International Entrepreneur

International Entrepreneurship
Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u Introduction PAGEREF _Toc111574129 \h 3Background to Entrepreneur PAGEREF _Toc111574130 \h 4Drivers and Motivation PAGEREF _Toc111574131 \h 6Opportunity Recognition Process PAGEREF _Toc111574132 \h 6Effectuation PAGEREF _Toc111574133 \h 7Entrepreneurial Traits PAGEREF _Toc111574134 \h 7Motivation to Start PAGEREF _Toc111574135 \h 8Barriers/Enablers PAGEREF _Toc111574136 \h 8Barriers and Enablers PAGEREF _Toc111574137 \h 8Overcoming Problems PAGEREF _Toc111574138 \h 9Type of Internationalization PAGEREF _Toc111574139 \h 10Theories of Internationalization PAGEREF _Toc111574140 \h 10Reasons for Selecting the Route PAGEREF _Toc111574141 \h 10Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc111574142 \h 11References PAGEREF _Toc111574143 \h 13
International Entrepreneurship
Introduction
Richard Branson has been termed a global magnate due to the size of the business empire that he has created. However, the most befitting title for him would be an internal entrepreneur who has recognized and exploited business opportunities in the international market. By definition, international entrepreneurship entails novel and innovative activities aimed at creating value and growth in business organizations that drive entrepreneurship activities across national borders (Allen, 2016). According to Tabares (2020), international entrepreneurship involves entrepreneurial behavior designed to discover, enact, evaluate, and exploit opportunities across borders. These two versions hint at the same concept, which is that international entrepreneurship is simply entrepreneurial activity conducted beyond national borders. Therefore, an individual engaging in such activities can be referred to as an international entrepreneur. Additionally, such an individual can establish new ventures or expand the existing venture into the international market. This is because types of entrepreneurship include the exportation of goods, licensing, or commencing sales offices in other countries. It must be reiterated that international entrepreneurs will exploit business opportunities found in the global marketplace.
The above definition and description of both international entrepreneurship and entrepreneur can be used to justify why Richard Branson is an international entrepreneur. Branson is the founder of Virgin Group, which is made up of over 400 companies operating across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. He started with small ventures in the UK before either expanding them into the international market or setting up new businesses designed to operate in the international market. Over 200 companies have roots in more than 30 countries, each of which has been established through innovations that have allowed the brands to cut a niche across the global economy (Williams, 2017). Overall, Branson fits the very description of an international entrepreneur in that he is involved in the identification and exploitation of business opportunities outside of the United Kingdom (UK).
It is also possible to identify the type of international entrepreneur that Branson depends on the nature of his businesses. Overall, Branson is a mix of more than one type, considering that most businesses are often semi-autonomous, which means that their establishment and international expansion are often different from each other. However, the most visible typology is that of an intrapreneur, which can be described as the establishment of new ventures or businesses within an organization. Many ventures by Branson have been established under the Virgin brand, which makes them subsidiaries or branches of already existing businesses. Intrapreneurs are self-motivated, action-oriented, and proactive individuals who like to take the initiative and pursue innovative products and services. The story behind the establishment of Virgin Atlantic airlines embodies this nature of intrapreneurs. The innovations in the airline business were often manifested through marketing practices, which led to the rapid growth of the airlines despite stiff competition.
Background to Entrepreneur
The profile of Richard Branson as an international entrepreneur is long and comprehensive. Williams (2017) offers a detailed insight into how Branson emerged as an entrepreneur and emphasized the need to focus on the ability of the individual to start from a humble background without privileges. Born in 1950 in Surrey, England, Branson dropped out of school aged 16 years due to such challenges as health conditions. His entrepreneurship journey started immediately after dropping out when he started Virgin Records, a music record studio. In 1966, Branson launched a student-run school magazine that sold advertisements. This venture earned him $8000, a success that was facilitated by such innovative strategies as free distribution. His music studio was also recording massive success, as manifested by the ability to sign good artists, which made Virgin Records one of the top six studios in the country.
Branson can be considered to be a risk taker, as illustrated by some of the ventures he took. In 1980, Branson entered the travel industry and started the Voyager Group. After four years, Virgin Atlantic airlines and several stores were established. By the 1990s, the Virgin conglomerate had become the largest privately held company in the UK. Today, Virgin Group fits the description of a global growth investor that spans multiple sectors. As such, Branson has established a business that has extended its entrepreneurial focus beyond the United Kingdom. As an expansive growth investor, the company serves multiple sectors, including travel and leisure, music and entertainment, health and wellness, financial services, space, and telecoms and media (Williams, 2017). Therefore, diversification can be seen as Branson's primary strategy for business growth and expansion, which is backed by internationalization.
It is important to acknowledge that as a school dropout, the professional profile of Branson beyond his entrepreneurship achievements is somewhat lacking. As a result, much of his personal life is tied to his entrepreneurial career since he started his first venture in the UK. The challenges he encountered became opportunities and motivation. According to Williams (2017), Branson had the innovative mind needed by all entrepreneurs. Most importantly, Branson adduced business ideas from prevailing situations, after which he identified opportunities and took the necessary risks to establish the ventures. In other words, Branson's entrepreneurial career is characterized by the ability to discover problems and offer solutions. Additionally, he also has the leadership qualities needed to manage an entrepreneurial venture, which has been one of his key strengths as an entrepreneur.
Drivers and Motivation
Opportunity Recognition Process
International entrepreneurship theory highlights that international entrepreneurship is behavior oriented towards the discovery and exploitation of opportunities in the global market. According to Perényi and Losoncz (2018), international entrepreneurship combines theories from international business and entrepreneurship. The opportunity recognition process is based on the opportunity recognition theory, which explains how individuals and their business firms identify new opportunities not previously known to them (Sautet, 2016). Richard Branson can be considered to have followed both opportunity-driven and necessity-driven motivation to identify business opportunities. After dropping out of school, it can be argued that Branson needed the means to support himself. As an individual who believed in hard work and commitment, any venture he started had a good chance for success. Therefore, it is not necessarily that Branson found an opportunity in the music recording studio. Rather, he may have fancied the idea mostly as a means of getting himself out of the financial situation that he was in. However, these sentiments can only be regarded as an assumption based on his life story since the facts on how he decided to start his first venture are missing.
After his early success with the initial ventures, it can be argued that Branson has the resources and insights on how to operate a business successfully. Therefore, all other ventures are most likely opportunity driven, which means that he either found gaps and filled them or found viable ventures where other businesses are not well-established. The story of Virgin Atlantic airlines explains this observation. In a story that is told across the world, a canceled flight was the beginning of Virgin airlines, after Branson was frustrated and angry. He decided to charter a plane and invited passengers to his destination. At the end of the flight, an individual recommended to him that if he could sharpen his services, then he could be in the airline business. the following day, he rang Boeing and informed them of his decision to be in the airline business (Gilchrist, 2019). This story indicates that Virgin Atlantic was an opportunity that was presented to Branson. As an already successful business person, the resources were available to further explore opportunities across both domestic and global markets.