Entrepreneurship has become a common term in the past years, which was not much known previously. Entrepreneurship is another word for a start-up or a business. Entrepreneurs typically do not start with huge capital, and only 1 – 2% of entrepreneurs emerge yearly. However, innovative and dedicated entrepreneurs play a vital role in economic growth. Let’s tell you about the role of entrepreneurs in economics.
What is Entrepreneurship?
Harvard Business School defines entrepreneurship as the “pursuit of opportunity beyond resources controlled.”
Entrepreneurs and solopreneurs are different in their organizational manner. An entrepreneur is a business leader who brings new ideas or creates a business with existing ideas. A solopreneur is a one-man army. On the contrary, an entrepreneur might not have an extensive set of managers. Yet, they have a few team members working for them.
Entrepreneurs bring more job opportunities to the masses and contribute to the overall economy of a country. Here’s how:
Job Opportunities
Entrepreneurs need people on their teams to manage business activities like production, packaging, finance, and customer care. It enables them to recruit more people and provide employment opportunities. It can help solve unemployment locally as start-ups usually take people from nearby areas.
Wealth Sharing
As entrepreneurs do not have a lot of money, they connect to investors. Investors often invest in their businesses in the form of debt or equity. Eventually, the entrepreneurs earn from the invested money and give the decided share to the investors. Wealth sharing through investments also enables entrepreneurs to pay better to their employees. It leads to wealth creation and sharing within a population to help everyone grow together. It is one of the fundamental goals of economic development.
Living Standard
Improving the standard of living is the primary goal of economic development. Entrepreneurs play a major role in the economy by elevating the living standards in a community. It is not made possible only by the addition of more job roles. Instead, the related factors impact those living and working in those areas. Many companies provide better facilities to their workers to ensure they do not get tired of the job. These facilities keep them connected to your company and drive them to do better.
Regional Development Balance
The addition of new businesses to backward and rural areas helps regional balance development by providing opportunities. When more people set up their production units in rural areas, it allows them to work to earn better. It also comes with other benefits like improved water supply, stable electricity, better roads, etc., due to the industry’s needs. Entrepreneurs support the regional public by recruiting them for their facility directly and involving them in related tasks. The government also encourages setting up businesses in less privileged areas to reduce economic disparity among different socioeconomic classes.
GDP
Adding more businesses helps boost the overall economy in one way or another. These businesses also bring foreign exchange as a result of product export. Entrepreneurs become a major part of the economy in countries with high entrepreneurship rates. Small-scale industries like cottage industries may also be categorized as entrepreneurs. You might be surprised to know that the cottage industries contribute to more than 60% of the total economy in India. The utilization of local labor and resources increases per capita income, contributing to the GDP. It is among the most critical goals of economic development in any country.
Capital Optimization
Entrepreneurs are all about money once they are stable. They want to produce a significant investment return to keep the investors engaged for a long time. It leads to capital optimization by offering high employment and a high capitalization ratio. The locals receive more money due to better jobs, and the investors get better returns.
A win-win situation for the workers, investment, and the government!
Reaching Consumer Demands
Every company works to produce many products that cater to the market demand. However, most entrepreneurs come with innovative products that add value. They take care of the consumer’s demands ensuring a steady supply.
Development of Trader
Entrepreneurs are an essential factor in promoting domestic and foreign trade. They take assistance from different financial institutions. Money in the form of trade credit, cash credit, loans, and overdrafts develops trade in the country and eventually helps improve the economy.
Reduce the Concentration of Economic Power
It is common in several countries worldwide that major businesses have economic power. However, this may face disruption when more entrepreneurs enter the stream. The addition of more entrepreneurs will help divide economic power and prevent autonomy.
Backward and Forward Linkages
Entrepreneurs do not work on traditional standards. Instead, they try to bring new technology to make more money without investing a lot. Implementing innovation and complying with the changing technology induces backward and forward linkages. They play a pivotal role in the economic development of a country.
Exports
While entrepreneurs do not export products initially, many eventually move toward them. This expansion of businesses globally contributes to the economy by adding developed foreign markets. It enables enterprises to reach bigger markets, sell a larger volume, better understand and adapt technology and leads to an inflow of currency.
Overall Development
Entrepreneurs do not only provide jobs to a specific number of people. Setting up a manufacturing plant may lead to the need for more units and more people to operate new machinery gradually. It will also open doors for training centers in the area to promote skills. More people will learn and adapt those skills to improve their standard of living. This leads to overall development in that region besides your business goal.
The Bottom Line
Entrepreneurs play a major role in the economy of a country. They provide better job opportunities and improve living standards by increasing per capita income. They also contribute to regional development balance by setting up their units in less-privileged and rural areas. It contributes to backward and forward linkages significantly. Entrepreneurs also boost foreign trade through export to facilitate the inflow of foreign cash.
Matthew is a Co-Founder at BusinessFinanceArticles.org. Matthew was a floor manager at a local restaurant in Wales. He lost his job after the pandemic and took initiative to make a team and start the project.
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