Entrepreneurship: A Very Short Introduction

Description

Very Short Introductions have proven to be extremely popular with general readers, as well as undergraduates and their lecturers.

There has been an explosion of interest in entrepreneurs in the popular media, as well as in business, policy, and education. But what do entrepreneurs do? What is entrepreneurship and why is it important? What is distinctive about entrepreneurs? And where do they come from?

What is entrepreneurship? Is it important? What do entrepreneurs actually do? These are a few of the key questions considered in this Very Short Introduction. Paul Westhead and Mike Wright provide a clear guide to all aspects of the process of entrepreneurship, including the diversity of the people involved and the benefits it brings to society.

Key Features

• A guide to what entrepreneurship is and why it is important
• Considers the factors that affect the entrepreneurial process
• Looks at the array of organizational modes in which entrepreneurship takes place
• Explores the role entrepreneurship plays in a successful market economy
• Part of the Very Short Introduction series – over six million copies sold worldwide

In this Very Short Introduction, Paul Westhead and Mike Wright weave a pathway through the debates about entrepreneurship, providing a guide to the entrepreneurial process. They look at how the actions of entrepreneurs are shaped by the external environment and availability of resources, consider the types of organizations in which entrepreneurs can be found, and look at the diversity in their backgrounds, experience, and how they think and learn. Lastly, they consider the impact that entrepreneurs have on modern market economies and look at the future of entrepreneurship in our increasingly globalized world.

Table of Contents

1. The importance of entrepreneurship
2. Discovering and creating opportunities
3. Exploiting opportunities
4. Entrepreneurs’ context
5. Entrepreneurial thinking and learning
6. Forms of entrepreneurial ventures
7. The future

About the Series

Oxford’s Very Short Introductions series offers concise and original introductions to a wide range of subjects – from Public Health to Buddhist Ethics, Soft Matter to Classics, and Art History to Globalization. Each volume provides an authoritative and engaging assessment of a concept, field, or body of work, drawing out the central ideas, themes, and approaches. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, new insights, and enthusiasm to make often challenging topics highly readable to develop your core knowledge. With over 700 titles and many more in development, as well as regularly updated new editions, the series is constantly evolving to reflect a contemporary readership. Whatever your area of study, whatever the topic that fascinates you, the series is an indispensable and accessible guide that will enrich your understanding.

Reviews

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Authors Biography

Paul Westhead, Professor of Entrepreneurship, Durham Business School and Visiting Professor Bodø Graduate School of Business, University of Nordland, Norway, and Mike Wright, Professor of Entrepreneurship, Centre for Management Buyout Research, Imperial College Business School and University of Ghent, Belgium

Paul Westhead is Professor of Entrepreneurship at Durham University Business School. He has previously held professorial posts at Warwick Business School, Nottingham Business School and Stirling School of Management, where he taught and researched entrepreneurship. Westhead has published 3 authored/edited books and more than 112 academic papers on entrepreneurship, entrepreneur types, family firms, and regional development in leading international journals. His most recent book with Mike Wright and Ged McElwee is Entrepreneurship: Perspectives and Cases was published in 2011 by Pearson. His previous books include Habitual Entrepreneurs (with Deniz Ucbasaran and Mike Wright), and the edited Advances in Entrepreneurship: 3 Volumes published by Edward Elgar (with Mike Wright).

Mike Wright is Professor of Entrepreneurship at Imperial College Business School, Director of the Centre for Management Buyout Research that he founded in 1986, and Associate Director of the Entrepreneurship Research Centre. Wright is currently co-editor of Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. He has published many books and articles on venture capital, private equity, entrepreneurial mobility, academic entrepreneurs, serial entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial family firms in leading international journals as well as in practitioner journals. His latest books include Private Equity Demystified – 2012 Edition (with John Gilligan, published by ICAEW) and Handbook of Corporate Governance (with Don Siegel, Kevin Keasey and Igor Filatotchev, published by Oxford University Press, 2013). He is Past chair of the Academy of Management Entrepreneurship Division and a recipient of that division’s Mentor Award.