- Innovative abilities combine a scope of technical, management and individual aptitudes. In that capacity, there is no settled, straightforward meaning of the enterprising range of abilities.
- Nevertheless, enterprising abilities are affected by individuals’ financial, individual and public activities.
Insight to Entrepreneurial Skills
What are those? This may fudge you, so let’s remove the ambiguity. Entrepreneurship is ‘an individual’s ability to turn ideas into action. It includes creativity, innovation, and risk-taking, as well as the ability to plan and manage projects in order to achieve objectives. It is seen as vital to promoting innovation, competitiveness and economic growth. Fostering entrepreneurial spirit supports the creation of new firms and business growth. However, entrepreneurship skills also provide benefits regardless of whether a person sees their future as starting a business. They can be used across people’s personal and working lives4 as they encompass ‘creativity, initiative, tenacity, teamwork, understanding of risk, and a sense of responsibility’.
What constitutes entrepreneurship skills has been the subject of much discussion. Unlike other important economic skills, entrepreneurial skills are not related to a specific occupation, discipline or qualification. However, the greater emphasis on entrepreneurship education and developing entrepreneurial skills has brought more analysis and agreement of entrepreneurial abilities and competencies.
Who possesses entrepreneurship skills?
While a diverse group, entrepreneurs typically tend to be male, aged 40-55, educated to tertiary level and see the idea of becoming self-employed as feasible.
The OECD Guidelines
The OECD has identified three main groups of skills required by entrepreneurs:
- Technical – communication, environment monitoring, problem-solving, technology implementation and use, interpersonal, organizational skills.
- Business management – planning and goal setting, decision making, human resources management, marketing, finance, accounting, customer relations, quality control, negotiation, business launch, growth management, compliance with regulations skills.
- Personal entrepreneurial – self-control and discipline, risk management, innovation, persistence, leadership, change management, network building, and strategic thinking
Bigger picture
While anyone who starts a business has a bit of the entrepreneurial spirit, true entrepreneurs are distinguished by a certain visionary quality — think of Steve Jobs, for instance, who reimagined how people would interact with phones and computers, or Mark Zuckerberg, who transformed how we stay connected with friends and family and absorb the news.
Leadership
Entrepreneurs often have evangelistic quality. They have great ideas and are skilled at getting buy-in from investors and employees. If you’re applying for a role that requires an entrepreneurial spirit, provide examples of times you got staff on board with a plan that was a tough sell.
About the Author
