Page 66 - 1-Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development by Norman Walzer (z-lib.org)

What’s Culture Got to Do with It? 55

unique leadership program was designed to foster a strong entrepreneurial
culture by building a regional network of entrepreneurial leaders, advo-
cates, and entrepreneurial coaches in tobacco dependent counties. The
$1.28 million leadership program was funded by the Kentucky Agricultural
Development Board and is being implemented by the University of Ken-
tucky Cooperative Extension Service as the region makes the painful transi-
tion from a tobacco dependent economy.
Those chosen for the institute’s competitive fellowships reflect the gen-
der, age, ethnic, geographical, and career backgrounds in the region. They
meet with entrepreneurial leaders and scholars, and visit entrepreneurs and
entrepreneurial-friendly communities in nine seminars over a 15-month
period. The seminars teach leadership and coaching skills, broaden creativ-
ity, and actively engage participants in the community and the region.
One institute goal is to form a regional identity by putting fellows to-
gether in cross-county teams to develop and carry out mini-grant proposals.
Team projects have included technical and high school entrepreneurial ini-
tiatives, an entrepreneurial contest for ways to use a wood waste product, a
seven-county agritourism initiative, and an entrepreneurial awareness pro-
gram. A seminar in rural Scotland included visits with isolated entrepre-
neurs who linked into global markets and meetings with those involved in
youth entrepreneurship programs and rural entrepreneurship policies.
While there were many educational benefits from this trip, the shared ex-
perience built an incredibly strong support network among this diverse
group of leaders (Hustedde 2006).
The first-year evaluation report showed that the 28 fellows in the 2005
class had more than a 1,000 contacts with entrepreneurs and service
providers; they actually coached 115 entrepreneurs. They also made 416 in-
formal presentations and 88 formal presentations. Five fellows ran for po-
litical office on pro-entrepreneurship platforms (Markley et al. 2006). In
their campaigns, they asked difficult questions about investments in indus-
trial parks and industrial recruitment: “Are we putting too many eggs in one
basket (industrial recruitment)?” and “Do we need to balance our commu-
nity’s economic development portfolio?” These questions and other chal-
lenges raised entrepreneurship on the community’s and region’s radar
screen.
The Georgia and Kentucky examples of polycentric leadership are likely to
have significant impact; however, it may take five years or more to see a sig-
nificant payoff or to measure their impact appropriately.

CONCLUSION

Rural communities can be viewed as entrepreneurial ventures. They may
display a wide spectrum of cultures that can be antagonistic, tolerant, or