general business data bank

56) The 21st century has seen record numbers of entrepreneurs launching businesses on a global basis.

57) Current competitive conditions favor large companies over smaller ones because of their flexibility combined with their ability to use their size to achieve efficiency and economies of scale.

58) Increased entrepreneurial activity is a phenomenon unique to the U.S.

59) One study conducted by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) reports that nearly one in eight people in the United states is working to start a business..

60) Research has isolated a set of characteristics that can predict who will succeed as an entrepreneur.

61) Serial entrepreneurs repeatedly start businesses and grow them to a sustainable size before striking out again.

62) Surveys show that small business owners believe that, as entrepreneurs, they work harder, earn more money, and are happier than if they worked for a large company.

63) The opportunity to reap impressive profits is the primary motivation for most entrepreneurs.

64) Social entrepreneurs use their skills to create profitable businesses and also achieve economic, social and environmental goals for the common good.

65) Technology offers a significant advantage for entrepreneurs.

66) Entrepreneurs choose to enter their particular business fields because they have an interest in them and enjoy those lines of work. They have often made their hobbies their business.

67) The majority of new business owners work fewer than 40 hours per week.

68) The majority of new business owners devote more than 40 hours per week to their companies.

69) One advantage of being your own boss and owning a small business is that work hours are very flexible and leisure time is abundant.

70) Entrepreneurs are not willing to give up a steady paycheck.

71) There is concern over the future of entrepreneurship because so few high school and college students want to start their own companies.

72) The shift to a service economy has not had a significant impact on entrepreneurial opportunities.

73) Cloud computing allows businesses to use a variety of applications and has reduced costs and added flexibility.

74) Women now own 28.7 percent of all privately-held businesses in the United States.

75) Women play a minor role in the entrepreneurial arena.

76) Starting a part-time business is a popular gateway to entrepreneurship.

77) Increasing numbers of women are discovering that the best way to break the "glass ceiling" that prevents them from rising to the top of many organizations is to start their own companies.

78) Diversity may be considered a characteristic of entrepreneurs, as they don't fit any statistical norm.

79) Minority-owned businesses have come a long way in the past decade, and their success rate is climbing.

80) A major advantage of launching a business part-time is the lower risk it offers in case the business fails.

81) Most home-based businesses are simple cottage industries such as crafts or sewing.

82) Not all family-owned businesses are small; in fact, approximately one-third of the Fortune 500 companies a

83) Of the 25 million businesses in the U.S., about 40 percent are family owned and managed.

84) Ninety-percent of businesses in the United States are family-owned and managed and account for 62 percent of total U.S. employment.

85) Family-owned and managed businesses account for 78 percent of all new jobs.

86) Most family businesses survive to the fourth generation.

87) Successful "copreneurs" create a division of labor based on expertise.

88) About 20 percent of downsized corporate managers have become entrepreneurs.

89) Corporate downsizing has spawned a generation of entrepreneurs known as "corporate castoffs."

90) Because they have college degrees, a working knowledge of business, and years of management experience, both corporate castoffs and corporate dropouts who become entrepreneurs will most likely increase the small business survival rate.

91) David Birch considers "gazelles" those businesses that grow at 20 percent or more per year and gross at least $100,000 in annual sales.

92) Small companies have created at least two-thirds of the net new jobs in the U.S. economy.

93) Small businesses actually create more jobs than the number of jobs big businesses create.

94) Large companies create significantly more patents and other forms of innovations per research and development dollars spent than small firms.

95) Because of their size and limited resources, small businesses rarely create innovations that are important to the U.S. economy.

96) About 51 percent of new businesses fail within five years.

97) Most entrepreneurs have invested the time to develop a sound business plan.

98) An often fatal error made by many small business owners is to open their businesses on a "shoestring," causing them to be undercapitalized.

99) About 75 percent of the businesses in the U.S. can be considered "small" businesses.

100) The faster a small company grows, the greater its appetite for cash.

101) The primary cause of small business failure is lack of capital.

102) Entrepreneurs realize that failure is a possibility, but are not paralyzed by that fear.

103) To boost sales, small businesses, especially start-ups, should grant credit to anyone who wants to buy their products or services.

104) As an entrepreneur, you are always working for someone else-your customers.

105) Establishing prices that will generate the necessary profits means that business owners must understand how much it costs to make, market, and deliver their products and services.

106) If an entrepreneur has a good enough product or service to sell, a business plan is not really necessary since the product or service will sell itself.

107) Successful entrepreneurs recognize that their most valuable asset is their time, and they learn to manage it effectively to make themselves and their companies more productive; having passion about their businesses, products, and customers enables them to stay motivated.

108) Expanding a business usually requires no significant changes in structure or business practices.

109) What is an entrepreneur? Give a brief profile of a typical entrepreneur. What is the primary motivation for the typical entrepreneur?

110) Discuss the potential benefits and drawbacks of entrepreneurship.

111) Describe the factors that are driving the current entrepreneurial trend in the U.S. economy.