Page 203 - 1-Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development by Norman Walzer (z-lib.org)

192 Michael D. Woods and Glenn Muske

theme in the book concerns innovation; no business will survive in today’s
world in the long-term. Even small rural businesses must change just to
maintain themselves. If entrepreneurship matters, then microbusinesses of-
fer a window to successful entrepreneurship.
Putting all of this together gives a clear message about who and what mi-
crobusinesses are. It also provides a strong argument for including mi-
crobusinesses in a community’s economic development strategy. The next
logical questions might be “What key issues do they face?” and then “How
can we nurture microbusinesses?”

ISSUES FACED

If a community accepts the fact that microbusinesses benefit a local econ-
omy, communities must then determine how best to encourage their
growth and development. The first such step is to understand that mi-
crobusinesses may or may not be similar in terms of needed assistance com-
pared with other small businesses. Seldom do microbusinesses discuss is-
sues such as Workers Compensation costs. Nor are they as concerned with
health insurance or other fringe benefits (although one could argue that
these owners should be involved with these issues).
Muske and Woods (2004) show that business needs change over time
and start-up businesses may differ from ongoing businesses. In a study of
193 Oklahoma businesses with ten employees or fewer, start-up business
owners reported needing financial help and general business training while
ongoing business owners strongly voiced a need for marketing help. The
Muske and Woods study examined a sample of existing businesses assisted
by four Oklahoma agencies. Trained interviewers made phone calls using
random-digit dialing. A screening question limited responses to owners
employing ten people or fewer. Seventy percent of the 274 owners con-
tacted, or 193 owners, responded to the survey.
The largest single issue for both groups was the need for help to find and
develop good employees, with marketing reported as the second greatest
need (table 10.1). More than 30 percent of all business respondents re-
ported these two items as a major concern. A “second tier” of items or ma-
jor issues included regulations, Workers Compensation, having a business
plan, and family/business conflicts. This last item, “family/business con-
flicts,” suggests that many microbusinesses depend on participation by fam-
ily members for survival but that not all family members consider the busi-
ness legitimate or question its return to the family.
The National Federation of Independent Business Owners (NFIB) offers
another look at reported business issues or problems (Phillips 2004). Own-