Entrepreneur

From Wikiversity

What is an Entrepreneur?

The term entrepreneur has existed in our vocabulary for more than 250 years and the dictionary defines it as: en•tre•pre•neur (ŏn'trə-prə-nûr', -nʊr')

The word "entrepreneur" derives from the French words entre, meaning "between," and prendre, meaning "to take."

The word was originally used to describe people who "take on the risk" between buyers and sellers or who "undertake" a task such as starting a new venture.

A popular misconception is that inventors and entrepreneurs are one in the same. This is not the case. An inventor creates something new. An entrepreneur assembles and then integrates all the resources needed—the money, the people, the business model, the strategy, and the risk-bearing ability—to transform the invention into a viable business. He or she is a person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture. They have a talent for honing in on opportunities and have the abilities needed to develop those opportunities into profit-making businesses.

The age of the entrepreneur has now well and truly arrived. Twenty years ago the word buccaneer would have been used in the same breath as entrepreneur, but now the definition of an entrepreneur is someone who is willing to take risks to successfully launch a product or service.

“It is a contradiction in terms to call yourself an entrepreneur when you're actually betting other people's money. Let's define the entrepreneur as someone who is willing to take a risk with their own capital. In other words, they have upside but they also have considerable downside. The other thing that unites us as entrepreneurs is a burning desire to be our own bosses.” Sir Stelios Haji-loannou Founder and chairman, easyGroup