Characteristics of successful entrepreneurs

Entrepreneur- Someone who takes responsibility for ogranising business activity and carries out business risk.

• Initiative

• hard-working

• resilient

• creative

• self-confident

• take calculated risks

• Time and energy

• Interpersonal and communication skills
  

Other responsibilities- such as a carer commited to looking after children/ an eldery parent set up a business so that they can work from home or an eldrly parent may set up business so that they can work from home or work at convient hours.

Profit- prospect of growing rich from profits has powerful attraction for some. profit maximisation *running a firm to make the most profit as posb. regardless of any other objectives.*

Satisficers- people who target a satisfactory (and perhaps comfortable) performance rather than profit maximisation.

Ethics- feel producing something useful for the community and that they are treating staff, suppliers well. In line with ideas on what in morally correct, sometimes business face a choice between profit maximisation and ethical behaviour.

Personal Objectives- comfort and relaxation, profit, creativity.

Autocratic

• Leader makes decisions without reference to anyone else.

• High degree of dependency on the leader

• Can create de-lixiviation and alienation of staff.

• May be valuable in some types of business where decisions need to be made quickly and decisively or where working with large amount of unskilled workers

Democratic

• Encourages decision making from different perspectives.

• Consultative- process of consultation before decisions are made.

• Persuasive- leader takes decision and seeks to persuade others that decision correct.

• Help motivation and involvement of staff

• Workers feel ownership of the firm and the ideas

• Improves the sharing of ideas/ experiences within business

• Delay decision making

Laissez-faire

• 'Let it be'  - leadership responsibilities are shared by all

• Can be very useful in business where creative ideas are needed

• Can be highly motivational as people have control over their working life

• Can make co-ordination and decision making time consuming and lacking overall direction

• Relies on good team work and interpersonal relations

Paternalistic

• Leader acts as 'father figure'

• support staff