Ingrid Chadwick, PhD Candidate in Organizational Behaviour, Queen's School of Business

1. Ingrid Chadwick & Jana Raver
Queen’s School of Business

2.  Research question:
◦ What individual and environmental factors drive
entrepreneurial success during the business start-
up phase?
 Research setting:
◦ Ontario Self-Employment Benefits Program (OSEB)

3.  Government-supported self-employment
program
◦ Intensive business skills development training
◦ Business advisor counseling services
◦ Income support for up to 42 weeks
 Eligible participants
◦ Unemployed
◦ Well-defined business idea

4.  Partnership with 10 different OSEB providers
◦ 7 CFDCs
◦ 3 private/public/charitable organizations
 200 OSEB participants were invited to
respond to 3 surveys
◦ Survey 1: Beginning of program
◦ Survey 2: End of business development training
◦ Survey 3: Approximately 6 months later

5. • Gender: 47% female, 53% male
• Average age: 43 years (span 21-60 years old)
• Average work experience: 18 years
• Average education: 66% with at least a college
degree or higher

6.  Factors:
◦ Individual characteristics
◦ Environmental influences
 Measures of success:
◦ Continuous improvement behaviours
◦ Professional growth

7. Gender
Continuous
Improvement
Age
Work
Experience

8. Gender
Age
Professional
Growth
Work
Experience

9. Proactive
Personality
Continuous
Positive Improvement
Affect
Core Self
Evaluation
Learning
Orientation
Psychological
Capital

10. Proactive
Personality
Positive
Affect
Core Self
Evaluation
Learning
Professional
Orientation
Growth
Psychological
Capital

11. Social
Support Continuous
Improvement
Resource
Constraints

12. Social
Support
Professional
Growth
Resource
Constraints

13. Individual
Continuous
Characteristics
Improvement
Challenge
Mindset
Environmental Professional
Influences Growth

14.  Let’shear it from the
entrepreneurs…

15.  Time
◦ “There are not enough hours in the day for what I want to
do”
 Money
◦ “The bank doesn’t give brand new businesses money. They
want to see sales. But I need money to make my product...”
 Networking
◦ ”I need to get my business open and my name out there.”
◦ “I am unknown.”

16.  Networks
 “Support from a coach and other entrepreneurs has been
pivotal to building self confidence to move forward with
business initiatives.”
 Personal drive and motivation
 “Success equals working hard, seven days a week.”
 Support from friends and family
 “My children tell me almost every day that they are proud
of me and think I’m the coolest ”

17.  Advice for new entrepreneurs? for OSEB?
 Accounting and finances
 Networking
 Resilience and motivation
 Major life changes facing participants
 Relationship changes
 Pregnancies, young babies
 Health issues

18.  THANK YOU!
 ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?