Member Article

Entrepreneurship to save UK economy

Seven is perfect age to start learning, according to new research from Amway for Global Entrepreneurship Week.

• 84% of Brits believe that not enough is being done to educate and encourage entrepreneurs
• 62% are calling for improvements
• 68% believe the nation is entrepreneur-friendly
• But only 38% of Brits can imagine starting their own business
• Companies founded by young people in the UK have increased from 145,104 in 2006 to 247,049 in 2013, according to Deudil (Small Business Enterprise Nation)

Entrepreneurship lessons should be taught in schools to equip the next generation with the skills to safeguard the nation’s economic future. They should sit alongside maths, English and the sciences as a core subject on the national curriculum, with the aim of encouraging dynamic business thinking, according to Amway’s Global Entrepreneurship Report, published today.

The report, which questioned 43,902 people in 38 countries, found that 68% of those in the UK want lessons in entrepreneurship to take place in the education system and almost half of those surveyed (49%) believe lessons should start in primary and secondary schools, with 32% wanting them taught at university. 19% believe start-up programmes should be available from organisations such as the Chamber of Commerce or that individuals should provide their own training.

Professor Chris Coleridge, a Senior Research Associate at University College London’s Management Science and Innovation Department and board member of the Annual Global Entrepreneurship Report agrees: “Embryonic lessons in entrepreneurship skills could be delivered to primary school children aged seven or eight years old. Children start talking generally about careers at that age, so teaching them business skills alongside other educational elements could certainly be done.” He adds: “There should be the opportunity for them to learn to be persuasive, not in terms of getting up and delivering a presentation, but in terms of having confidence in their ideas.”

Experts believe that teaching entrepreneurship could start at the age of seven when, as of this year, children also start to learn computer programming. Being an entrepreneur could be deemed a serious career option alongside becoming a doctor or lawyer, but to achieve this, it needs to be made clear what skills are required, at a much younger age. The core entrepreneurship skills could be taught across the curriculum, leading to a generation with a business profile to build their own success and boost the UK economy.

This is substantiated by a recent Danish study in 2014 that found that entrepreneurship education leads to a higher income level later in life – for employees and for self-employed. The same report also found that students who took entrepreneurship classes were better attenders in school, performed better in class, enjoy going to school, feel connected to their classmates and supported by their teachers1. Denmark is one of the EU Member States that has a dedicated Entrepreneurship Education Strategy, something that has been highlighted in numerous international reports as missing from the British education system2.

ENTREPRENEURS BORN NOT MADE?

The concept that anyone can become an entrepreneur certainly challenges the accepted thinking that entrepreneurs are born with a distinctive DNA – such as Lord Sugar or Sir Richard Branson – and skills that cannot be taught. Only 31% of those in the UK believe entrepreneurs are born not made, according to the report.

The innovative approach of teaching entrepreneurship skills at school could help fuse creative thinking and market practice to create a generation with the courage and flexibility to realise their business dreams. Indeed, even if they never start their own business, the confidence to be creative, the ability to see opportunities and pursue them by gathering the required resources, the capacity to build a successful team around them, and to pursue clearly identified goals are positive life-skills that could be used in any career.

Michael Meissner, Amway’s Vice President Corporate Affairs Europe, comments: “The importance of entrepreneurship in education is overwhelmingly clear. People believe that entrepreneurship can be taught and that entrepreneurs are made, not born. Education in this sector is key to creating more entrepreneurs who will contribute to the development of the global economy as well as national economies.”

CHANGING BUSINESS NEEDS

Professor Coleridge stated that the education system is generally set up to produce people to go into large organisations and play their part as a cog in the machine, but business and society have moved towards needing more agile, smaller and specialist companies and it is important that there are people coming through who can play that kind of role.

The skills of forming win-win partnerships, persuading others to take action, guiding searches into business opportunities, interpreting customer feedback on a psychological basis, immersing themselves in knowledge and being open to surprises and changes of direction are all essential skills in smaller companies. Experts believe that broader education programmes will allow potential young entrepreneurs to develop confidence and necessary skills at a younger age and companies such as Amway can provide the necessary insight to encourage entrepreneurship as a viable career option.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Nicole Hamilton .