Enterprise & Entrepreneurs

Enterprise is the willingness to take a risk to start and run a business, and an entrepreneur is the person who brings the other factors of production together to do so.

What entrepreneurs do

An entrepreneur takes on several roles.

• Spots a business opportunity – a gap in the market or an unmet need.
• Organises land, labour and capital to make the product.
• Takes the risk of putting in their own money and time.
• Makes the key decisions and accepts responsibility if things go wrong.

Qualities entrepreneurs need

Successful entrepreneurs usually share certain qualities.

• Hard-working and determined – willing to keep going through setbacks.
• Risk-taking – comfortable making decisions without guaranteed outcomes.
• Innovative and creative – able to see new ideas and solutions.
• Self-confident and organised – able to lead people and manage money.

When Sumaya opened her halal bakery, she needed all of these to survive the difficult early months.

Risk and reward

Enterprise is about balancing risk against reward.

• Risks: losing money invested, working long hours, and the business failing.
• Rewards: profit, independence, being your own boss, and the satisfaction of building something useful.

Honest, halal trade adds another reward: earning a living in a way that serves a genuine need and treats customers fairly.

The purpose of a business plan

Before starting, wise entrepreneurs write a business plan – a document setting out the idea, the target market, the finances and how the business will operate.

A business plan turns an idea into an organised, testable proposal.

It helps the owner think through the whole venture, spot problems early, and persuade a bank or investor to lend money. A typical plan covers the product, the market, the marketing, operations, the people involved and a financial forecast of costs, sales and profit.