Karren Brady on Entrepreneurship....

Clinton, J (2010) Football boss Karren : university is no place for an entrepreneur

Express on Sunday, Aug 22nd

Retrieved on Newsbank database ( library.beds.ac.uk ) on 1st Sept 2010

Adding to the debate, Karren Brady, vice chair of West Ham who is particularly critical of universities who teach courses such as Musical Theatre which she doesn't feel worthy or suitable for academic study...

In the article she also lists some other entrepreneurs who didn't go to Uni ( I think we get the idea ).....Sir Philip Green, David Gold and inevitably....Lord Alan Sugar.

Entrepreneurs and University.

You don't learn entrepreneurship at University

So runs one of the AMP questions. The debate has recently been highlighted in the Daily Express as A level results were published this week ( Daily Express, 17th August 2010 )

Among those mentioned in the article :

Sir Richard Branson, now worth 30bn he left school at 15.

Peter Jones ( Dragon's Den star ) - left school after A levels in order to start making money. He had several failures before making his millions, and counts 'learning from his mistakes' the best kind of education.

Michelle Mone ( Lingerie entrepreneur ) She founded Ultimo after leaving school at 15. She claims that her poor background discouraged her from seeking higher education, and that working at an early age taught her alot.

And of course Sir Alan Sugar....

The question is....which successful businessmen / women did go to Uni ?

Entrepreneur honoured at University of Beds

Those of you studying the role of the Entrepreneur in society, and which skills they need should look out for Jan Telensky, who is being honoured at our graduations this week.

Czech-born Jan's concept was that there is a massive demand for new online games, and those who have the skills to produce them can be trained online.

The CATS faculty at the University of Bedfordshire runs courses on gaming, and has strong links with Mr Telensky. There is plenty of information on :

http://www.train2game.co.uk

as well as several articles on Jan Telensky on Newsbank

It is possible to find material on the computer gaming industry on several of our databases.

Death of an Entrepreneur

The recent death of entrepreneur Nicolas Hayek, reported widely in the press struck me as relevant to several of the questions set in the Applied Management Project.

Hayek was the man behind the Swatch. His simple idea was that a watch need not be expensive, but could still be desirable, if marketed as a stylish "must have" brand.
A fashion accessory as much as a timepiece.

The idea ( and the Swatch ) are still going strong today. Hayek became one of the world's weathiest men...

A look at Hayek's background, and the nature of his ideas could be relevant in particular to the question about whether entrepreneurs are born or created....

Entrepreneurs - Born or Made ?

AMP Question about whether Entrepreneurs are born or created at Business School.

This article raises a few points concerning the role of ambition in the creation of an entrepreneur.

And that crucial factor , exploiting an opportunity in the market. The example cited here is James Seddon and his creation 'Eggxactly' for soft-boiling eggs.

Researching a market however, to find the gaps, is also important. Surely some of these skills can be taught and learnt at Business School.

Some of the personal traits of an entreprenuer are given with examples :

Be Passionate ( Gordon Ramsey)

Resilience ( Keep calm, carry on, Learn from mistakes - Richard Branson )

Be outgoing - don't shy away from publicity ( Alan Sugar )

Be confident, not arrogant ( Stelios ?)

Whether you went to business school or not however may also be irrelevant if you have not got the money for start-up costs, or if the economy is against you....

Marcouse, I (2007) So, you want to be Richard Branson ? Business Review (14) 1 p.2-3

Entrepreneurs : Born or made ?

Are you answering a question about whether entrepreneurs can learn any skills at Business School, or whether these are inherent ?

This is a common AMP topic...

Maybe think about which of the following you might learn at the University of Bedfordshire ?

Risk management Creativity and innovation


Determination

Teamwork

Motivation

Can-do attitude

Communication skills

Organisation

Leadership

Initiative

Nature of Entrepreneurship

You don't learn to be Alan Sugar at school. Either you are an entrepreneur or you're not.

Discuss.

This question is really looking at what makes an entreprenuer ? Which skills be learnt at Business School. Lecturers will not want you to get sidetracked with the lives of Alan Sugar or Richard Branson, but reading a little about their lives may give you a flavour of how their background has shaped their success.

The book by William Bygrave & Andrew Zacharakis ( 2008 ) Entrepreneurship, John Wiley

has a chapter on the entrepreneurial process, good definitions, and the 10 D's of successful entrepreneurship.

Dream, Decisiveness, Doing, Determination, Dedication, Devotion, Details, Destiny, Dollars ( it's a US book ), and Distribution.

How many of these skills do you think could be learnt ?