Lesson 1. What is entrepreneurship for impact?
As mentioned in previous sections and lessons, entrepreneurship is essential to the global economy. Every entrepreneurial activity that a person decides to undertake will mobilise many aspects of the economy, so entrepreneurs are essential to the economies of each country. In the case of older people, as has already been mentioned, they will also be essential, above all in the labour development of social sectors.
Economic policies must make it easier for older people to create new companies or non-profit entities, so that all the benefits mentioned in sections 2 and 3 will be generated, as well as creating places of employment that will improve the economy and, of course, generate added value in the social sphere.
According to l’OCDE, the impact of entrepreneurship falls on the following levels:
– Impact on economic capital: at first, on the economic sector as it fosters the creation of companies and employment.
– Impact on human capital: understanding human capital as the set of knowledge, learning and skills of people that generate value at a social and individual level, entrepreneurship will have a positive impact on it. Positive synergies are generated that create a society of knowledge and professionals. One of the main reasons for promoting an entrepreneurial culture focuses on stimulating human capital and the intellectual growth of people, in order to adequately face challenges and effectively contribute to social development.
– Impact on political capital: Political capital is the capacity to influence the decisions of others. Indeed, prestige, recognition and leadership are three decisive qualities for undertaking entrepreneurial activities. In other words, if senior entrepreneurs are people with leadership skills, it shows how entrepreneurship also generates such leadership, making people more active in society. This will influence politics in the sense that senior entrepreneurs will be inclined to vote for political parties that are committed to the social and economic policies of entrepreneurship.
– Impact on social capital: belonging to networks and participation in organisations are constituent elements of entrepreneurship. However, the reverse is also true, i.e., entrepreneurship leads to an increase in social capital thanks to the creation of contacts and participation in associations.
– Impact on solidarity: this component has been questioned by those entrepreneurs who conceive of entrepreneurship in commercial rather than social terms. However, the social entrepreneurial culture does, of course, have an impact on generating solidarity benefits in society, enhancing tolerance and social understanding.
– Impact on happiness: Learning about entrepreneurship can bring support beyond mere business knowledge, it can also generate relationships and enable learning and cognitive development that can lead to the achievement of greater happiness. Discovering that training in entrepreneurship generates more happiness could lead to a change in human talent policies within companies and in public policies, since the promotion of entrepreneurship could lead to happier employees and citizens.