Entrepreneurship is a hot topic, yet there is no agreed definition of entrepreneurship. There is even debate about whether entrepreneurship can be taught! This text and case study collection is designed to stimulate critical thinking and reflective learning relating to entrepreneurship. This book enables you to focus on the key issues that need to be considered with regard to new ventures and/or a business plan module, as well as courses on theory and policy relating to entrepreneurship and small businesses.

This important three-volume collection focuses upon several major themes relating to the entrepreneur, the organisation and the environment for entrepreneurship. It includes articles that focus upon opportunity recognition and exploitation, creativity, risk and uncertainty, ability based on skills, competencies and knowledge, market adjustment, innovation and the ability to make calculated judgements. It makes an important distinction between the motivations, characteristics, roles and contributions of different types of entrepreneurs. The articles are organised into fourteen sections, namely: entrepreneurship theory; methodological issues; entrepreneurial opportunity recognition and information search; finance for entrepreneurs; entrepreneurial careers; types of entrepreneurs; environments for venture creation and development; venture growth and performance; organisation closure, internationalisation; corporate venturing; family firms; technology-based firms; and franchising. This very comprehensive three volume set will be essential reading for policymakers, practitioners, academics and students of entrepreneurship.

Increasingly, entrepreneurship research recognizes a wide variety in entrepreneurial behaviour. One such difference is marked between experienced or habitual entrepreneurs and novices. This book, authored by established experts in the field, introduces and explores the habitual entrepreneur phenomenon. Building upon an international body of research, the authors analyse business behaviour to demonstrate how experience relates to the performance of new ventures. In employing a range of methodological techniques, the authors provide insight into how prior business ownership experience produces different outcomes when it comes to the key success factors associated with entrepreneurial ventures. With detailed coverage of finance, networking, opportunity discovery, and learning, the book is a uniquely comprehensive resource. This concise book is a complete research guide which provides an introduction for advanced students and researchers of entrepreneurship worldwide.

Increasingly, entrepreneurship research recognizes a wide variety in entrepreneurial behaviour. One such difference is marked between experienced or habitual entrepreneurs and novices. This book, authored by established experts in the field, introduces and explores the habitual entrepreneur phenomenon. Building upon an international body of research, the authors analyse business behaviour to demonstrate how experience relates to the performance of new ventures. In employing a range of methodological techniques, the authors provide insight into how prior business ownership experience produces different outcomes when it comes to the key success factors associated with entrepreneurial ventures. With detailed coverage of finance, networking, opportunity discovery, and learning, the book is a uniquely comprehensive resource. This concise book is a complete research guide which provides an introduction for advanced students and researchers of entrepreneurship worldwide.

Despite a number of success stories presented in the media, not all habitual entrepreneurs (entrepreneurs who have owned at least two businesses) are consistently successful. This book is inspired by the apparent dearth of rigorous research to underpin - or in some cases challenge - the popular perception of habitual entrepreneurs. It seeks to address the gap in the literature by shedding light on the phenomenon of habitual entrepreneurship. Deniz Ucbasaran, Paul Westhead and Mike Wright use a combination of theory and empirical evidence to illustrate why it is so important for researchers, policymakers, entrepreneurs and investors to distinguish between novice (i.e. first time) entrepreneurs and habitual entrepreneurs. Issues tackled include human capital characteristics, information search and opportunity identification behaviours, and the performance of different types of entrepreneurs. The book also highlights the heterogeneity of habitual entrepreneurs by drawing attention to serial and portfolio entrepreneurs. Developing a conceptual framework and an agenda for future research, Habitual Entrepreneurs will prove a significant reference tool for academics, students and researchers with an interest in entrepreneurship and SMEs. Its systematic analysis of the role of prior entrepreneurial experience in the venturing process will also be invaluable to practitioners such as policymakers, entrepreneurs and investors.

Paul Westhead was teaching high school in his native Philadelphia when he was named La Salle University's men's basketball coach in 1970. By 1980 he was a Los Angeles Lakers assistant, soon to be hired as head coach, winning an NBA title with Hall of Fame center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and rookie guard Magic Johnson. After compiling a 112-50 record, he was fired in November 1981. After a short stay as coach of the Chicago Bulls, Westhead reemerged in the mideighties as a coach at Loyola Marymount in California, where he designed his highly unusual signature run-and-gun offense that came to be known as "The system." The Speed Game offers a vibrant account of how Westhead helped develop a style of basketball that not only won at the highest levels but went on to influence basketball as it's played today. Known for implementing an up-tempo, quick-possession, high-octane offense, Westhead is the only coach to have won championships in both the NBA and WNBA. But his long career can be defined by one simple question he's heard from journalists, fellow coaches, his wife, and, well, himself: Why? Why did he insist on playing such a controversial style of basketball that could vary from brilliant to busted? Westhead speaks candidly here about the feathers he ruffled and about his own shortcomings as he takes readers from Philadelphia's West Catholic High, where he couldn't make varsity, to the birth of the Showtime Lakers and to the powerhouse he built nearly ten years later at Loyola, where his team set records likely never to be approached. Westhead says he always found himself telling prospective bosses, "My speed game is gonna knock your socks off!" So will his story and what it could do to bring back a popular style of play.

Paul Westhead was teaching high school in his native Philadelphia when he was named La Salle University's men's basketball coach in 1970. By 1980 he was a Los Angeles Lakers assistant, soon to be hired as head coach, winning an NBA title with Hall of Fame center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and rookie guard Magic Johnson. After compiling a 112-50 record, he was fired in November 1981. After a short stay as coach of the Chicago Bulls, Westhead reemerged in the mideighties as a coach at Loyola Marymount in California, where he designed his highly unusual signature run-and-gun offense that came to be known as "The system." The Speed Game offers a vibrant account of how Westhead helped develop a style of basketball that not only won at the highest levels but went on to influence basketball as it's played today. Known for implementing an up-tempo, quick-possession, high-octane offense, Westhead is the only coach to have won championships in both the NBA and WNBA. But his long career can be defined by one simple question he's heard from journalists, fellow coaches, his wife, and, well, himself: Why? Why did he insist on playing such a controversial style of basketball that could vary from brilliant to busted? Westhead speaks candidly here about the feathers he ruffled and about his own shortcomings as he takes readers from Philadelphia's West Catholic High, where he couldn't make varsity, to the birth of the Showtime Lakers and to the powerhouse he built nearly ten years later at Loyola, where his team set records likely never to be approached. Westhead says he always found himself telling prospective bosses, "My speed game is gonna knock your socks off!" So will his story and what it could do to bring back a popular style of play.

There has been an explosion of interest in entrepreneurs in the popular media, as well as in business, policy, and education. But what do entrepreneurs do? What is entrepreneurship and why is it important? What is distinctive about entrepreneurs? And where do they come from? In this Very Short Introduction Paul Westhead and Mike Wright weave a pathway through the debates about entrepreneurship, providing a guide to the entrepreneurial process. They look at how the actions of entrepreneurs are shaped by the external environment and availability of resources, consider the types of organizations in which entrepreneurs can be found, and look at the diversity in their backgrounds, experience, and how they think and learn. Lastly, they consider the impact that entrepreneurs have on modern market economies and look at the future of entrepreneurship in our increasingly globalized world. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.