Family Entrepreneur by Fred Dawkins

Author:Fred Dawkins
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dundurn
Published: 2014-10-07T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

A New Era of Entrepreneurship

The two prodigals, Jeff and Steve, arrived separately just prior to the three o’clock start but Tim wasn’t there for the Monday session. Sam, of course, was right on time.

“Before we get back on track with our family issues, I’d like to expand our conversation from Saturday. There’s tons of evidence that entrepreneurs have been a driving force in history. For one thing, most exploration was driven and financed by entrepreneurs. As we expand the reach of globalization it seems to me that we’ve built the wrong structures to handle it. Globalization fuels competition. It fosters the best and most efficient use of resources. In our fast-moving world business has to be flexible, resilient, and adaptable. Innovation is the most important factor in finding new comparative advantages that keep the economies of individual countries vibrant. These are qualities that are inherent in small entrepreneurial firms, not the large international behemoths that we’ve created.

“Our business schools have focused on producing executives for large and expanding corporations. In that sense we’ve been floating a flawed business model. Only in the last few years has entrepreneurship become a new emphasis. If flexibility is critical in this environment, doesn’t ‘too big to fail’ really mean ‘too big to succeed,’ or maybe just ‘too big’? We’ve abandoned microeconomic theory, disregarding principles such as the Law of Diminishing Returns and economies of scale. The benefits of globalization lie in capitalizing on comparative advantages around the world and translating them into the most efficient system for the provision of goods and services. These huge companies do seize on the obvious comparative advantages. That’s why we have large manufacturing plants in China capitalizing on cheap labour and expanding outsourcing of services to India taking advantage of their inexpensive tech capabilities. These glaring advantages are easily identified. However, it’s going to take entrepreneurs looking for opportunity and focused on making things happen that dig into the many other less obvious opportunities. Also, it will take entrepreneurs to solve the issues of comparative disadvantages such as non-competitive unskilled workers in developed countries. Transitioning to a true global economy can be painful. These disadvantages are serious threats in many countries because they create structural economic and social problems that can’t be exported. Entrepreneurs will see opportunity in these disadvantages and set in motion projects that will alleviate them, maybe even solve them over time. In the simplest terms the right people can and will make bad ideas work in tough circumstances.

“It’s not just about the money. Most entrepreneurs stick to their own area. At a time when globalization is running rampant, entrepreneurs often practice localization, finding opportunity in their home area and creating jobs for others where pure economic logic says don’t try. This is why I place such a high value on all levels of entrepreneurship. The philosophy is not about making money, it’s about making things happen. High-profile success is critical. It provides inspiration and encouragement to huge numbers of people to whom success means a more modest achievement that collectively impacts society.

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