1. HOW TO TEACH OPPORTUNITY RECOGNITION
Frank Hoy Paul R. Beswick Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship Worcester Polytechnic Institute USA

2. The Coleman Foundation Definition of Entrepreneurship
DEFINITIONS
The Coleman Foundation Definition of Entrepreneurship
Self-employment through business ownership which has significant elements of risk, control and reward

3. Other Common Definitions
Pursuit of opportunity without regard to resources controlled
Process of creating value through unique resource combinations that exploit opportunity

4. A Philosophy of Life a way of thinking a way of acting
lots of different professional contexts
but also a way of approaching personal issues, family life, community involvement, etc.
Michael Morris

5. Entrepreneurship as a Lifetime Philosophy
Attitude
Can affect change
There is a better way
Opportunities are
everywhere
Embrace innovation,
change & growth
Failure is learning
In One’s Life
In the family
In church activities
In community
involvement
In personal relationships
In managing personal finances
In dealing with personal change
Professionally
-Entrepreneuring in different ways over one’s career life cycle
Behavior
Pursuing opportunity
Innovating
Perseverance
Guerrilla actions
Risk management
Michael Morris

6. Entrepreneurial Alertness
Israel Kirzner:
The ability to see where products or services do not exist or have emerged as valuable. Differentiates entrepreneurs from knowledge experts who does not see the commercial opportunity stemming from the knowledge.

7. Defining Opportunity
Joseph Schumpeter: Opportunities are “new production functions where production = 1(choice of products, source of supply, method of productions, method of organization, and choice of markets)”

8. Opportunity Recognition
Robert Baron: “Opportunity recognition refers to the active, cognitive process (or processes) through which individuals conclude that they have identified the potential to create something new that has the potential to generate economic value and that is not currently being exploited or developed, and is viewed as desirable in the society in which it occurs.”

9. Sources of Opportunities
Peter Drucker: Opportunity results from change 1.The unexpected – and unexpected success, failure, or outside event; 2. An incongruity between reality as it actually is and reality as it is assumed to be or as it ought to be; 3. Innovation based on process need;

10. Sources (cont.)
4. Changes in industry structure or market structure that come about quickly and without warning; 5. Demographics; 6. Changes in perception, mood, and meaning; and 7. New knowledge.

11. “Incubator” Organizations
The Source
“Incubator” Organizations

12. Sizing up the Opportunity
Jeff Timmons: 1. What are the driving forces and competitive vacuums creating the opportunity? 2. For whom is the opportunity desirable? 3. Is there a real need? 4. What are the economics of the opportunity? 5. What are the risk/reward trade-offs?

13. Educational Approaches
Textbooks?
Lectures?
Experiential?
Individual versus Team?
Theory versus Practice?

14. Tactics Role Models Teams Videos Creativity Exercises Business Models
Pattern Recognition

15. One Example McGrath & MacMillan: Opportunity Register Business concept
Related trends
Key data
Obstacles and barriers
Company position
Competition
Sources
Type
Timing

16. Forget Everything I’ve Said
The Corridor Principle

17. Questions, Comments, Criticisms?
Frank Hoy
Director, Collaborative for
Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
100 Institute Road
Worcester, Massachusetts USA

18. Books
Christensen, C. The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Review Press, 1997.
Drucker, P.F. Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Practice and Principles. New York: Harper & Row, 1985.
Kirzner, I. Perception, Opportunity, and Profit. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979.
Knight, F.H. Risk, Uncertainty and Profit. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2006 (originally 1921 by Houghton Mifflin).
Schumpeter, J. The Theory of Economic Development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1934.

19. Videos
Prendismo Collection, Formerly Cornell University e-clips. Now a subscription service.
Stanford University, ECorner, e.g. “Linda Rottenberg: Crazy Is a Compliment,” May 7, 2014.
TEDGlobal, e.g. “Matt Ridley: When Ideas Have Sex,” July 2010.
YouTube, e.g. Elevator Pitch Winners,

20. Articles
Gaglio, C.M., and Katz, J.A. The psychological basis of opportunity identification: Entrepreneurial alertness. Small Business Economics, 16,
Kaish, S., and Gilad, B. Characteristics of opportunity search for entrepreneurs versus executives: Sources, interests, general alertness. Journal of Business Venturing, 6 (1): 45-61, 1991.
Ronstadt, R. The corridor principle. Journal of Business Venturing, 3: 31-40, 1988.
Stevenson, H.H., and Gumpert, D.E. The heart of entrepreneurship. Harvard Business Review, 63 (2): 85-94, 1985.

21. Movies Bowfinger Jerry Maguire Pirates of Silicon Valley
The Full Monty
The Social Network
Tucker

22. Internet Sites
Business Opportunities Weblog,
Entrepreneur Magazine,
Entrepreneurship.org (Kauffman Foundation),
Fast Company,
Startup Professionals,
Under30CEO,
U.S. Small Business Administration,

23. Your Turn Connect with your neighbors
What approach is comfortable for you? Why?
What approaches work for your students? Why?
Design the tactics for your students to improve their abilities to identify and act on opportunities