Exploring entrepreneurial skills and competencies in farm tourism

Abstract

Is a PhD student in the School of Sport, Tourism & The Outdoors, at the University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK. Investigating farm tourism and the supply of farm based recreation, his project critically appraises the nature and extent of the entrepreneurial competencies, activities and needs of farmers as providers of rural tourism products and experiences. Locating the analysis within contemporary UK and EU rural development and diversification policies. Richard Sharpley Exploring Entrepreneurial Skills and Competencies in Farm TourismAbstract: Diversification to farm tourism is increasingly seen as a viable development strategy to promote a more diverse and sustainable rural economy and to counter declining farm incomes. However, our understanding of the dynamics of the modern farm tourism business and the entrepreneurial and competitive skills farmers require in making the transition from agriculture to a diversified -and service based -enterprise remains limited. Hence, the aim of this paper is to explore the range of skills and competencies that farmers in the North West of England identify as important when adopting a diversification strategy to farm tourism. With the findings indicating that that whilst a range of managerial skills are valued by farmers, they lack many of the additional business and entrepreneurial competencies required for success. Moreover, this paper acknowledges the need to generate consensus on the requisite skill-set that farm tourism operators require, along with a need for a currently fragmented rural tourism literature to acknowledge the significance of rural entrepreneurship and the characteristics of successful farmers and farm tourism ventures.

Moderating role of entrepreneurial orientation on the relationship between entrepreneurial skills, environmental factors and entrepreneurial intention: A PLS approach

“…The result indicated that a positive relationship exists between entrepreneurial skill with the entrepreneurial intention of Nigerian students (ß=0.29; t =5.297; p = 0.00), thereby supporting H1. The finding of this study is consistent with previous studies (Fini et al, 2009;Liñán, 2008;Phelan & Sharpley, 2012;Pyysiainen et al, 2006). The result also revealed that a positive relationship exists between environmental factors with entrepreneurial intention of Nigerian students (ß= 0.84; t =1.556; p = 0.06).…”

“…By this, entrepreneurs are expected to have a balanced skills to successfully run their business as supported by (Wagner, 2003(Wagner, , 2006. Numerous studies such as (Fini, Grimaldi, Marzocchi, & Sobrero, 2009;Liñán, 2008;Phelan & Sharpley, 2012;Pyysiainen et al, 2006) have established a significant relationship between entrepreneurial skill and entrepreneurial intention. Thus, the present study hypothesized that: H1: Entrepreneurial skill will be positively related to entrepreneurial intention…”

Business University Student Entrepreneurial Competencies: Towards Readiness for Globalization

“…In the framework of entrepreneurship, competencies are specifically related to the creation, survival and/ or growth of a business [15]. Researches shows that entrepreneurial competencies are necessary for the development and survival of an organization [14,16]. Reference [17] in their evaluation of the impact of entrepreneurial characteristics on the performance of small scale manufacturing industries in Nigeria established that majority of the Personal Entrepreneurial Competency (PEC) of the respondents made negative contribution on the sales revenue, only demand for efficiency and product quality, information seeking; and systematic planning and monitoring had positive impact.…”

The Competencies and Challenges of Leading a Student Entrepreneurship Organisation in South Africa

“…These attributes include attitudes, values, beliefs, knowledge, skills, abilities, personality, wisdom, expertise (social, technical, and managerial), mind-set, and behavioural tendencies. Studies such as Onstenk (2003), Inyang and Enuoh (2009) and Phelan and Sharpley (2012) find that entrepreneurial competencies are necessary for the development and survival of an organisation.…”