Ken Kahn in his “Catalyst: Innovation Is Not Entrepreneurship,nor Vice Versa†initiated an inspiring discussion of the concepts of entrepreneurship and innovation. Extending the idea, we propose such connections and differences also carry university education and policy implications. Below we summarize our thoughts based on our observations in Hong Kong. We agree with Ken’s argument that innovation and entrepreneurship are different conceptually and often not differentiated well by researchers and others, which may cause some inefficiency in program design and student learning. However, we also think that educators and policymakers are inclined to focus on the integration between the two for good reasons in practice. The purpose of this commentary is not to refute Ken’s points, but to explore how to move from distinguishing between entrepreneurship and innovation to creating value from both educators and policymakers.
Au, K. (2017). ‘The Belt and Road Initiative’ and Youth Entrepreneurship in Hong Kong. In Journal of Youth Studies Serial No.39: 49. The Hong Kong Federation of Youth GroupsEntrepreneurs are agents of innovation and creators of profit. The level of entrepreneurship is affected not only by individual activities but also by the macroeconomic and social environment and by national strategies. The ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ launched by the Chinese government provides many opportunities for Hong Kong’s economic and trade development. Entrepreneurial activity in Hong Kong has increased significantly in recent years, and the government of the HKSAR has implemented measures specifically to support youth entrepreneurship. Given this context, what impact will the Belt and Road Initiative have on entrepreneurship? What opportunities might it bring to the development of emerging enterprises? This paper provides an overview of the entrepreneurial activity in Hong Kong – based on Global Entrepreneurship Monitor data on the Belt and Road Initiative relevant countries – and discusses the opportunities that the Belt and Road Initiative brings for such activity and the potential benefits of the initiative entrepreneurship in Hong Kong.
Wong J. (2017). Mentors: A Young Entrepreneur’s Secret Weapon. Journal of Youth Studies Serial No.40: 113. The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups“Mentor” is a term commonly used in startup competitions. Are mentors vital to startups? Mentors, they have been there, done that, and have seen it all. Yet a woeful number of entrepreneurs start their business without one. Most successful tech titans were founded by people who had mentors. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg was mentored by Steve Jobs. Jobs was mentored by Mike Markkula – an early investor and executive at Apple. Eric Schmidt mentored Larry Page and Sergey Brin of Google. Do startups need a mentor? What role does a mentor play? This article reviews the impact a mentor can have on startups and provides guidance for both mentor and mentee.