“Focus groups provide a unique and interactive way to gather information and share views on any number of subjects” says Focus Group UK.

This is the method with which I intend to obtain the students’ views on the alumni network idea. Its advantages are that it promotes discussion and gives a combination of opinions and angles on the selected topic. Its disadvantages are that the discussion may stray from the subject easily and that some participants may dominate the discussion more than others.

It is therefore my task as moderator to keep the discussion on track without being too imposing so as to let it flow freely.

So, the venue, refreshments and recording equipment are all in place, all I need now is the participants!

Calling all students and alumni of the MA Media Enterprise course, this is your chance to have your say! Do you want your own network to be like moodle or more like facebook?

If you don’t come along to one of the focus groups you never know how it might turn out…

Hello all,

I am embarking on a research project to investigate and explore ideas around the proposed idea of a web-based network for the students and alumni of the MA Media Enterprise course at BCU. It is of vital importance that I gain the views of past and present students for this, as it is to be a student-led network, so if you are either of those please do not hesitate to comment on this blog! Other views are of course welcome too.

Over the next few weeks I shall be keeping the students up to date on my progress with the project via this blog.

We are all aware of how huge social networking on the internet has become, so I’d initially like to ask, which features of social networking do you find most useful?

Laura Jackman.

You’ll find a new page on this website dedicated to conference materials from the recent (March 2008) Creative Enterprise conference at Birmingham City University.It includes a podcast with excerpts from most of the speakers. Be sure to check it out. 

This week I chaired a conference at Birmingham City University on Creative Enterprise.

It was largely aimed at educators but it did have a few students and some business support people amongst its delegates.  First thing to say is that a way more reflective and thoughtful digest of the conference is being put together by Charlotte Carey. Go read it. I thought it might be worth pulling together links to some of the participants as that doesn’t seem to have been done anywhere else.

Here goes:

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Introduction
When you think of the word entrepreneur what springs to mind? Do you envision in your mind a Donald Trump look-alike who is middle aged with an aggressive personality and an expensive suit? I did initially until I found that the word entrepreneur encompasses many varying traits and is not as stereotypical as I once assumed. This assignment aims to enlighten the reader with an academic perspective of what cultural entrepreneurship entails and how various traits and characteristics are found in different types of entrepreneurs.

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In this post I will analyse the unique characteristics of cultural entrepreneurship in relation to the musical instrument inventor Bob Moog and the wider impact of one individual’s creative enterprise since the 1950s.What is an entrepreneur?There are many wide-ranging definitions of an entrepreneur, with connotations of city slickers focused on profit-driven financial deals, or geniuses or hapless inventors being grilled over IP registration and profit projections in the BBC series “Dragon’s Den”.The term entrepreneur was first used by French economist and journalist Jean-Baptiste Say during the French Revolution to describe one who unlocks capital tied up in land and redirects it to change the future. Say was the first economist to recognise change and uncertainty as normal and positive in business¹.The Beermat Entrepreneur’s describe entrepreneurs as confident, charismatic, have bags of energy, obsessed with work, ambitious, in a hurry, arrogant, manipulative, lack focus and are obsessed with the competition².The risk-taker, the go-getter, the manipulator, the charismatic leader, the opportunist and the serialist are all types and characteristics of the typical entrepreneur. Read the rest of this entry »

1. Howkins, J (2001) The Creative Economy, Penguin Press pg129 [↩]
2. Southon, M and West, C (2002) The Beermat Entrepreneur, Prentice Hall pgxvi [↩]

The creative industries are currently at the forefront of British government policy. With the sector contributing greatly to the economy, emphasis has been placed upon its regenerative capabilities (visit www.culture.gov.uk). The sector relies heavily upon small medium enterprises (SME’s) which are usually created, developed and managed by an emerging breed of cultural entrepreneurs. These entrepreneurs are at the forefront of the sector and are setting a new standard for creative working.

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Moses Whyte runs a social enterprise in Walsall. When I asked him if he considered himself to be a cultural entrepreneur, he looked at me quizzically and said perhaps he was. Then laughing, he said anybody could be anything they wanted to be and as long as it didn’t mean paying more taxes then perhaps indeed he was a cultural entrepreneur.

When I embarked on writing this blog entry, I myself was somewhat uncertain as to whether Moses Whyte and his enterprise, the Trelawny Overseas Relief Association UK Ltd. (TORA), fitted into the category of cultural entrepreneur. The confusion came because TORA is essentially a social enterprise. There is no question about its entrepreneurial factor, but the question arose in my mind, can its specific activities of community outreach and involvement be classified as cultural as in the term cultural industries. After carefully unpacking the definition of culture, I decided that it did indeed fit the category.

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So you fancy yourself as an entrepreneur?  Do you have what it takes?  

So what is an entrepreneur? It is said that an entrepreneur ‘can look at something and see an opportunity where you or I would just see an everyday thing’¹ they gain inspiration everywhere, from their own experience, their own needs, and from others. A ‘successful entrepreneurship is basically a successful commercial application of an innovation’², but what personality traits do they possess? Is there a common theme for such traits and do these differ between ‘cultural’ and other entrepreneurs?           

To look at these clearly and produce a rough guide of helpful points several case studies will be used, including Richard Branson and Sarah Doukas (founder of Storm modelling agency) among others. How did these iconic entrepreneurs start out, what encouraged them to achieve and can anyone really do it?          

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1. Professor Gray cited in R. Bridge ‘How I Made It’ 2005, pg 5 [↩]
2. Professor Gray cited in R. Bridge ‘How I Made It’ 2005,pg 5 [↩]