Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management in Hong Kong

2019 UNIVERSITY OF SUNDERLAND HONG KONG
Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management
LEUNG SIN KI
(Student No.189130103
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Abstract
An entrepreneur is an individual who organizes a business with the aim of
tapping the opportunities existing in the diverse markets. Some ventures or
investments are considered entrepreneurial and include start up, survival, scalable
start up, managed growth and lifestyles ventures. some traits of entrepreneurs include
risk-taking, monitoring, controlling, and managing business activities. The main
difference between entrepreneur and intraprenuer is that an entrepreneur manages his
or her business while intraprenuer manages businesses of other party. Other areas of
importance are factors that hinder entrepreneurship especially in Hong Kong with
cultures, taxes and government being the main factors. The report offers great insights
into the world of businesses especially the SMEs for Hong Kong people. Factors such
as political, cultural, and social influence business activities and the management
styles of entrepreneurs have significantly influenced the employees. Understanding
the business environment is critical for focused entrepreneurs to promote success.

Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Abstract........................................................................................................ 2
Introduction................................................................................................... 4
Venture types that might be considered Entrepreneurial.........................................4
Comparison of Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur....................................................7
Small Business in the Economy in Hong Kong.......................................................8
Importance of Small Businesses and Business Start-ups........................................12
Characteristic Traits and Skills of Successful Entrepreneurs.................................14
Different Environments that Foster or Hinder Entrepreneurship...........................17
Conclusion................................................................................................... 19

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Introduction
Entrepreneurial organizations are all over the world offering different products and
services to their targeted customers. An entrepreneur is defined as an individual that
organizes a venture to tap opportunities that exist in diverse markets. Different entrepreneurs
have varying traits that differentiate how they position themselves in the market. Some of the
common characteristics of entrepreneurs include risk-taking, monitoring, controlling, and
managing business activities.
Artificial intelligence (AI) offers a great opportunity for entrepreneurs to grow their
businesses by adopting digital technology. With the increased internet connectivity being
experienced around the world, entrepreneurs can invest in e-businesses and use other online
technologies in business processes and procedures to generate more income. The motivation
of entrepreneurs is to make profits, enhance customer satisfaction and facilitate a repetitive
purchase which is a standard measure of success. Other characteristics include value being
self-reliant, strive for excellence, highly optimistic, and take medium risks. Unique
personality traits and other attributes of entrepreneurs facilitate the achievement of the set
objective
Venture types that might be considered Entrepreneurial
Various kinds of ventures exist in the world as business people try to invest and look
for avenues including physical and online business opportunities that can generate profits
from their enterprises. Ventures and Investments are classified using various aspects such as
size. Some ventures or investments are considered entrepreneurial and include small
businesses owned by individuals with little capital, others are called partnership and are

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formed by more than two people and finally, we have private and public companies which are
formed by board of directors or government. (Burns, 2016, p. 23; Down, 2010, p. 4).
The start-up ventures cater to owners’ immediate needs due to their size (Starts ups
(2019, Web). This type of venture is also famously known as a sole proprietorship. The
owners can hire employees or involve family members to assist in the operations. The
success of these ventures is feeding the family and making a profit but not building an
industry out of them. Funding for businesses is from family and friends' contributions, small
business loans, and savings. Some of the ventures using this form of business include grocery
stores, electrical shops, hairdressing, internet commerce, and carpentry shops, among others.
Survival ventures are also another type of venture that exists in entrepreneur context.
The business operating under this type of venture is not necessary to be registered or licensed
by the government or other agencies that regulate operation of businesses. Survival ventures
operate on cash or barter basis, have no business banking relationship, their assets are few
and in most of the occasions, the venture may have no premises. The main aim of the survival
ventures is to provide personal financial needs of an entrepreneur and once all the costs are
covered, the capacity of business to reinvest into the venture is usually limited. Therefore, it
can be summarized that the launch of survival ventures is usually motivated by “push” factors
or necessity-driven and therefore the business operates in price-based, competitive and large
undifferentiated markets. Example of survival ventures includes seasonal businesses like
Kiosk, a small restaurant that is established in particular events or occasion. For example,
during diverse sports event, it is easier to note this type of business as people sell fast-moving
commodities like glucose and ice cream. Once the events are over, the business closes up and
waits for another occasion.
Scalable start-ups ventures are entrepreneurial start-up businesses aimed at expanding
and changing the world in the future. The enterprises can attract investors and venture

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capitalists as the business grows (Miner, 1997, p. 22). These can provide capital for running
the business and hiring skilled workers. Examples of such companies include medium
internet businesses such as online shops for electronics, apparel outlets, and computer
dealers. The entrepreneurs establish their businesses in hotspot areas such as Silicon Valley
(Awotoye, and Singh, 2017, p. 30). The entrepreneur in this business is the owner or owners
that contribute in terms of finances that required running a business and further come up with
the initial idea and start the company and the investors that buy shares in the businesses.
Managed growth venture: Large company entrepreneurship starts small but grows due
to sustained innovation that offers new products depending on customer tastes and
preferences (Jones-Evans, 2012, p. 18). The managed growth venture is characterized by a
workable business model and the business operates to have stable growth in the future.
Furthermore, the ventures ensure there is occasionally launch of new products, steady
expansion of facilities and resources, entry into new markets and entrepreneur works hard to
make sure the business has strong developed workforce and brand in both local and
international. Other factors that symbolize the managed growth venture include high
regulation, competition advantage over small business ventures, and high levels of creativity
and use of contemporary technologies that can enhance performances. Examples of
companies considered as managed growth ventures include Apple Inc., Nokia, and other
business organizations commanding huge markets. Examples include Watson, AECOM, and
AIA.
Lifestyle ventures are ones that can provide a stable income to the owner depending
on the adopted business model. The business has a permanent premises in a single location
and workers but does not aim at expanding in the future. The number of staff employed
remain relatively constant due to limited room for expansion. Lifestyle ventures ensure that
entrepreneurs have stable income based on maintenance approach to management and