The UNE Business School is continuing to pave the way for regional entrepreneurs, with three of its academics publishing a book highlighting the challenges faced by business-people living outside metropolitan areas, as well as what drives them, and how they define success.
Associate Professor Sujana Adapa, Emeritus Professor Alison Sheridan and Associate Professor Subba Reddy Yarram have spent the past three years penning Entrepreneurship in Regional Communities, launched on Friday, 18 February at the UNE Smart Region Incubator's Armidale headquarters, NOVA.
We had a chat to authors of the book about the inspiration behind the book and why it’s important to tell the stories of entrepreneurs in regional Australia.
What is the book all about?
The title says it all – Entrepreneurship in Regional Communities. This is an area that we believe has been largely neglected in the scholarly academic and practice literature. We have been able to listen to amazing stories and lived experiences shared by founders and business owner-managers in the bioregions of Armidale and Tamworth, NSW. We place their stories in the wider literature to provide insights into the challenges they face, what drives them and how they define success.
Who is the book aimed at? Do I have to be an academic to read this book?
Not at all! Our book will be relevant to all entrepreneurs, including start-up founders and business owner-managers across different business life cycle stages. It will also be of interest to academics who are interested in entrepreneurship research and teaching, as well as coursework and research students, universities, small business associations, incubators, accelerators, regional development corporations, local councils, government organisations and policy makers.
What was the writing process like?
It was an arduous but enjoyable process as we were writing about what we are all passionate about. We met in the SMART Region Incubator (SRI) Circle Room located in the EBL building almost every Friday mid-late 2019 to conceptualise our thoughts and craft these to a readable format in the form of our book. We certainly consumed lots of butcher's paper, rough notes and multiple cups of coffee. Our morning teas were the most enjoyable as that’s when we had the most productive conversations combining work with fun.
Why is it important to nurture entrepreneurs in regional areas?
We challenge the ‘one size fits all’ approach to entrepreneurship and the assumption that ‘regional areas lack innovation’. There are a multitude of resources that are available and that can be easily accessed by the metropolitan entrepreneurs. The context relevance for the surviving and thriving of entrepreneurship in the regional areas is often neglected. Despite of all of these hurdles, regional entrepreneurs showcased resilience through their embeddedness, networking, empowerment and communitarian values that allowed them to progress innovations in their new and/or existing business ventures. If nurtured and nudged, regional entrepreneurs undoubtedly do many wonders that helps to contribute to regional prosperity and employment creation.
What is the biggest piece of wisdom you can give to entrepreneurs in regional areas?
While the entrepreneurs we interviewed faced many challenges, our work shows that they are embedded, networked, empowering of their staff and committed to their communities. They are motivated by goals beyond economic gain. There is a strong relational dimension to what they do as they value how they contribute positively to their community and how they benefit from their community’s support. Exit strategies and succession planning is something that needs further improvement.
If you would like to come along and celebrate this wonderful achievement and support our UNE Business School community, make sure you come along to the official launch this Friday 18 February.
When: Friday 18 February, 4 – 6pm.
Where: NOVA, Faulkner Street, Armidale.
