TECHNOPRENEURSHIP

 “The practice of consistently converting good ideas into

profitable commercial ventures.”

 Peter F. Drucker, Innovation and Entrepreneurship

 From the discussion of Mr. Ruben Licera, Social Technopreneur
What is Technopreneurship? (GIETU, 2022)

 The term technopreneurship is a fusion of two words, technology, and

entrepreneurship.
 It is a kind of entrepreneurship in the field of technology.
 It involves tech-savvy, creative, innovative individuals who have a knack for
taking a calculated risk, unlike entrepreneurship, which can sometimes be
a one-person show.
 According to Blanco 2007, “Technopreneurship comprises identifying
modern technologies and even creation of technological opportunities by
the presentation of commercial products and services.” (101Technopreneurship.org, 2022)
 The concept of technopreneurship enables every
startup venture and every aspiring entrepreneur to take
a leap of faith and travel this path to greater success.
 Technopreneurship business is a formula to discover innovative ideas using
technology. It is the process of using technology for the advancement of a
country or the world, as a whole.
 This form of entrepreneurship has helped reduce the cost of various other
business ventures.
 The best part is that the technopreneurship idea makes it easy for
corporations to grow, allocate, process, and store information. It is a
revolution in the field of business and entrepreneurship which will keep
growing.
 Is technopreneurship all about technology?
 The shortest answer to this is, NO!
 To embark with, Technopreneurship acts as a new breed in the field of
entrepreneurship. Technopreneurship is not a solo show, so it includes
individuals who are passionate, innovative, and tech-savvy.
 Under Technopreneurship, not invention but innovation is the key to
success. It means to find out solutions for the problems by utilizing
technological resources.
 Sometimes these ideas take a long time before it becomes a competition
in the marketplace. However, utilize that available time to build up as an
entrepreneur and boosts your technical skills and expand your
connections.
 Technopreneurship business ideas play a significant role in uplifting the
engagement of technology with human development.
 Technology governs the lives of people these days. It has become a shape-
shifting factor and businesses need to wrap their strategies around this.
 For example, let’s talk about social media. With the advent of the internet,
social media has become a major part of our lives. This in turn has made
businesses come up with marketing strategies (social media marketing) in
order to promote themselves.
 A technopreneur is a person who revolutionizes the prevailing
economic order by making the best use of technology at hand. They
introduce new concepts of products and services in the market.
When technopreneurs enter the market, all they have is an
idea. (The Code Work, 2020)
 The success of a technopreneur depends on how well they can
motivate a team of individuals. So, the success of any
technopreneurship start-up involves a group of dedicated people
with different skill sets and resources working hand in hand.
 A technopreneur starts with a new idea. This idea has the potential to
change the way society has been traditionally functioning.
 They create a new product or come up with a solution to some problem
using technology. So, science and technology are the hallmarks of
technopreneurship.
 To succeed as a technopreneur, you don’t have to invent anything, rather
you have to innovate. You need to think of solving a problem that exists,
using the tools that exist – only in a new and better way.
 It takes years for an idea to become commercially viable. Nonetheless, you
can use that time to refine your skills and – enhance your technical skills,
develop your communication skills, as well as form new connections.
 There are certain critical areas that a technopreneur needs to focus on.
 It can be the following:
 Information and Technology (IT) sector,
 Electronics,
 Biotechnology,
 Hi-tech products,
 Technology use in delivering essential services, and
 Service firms where the primary mission is technology.
Importance of Technopreneurship

 1. Creating Employment Opportunities

 When startup businesses, then there is an increase in the pool of job opportunities
as they need manpower to run all business operations. In the same way,
technopreneurship creates jobs and helps the nation to combat the problem of
unemployment. It increases the employment rate of an economy.
 2. Local Resources
 Various natural and productive resources are available that every entrepreneur
can utilize for business success. The usage of local resources increases its value
and reduces the rate of resource wastage.
 3. Business diversification and decentralization
 An Entrepreneur can find out the business opportunities and locate them in areas
that are suitable including remote areas.
 4. Technological advancement
 By being a creative and innovative technopreneur, they play an important role
in the field of utilization as well as the development of technology.
 5. Capital formation
 Investment is an integral part of a business and an Entrepreneur requires funds to
start up and take their business to the new heights. They take financial assistance
from the investors and financiers and utilize the public savings that lead to
economic development.
 6. Promotion of entrepreneurial activities
 The young generation gets a chance to work with such technopreneurship firms
and learn nuts and bolts how to get success. It also inspires these teammates and
employees to grow and start up their business firms too.
Difference between Technopreneurship and
Entrepreneurship
 Entrepreneurs and technopreneurs are not the same, but similar. You can
say, technopreneurship is a new breed of entrepreneurship.
 Entrepreneurs are the ones who start with a fresh idea and go on to build it
into a product or service. They test the product in the market via MVP
(minimum viable product approach) and validate their product idea.
Objectives of Technopreneurship

1. Hi-tech projects in Information Technology, life services, the internet,

electronics, as well as for biotechnology.
2. Service firms with a major focus on technology.
3. Design products and services that use the latest form of technology to
serve various purposes.
4. Technology-driven activities to deliver normal business undertakings.
How to become a successful entrepreneur?

 1. Build an agile team

 Once you come up with an idea, you need a team to support you. You always
need a team. Suppose you are not that brilliant in the domain of technology,
then you have to hire a tech-savvy. Similarly, if you are tech-savvy yourself, you
will need a marketing team to spread the word. Either way, a compact team is
the best support system that you can have to turn your ideas into reality.
 2. Boost problem-solving skills
 In every field of life, you face/may face trouble. Especially in the domain of such
an innovative field. There may be operational challenges, regulatory challenges,
and of course funding. To deal with all these obstacles you need absolute
problem-solving skills. Always decide on an alternative even before starting with
plan A. This will provide a cushion to fall back on if plan A fails.
 3. Decision-making
 Decision-making is a noteworthy skill that you must possess to thrive in the field of
technopreneurship. With all the challenges that we just talked about, at the end
of the day, you are the decision-maker. So, you have to make the correct
choices of commercially viable plans. You have to make stable decisions. Do not
confuse the team by changing decisions repetitively.
Examples of Technopreneurs

 Elon Musk
 Elon Musk is also known as the Tech Geek.
 Musk revolutionized the concept of space travel technology.
 He is the CEO of the super successful space research brand SpaceX.
 He is also the founder of payment gateway, PayPal.
 Elon Musk is also the founder of Tesla, which is an American clean energy
company that produces electric cars.
 Bill Gates
 Bill Gates is the owner and founder of the most rewarded venture
ever, Microsoft. Well, Gates revolutionized the software business to a whole
new level.

 Steve Jobs
 Steve Jobs built the universal technology corporate venture, Apple, or as
we say Steve Jobs Apple Computer Corporation.
 He brought great innovation to the market of electronics and gadgets with
his corporation.
 Mark Zuckerberg
 Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s founder, is one of the most prominent young
technology entrepreneurs.
 The popular social media website was created in 2004 while Zuckerberg
was a student at Harvard. Embodying millennial values of social
consciousness, he has joined the ranks of high dollar donors within the past
few years. Recently, he gave $990 million to the Silicon Valley Community
Foundations, and $100 million of that went to support education reform in
Newark, New Jersey. (Brookings, 2014)
 Founders of Uber
 They revolutionized the way people travel by the use of technology.
 They built a GPS integrated app and completely changed the economics
of the taxi/cab industry.
 Their service is much more convenient for customers than traditional cab
companies.
 Key People:
 Ronald Sugar (Chairperson)
 Dara Khosrowshahi (CEO)
 Nelso Chai (CFO)
 Tony West (CLO)
 Darrell West, 2014, notes that in recent decades, “the lucrative technology
sector has created numerous “technopreneurs” and has produced far
more billionaires than other parts of the economy. “Younger billionaires are
most likely to have earned their fortunes in high technology,”
WHERE DID BILLIONAIRES MAKE THEIR
FORTUNES?