WHO IS AN ENTREPRENEUR; DIFFERENT SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT

In a bid to provide an insight into how important entrepreneurial skills and qualities are to successful entrepreneurs in Malaysia and likewise globally, it is paramount to understand who an entrepreneur is, when is an entrepreneur categorized as successful and what notable traits exists in such an entrepreneur that has earned the individual the trademark of being referred to as a successful entrepreneur.

The selection of an appropriate basis for the definition of who an entrepreneur is or what qualifies an individual as an entrepreneur has been to be a challenge for scholars and academic researchers. There exists no generally accepted model of what classifies an individual as an entrepreneur (Churchill & Lewis, 1986; Shaver & Scott, 1991; Carland et al, 2015), although a large range of literature has described the term ‘entrepreneur’ to refer to the originator of a new firm or business outfit, or a person who initialized the start-up a new business venture which was not in existence before. However, Cunningham and Lischeron (1991) presented a unique approach for describing an entrepreneur with respect to various schools of thought.

 

TABLE 1: APPROACHES FOR DESCRIBING AN ENTREPRENEUR

Entrepreneurial Model	Central Focus	Assumption	Behaviours and Skills
“Great Person” School	The entrepreneur is seen to have an intuitive ability, that is, a sixth sense. Such an entrepreneur is born with this traits and instincts.	If this inborn intuition is missing, such an individual would not differ from other mere individuals who do not posses what it takes to be called an entrepreneur	Intuition, Persistence, Vigour, Self Esteem and Energy
Psychological Characteristics School	The entrepreneur possesses unique values, needs and attitudes that drive such an individual.	The behaviour of people is in accordance to their values.	Personal values, ability to take risks, drive for achievements.
Classical School	The entrepreneur’s major characteristic is a trait known as innovation.	The most important area of entrepreneurship is not owning but doing.	Innovation, Discovery and Creativity
Management School	The entrepreneur is an organizer of economic venture, that is, someone who organizes, manages, own and takes charge of the risk.	An entrepreneur can either be trained or developed in managing functions that are classed as technical.	People organizing, planning of production and capitalization
Leadership School	The entrepreneur is a leader of people. This individual blends his style or ideas to suit the needs of the people.	The accomplishment of goals by the entrepreneur is dependent on other individuals.	Director, Motivator and Leader
Intrapreneurship School	The entrepreneur’s skills can be of good use in complex organizations, where intrapreneurship can be defined as the development of independent units for the creation of a market or certain service rendered	Entrepreneurial activities lead to organizational building and the growth of entrepreneurs into managers.	Maximizing decisions and being alert to opportunities.

References

Churchill, N. C., and Lewis, V., (1986),The Art and Science of Entrepreneurship. Cambridge: Ballinger.

Shaver, K. G.., and Scott, L. R,. (1991) Person, process, choice: The psychology of new venture creation, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 16 (2), 23-46.

Carland Jr, J. W., Carland, J. A. C., & Carland III, J. W. T. (2015). Self-actualization: The zenith of entrepreneurship. Journal of Small Business Strategy, 6(1), 53-66.