The relatively recent push to encourage entrepreneurs and the entrepreneurial movement in the  Philippines should be strengthened further. Some say, however, that there are enough Filipino  entrepreneurs, except that there are no sufficient opportunities to go about. On the other hand, some may say that the reason why the Philippines is not as progressive as it should be is that there’s only a handful of entrepreneurs — not simply the middle class, because the middle class are not necessarily entrepreneurs. Many in the middle class are employees, who are not necessarily entrepreneurs. Many in the middle class and upper class are businessmen, but businessmen are not necessarily entrepreneurs.

In People and Performance (2007, Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation), Peter Drucker mentioned that “the business enterprise has two — and only these two — basic functions: marketing and innovation.” According to Drucker, innovation “is particularly important for developing countries. These countries have the resources. They are poor because they lack the capacity to make these resources wealth-producing.” One of the elements that increases this “capacity” is the entrepreneur. In other words, even if the Philippines have enough resources, these resources would just go to waste (or to foreigners) if there are no enough local entrepreneurs to make these resources productive.

The book’s definitions of key terms, found at the end portion, defines an “entrepreneur” as a “person who starts and develops a business.” The discussions of Drucker, however, reflect that this definition is inadequate, because Drucker speaks of “entrepreneurial decisions” as the ability “to innovate and change the trend rather than follow it or anticipate it.” Drucker went on to say that the “specific job of entrepreneurship in business is to make today’s business capable of making the future, of making itself into a different business.” These characterizations are the bases for the statements above that a businessman is not necessarily an entrepreneur, as the businessman may simply be concerned with copying a format and, if it produces profits, sticking with it.

Having said that, let’s have  a new poll — more entrepreneurs or more opportunities? Of course, there are other factors affecting Philippine progress, but we’re not talking about those other factors. We’re limiting our discussion to those two factors — there are insufficient entrepreneurs or there are insufficient opportunities. So, all things being equal, which is more true? To vote or check the results, check the poll at the bottom-left portion of this blog. (The poll is closed as of 31 January 2008. Final results: More entrepreneurs – 83.3%; More opportunities – 16.7%). Your comments are always welcome (use the comment form below).

• Characterizing Entrepreneurship: Who are Pinoy Entrepreneurs?
• Entrepreneur vs. Employee: Why can’t everyone become Entrepreneurs?
• Business Opportunities in the Philippines, for the Filipino
• Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Peter Drucker)
• Recession and Business Opportunities
• How do you determine Who are Pinoy Entrepreneurs?
• Are Filipinos Ready to Become Entrepreneurs?