Stephen W. Gibson – författare

Necessity entrepreneurs are individuals in developing countries who start small enterprises out of necessity. While they range from street sellers to educated hopefuls with little access to formal employment, the one thing that unites them is the need to survive. This volume is the first-known compilation of theories contributed by international scholars who have worked together to establish a theory-based discourse on necessity entrepreneurship, microenterprise education and long-term economic development.An estimated one billion individuals in both developed and developing nations can be defined as necessity entrepreneurs; individuals who have no other viable option for licit income than to start a small, income-generating activity. However, unless these 'necessity entrepreneurs' have access to meaningful education, they will never realize the powerful, economic potential to impact the economic development of their respective nations. This volume is the foundation upon which the budding discipline of necessity entrepreneurship can be built.This book is an essential resource for policy makers, educators and academics interested in global economic development and sustainable business. Moreover, it will be an invaluable tool to those working in non-profit organizations and non-governmental organizations.Contributors: E. Balan-Vnuk, J. Brewer, M. Coffey, J.C. Dencker, M. Dissanyake, W.G. Dyer, S.W. Gibson, M. Gruber, J. Hatch, R.D. Hisrich, C. Kearney, W.A. Lindsay, A. O'Connor

An estimated one billion individuals in both developed and developing nations can be defined as necessity entrepreneurs; individuals who have no other viable option for licit income than to start a small, income generating activity. However, the emphasis on providing business and leadership training to necessity entrepreneurs is only just gaining traction. This book provides the first-known global analysis dedicated exclusively to organizations from both the public and private sectors that are specifically involved with microenterprise education for necessity entrepreneurs. This companion volume to Necessity Entrepreneurs puts at the forefront the few organizations engaged in training necessity entrepreneurs - highlighting the efforts currently being made by policymakers, non-profit founders, and for-profit institutions individually (and independently) to try and find ways to educate and empower necessity entrepreneurs. The authors provide a pragmatic synopsis and evaluate the efficacy of institutions involved in training entrepreneurs in developing nations all over the world.Featuring case studies from Harvard, BYU, and the largest organizations around the globe, this important work will be a vital read not only for scholars and researchers, but policymakers and NGO officials. Contributors include: J. Brewer, S. Brown, J. Brownlow, C. Casey, G. Davis, J.S. Demple, G. Enrigue, J. Fairbourne, S.W. Gibson, G. Gonzalez, M. Haas, M. Hernandez, R. Heyn, B. Klinger, A. Khwaja, A. Maxfield, N. Myrrha, A. Nikiforou, J. Oldroyd, J. Pino, J. Roberts, R. Shankar, P. Vogel, P. Webb, L. Zhang

Poverty remains one of the most intractable problems in the developing world. Microfranchising offers great promise in alleviating poverty by aiding in the foundation of locally owned businesses. Microfranchising is defined as small businesses whose start-up costs are minimal and whose concepts and operations are easily replicated. It involves the systematizing of microenterprises to create and replicate turnkey businesses for the poor. With the awarding of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize, attention has increased on this remarkable concept.

This unique book provides an overview of the need to alleviate poverty and what methods have been used in the past to do so (e.g. microcredit). It then introduces the concept of the microfranchise and discusses how this business model can be used in poverty alleviation. Different models of microfranchising are reviewed and specific case studies highlighted to show how it has worked in different parts of the world. The book concludes with a discussion of the advantages as well as the potential problems and pitfalls that accompany microfranchising.

This book is a must read for business scholars and economists, practitioners and lenders, members of NGOs dedicated to poverty alleviation and anyone else who is interested in learning about an innovative, business focused tool to alleviate poverty.