fbpx
Menu Close

Category: Entrepreneurship

Whether you're embarking on your first startup or you're an experienced entrepreneur, the knowledge in these articles will help you meet the many exciting challenges of growing your business. We scour the World Wide Web to pull together the best writing from the brightest business minds. 

Want a leading role with a startup?

Tom Lovelace

If you have the right attitude and qualities, joining an ambitious new business could be just the job.

Here are some questions to ask yourself before you take the plunge into this richly rewarding world.

Five steps to being a better boss

Friedemann Hahn

You've started your own company. You are a successful entrepreneur – so successful that you have been able to hire people to work for you. You are the boss. Finally.

But being a good boss is not the same as being a good entrepreneur.

Real leaders put creativity centre stage

Derek Hirst Alambra

It’s time to ditch outmoded management models in favour of embracing a leadership style that attracts, retains and encourages creative thinkers.

Exposed to the ever-present risk of digital disruption, organisations need new ideas as never before.

But if modern management is about attracting and retaining clever people, leadership methods must change.

How to make the perfect pitch to a venture capitalist

John Kirby The Door

Charming a venture capitalist used to be an art, but now it’s a science.

Why do proposals that look good on paper fail to make it through the pitch stage? That’s what assistant professor at Babson College, Lakshmi Balachandra, decided to find out.

Harvard Business Review reveals the four key points she discovered.

Flip top-down management culture on its head

Tim Mara The Hoarding

If you set a clear purpose and cultivate an environment of innovation and collaboration, then you can have a whole company of CEOs, says Micha Kaufman, writing for Entrepreneur.

How you organise and run your business and who you choose to do what are the key elements that determine the destiny of your company.

 

Start working ‘on’ your business, rather than ‘in’ it

Tom Lovelace In Preparation No

Could you give up being the main driver and discover a more productive role in the company you created?

There comes a time when this fundamental shift will be the best way to keep your business growing, says Jim Krampen, Seven Corners Inc co-founder and executive officer, writing for Entrepreneur.

How to fail smart

Joel Filipe

To become truly innovative, companies must learn to accept, discuss and learn from their failures, write Paul Boston and Bin Zhao for Ivey Business Journal.

For many businesses failure is a dirty word. Operating in a society where perfection is espoused and so-called “overnight success” stories are celebrated, senior managers are reluctant to admit to their company’s failures, let alone dissect the reasons for those failures, learn from them and use those lessons to drive innovation.

Turning cultural differences to your advantage

Glen Baxter

How can a product or service be wildly successful in one part of the world but of relatively little interest in another?

While globalisation may seem to have made the world smaller and more uniform, cultural differences are still significant. Addressing those differences can be a key to succeeding against larger and comparatively monolithic companies in any given region or country.

What are your choices if you want to invest?

US dollars

If you’re new to investing, there are three main options to consider.

Are you in a position to invest in a startup business? Have you come across a new company that complements your own and needs a cash injection? Maybe your company has reasonably large amounts that can be tied up long-term?

What every entrepreneur can learn from the farmer

Waiting for Spring by William Crozier

Farmers have been running their own businesses for millennia, and have plenty to teach us.

“The qualities that help farmers prosper prove just as powerful for startup CEOs,” Tim Handorf, CEO of G2 Crowd, writes for Quartz. Handorf grew up on the family farm in Iowa, and he believes that the values instilled in him there have been integral to his success today.

 

How to protect your stock option in a unicorn startup

Virgin and Unicorn (A Virgin with a Unicorn)

If you work for a unicorn startup, you must consider how potential changes in its capital structure will affect your stock option.

Many employees or prospective employees don’t know everything they need to know about the potential long-term value of their stock options, and do not even attempt to find out. “To bring this home, it’s like negotiating your salary without specifying the currency you’re being paid in.”

Five tips for time-starved entrepreneurs

working mother

One woman’s story shows that even the busiest people can find enough time to launch a business.

Embarking on your dream project might sound impossible if you are already weighed down by commitments. But advice from an entrepreneur who started her company while she also had a husband battling cancer, and a baby to care for, might just change your mind.

Avoid the pitfalls of moving into fresh markets

fruit market stall

When you embark on a new venture, resist the temptation to be smug – get appropriate advice and employ fresh strategies.

As an experienced entrepreneur you almost certainly have a tried-and-tested business formula you rely on to stay on top of the game. But it’s risky to believe that model will carry you smoothly into a new market.

Do you know the magic formula for launching a startup?

startup

If you’re cooking up a career as an entrepreneur, there are some key ingredients you would be wise to toss in the mix.

“Be ready for the extreme ups and downs, the sleepless nights, the despair, the feeling of being alone, the hope, elation and the excitement.”

Why big businesses should join forces with startups

maps

In times of economic uncertainty, collaboration with startups offers corporates a route to becoming more innovative and profitable.

As Britain gears up for Brexit, the country is bracing itself for a period of uncertainty. It is in times like these that business growth can be hard to come by. But larger companies can boost innovation and their bottom line by partnering with nimble, fast-growing startups.

 

Is Holy Grail syndrome holding you back?

photo-1456374407032-6e4baf58fb62

Fixating on just one talent risks missing out on what really makes entrepreneurs successful.

Don’t let “Holy Grail syndrome” hold you back. Instead, focus on your unique mix of talents, passions and skills that provide the foundations for a business in which only you can excel.

Here’s how to combine your skills and interests into a unique entrepreneurial vision.

Tips on recruiting for your startup

recruitment

Recruiting new team members is an exciting stage in your startup’s development. But you will need to invest time and energy to get it right. So how can you ensure that your business vision survives an expansion drive?