What are the Characteristics of an Ideal Entrepreneur?

Characteristics of Ideal Entrepreneur:

An ideal entrepreneur should possess the following characteristics:

(1)   Creativity: Creativity is the ability to bring something new into existence. A person may conceive of something new, and envision how it will be useful but not necessarily take the necessary action to make it a reality. Innovation is the process of doing new things, and creativity is a pre-requisite to innovation. An entrepreneur should be creative, because ideas usually evolve through a creative process whereby imaginative people bring them into existence, nurture them and develop them successfully.

(2)   Mental Ability: An entrepreneur must be reasonably intelligent and should have creative thinking and must be able to analyse various problems and situations. He should be able to anticipate changes and must be able to study the various situations under which the decisions have to be made.

(3)   Human Relation: An entrepreneur must maintain good relations with his customers. He must also maintain good relations with his employees if he is to motivate them to perform their jobs at a high level of efficiency. In order to maintain good human relation he should have emotional stability, personal relations, tactfulness and consideration.

(4)   Innovation: Innovation is the specific instrument of entrepreneurship. It creates a resource. Entrepreneurs innovate. Successful entrepreneurs, whatever their individual motivation be it money, power, curiosity or desire for fame and recognition try to create value and make a contribution, Still, successful entrepreneurs aim high. They are not simply content to improve on what already exists or modify it, but they try to create new and different values and new and different satisfaction to convert a material into a resource or to combine the existing resources in a new and more productive configuration.

(5)   Dynamism: Innovation, together with dynamism constitutes a potential combination for prosperity. It revises the targets of the enterprise in the upward direction, time and again. The enterprise may open up new avenues, better product mix or charismatic product image, stimulating steady growth. A dynamic entrepreneur is always pragmatic. He always sets attainable goals, which are to be accomplished within a specific timeframe. He tends to approach problems to solve them rather than run away from them. He analyses the problem systematically and solves them in the interest of the enterprise. He always believes in a win-win situation.

(6)   Leadership: The qualities of leadership will enable a person to stand apart in whatever profession he might be in. Leadership is the basic quality of entrepreneurs. This spirit keeps him forward in any field. The quality of his leadership is clear from his personal relationships, mode of handling a problem, generating resources and taking others in his own strides. Those enterprises, which are endowed with a resource of leadership, will always be prominent in the market.

(7)   Team building: An ideal entrepreneur is one who has the ability to build a team. A team is a group of individuals with common purpose that is focused and aligned to achieve a specific task or a set of outcomes. A good team will be able to share knowledge, core competency, and goals.

(8)   Achievement, motivation: Entrepreneurs have a high need for achievement and are guided by their inner self, motivating the behaviour towards the accomplishment of goals. Most of the successful entrepreneurs are attracted to this innovative career, because it is challenging and demands a high degree of intelligence and involvement. Achievement motivated entrepreneurs are the doers. They always accept any challenge and take a calculated risk to do something worthwhile. In India, we have a number of such entrepreneurs who are achievement motivated.

(9)   Problem solving: An entrepreneur should learn to face the problem and not avoid them. He should define the problem, gather information, identify various solutions, evaluate alternatives and select the best option, take action, and finally evaluate the action taken. Brainstorming is a creative group, problem-solving technique that involves generating large number of fresh ideas. In this session, several people gather in a room in order to discuss a particular problem. The meeting is informal, and everyone is encouraged to volunteer possible solutions. Following the brainstorming session, all the ideas are carefully evaluated and a list of ideas that are practical that can be implemented are prepared.

(10)Communication Ability: An entrepreneur should have the ability to communicate effectively. Good communication means both the sender and the receiver of the message understand each others. An entrepreneur is more likely to succeed if he can communicate effectively with his employees, creditors, suppliers and customers.

(11)Goal orientation: Human behaviour is goal directed. Therefore, goal setting is a necessary part of all the activities. Without goals, different members may go in different directions. A successful entrepreneur is goal oriented. He has to explain the purpose and the necessity of the specified goals to his team members. Whatever the situation, people need goals that are meaningful to them in order to be highly motivated and involved. The goals must be as specific as possible so that all employees can feel a sense of achievement when goal is attained.

(12)Risk taking and decision-making ability: Entrepreneurs are persons who take decisions under the conditions of uncertainty, and therefore they are willing to bear risk. Risk bearing and decision-making calls for absolute clarity in thinking and coordinated actions. Every decision pertaining to enterprise involves risk. Decision-making in an environment of uncertainty requires anticipation of risk and profit is a reward for undertaking this risk