Everyone an entrepreneur
Terence Blacker in the Independent derides the aggressive style of The Apprentice. Although as a rule I agree that this kind of ruthless competitiveness is counter-productive, I wonder how many of today's successful executives still exhibit it; I doubt that it is as out of date as Blacker suggests.
The current vogue for entrepreneurship is in evidence outside the world of reality TV. In Cambridge, it has been popular for at least the last decade to trumpet the ability of anyone (and everyone) to have an idea, get some funding, and have a blast running their own business. From undergraduate lectures to seminars for people looking for a career change, starting your own business is sold as the ultimate aspiration, and whilst there is normally a mention of how it might be hard work at times, it is assumed that anyone could do it, particularly with the support networks available in the area. The goal is, of course, not as material as a simple personal fortune, but that the aspirant will also get to be his own boss (and the boss of others).
Cambridge University now has a great deal of entrepreneurship teaching, both formally as part of non-business courses, and through support of evening lectures, student societies, and so on. There are workshops for women who wish to run their own businesses, seminars run by professional organisations to teach engineers how to become an entrepreneur, events to promote how networking will help you to find the people and organisations you need to set up a company. Of course, this is not limited to this region, as The Apprentice and similar programmes show; and, despite appearances in Cambridgeshire, it is not restricted to technology companies. It's great that everyone can see that innovation is nurtured and supported, that forming a company is straightforward, and that ideas can get out into the world through commercialisation.
Unfortunately, given that most million pound businesses employ more than one person, there invariably have to be some underlings. Increasingly, there is little attention paid to the skills of working in a team these days, and even less to the crucial ability to work for someone else. As students are encouraged to believe that they too can start and grow their own company, and that this is the ultimate career aim, they will be less satisfied with other roles. The message is always that everyone can be an entrepreneur - regardless of age, experience or skills - but a society comprised entirely of chiefs cannot exist without indians to support them.
The current vogue for entrepreneurship is in evidence outside the world of reality TV. In Cambridge, it has been popular for at least the last decade to trumpet the ability of anyone (and everyone) to have an idea, get some funding, and have a blast running their own business. From undergraduate lectures to seminars for people looking for a career change, starting your own business is sold as the ultimate aspiration, and whilst there is normally a mention of how it might be hard work at times, it is assumed that anyone could do it, particularly with the support networks available in the area. The goal is, of course, not as material as a simple personal fortune, but that the aspirant will also get to be his own boss (and the boss of others).
Cambridge University now has a great deal of entrepreneurship teaching, both formally as part of non-business courses, and through support of evening lectures, student societies, and so on. There are workshops for women who wish to run their own businesses, seminars run by professional organisations to teach engineers how to become an entrepreneur, events to promote how networking will help you to find the people and organisations you need to set up a company. Of course, this is not limited to this region, as The Apprentice and similar programmes show; and, despite appearances in Cambridgeshire, it is not restricted to technology companies. It's great that everyone can see that innovation is nurtured and supported, that forming a company is straightforward, and that ideas can get out into the world through commercialisation.
Unfortunately, given that most million pound businesses employ more than one person, there invariably have to be some underlings. Increasingly, there is little attention paid to the skills of working in a team these days, and even less to the crucial ability to work for someone else. As students are encouraged to believe that they too can start and grow their own company, and that this is the ultimate career aim, they will be less satisfied with other roles. The message is always that everyone can be an entrepreneur - regardless of age, experience or skills - but a society comprised entirely of chiefs cannot exist without indians to support them.
