Page 268 - 1-Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development by Norman Walzer (z-lib.org)

Getting Started in Community-Based Entrepreneurship 257

Table 13.1. Assessments of Entrepreneurial Climate

If a state scores poorly on both indices in table 13.1, it may be more im-
portant to engage in state policy discussions and to look out of state for
positive community models. In this case, use table 13.1 to choose a state
with similar social and economic characteristics but that has a score higher
than your state on entrepreneurship climate.
A statewide assessment is not enough; entrepreneurial culture, and there-
fore performance, may vary substantially by region within a state. It is im-
portant to determine how well a local area supports entrepreneurs. Hen-
derson, Low, and Weiler (chapter 4) provide a solid overview of conditions
that seem to give rise to a strong entrepreneurial climate; these factors, to-
gether with local attitudes and practices, form the basis for future growth.
Lichtenstein and Lyons (2006) suggest a simple conceptual approach to
thinking about a community’s entrepreneurs, and they make several very
compelling points. First, entrepreneurs can be found in all sizes of business.
Most entrepreneurial support programs, including those described by sev-
1
eral chapters in this book, focus almost exclusively on “small,” especially