The heart of entrepreneurship

According to Stevenson and Gumpert (1985), it’s much easier and safer for companies to stay with the familiar than to explore the unknown. In arguing for the notion that entrepreneurs may not have the personal traits that are possessed by others, the authors view entrepreneurial managerial behaviour in terms of extremes such as the promoter type of manager who feels confident of his/her ability to seize an opportunity, and the trustee type who is rigid and threatened by the waves of change. Putting such views in clear context, it is viewed that the differences between promoters and trustees yield facts that much as the former challenges the status quo, the latter is very much against changing it, and prefers the business as usual status. Based upon Stevenson and Gumpert (1985) argument, it is true that as people’s self interests weigh in, there is a tendency to lean towards the promoter end of the behavioural spectrum due to the fact that people know where their interests are, hence pursuing them aggressively with intelligence, energy and experience. However, contrary to the author’s views, it should also be considered that without money or other material needs, promoters will lack the whole package to realise entrepreneurial success, simply because chances would be high that a combination of different factors results in success.

Stevenson and Gumpert (1985) opine that in order for entrepreneurial success, there is need for exploiting the opportunity at hand. The authors argue that with creativity and innovation on the entrepreneur’s side, the exploitation of the opportunity will be much easier. Arguably, it is a topic of interest in my views that having traits such as creativity and innovativeness will certainly not render an entrepreneur as being an opportunist. But according to the author’s views, promoters of change will always rely upon the various external factors within the political, economic, social, technological setup. However, much as such factors may be favourable to the entrepreneur, there is always a tendency not to change the status quo by some people within a firm. In part, these may be due to the fact that some people prefer keeping the company culture, instead of venturing into the unknown. As one of their strong qualities, promoters of change (entrepreneurs) move quickly to capitalize on the available opportunities within a firm. Much as promoters are always ready to take the risk, trustees see commitment as time consuming, hence becoming slow administrative decision makers. Stevenson and Gumpert (1985) continue to argue that for the trustee type that inclines towards the administrative end, factors that drive their behaviours include; the social contract, performance criteria, planning systems & cycles, etc.

References

Stevenson, H.H., & Gumpert, D.E; (1985); “The heart of entrepreneurship”, Harvard Business Review (March-April) 85-94