Scotland CAN DO: becoming a world-leading entrepreneurial and innovative nation

What are Entrepreneurship and Innovation?

"innovation and technological change of a nation came from the entrepreneurs, or wild spirits."

Joseph Schumpeter, 1939

It is important to define what we mean by entrepreneurship and innovation.

• Entrepreneurship is a mindset seeking new opportunities which can be turned into sustained business growth. Entrepreneurs are those who seek to generate value through the creation or expansion of economic activity by identifying and exploiting new products, processes or markets.
• Innovation is the process by which ideas can be turned into new or significantly improved products, services or business processes. While products and services vary widely, the innovation process requires creativity and connectivity between customers, suppliers, financiers and other partners.

To succeed businesses need both these elements: entrepreneurs who can identify real market opportunities and the innovative skills to translate a good idea into a marketable product.

Government's role is to provide the supportive environment in which such businesses can succeed and accelerate growth in our economy.

All business development and business start-up is important to our economy. The focus of this entrepreneurship and innovation framework, however, is on those businesses and business ideas which have the greatest potential for growth, internationalisation and economic benefit.