Entrepreneurship

Alan L. Carsrud · Malin E. Brannback

Mar 2007 · Greenwood Publishing Group

About this ebook

Are entrepreneurs born or made? How do they recognize opportunity? How do they address the risks associated with designing, launching, and sustaining a new venture? There are many steps between having an idea and going public—this book explores the entrepreneurial process through all of its stages, a process in which some half a billion people are engaged worldwide every year. Illustrated through numerous real-life examples, the book is a map of the entrepreneurial journey, exploring the wide variety of opportunities open to the entrepreneur and how to build upon them, including an overview of such essential principles as screening, market research, product development, financing, and marketing and sales strategies. It also covers legal issues, intellectual property protection, motivating employees, managing boards and investors, use of technology, and the international environment. Featuring examples of business plans and presentations, exercises and checklists, and a glossary of key terms, this volume provides a solid overview and introduction to the process of business creation that will appeal to students and educators, general readers, and budding entrepreneurs.

Nearly everyone recognizes iconic companies like Microsoft, Dell, and Ford. But what do we really know about the entrepreneurs (Bill Gates, Michael Dell, and Henry Ford, respectively) who founded these firms or the factors that influenced the birth and development of these corporate giants? How do entrepreneurs identify opportunity and how do they address the personal, social, and financial risks associated with designing, launching, and sustaining a new venture? There are many steps between having an idea and going public—this book explores the entrepreneurial process through all of its stages, a process in which some half a billion people are engaged worldwide every year.

Illustrated through numerous real-life examples, the book is a map of the entrepreneurial journey, exploring the wide variety of opportunities open to the entrepreneur and how to build upon them, including an overview of such essential principles as screening, market research, product development, financing, and marketing and sales strategies. It also covers legal issues, intellectual property protection, motivating employees, managing boards and investors, use of technology, and the international environment. Featuring examples of business plans and presentations, exercises and checklists, and a glossary of key terms, this volume provides a solid introduction to the process of business creation that will appeal to students and educators, general readers, and budding entrepreneurs.

About the author

Alan L. Carsrud is Executive Director, Global Enterpreneurship Center, Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering, and Clinical Professor of Management at Florida International University. Previously, he served on the faculty at the Anderson School, UCLA, and directed the graduate programs in entrepreneurship at the University of Texas, Austin, and the University of Southern California. He has taught at Pepperdine University, Nangang Technological University in Singapore, Anahuac University in Mexico City, and the Australian Graduate School of Management in Sydney. He was on the start-up team at People Express Airlines and Founding Director of CytoSignal, a biotech firm, and has served as Vice-President for the International Council for Small Business, on the Board of Directors of the Family Firm Institute, and as Founding Associate Editor of the journal, Entrepreneurship and Regional Development. Malin E. Brannback is Professor of International Business at Abo Akademi University, Department of Business Studies, and Docent at the Swedish School of Economics and Business Administration and the Turku School of Ecomomics and Business Administration in Finland. She has held a variety of teaching and research positions in such fields as strategic management, international marketing, organizational processes, and pharmacy. She has served on the organizing committees of numerous international conferences and on the editorial board of the Journal of Decision Systems, and has published widely on entrepreneurship, strategic management, biotechnology, and other topics in articles, monographs, and conference presentations.