Entrepreneurship Development
Economist Joseph Schumpeter has given a significant contribution in understanding the concept of entrepreneurship. According to him, an entrepreneur is a person who is willing and able to convert a new idea or invention into a successful innovation. In the view of Schumpeter, an entrepreneur employs the gale of creative destruction. Creative destruction can be defined as the process of creating a new product, business model, or other business innovations by replacing the old ones. Thus, new products and technologies developed by entrepreneurs over time make current products and technologies obsolete. For example, before the advent of mobile phones, pagers were very popular among people, but with the invention of mobile phones, pagers became obsolete. Therefore, Schumpeter held the argument that creative destruction is the main factor behind economic growth and industry dynamism. He also held a view that entrepreneurship results not only in new industries but also in new combinations of currently existing inputs. Schumpeter exemplified this concept with the invention of steam which was used to develop a horseless carriage. Further, the horseless carriage was transformed into a car. This formation of a car from a steam engine was not the development of new technology, but the application of existing technologies in a novel manner.
Thus, we can say that entrepreneurship is an act of bearing risks, bringing innovation, generating employment, and mobilizing resources. Entrepreneurship development is the process of improving the skills and knowledge of entrepreneurs through various training and classroom programs.
Entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship play a significant role in the socio-economic development of a nation. Entrepreneurs set up enterprises and generate employment for people in their enterprises. This helps in reducing unemployment, which is the main cause of all soda economic problems as well as results in increasing the total income of a country. Moreover, goods and services produced by entrepreneurs, after meeting the domestic demand, are exported to foreign countries to earn foreign exchange. In this way, entrepreneurs play a significant role in the country’s growth and prosperity in terms of production, employment generation, and export.
