The Entrepreneurial Process: 1. Self-Assessment

The Entrepreneurial Process
Review 1. Self-
Assessment
2. Opportunity
5. Enterprise GENTREP Identification &
Development will cover Evaluation
Steps 1–3
only.
3. Product
4. Enterprise
Ideation &
Management
Development
Self-
Do I have the passion

Assessment
Self-
and power to engage
Opportunity
Enterprise
Identification &
Development
Evaluation
Assessment
in entrepreneurship?
Product
Enterprise
Ideation &
Management
Development
What
entrepreneurial
mindset and What
attitudes do I need entrepreneurial
to have? behaviors do I
need to manifest?
What entrepreneurial
competencies do I need
to develop?
Self-
Assessment
Opportunity
Enterprise
Development
Opportunity
Identification
& Evaluation
Identification &
Evaluation
Product
Enterprise
Ideation &
Management
Development
Identify problems
to be solved
Observe market
trends Find market gaps
Self-
Assessment
Opportunity
Enterprise
Development
Opportunity
Identification
& Evaluation
Identification &
Evaluation
Product
Enterprise
Ideation &
Management
Development
The
TheEntrepreneurial
EntrepreneurialProcess
Process
Self-
Assessment
Product
Enterprise
Development
Opportunity
Identification
& Evaluation
Ideation &
Development
Product
Enterprise
Ideation &
Management
Development
THE OPPORTUNITY
RECOGNIZING MIND
THE PERSONAL ENTREPRENEURIAL
COMPETENCIES
Opportunity Seeking
• I look for things that need to be done.
• I do things that need to be done before
being asked by others.
• I like challenges and new opportunities.
• I prefer activities that I know well and
with which I am comfortable.
• I try things that are very new and different
from what I have done before.
THE ENTREPRENEURIAL MIND
The Opportunity-Recognizing Mind

• Is curious and inquisitive
• Is empathetic and sensitive to the
beliefs, feelings, needs, and motivations
of other people
• Is sensitive to problems and desires to
solve them
• Is sensitive to available, yet idle,
resources
OPPORTUNITY IDENTIFICATION
Three Ways to Identify an Opportunity

First Approach: Observing Trends
• Observing Trends
– Trends create opportunities for entrepreneurs to
pursue.
– The most important trends are:
• Social forces.
• Technological advances.
• Economic forces.
• Political action and regulatory change.
– It’s important to be aware of changes in these
areas.
First Approach: Observing Trends
Environmental Trends
Suggesting Business or Product
Opportunity Gaps
Trend 1: Social Forces
Social trends Examples of Social Trends

alter how people • Retirement of baby boomers
and businesses • The increasing diversity of the
behave and set workplace
their priorities.
• Increasing interest in health,
These trends fitness, and wellness
provide
opportunities for • Emphasis on alternative forms of
energy
new businesses to
accommodate the • New forms of music and other
changes. types of entertainment.
Trend 2: Technological Advances
Examples of Entire Industries that

Have Been Created as the Results of
Advances in
Technological Advances
technology
frequently create
• Computer industry
business
opportunities. • Internet
• Biotechnology
• Digital photography
Trend 2: Technological Advances
Example: H20Audio
An example is H20Audio, a company

Once a started by four former San Diego State
technology is University students, that makes
created, products waterproof housings for the Apple iPod.
often emerge to
advance it.
Trend 3: Economic Forces
Example of Economic Trend

Creating a Favorable Opportunity
Economic trends
help determine • A weak economy favors
areas that are ripe startups that help consumers
for new startups save money.
and areas that
startups should • An example is GasBuddy.com,
avoid. a company started to help
consumers save money on gas.
Trend 4: Political Action and Regulatory
Changes
General Example
Political action Laws to protect the environment have

created opportunities for entrepreneurs
and regulatory
to start firms that help other firms
changes also comply with environmental laws and
provide the basis regulations.
for opportunities.
Trend 4: Political Action and Regulatory
Changes
Specific Example
Company created The No Child Left Behind Act of

to help other 2002 requires states to develop
criterion-based assessments in basic
companies
skills to be periodically given to
comply with a students in certain grades. Kim and
specific law. Jay Kleeman, two high school
teachers, started Shakespeare
Squared, a company that helps high
schools comply with the act.
Second Approach: Solving a Problem
• Solving a Problem
– Sometimes identifying opportunities simply
involves noticing a problem and finding a way to
solve it.
– These problems can be pinpointed through
observing trends and through more simple means,
such as intuition, serendipity, or change.
Second Approach: Solving a Problem
• A problem facing the U.S.

and other countries is
finding alternatives to
fossil fuels.
• A large number of
entrepreneurial firms, like
this wind farm, are being
launched to solve this
problem.
Third Approach: Finding Gaps in the
Marketplace
• Gaps in the Marketplace
– A third approach to identifying opportunities is to

find a gap in the marketplace
– A gap in the marketplace is often created when a

product or service is needed by a specific group of
people but doesn’t represent a large enough market
to be of interest to mainstream retailers or
manufacturers.
Third Approach: Finding Gaps in the
Marketplace
2 of 2
Specific Example
Product gaps in In 2000 Tish Cirovolv realized

the marketplace there were no guitars on the market
represent made specifically for women. To
fill this gap, she started Daisy
potentially viable
Rock Guitars, a company that
business makes guitars just for women.
opportunities.
OPPORTUNITY EVALUATION
A critical element of opportunity recognition
is assessing to what extent an opportunity is
viable in the marketplace. For an
opportunity to be viable it must have four
qualities:
1. Attractive
2. Achievable
3. Durable
4. Value-creating
1. Attractive
• There must be market demand for the
product or service.
2. Achievable
• It must be practical and physically possible.
3. Durable
• It must be attractive long enough for the
development and deployment to be
successful.
4. Value-creating
• The benefits must surpass the cost of
development by a profitable margin.

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The Entrepreneurial Process: 1. Self-Assessment

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The Entrepreneurial Process

Do I have the passion

The Opportunity-Recognizing Mind

Three Ways to Identify an Opportunity

Social trends Examples of Social Trends

Examples of Entire Industries that

An example is H20Audio, a company

Example of Economic Trend

Political action Laws to protect the environment have

Company created The No Child Left Behind Act of

• A problem facing the U.S.

• Gaps in the Marketplace

– A third approach to identifying opportunities is to

– A gap in the marketplace is often created when a

Product gaps in In 2000 Tish Cirovolv realized

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