determine what opportunity can be implemented successfully.
Development is the second phase of the entrepreneurial process. This phase involves the creation of the business plan. The business plan serves as a description of the direction that the business will take in the future (Barringer & Ireland, 2010). There are clear distinctions between a good and a poor business plan. A good business plan demonstrates a defined opportunity. The development of the business plan is one of the more time consuming phases of the entrepreneurial process because of the level of detail required (Britt, n.d.). It is worth the time invested because it serves as a critical component of the development of the opportunity and the determination of the resources required to expound upon that opportunity. Further, it assists in obtaining needed resources and managing the overall business venture successfully.
The third phase of the entrepreneurial process is determination. During this phase, the entrepreneur is tasked with determining what resources are required. It is important that entrepreneurs are aware of exactly the kinds of resources that are needed to implement the desired opportunity. This phase helps entrepreneurs define and differentiate between resources that are helpful and those that are impossible to get or use. It is also during this phase that the risks that are associated with inappropriate or insufficient resources should be assessed (Barringer & Ireland, 2010).
Finally, the last phase of entrepreneurial process is management. This phase is primarily focused on the entrepreneurs actions aimed at managing the enterprise. Following the acquisition of needed resources, the entrepreneur has to utilize them in a manner that allows them to implement that business plan that was developed. In addition, the entrepreneur must examine the operational problems of the ongoing enterprise. Such actions require the implementation of a management style and structure in addition to the determination of key variables for success. Also established during this phase is a control system (Barringer & Ireland, 2010). The control system is needed to so that any problem areas can be identified quickly and then resolved in an expedited manner.
From the individual perspective, the most important element of the entrepreneurial process is the identification and evaluation of the opportunity. This is the most important element because it is the most personal from the individual perspective. It is the foundation of the unique and individual approach that will be taken to solve a problem or offer something new to society and the identified consumer base.
From the corporate perspective, the most important element of the entrepreneurial process is the development of the business plan. Within any business endeavor is a certain degree of risk. Planning is the only way to mitigate that risk so that it is worth embarking upon the business venture. It is in this manner that investors and other stakeholders can determine that the benefits of a venture are worth the costs. A business plan serves as a map of the future of an entrepreneurial process. From a corporate perspective, it helps to decrease the ambiguity that can hinder the ability to move forward due to unmitigated risks.
In summation, the entrepreneurial process is comprised of four phases which are identification, development, determination, and management. These phases, when executed correctly, not only make entrepreneurism possible, but also aid in its effectiveness. As it relates to healthcare services and products, entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial process result in the innovative and lifesaving technologies and techniques that keep medicine on the cutting edge. It assists in the growth past the norm into arenas of more profitability, effectiveness, and for patients, increased degrees of health; which is holistically beneficial for society.
- Barringer, B.R. and Ireland, R.D. (2010). Entrepreneurship: Successfully launching new ventures (3rd ed.). Prentice Hall: New Jersey.
- Bianca, A. (2015). The advantages of entrepreneurship or intrapreneurship. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com
- Britt, D. (n.d.). Pros and con of being an entrepreneur. Retrieved from http://source.southuniversity.edu/
