Introduction to

Technopreneurship
“The use of technology as an integral and key
element in the transformation of goods or
services.”
– Randall Stross
What is Technopreneurship?
Technology + Entrepreneurship = Technopreneurship

• It is simply entrepreneurship in a technology-intensive

context
• It is a process of merging technology
What is Entrepreneurship?
Entrepreneurship seeks to understand how opportunities
to create something new arise and are discovered or created by
specific persons who then use various means to exploit or
develop them, thus producing a wide range of effects.

• The potential to create something new (new products or services, new

markets, new production processes, new raw materials, new ways of
organizing existing technologies, etc.) that has emerged from a complex
pattern of changing conditions-changes in knowledge, technology, or
economic, political, social, and demographic conditions.
What is Entrepreneur?
The word entrepreneur comes from Latin. Entre-enter;
pre-before; neur-nerve center. Taking its derivation we could
understand entrepreneur as someone who enters the nerve
center of a business that no one entered before and then
makes changes to it that results in a paradigm shift in the
whole process.
What is Entrepreneur? (cont.)
• Somebody who shifts economic resources out of an area of
lower and into an area of higher productivity and yield.
• Emphasis on doing something different, moving from a low
productive environment to higher one.
• The key to entrepreneurship is doing that “thing” differently
which moves you up the value chain. (Peter Drucker)
What is Technopreneurship?
• Technopreneurship is not just about technology alone; but is
about how to manage that technology in order to achieve
superior value for the customer (how to use technology [ICT]
to improve value).
• Also known as cyberpreneurship or netpreneurship or
technology entrepreneurship.
Entrepreneurial process vs.
Technopreneurial process
Entrepreneurial process
Entrepreneurial process vs.
Technopreneurial process (cont.)
Technopreneurial process
The Technopreneurship continuum
Technopreneur and the Economy
Three elements of the intellectual capital:
Human capital
• The skills, capabilities, and knowledge of the firm’s people.
Organizational capital
• The patents, technologies, processes, databases and networks
Social capital
• The quality of the relationships with customers, suppliers and partners
Entrepreneurs vs. Technopreneurs
Differences
Entrepreneur Technopreneur
• Likes to compete • Likes to innovate
• Is a self-starter • Is part of a team
• Is able to do many things at once • Is able to do many things at once,
but chooses to delegate once, but
• Is creative, and has dreams and chooses to delegate
goals
• Is innovative and has a greater
• Likes to work for him or herself vision
and be in control
• Likes to be the one to control
innovation and be part of an
evolution
Entrepreneurs vs. Technopreneurs
Differences (cont.)
Entrepreneur
• Is motivated by a strong desire to
achieve and attain financial
success
• Focuses his/her attention on the
chances of success rather than
the possibility of failure
Technopreneur
• Is motivated by a strong vision
and his passion to innovate
• Takes failure in stride and knows
it will lead to the chances of
success rather than the
possibility of failure success if
correction can be made
Entrepreneurs vs. Technopreneurs
Similarities
Entrepreneur
• Is able to determine risk and has
the courage to take risks
• Is independent and self-
confident, yet knows where to
get help
• Likes a challenge
• Hardworking and willing to stick
with a project
Technopreneur
• Is able to determine risk and has
the courage to take risks
• Is independent and self-
confident, yet knows confident,
yet knows where to get help
• Likes a challenge
• Hardworking and willing to stick
with a project
Entrepreneurs vs. Technopreneurs
Similarities (cont.)
Entrepreneur
• Is a positive thinker who does
dwell on setbacks
• Often has a close friend or
relative who owns a business
Technopreneur
• Is a positive thinker who does
dwell on setbacks
• Often has a close friend or
relative who owns a business
Successful traits of technopreneur
• Integrity
• Leadership
• Impatient: bias toward action (with analysis)
• Quick clock speed
• Modest ego. Seeks and accepts coaching
• Willing to be different, but knows it (not oblivious)
• Pragmatic: willing to compromise
• Rejoices in other’s victories
Successful traits of technopreneur (cont.)
• Rejoices in other’s victories
• Driven to solve a valuable problem for customers
• Strong entrepreneurial intensity
• Willingness to incur the costs of growth
• Willingness to use wide range of financing sources
• Emphasis on a team-based organizing structure
• Focus on innovation
• Committed to commercialization of technology discovery
Successful traits of technopreneur (cont.)
• Excellent communication skills
• Understand the value of business principles
• Formation and execution of a sound business plan
• Raising of money
• Building an organizational team