First written on August 11, 2009 Page updated on Thursday, November 12, 2009 Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management - Free membership is necessary. Click here for free membership. All articles are written by Madhavan Gopalachary Purpose of a business plan - For managements or entrepreneurs seeking external support, the plan is the most important sales document that they are ever likely to produce as it could be the key to raising finance etc. Preparation of a comprehensive plan will not guarantee success in raising funds or mobilizing support, but lack of a sound plan will, almost certainly, ensure failure Characteristics and traits of successful entrepreneurs - There is an erroneous belief that most entrepreneurs are interested in making a lot of money and that is the main motivator for starting their own ventures. In reality it is not so. Most individuals who start small businesses generally work harder for less money but are happier than their counterparts who work for someone else Determinants of New Venture Failures as ranked by both entrepreneurs and VCs - In the article titled 'Why new businesses fail?', we had mentioned 10 reasons for most new ventures to fail. However, there are two sides to any coin. How an Entrepreneur looks at failure is different from how a Venture Capitalist looks at it. In 1999, a research was done and both parties were asked to rank the importance of reasons for failures on six basic parameters Evaluating personal feasibility of an idea - Before making the decision to even pursue the evaluation of your idea, you should evaluate yourself. Many entrepreneurs make the mistake of assuming that their first rate idea will take them to the top. In reality, it is the entrepreneurs that will take their first rate idea to the top. Certain personal characteristics can be determinants in the success of a small business enterprise (Reilly & Milliken, 1996). Take a look at your personality characteristics. Are they such that you can both adapt to and enjoy business ownership/management? Go through the following list and put a check by each of the qualities that you have. Successful entrepreneurs typically have the following characteristics What is a Feasibility assessment? - A feasibility assessment often referred to as a feasibility analysis or a feasibility study, can be broadly defined as a preliminary evaluation of your business idea to see if it’s worth pursuing.  A feasibility study involves gathering, analyzing and evaluating information with the purpose of answering the question:  “Should I go into this business?” Intrepreneurial Organizational culture - The term Intrepreneurial culture is a contrived term for entrepreneurial culture when implemented internally by large organizations. Organizations realized that SMBs were more entrepreneurial as compared to them and innovation was more effectively practiced by them. When researchers analyzed the reasons for this anomaly, they found that traditional organizational cultures were inhibitive by nature and structure to promote innovation. This led to ‘skunk works’ as mentioned by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman in their book ‘In Search of Excellence’. Available opportunities for entrepreneurs in various sectors - Often, entrepreneurs get confused regarding which field to choose for starting new ventures. While it is best to start something you know best, especially if you are a technical specialist, for a generalist it is very difficult to choose the best available option. I am listing below the various fields that are available for starting new ventures. While it is not exhaustive, it generally covers most areas. Innovation is a instrument of Entrepreneurship. People must innovate in the chosen areas if they want to make a success of their ventures. Problems of SMEs – Managing Cultural Change - Often, we find that many organizations, especially SMEs, do not know how to arrive at various goals and objectives. To arrive at proper goals and objectives, one needs strategic thinking. Most SMEs are reasonably good at operational and field tactics, but are not fully aware of the strategic aspects of the business Types of Entrepreneurs - In my lecture to MBA Students on Entrepreneurship, I clarified to them the difference between an Entrepreneur and a Businessman; the difference between a Capitalist and an Entrepreneur. Clarence Danhof, an American researcher, identified 4 types What is Innovation ? - We come across the term " innovation" in business and many times people have asked me its exact meaning and what it represents. Innovation is the specific instrument of Entrepreneurship. According to Drucker, just starting a new business alone is not entrepreneurship Why family managed businesses fail? - Family businesses fail for a number of reasons but primarily because of conflicts between the members of the family. Conflicts are bound to happen, whether the business is family driven or professionally managed. Conflicts are also inevitable, when a group of individuals come together to form a team Why new businesses fail? - Our research and experience shows that most SMBs fail due to lack of general management capabilities. SMBs are not in a position to engage good professionals for this role. The entrepreneur in most cases is found wanting in this area. It is important entrepreneurs undergo adequate training in this area The views, opinions and interpretations are personal. Sponsorship does not mean that the sponsors endorse them. © Copyright, Nov-09 . MMG Communications. Without prejudice. All rights reserved