Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Entrepreneurship - Essay Example These theorists argue that social networks provide privileged access to entrepreneurs to their required resources which helps them progress in the business. On the other hand, there are factors other than knowing others which contribute to successful entrepreneurship. The paper develops a critical view towards the notion of social networking and contact-building and its relationship with entrepreneurship. The significance of social relations in entrepreneurship has since long been recognized with the same being used by entrepreneurs to obtain resources and advice on starting their business. This is because the need for contacts is evident at various phases of the new business. Relationships between entrepreneurs and those who possess resources required for the startup are quintessential to the success of a new business. Although the entrepreneur possesses the competence and knowledge as well as a novel idea to run the business, complementary resources may be required. Contacts provid e the resources, knowledge and/or market accessibility required for making the business idea work. Knowing individuals and organizations that operate amongst themselves broadens the resource base available to entrepreneurs for successfully running the business. Contacts that enable success of the new firm comprise the social capital and are essential components of entrepreneurial networks. The social capital, therefore, refers to the individuals who help entrepreneurs in getting things done. These contacts include, but are not limited to, individuals in the professional networks as well as friends and peers from past jobs. They form the basis of the wider entrepreneurial networks that comprise of not just individuals but clusters of companies and organizations. By increasing the size of their networks and number of contacts, entrepreneurs can get access to greater information and resources from those who are knowledgeable. Furthermore, the way in which entrepreneurs â€Å"positionà ¢â‚¬  themselves in the network determines the extent to which they are able to take advantage of their contacts. The aim of such positioning is to shorten the path to the contacts in order to get tasks done. Finally, members of the social network often tend to organize themselves by interacting amongst themselves which leads to the development of ‘multiplex’ ties that benefit the entrepreneur even more. Furthermore, family members too can play an important role in entrepreneurial success. In fact, they play a critical role in so far as entrepreneurship is examined in the context of family business (Rosenblatt et al., 1985). Therefore, knowing family members who have been involved in entrepreneurial business in the past is definitely an ingredient for success for family-run entrepreneurial businesses. Entrepreneurs can benefit from the unique business-specific knowledge that is possessed by their family members including parents. Most importantly, for maintaining confi dentiality of the business idea, most entrepreneurs may find it easier to obtain advice and guidance from their kin rather than non-kin contacts. On the other hand, having strong family ties may inhibit entrepreneurs from accessing a much larger pool of resources and information from non-kin contacts (Birley, 1985) (Renzulli et al., 2000). It is rare to have knowledgeable individuals from all disciplines of business (such as operations, marketing, HR) in one’s family (Renzulli et al., 2000). Hence, entrepreneurs will, at various times acquire the support of their acquaintances for this purpose. However, this social network is not developed instantaneously and may