entrepreneur

An entrepreneur is a person who identifies opportunities, creates ventures, and assumes the risks of starting and running a business in order to generate profit or social value. The term originates from the French entreprendre, meaning to undertake. In practice, entrepreneurs organize resources, develop a business model, and bring a product or service to market, often introducing innovations or new ways of delivering value.

Entrepreneurs may start from scratch, acquire existing organizations, or pivot an idea into a scalable enterprise. They differ from traditional small-business owners whose primary goal is ongoing income and employment stability; entrepreneurship emphasizes growth, scalability, and potential disruption. A founder is someone who starts a business, and an entrepreneur may be a founder, co-founder, or intrapreneur inside a larger organization.

Key activities include identifying customer needs, validating ideas, securing funding, building a team, and navigating legal and regulatory requirements. Financial risk is a central feature, with the potential for loss alongside the possibility of substantial rewards. The impact of entrepreneurship is widely recognized for driving innovation, productivity, job creation, and economic dynamism.

Funding approaches vary and can include bootstrapping, angel investors, venture capital, crowdfunding, and strategic partnerships. Success factors commonly cited include resilience, leadership, market insight, execution, and the ability to adapt to changing conditions.

Entrepreneurship spans sectors and can be pursued through technology startups, social ventures, or locally oriented enterprises. Social entrepreneurs seek sustainable solutions to social or environmental problems alongside financial viability. No single path guarantees success, and many entrepreneurs collaborate with mentors, accelerators, and ecosystems to scale their ventures.