FROM USERS AS INNOVATORS TO ENTREPRENEURS

Exploring Von Hippel’s (2004) question of “how can or should user innovations.. .be transferred to manufacturers for large scale diffusion?”, leads us to analyze the possibility of users as innovators becoming entrepreneurs.

According to Caree and Thurik, (2003), entrepreneurship can be defined as the “manifest ability and willingness of individuals, on their own, in teams, within and outside existing organizations to perceive and create new economic opportunities (new product, new production methods, new organizational schemes, new market-product combinations, etc.), and to introduce their ideas in the market, in the face of uncertainty and other obstacles, by making decision on location, form and the use of resources and institutions”. Entrepreneurs are not, in the straight sense of the word, all the same and, according to Wennekers and Thurik in Caree and Thurik (2003) one can distinguish three types of entrepreneurs: Schumpeterian entrepreneurs — the ones found in most small firms, as they enter the market with their own firm, presenting innovative products under the creative destruction concept, Intrapreneurs — entrepreneurs that innovate within the company that currently employs them and Managerial business owners — found in the large majority of small firms, including in this category franchisees and shopkeepers. Focusing on Schumpeterian Entrepreneurs, these are viewed as a person who creates new combinations of production, organizing, reorganizing social and economic mechanisms, exploiting market opportunities that eliminate disequilibrium between supply and demand. Under Schumpeter’s idea the entrepreneur is seen as an innovator and a leader, whose motivations and attitudes towards new business creation should be empowered.

In parallel with the described types of entrepreneurs, an alternative way of entrepreneurs addressing the market is through the selling of their idea to other stakeholders that, most of the times, already are in the market and present the necessary conditions to develop the idea.

The motivations that drive entrepreneurs to pursue new challenges are very much related to achieving professional satisfaction. Despite motivations, the entrepreneur needs to be in an adequate environment where conditions for success do exist, namely, skills and expertise in the intended area, development and inclusion of new technologies in the overall process and a clear view of expected profits, at the economic, social and psychological level. To improve the entrepreneurial infrastructure and create an entrepreneurial support climate, private and public support and attitudes play an essential role. Private sector elements are capital, professional services, business support and labour markets. Public sector elements relate to government policies, which play important roles for business to occur. (Lordkipanidze, Brezet and Backman, 2004) Developing the innovation creation system through the improvement of the knowledge creation system and increase of R&D both at private and public sectors is crucial. To effectively promote and design regulatory polices that increase entrepreneurship rates, encourage R&D activities, promote the allocation of venture capital and facilitate start-ups creation, entrepreneurs education must be the first aspect to address, on a perspective that considers not only knowledge creation, but also knowledge transfer and commercialization. (Lordkipanidze, Brezeta and Backman, 2004; Caree and Thurik, 2003) The important part played by the regulatory framework, mainly succeeds from the incentives the governments can set and that should consider economic and financial components of new business creation as well as the market equilibrium and social development regarding the interaction between different spheres of action, meaning multidisciplinary interaction and geographical interests.