The effect of new business creation on employment growth in regions facing population decline

Particularly in declining regions, new businesses creation is seen as a means to secure (future) employment opportunities. However, the way in which new business creation exerts its influence on employment is not evident. Do start-ups in these areas influencing employment change as they do in growth regions? We disentangle the long- and short-term employment effect of new business creation in municipalities in the Netherlands between 1996 and 2010. We conclude that the regional context matters a great deal for the local employment effect of business creation. Further, it is shown in contexts with modest population decline, new businesses are still an important generator of employment opportunities

Understanding entrepreneurship in the local context:Population decline, ageing and density

Ondernemerschap in de lokale context Krimp, vergrijzing en bevolkingsdichtheid Bevolkingskrimp is een bekend verschijnsel voor de meeste Europese landen. Vele regio’s krimpen reeds, ook in Nederland. Krimp is een complexe kwestie waar vele sociale en economische gevolgen mee gemoeid zijn. Krimp versterkt tegelijkertijd het proces van vergrijzing. Niet alleen worden we ouder, maar ook méér mensen worden oud. Vergrijzing veroorzaakt een relatieve krimp van de beroepsbevolking. Wat betekent deze ontwikkeling voor onze samenleving en economie? Wat zijn de mogelijke gevolgen en hoe moeten we daar mee omgaan? Dit onderzoek bekijkt de rol van ondernemerschap in de sociale en economische veerkracht van regio’s gekarakteriseerd door krimp en vergrijzing. De link tussen krimp en het niveau en de vorm van ondernemerschap wordt onderzocht om te kunnen bepalen of er een causale relatie is tussen deze aspecten. In eerste instantie wordt dit door middel van kwantitatieve methoden onderzocht. Uit de resultaten daarvan blijkt dat de gevolgen van krimp helemaal niet zo erg zijn. Ondernemerschap in krimpgebieden genereert weliswaar minder werkgelegenheid dan ondernemerschap in groeigebieden, maar er worden wel degelijk nieuwe bedrijven gestart en deze nieuwe bedrijven leveren ook een bijdrage aan de werkgelegenheid. De kwantitatieve data analyse is aangevuld met een case study in zowel Nederland als Engeland waar diepte interviews en focusgroepdiscussies zijn afgenomen. Deze case study levert nieuwe, niet-economische, inzichten op in de rol van ondernemerschap binnen een gemeenschap. Kleine bedrijven dragen bij aan het creëren van sociaal kapitaal door sociale interactie tussen bewoners te bevorderen en hebben op deze manier een positieve uitwerking op de kwaliteit van leven in de gemeenschap

Krimpcafé Ondernemen in krimpregio's

Krimpcafé Ondernemen in krimpregio'

‘Grey entrepreneurship’:a qualitative study toward understanding the motivation to and the effects on wellbeing of after later life entrepreneurship

One could argue that while the younger workforce is declining, the older adults could constitute growing economic potential through the role of entrepreneurship. The expectation is that more and more people will continue to work longer and a section of these are self-employed. Taking the economic necessity out of the equation ((state)pension), the question is: why do people decide to maintain an active economic role in society after having worked for all their active economic life? This chapter uses a qualitative approach to investigate how and why people aged 50 and over become self-employed and focuses on whether entrepreneurship adds to feelings of well-being for older entrepreneurs. The pursuit of well-being through entrepreneurship is a relatively new field of research in economics. Most studies agree that most motivations for entrepreneurship are non-pecuniary in nature and often are related to outcomes of increased well-being. This is true for entrepreneurs of all ages but the emphasis or importance given to certain motivations varies with age. How individuals decide to become self-employed depends on both context and characteristics. We study the decision-making process using the theory of planned behaviour which states that the intention to execute certain behaviour is influenced by three determinants: (1) the attitude of a person towards certain behaviour; (2) the subjective norm an individual experiences; and (3) the perceived feasibility. We discuss how these three determinants help generate higher levels of well-being for the entrepreneurs at this stage of their lives. We find that the older self-employed are experiencing higher levels of well-being as a result of their decision to become self-employed, due to increased personal control, flexible working hours and/or dream fulfilment. First, the participants in our research have a positive attitude towards becoming self-employed. Second, they are influenced by their social environment, mostly in the shape of family members, former employers and professional networks, in the way the grey entrepreneurs reflect on their own self-employment. Third, their risk acceptance is high, but the actual risk is usually low because they are often not fully dependent on the income from the business. This study provides a better insight into how we can motivate people to stay economically active longer and increase their perceived well-being