Page 127 - 1-Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development by Norman Walzer (z-lib.org)

116 Thomas S. Lyons, Gregg A. Lichtenstein, and Nailya Kutzhanova

and that of their company, and at the appropriate price rests with the capa-
bility to classify both entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship assistance
providers by skill level. In this way, skills measurement lies at the heart of
the ELS.
The skills assessment tool was developed with the help of a behavioral
psychologist from Northwestern University, John S. Lyons. It is a clinimet-
ric tool, with a measurement design strategy that is based on communica-
tion theory as opposed to psychometric theory, which underlies such tools.
Psychometric tools are research based and focus on precision of measure-
ment at the expense of relevance to practice (Feinstein 1999; Lyons, Weiner,
and Lyons 2002).
Rather than relying on pencil and paper (or Web-based) assessments or a
battery of tests, a clinimetric tool involves face-to-face interaction between
a trained diagnostician and entrepreneurs. It is designed to be simple to use
and score, requiring minimal training. Its focus of measurement is on the
observable, not on subjective states, and internal consistency is irrelevant to
its effective functioning. Incorporation of communications theory into this
model adds these characteristics:

• Each rating level has immediate implications for action.
• There is minimal redundancy in the items covered but desired redun-
dancy in the information collected.
• The language used in the process is clearly understood by all involved.
• The chief purpose of measurement is effective communication of
needs and strengths to the entrepreneurs and the coaches (e.g., the
process, itself, facilitates learning and reflection) (Feinstein 1999; Lyons,
Weiner, and Lyons 2002).

Thus, the ELS entrepreneurial skills assessment tool is action oriented, not
research oriented; it is clinical (Lyons and Lyons 2002).
Using this clinimetric/communications model, the tool measures a vari-
ety of specific skills within the four skill dimensions previously noted: (1)
technical, (2) managerial, (3) entrepreneurial, and (4) personal maturity.
For each skill, a set of questions can be asked of an entrepreneur (or entre-
preneurial team) to elicit behavior that reflects skill level: Rookie, Single A,
Double A, or Triple A.
A simple scoring system corresponds to an entrepreneur’s level of skill for
each skill measured (a higher score indicates a higher level of skill). Scores can
be totaled across a skill dimension and across all four dimensions to provide
an overall skill-level. Thus, an entrepreneur might be a Double A player on the
technical dimension, a Single A player on the managerial dimension, a Rookie
on the entrepreneurial dimension, a Single A player on the personal maturity
dimension, and a Single A player overall. This assessment permits agencies to