Your father enjoyed the security of lifelong employment with one company. You’ve switched jobs several times. Today’s youth will have four employers by the time they reach 30. In The Entrepreneurial Society, the next generation will either be self-employed or employed by a friend.
With globalization, where jobs and factories can be moved quickly to low-cost locations, the competitive advantage has shifted to ideas, insights, and innovation. If your job doesn’t contribute to innovation as yesterday’s technology is replaced, don’t expect to have that job much longer. The Entrepreneurial Society relies on individuals to create growth, jobs, and competitiveness.
In The Entrepreneurial Society, award-winning economist David B. Audretsch identifies the positive, proactive response to globalization: The Entrepreneurial Society, where change is the rule and routine work is inevitably outsourced. Under the managed economy of the cold war era, government policies around the world supported big business, while small business was deemed irrelevant and largely ignored. The author documents the fundamental policy revolution currently underway. As communities shift support to technology and knowledge-based entrepreneurship, the resulting start-ups have emerged as the driving force for economic growth and job creation. Universities have moved from the economic sidelines to a highly valued seedbed of new ideas with the potential to create not just breathtaking new ventures but also entire new industries. By understanding and managing the shift from the managed economy to The Entrepreneurial Society, individuals, businesses, universities, and communities can learn how to proactively harness the opportunities afforded by globalization.