Unit 2 Flashcards
Influences on beliefs of Entrepreneurs:
Beliefs are critical to survival and growth of entrepreneurial ventures
unique blend of factors namely:
🪐culture 🪐family and role models 🪐education 🪐work experience 🪐personal orientation
Culture
nations - entrepreneurial cultures high need for achievement
USA: entrepreneurs = recognised and celebrated no stigma attached to failure
role models are visible not distant celebrities
Russia: former communist country backlog of private enterprises
no development of an entrepreneurial culture
Jews: seen as good business people very committed
Indians: good business people good negotiators
Family and role models
individuals: exposed to entrepreneurial activities direct circumstances possibility to be
an entrepreneur
Children growing up in such families entrepreneurs or
entrepreneurial ventures
Education
Entrepreneurship: developed & learned by education
employers contribute positively to increased levels of entrepreneurship in society
Work experience
type of work & skills gained in a workplace ➡️ contribute to individual s entrepreneurial
orientation
gained experience as employees
➡️ apply these skills and experiences in own
entrepreneurial ventures
Personal orientation
based on factors:
💡creativity and innovation 💡independence 💡risk taking 💡proactiveness 💡pursuing 💡anticipating opportunities 💡competitive aggressiveness
Beliefs
What are beliefs
an acceptance that something exists or is true,
especially without proof
sometimes also called superstition
- don’t walk under a ladder
- mirror breaking
- tokoloshe
- painting falling
- not open an umbrella inside a house * messages in dreams
- owl hooting
Examples of myths/ beliefs about business in Namibia:
🧸women look after children & household
🧸men finance, leader & run the enterprise
🧸bad luck business on a Sunday
🧸making profit is the most important thing
🧸many customers is the key to success
🧸family & friends in an enterprise do not work
Common beliefs about entrepreneurs in Namibia:
- Entrepreneurs are born not made
- Entrepreneurs are doers and not thinkers
- Entrepreneurs are gamblers
- Entrepreneurs are inventors
- Entrepreneurs are nonacademicians and social nonconformists
- Entrepreneurs depend on luck
- Entrepreneurs are unstructured and chaotic
- Starting a venture is risky and often ends in failure
- Money is the most important startup ingredient
- Entrepreneurs fit a specific profile
The concept of gender
sex = identifies the biological differences between men (male) and female (women)
gender = the socioeconomic relationships that exist between male and female in society
Gender equality in business:
roles and responsibilities of men and women created in our families
societies and culture
Gender equality = men & women equal opportunities human rights
benefiting from development
Gender equity = being fair to men & women
Gender responsiveness
creating an environment that reflects an understanding of the realities boys, girls, men and women live in before addressing them.
Gender in business
women and men: equal chances to succeed in business
women are disadvantaged: access to resources
📌income, 📌credit, 📌land, 📌information, 📌networks, 📌technology, 📌education 📌technical training
Common barriers encountered by women entrepreneurs
- limited time: unpaid household family care duties
- narrower range of education technical skills
- how women grew up: less willing to be managers
- stereotypes regarding women in business enforced by spouse or lover
- mobility restrictions: family responsibilities safety concerns
dominant culture norms - unequal access to financial services:
no collateral and/or land registered in their names - process of formalisation of business discriminatory practices towards women
- taken seriously by: business partners, promotion agencies,
banks,
suppliers,
customers, competitors and even family members - women = limited social awareness
- not taking into account: specific female needs
Current trends regarding women entrepreneurs in Namibia:
improve women participation in business promote and support female entrepreneurial activities treat with dignity develop full potential high quality of life involved in: macro SME cross border selfhelp activities less represented in formal & registered businesses
Female dominated sectors in Namibia:
- extension of household responsibilities
- perceived as less NB to economic growth of country 3. high competition in certain areas
- low productivity and low profit
- not sufficient access to markets and customers
- informal sector, no financial services
Business Cultures:
China 🇨🇳
Confucianism:
virtue, order and harmony
Daosim:
natural flow of things
path that one should follow
Buddhism:
reflection & selfawareness
Myths about Chinese business:
don’t respect labour laws
exploit workers & pay low wages
low quality products
use bribery
Take into account when doing business in China:
📚Confucianism (partners in business) 📚good reputation (good name) 📚first impressions (greeting & gold colour) 📚patience with negotiations 📚no decisions made at meetings
📚punctuality (time)
Japan 🇯🇵
Principles
Kaizen or Kaizen Teian
Kaizen principles:
✏️good processes bring good results
✏️see for yourself to grasp current situation
✏️speak with data, manage with facts
✏️take action: confirm & correct root of problems
✏️work as a team
✏️kaizen is everybody’s business
Myths & beliefs:
- need a lot of money to enter the market
- only plan for long term long decision making
- perseverance & hard work are very important
- too expensive to make profits
7 guiding principles for HoRenSo (collaboration between management & employees):
📎service to the public 📎fairness & honesty 📎teamwork for the common cause 📎uniting effort for improvement 📎courtesy & humility 📎accordance with natural laws 📎gratitude for blessings
United Arab Emirates 🇦🇪
Islamic traditions
Principles of Islamic business:
🧢relationships & mutual trust 🧢have connections in UAE 🧢do business according to hierarchy 🧢good manner & courtesy very highly ranked 🧢word is a bond
Challenges
🌳Religion prayer
🌳First impression shaking hands
🌳Gender women
🌳Business is not well planned informal
🌳My word is my word no written contracts
🌳Appointments & meetings interrupted often
Common examples of beliefs towards business:
belief = affirmation or acceptance of a fact, opinion, or assertion as being real or true without immediate personal knowledge.
positive belief = Doing Business In Africa Namibia Economy.flv
an affirmation or acceptance of fact that might contribute to or encourage people to do it perfectly
e.g. doing business increases the chances of one’s becoming rich
negative belief = negative beliefs about business are defined as an affirmation or
acceptance of fact that might discourage people from doing business
Influence on beliefs:
culture
religion
tribe
social status
Ways of overcoming negative beliefs about business:
• Develop a positive attitude towards work
• Ignore negative beliefs and values about work and business and do any work as long as it is legal
and beneficial to do so.
• Train to get the necessary knowledge and skills in the work that you would like to do.
• Develop selfconfidence and apply your knowledge and skills effectively.
• Work hard and work smart (i.e. use your body muscle power guided by your brains all the time,
develop and draw from useful connections/ networks, also take advantage of any available
opportunity or chance in order for you to work and succeed in your life).
Namibian beliefs about business:
Carpenters and teachers can never get rich.
Operating Bar businesses is for people who are drunkards.
Women’s work is in the kitchen not in business.
Business is a last resort for educated people or those who cannot find better and wellpaying jobs
To have good sales on a day, one should not reject the first customer’s money, or should not accept first sales on credit.
The level of success or failure on a particular business day depends on the sex that first buys from you.
The first cash received on a business day should not be spent that day.
Business people never tell the truth Farming is work for uneducated people.
