Entrepreneurship and Corporate Governance

Introduction



In order to succeed on the market place companies have to find new ways to attract customers, increase profit and compete on he market. Innovation is an urgent need for every company that indicates its position on the market and successful performance. In general, the process of innovation can be described as adoption of a new idea, but in practice, innovation is affected by a number of factors that determine the level of success and innovation change.

Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is enjoying a great deal of attention in many countries today. It can be described as the process of bringing together creative and innovative ideas and coupling these with management and organizational skills in order to combine people, money and resources to meet an identified need and thereby create wealth. According to Burns “Entrepreneurs use innovation to exploit or create change and opportunity for the purpose of making profit” (Burns 2001: 5). Burns explains that the process of innovation takes its roots in the process of change and can modify technology, materials, prices and demographics. The process may be undertaken by one person or a group. Inventors are innovative and creative but not all are able to use management and organiza¬tional skills to produce and market goods or services successfully. Creativity and management strengths do not usually reside in one person, so entrepreneurship is often found in groups which combine their strengths.

Background of the Companies

The companies under analysis, Proctor & Gambler and Philips, are the market leaders in their industries. They applied innovation to traditional business models creating a unique mixture of technological, material innovations and demographic factors. P&G is a global company which operates in 160 countries around the world with a global turnover of over $35 billion. Its main activity includes manufacturing of consumer,...