Entrepreneurial Opportunity: The Right Place at the Right Time

217 Pages·2009·1.07 MB·English

by  Greg Clydesdale

Entrepreneurial Opportunity
Successfully starting a new business venture depends upon more than having
a brilliant idea, getting funding and getting the product or service to market.
Entrepreneursmustalsolearntoreadthemarketandunderstandtheenvironments
inwhichtheymustoperate.EntrepreneurialOpportunityplacestheemphasisonread-
ing and making the most of things that may be beyond the entrepreneur’s control,
fromdefaultingcontractorstotheopeningandclosingofbusinessniches.Italsocon-
siderspreviouslyunder-consideredoptions,suchas“thepoliticalentrepreneur.”This
long overdue text provides a far more realistic view of entrepreneurial opportunity
andtheimportanceofthebusinessenvironment.
Yet despite its realist stance, the book is decidedly optimistic, showing readers
how markets evolve over time and present opportunities through that evolution.
As Clydesdale states, “it’s not always fair out there,” but this book captures the
excitementofthemarketanditsroleindeliveringopportunities.
Drawing on a broad range of academic research, Entrepreneurial Opportunity is
written in a manner that is accessible for students and practitioners, with examples
and mini-cases from a variety of industries, including high technology, hospitality
andmotionpictures.
Greg Clydesdale lectures in the Department of Management and International
BusinessatMasseyUniversity,Auckland,NewZealand.

Entrepreneurial
Opportunity
The Right Place at the Right Time
Greg Clydesdale
Firstpublished2010
byRoutledge
270MadisonAve,NewYork,NY10016
Simultaneously published in the UK
byRoutledge
2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,OxonOX144RN
Routledge is an impr int of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2009.
To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.
(cid:2)c 2010GregClydesdale
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereprintedorreproducedor
utilizedinanyformorbyanyelectronic,mechanical,orothermeans,nowknownor
hereafterinvented,includingphotocopyingandrecording,orinanyinformation
storageorretrievalsystem,withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublishers.
TrademarkNotice:Productorcorporatenamesmaybetrademarksor
registeredtrademarks,andareusedonlyforidentificationandexplanationwithout
intenttoinfringe.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Clydesdale,Greg.
Entrepreneurial oppor tunity : the right place at the right time / Greg Clydesdale .
p.cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
1.Newbusinessenterprises—Management.2.Entrepreneurship.I.Title.
HD62.5.C5972009
658.1(cid:3)1—dc22
2009007096
ISBN 0-203-87246-0 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN10 (hbk): 0–415–99709–7
ISBN10(pbk):0–415–99710–0
ISBN10(ebk):0–203–87246–0
ISBN13(hbk):978–0–415–99709–6
ISBN13(pbk):978–0–415–99710–2
ISBN13(ebk):978–0–203–87246–8
Contents
ListofFigures vi
ListofTables vii
1 IfYou’reSuchaGenius,WhyAren’tYouRich? 1
2 CreativityandOpportunityRecognition 13
3 EnvironmentalChangeandWindowsofOpportunity 32
4 Technology,NewProductsandPioneers 50
5 MarketEvolution:NichesandOpportunities 68
6 TrajectoriesandEmergingNiches 84
7 IndustrialDevelopment:LinkagesandOpportunities 95
8 EnvironmentsofConstraintandAbundance 115
9 It’sNotAlwaysFairOutThere 130
10 Leaping,Failing,Learning—Success! 141
11 GovernmentPolicyandNewBusinessDevelopment 155
12 WhatTypeofEntrepreneurShouldIBe? 175
References 187
Index 199
List of Figures
4.1 WavesofProductDevelopment:IncreasedValueforMoney 52
4.2 TheBestTimetoEnteraMarket 62
5.1 TheProductLifeCycle 69
5.2 FragmentationofMarketsintoNiches 71
5.3 ChangingNichesinaMatureMarket 73
5.4 OpportunityinHotelMarket 82
List of Tables
2.1 SourceofIdeas 26
4.1 SourcesofInformationforNewProducts 54
5.1 DeterminingNicheSize 80
8.1 DifferentEntrepreneurialOptions 117
8.2 LongWavesandEconomicChange 121
10.1 ReasonsforNotStartingaVenture 142
10.2 FactorsRelatedtoBusinessSurvival 150
11.1 PoliciesAimedatImprovingEnvironmentforNewBusinesses 159
12.1 EntrepreneurialOpportunityThroughoutProductLifeCycle 182

Chapter 1
If You’re Such a Genius,
Why Aren’t You Rich?
An expanding economy is ripe territory for motivational experts. It is a time when
youcanfollowyourhunches,researchwhatlookslikeamarketopening,raisealoan
and launch your product. Before long, you sell 50,000 products and your business
survivesacriticalperiod.Thelocalnewspapershailyouasanentrepreneurwithgreat
foresight.Youcanlookbackuponyourachievementwithpride.
Inadecliningeconomy,youcandoexactlythesamethings:followahunch,get
aloanandlaunchanewproduct.Butyouonlysell45,000products,notenoughto
survivethosecrucialearlyyears.Yourbusinessgoesbankruptandyouexperiencethe
shameandself-doubtoffailure.Althoughyouactedexactlythesame,theresultswere
verydifferent.Itisveryhardforasmallentrepreneurtoestimatemarketdemandfor
anewproduct.Adifferenceof10%isnotgreat,butitcanbecrucial.Perhapsyou
shouldhavepaidgreaterattentiontothechangingeconomicconditions,butthereis
somuchtodowhenyoulaunchaproduct.Andwhathappensifcircumstancesturn
midstream?
Manyentrepreneurshavesucceedednotbecausetheywereparticularlybrightbut
because they rode a wave, while many intelligent entrepreneurs have failed because
the tide turned. Often circumstances are more important than any thing done by
business leaders. However, pointing this out is not always a rewarding task. Those
whonotethatfailurewasbeyondthepowerofanyonepersonare“apologists,”while
thosewhocreditsuccesstofortunatecircumstancesarelikelytobeconsidered“small
minded”or“petty.”1
This book suggests that not enough attention is given to the role the environ-
ment plays in determining whether an entrepreneur succeeds. Many fortunes have
beenmadebecauseentrepreneurshavecaughtawaveofenvironmentalchange.An
entrepreneurneedstobeabletoreadmarketdynamicsandthesignalstheygiveto
achievesustainablesuccess.Drawingonresearchonentrepreneurshipandindustrial
development,thisbookexaminesenvironmentalandindustrialforcesthatopenup
windows of opportunity. With greater knowledge on market dynamics, I hope you
willbeempoweredtocatchthewavethatprovidesthemanyopportunitiesthatwill
existinthefuture.
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