Page 280 - 1-Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development by Norman Walzer (z-lib.org)

Getting Started in Community-Based Entrepreneurship 269

able background information, a more action-oriented approach of helping
entrepreneurs implement a solution for today’s pressing issue is likely to
have greater community impact and be more valued by clients. This ap-
proach represents a win-win situation as clients’ needs are better served,
translating to better local political support for service providers.
35. Are entrepreneurial support systems customized to a community’s unique sit-
uation (Lichtenstein, Lyons, and Kutzhanova 2004)? Communities should
realistically assess their own strengths and weaknesses and tailor support
systems accordingly. If a region produces marketable fruits and vegetables
but has few points of interest for tourism, then a focus on assisting value-
added agricultural enterprises might be better for enhancing local employ-
ment growth than a strategy providing services for tourism businesses.
36. Are support systems geared for all phases of the business life cycle (birth,
small, medium, large, spin-off, and succession) (Emery, Wall, and Macke 2004;
Korsching and Allen 2004; Lyons, Lichtenstein, and Kutzhanova, chapter 5;
Schoeder, chapter 7)? Again, the notion of articulation becomes important.
The provider of choice may differ depending on the life stage of a business.
To draw an analogy from education, a Nobel-prize winning scientist might
not be an effective Kindergarten teacher, but he or she may be very good
with university students pursuing advanced degrees in the subject. If one
person or one provider works with businesses at all skill levels, some will
probably not receive the support they need. Some providers should focus
on basic skill levels, freeing others to work intensively to fully develop high
performers.
37. Are entrepreneurs and the community-based organizations that support
them making full use of advanced products and processes (Jackson 2004)? While
it may be difficult to determine the extent to which entrepreneurs in the re-
gion use advanced products and processes, the use of technology for com-
munications and information processing by service providers is easy to as-
sess. Standards change very quickly, and if providers do not keep pace, they
will find it difficult to keep clients informed about best practices.
Local leaders are often reluctant to take on technology investments, pre-
ferring instead to invest in human resources or higher profile capital proj-
ects. Overcoming the political challenges that work against technology in-
vestments is important in making the best use of local business
opportunities, thus reducing barriers to business growth. For example, a
business may be frustrated when there is no immediate answer to the ques-
tion of which parcels of land might be zoned appropriately for their new
venture. A nearby community that has invested in integrating its land use
plan into a geographic information system might provide an answer in
minutes, encouraging an entrepreneur to expand there.
38. Are informal coaching systems fostered for smaller and more remotely lo-
cated businesses (Emery, Wall, and Macke 2004; Macke, chapter 9)? In rural