CHARACTERISTICS

OF

SUCCESSFUL
ENTREPRENEURS

Execution
Execution
intelligence
intelligence

Passion
Passion for
for
Business
Business

Characteristics of
Successful Entrepreneurs

Tenacity
Tenacity
despite
despite
Failure
Failure

Product/Customer
Product/Customer
Focus
Focus

@ 2007 Zaidibahari FPPSMUTM

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PASSION FOR REAL

BUSINESS
Stems from entrepreneur's belief that the
business will positively influence peoples
lives.
Why people leave secure jobs to start their
own firms (e.g. Bill Gates, Michael Dell)

PASSION FOR REAL

BUSINESS
It is important to be enthusiastic about a
business idea but it also important to
understand its potential flaws and risks.
Entrepreneurs should understand the most
effective business ideas take hold when
their passion is consistent with their
skills and in an area that represents a
legitimate business opportunity.

PRODUCT/CUSTOMER
FOCUS
The computer is the most remarkable
tool weve ever built..but the most
important thing is to get them in hands
of as many people as possible
- Steve Jobs

PRODUCT/CUSTOMER
FOCUS
Entrepreneurs keen focus on products and
customers typically stems from the fact that
most successful entrepreneurs are, at heart,
craftpeople.
Thus, they are obsessed with making
products that can satisfy a customers need.

TENACITY DESPITE
FAILURE
Entrepreneur trying something new rate
of failure high.(just like scientist)
The ability to persevere through setbacks
and failures.
Tenacity is important because it shows a
potential customer the degree of
commitment that an entrepreneur has to a
new product or service.

EXECUTION INTELLIGENCE
The ability to fashion a solid idea into a
viable business key
Developing a business model, putting
together a new venture team, raising
money, establishing partnerships, managing
finances, leading and motivating
employees.

EXECUTION INTELLIGENCE
The ability to translate thought, creativity,
and imagination into action and measurable
results.
Ideas are easy. Its execution thats
hard Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon.

Information
Seeking

Common Traits of Successful

Entrepreneurs
Concern for High
Quality of Work

Flexibility

Initiative
Problem
Solving
See & Acts on
Opportunity

SelfConfidenc
e

Persistence

Assertiveness

Commitment
to work

Persuasion

Efficiency
Orientation
Systematic Planning

Use of Influence

INITIATIVE

The entrepreneur should be able to take actions

that go beyond his job requirements and
to act faster. He is always ahead of others
and able to become a leader in the field of
business.

Examples
Does things before being asked or
compelled by the situation.
Acts to extend the business into new
areas, products or services

SEES AND ACTS ON

OPPORTUNITIES
An

entrepreneur always looking

for and taking action on
opportunities.

Examples

Sees and acts on new business opportunities

Seizes unusual opportunities to obtain
financing, equipment, land, work space or
assistance

INFORMATION SEEKING

An entrepreneur is able to take action on how to

seek information to help achieve business
objectives or clarify business problems.

Examples
Does personal research on how to provide a product or
service
Consults experts or experienced persons to get relevant
information
Seeks information or asks questions to clarify a client's
or a supplier's need
Personally undertakes market research, analysis or
investigation
Uses contacts or information networks to obtain useful
information

CONCERN FOR HIGH QUALITY OF

WORK

An entrepreneur acts to do things that meet

certain standards of excellence which
gives him greater satisfaction.

Examples
States a desire to produce or sell a top
or better quality product or service
Compares own work or own company's
work favorably to
that of others

COMMITMENT TO WORK
CONTRACT
An entrepreneur places the highest priority
on getting a job completed.

Examples
Makes personal sacrifice or expends
extraordinary effort
to complete a job
Accepts full responsibility for problems in
completing a job for customers
Pitches in with workers or works in their
place to get the job done
Expresses a concern for satisfying the
customer

EFFICIENCY ORIENTATION
A successful entrepreneur always finds
ways to do things faster or with fewer
resources or at a lower cost.
Examples
Looks for or finds ways to do things
faster or at less cost
Uses information or business tools to
improve efficiency
Expresses concern about costs vs.
benefits of some improvement, change,
or course of action

SYSTEMATIC PLANNING

An entrepreneur develops and uses

logical, step-by-step plans to reach goals.

Examples
Plans by breaking a large task down into
sub-tasks
Develops plans that anticipate obstacles
Evaluate alternatives
Takes a logical and systematic approach
to activities

PROBLEM SOLVING
A

successful entrepreneur identifies

new and potentially unique
ideas to achieve his goals.

Example
Switches to an alternative strategy to
reach a goal
Generates new ideas or innovative
solutions

SELF-CONFIDENCE
A

successful entrepreneur has a

strong belief in self and own
abilities.

Examples
Expresses confidence in own ability to
complete a task or meet a challenge
Sticks with own judgment in the face
of opposition or early lack of success

ASSERTIVENESS
An

entrepreneur confronts
problems and issues with
others directly.

Examples
Confronts problems with others directly
Tells others what they have to do
Reprimands or disciplines those failing
to perform as
expected

PERSUASION
An entrepreneur can successfully persuade or
influence others for mobilizing resources,
obtaining inputs, organizing productions
and selling his products or services.
Examples
Convinces someone to buy a product or service
Convinces someone to provide financing
Convinces someone to do something else that he
would
like that
person to do
Asserts own competence, reliability, or other
personal or
company qualities
Asserts strong confidence in own company's
products or services

USE OF INFLUENCE
STRATEGIES

An entrepreneur is able to make use of

influential people to reach his business goals.

Examples
Acts to develop business contracts
Uses influential people as agents to
accomplish own objectives
Selectively limits the information given to
others
Uses a strategy to influence or persuade
others

PERSISTENCE
An entrepreneur is able to make
repeated efforts or to take different
actions to overcome an obstacle that
get in the way of reaching goals.
Examples
Takes repeated or different actions to
overcome an obstacle
Takes action in the face of a
significant obstacle

What are the similarities/ differences

between an entrepreneur and a
manager?

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
ENTREPRENEUR AND MANAGER?
Entrepreneur

Manager

Motive

Set up own enterprise

Renders his services in

an established
enterprises

Status

The owner of an
enterprise

The servant in the

enterprise owned by the
entrepreneur

Risk-bearing Assumes all risks and

uncertainty involved

Does not bear any risk

involved

Objectives

To innovate and
To implement and create
create new offerings routine Plan
Change Agent
Implementer

Reward

Uncertain income

Fixed salary

CREATIVITY AND
AND
CREATIVITY
INNOVATION
INNOVATION

CREATIVITY
The ability to produce work that is novel
(i.e. original and unexpected), high in
quality and appropriate (i.e. useful, meets
task constraints) Sternberg, Kaufman
and Pretz, 2002
Latin = Creare = to make
Greek = Kranein = to fulfill

Creative
Process
Incubation
Incubation
Knowledge
Knowledge
Accumulation
Accumulation

Creative
Process

(Preparation)
(Preparation)

Elaboration

Ideas/
Insight

Evaluation

Les' Copaque was established in 2005 as a

platform for young creative Malaysians to
showcase their talents. The name comes
from a local slang "last kopek" which means
"final chance", which was modified to appear
as a French word for aesthetic reasons
Initially they wanted to set up a drama
production company, but when they were
introduced to 3 MMU graduates who showed
them their 7 minutes animation work and
business plan, they were impressed.
Then they decided to setup the company.

Innovation

the creation of something new in

the marketplace that alters the supplydemand equation. Chell, 2001

Sources of Innovation
Unexpected
events

Change of
Demographics

Innovation
Innovation

New Knowledge
Concept

Process
Needs

@ 2007 Zaidibahari FPPSMUTM

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Play-Doh was ironically created to be a cleaning

product. The paste was first marketed as a
treatment for filthy wallpaper before the
company that produced it began to go down the
tubes.
The discovery that saved Kutol Products headed
for bankruptcy wasn't that their wall cleaner
worked particularly well, but that schoolchildren
were beginning to use it to create Christmas
ornaments as arts and crafts projects.
By removing the compound's cleanser and adding
colors and a fresh scent, Kutol spun their wallpaper
saver into one of the most iconic toys of all time
and brought mega-success to a company headed
for destruction.

Roy Plunkett, whose experienced immense frustration

while inadvertently inventing Teflon in 1938.
Plunkett had hoped to create a new variety of
chlorofluorocarbons (better known as universallydespised CFCs), when he came back to check on his
experiment in a refrigeration chamber.
When he inspected a canister that was supposed to
be full of gas, he found that it appeared to have
vanished leaving behind only a few white flakes.
Plunkett was intrigued by these mysterious chemical
bits, and began at once to experiment with their
properties.
The new substance proved to be a fantastic lubricant
with an extremely high melting point perfect at first
for military gear, and now the stuff found finely
applied across your non-stick cookware.