FACTORS INFLUENCING THE SUCCESS OF TECHNOPRENEURSHIP

Dr.M.Selladurai, Assistant Professor in Commerce,

Padmavani Arts & Science College for Women, Salem
(m.selladurai@gmail.com)

J.Priyadharshini, Assistant Professor in Commerce,

K.S.R. College of Arts & Science for Women, Tiruchengode
(priyadharshinimcs@gmail.com)

Abstract

Technopreneurship is a simple entrepreneurship in a technology intensive context. It

is a process of merging technology powers with entrepreneurial talents and skills.
Technopreneurship is one of the emergent concepts in7 the topical developments of business,
particularly in developing countries which helps to attract the latest technology in
entrepreneurship to achieve the sustainable development. There is a need for supporting
technology-based entrepreneurship to reduce the operational cost and increase the efficiency.
It is essential to evaluate the development of technopreneurs in a particular area will bring out
the clear frame about technopreneurship. With this aspect, the present research evaluates the
performance of technopreneurs those who are associated with software industries in
Tiruchirappalli district. Technopreneurs are skilled in applied creativity, succeed in response
to challenge, and look for unconventional solutions. They experience challenges, create
visions for solutions, build stories that explain their visions, and then act to be part of the
solution.

Introduction

Technology is one of the dominated factors in the present industrial establishment.

Application of technology has transformed into technology based business plays a key role in
the entrepreneurship. Technopreneurship, it is a simple entrepreneurship in a technology
intensive context. It is a process of merging technology powers with entrepreneurial talents
and skills. Technopreneurship is one of the emergent concepts in the topical developments of
business, particularly in developing countries which helps to attract the latest technology in
entrepreneurship to achieve the sustainable development. Creativity in entrepreneurship is the
pillar of economic growth of developing countries.

Technopreneur: In a simple way we can define that, “Technopreneurs are thinks like
an engineer and acts like an entrepreneur”. In our nation most of the people hearing the
word technopreneur as very first time (Paramasivan, 2016). But this is an oldest one when
compared with our neighbour nations. The United States and the United Kingdom has started
technopreneurship process obviously in the 20th century. The United States and the United
Kingdom has offered more opportunities to their technopreneurs from the very beginning.
The developing countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Iran etc., are offered an
academic degree course called technopreneurship to their students. But in India, it is a new
theme and it takes some time to reach the society. Ministry of India provides more
promotional campaigns to induce the entrepreneurs to become a technopreneur. With this
aspect, the present research gave an opportunity to evaluate the success of technopreneurs
those who are associated with software industries in Tiruchirappalli district.

Importance of Technopreneurship

Entrepreneurship is a way of thinking and acting that is opportunity obsessed, holistic

approach and leadership balanced for the purpose of wealth creation. Searches for change,
responds to it and exploit it as an opportunity. Innovation is the specific tool of entrepreneurs,
the means by which they exploits change as an opportunity for different business or service.
Technopreneurs are skilled in applied creativity, thrive in reply to the task, and look for
unconventional solutions. They experience challenges, create visions for solutions, build
stories that explain their visions, and act to be part of the solution. Technology based start-up
should be the alternate solution to the inclusive growth; hence Technopreneurship is needed
in an hour for the consistent growth of the economy of the country.

Progress of Technopreneurship

Nowadays new types of entrepreneurs are emerging due to the nature of specialized
skills and innovative thinking. Technopreneur is a person who destroys the existing economic
order by introducing, new products and services, by creating new forms of organizations and
by exploiting new raw materials. It is someone who perceives an opportunity and creates an
organization to pursue it. More opportunities and prospectus are associate with
technopreneurs in the recent origin. Technopreneurs can be defined only with the help of
their application of technology in the business. A person who sets up a business concerned
with computers or similar technology. Simply we can mean that those who are all ready to
incorporate the innovation and creativity in their business process with the help of technical
background is generally called as technopreneurs. It may lead the nation with a new breed to
train the entrepreneurial ventures in the technical world. Above all employee turnover is also
significantly high in the IT & ITeS. Hence, the present study carried out the critical factors
influencing the success of technopreneurs in Tiruchirappalli district.
Conceptual Background

Technopreneurship has been considered as a way of life. Unemployment among

graduates has become the global issues as well as in India. Hence, instead of looking for a
job, graduates should encourage to create their own employment and it leads to generate
more technopreneurs or entrepreneurs. Thus, higher educational institutions, as well as the
ministries and policy makers of India have taken dynamic initiatives to encourage students to
get involve in technopreneurship or entrepreneurship through different classes, seminars, and
activities. The technopreneurial intention is one of the key points to identify the students’
concentration in the field of technopreneurship. In this regard, very few research papers have
been carried out on factors to clarify the technopreneurial intention.

A literature review is an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited

scholars and researchers (Paramasivan, 2011). It provides valuable guidelines in formulating
the theoretical framework of research at the time of the investigation. The literature on the
subject of technopreneurship is an unexplored path of the study area. An attempt is made here
to touch a selected review of literature in technopreneurship, technopreneurship education, IT
& ITeS industry and software industry as a preface to the present study.

Nassar and Sori (2017) have reported that influence and shape innovation in
different societies is the prevailing culture. Most forms of individualistic cultures affect
innovation significantly and positively. This study has three key objectives, such as to
examine how culture influences innovation among technology startups in Malaysia, to
explore factors associated with technology innovation and to assess how innovation influence
financing for technology startups.

Paramasivan and Selladurai (2017) have highlighted the Electronics Corporation of

Tamil Nadu Limited has prepared to attract the widest possible range of business
opportunities and ready to provide more number of employment opportunities to the young
talents. However, to achieve this goal ELCOT has to continue its effort on inventing new
business ideas through new business models for the better improvement.

Selladurai (2016) has prompted the entrepreneurial activities through innovation and
technology. The researcher quotes that technopreneurship is a process of merging technology
prowess and entrepreneurial talent and skills. Technopreneurs is the person who destroys the
existing economic order by introducing, new products and services, by creating new forms of
organizations and by exploiting new raw materials.
 Selvarani and Venusamy (2015) have examined to explore the general elements in
technopreneurship and to investigate the innovation and creation among small and medium
enterprises. There are three relevant questions with respect to Indian SMEs were surveyed by
the researchers. First and foremost, it is important to know whether at all, Indian SMEs are
technologically innovative. Secondly, if yes, to what extent?

Thillairajan and Jain (2013) have reported that universities play an important role in
providing incubation support: 67 percent of incubators are based in universities. It displayed
virtually all the well-known technology institutions and many management institutions in
India have incubation centers and it indicates that supporting entrepreneurship has emerged
as an important activity of universities, in addition to the traditional activities of teaching,
research, and industry partnerships.

Manjunatha and Nagesha (2013) have explained an overview of the three actively
functioning STEPs located in different regions of the state of Karnataka and then dealt with
Mysore in detail. The study analyzed the existing incubation facilities, services and the
technologies transferred to the entrepreneurs by this STEP. It is found that despite Mysore
offering the several facilities and services, they are not completely utilized by the tenant
entrepreneurs.

Rohit Trivedi et al. (2011) has made an attempt to develop a reliable scale for
accessing technopreneurial motives to observe the various factors which motivate a
technopreneur to start a business can be identified and extracted. It spots with the help of
cluster analysis, discriminant analysis and cross-tabulation, an attempt was done to identify
groups of technopreneurs for better profiling.

Priyadharshini and Selladurai (2016) has explained the enormous activities which
are ongoing in research and development areas and the platforms for new technologies and
also resulting into the institutional background of innovating technologies. Government of
India have initiated and introduced number of entrepreneurial and technopreneurial events to
promote the business policy and induce the interest of the young generation to become an
employment providers.

Overview of Technopreneurship in India

Technopreneurship is an unseen concept that is placed in the core of many essential

subjects. Many minds of literature use the term ‘technology-based entrepreneurs’, ‘technical
entrepreneurs’, ‘high technology entrepreneurs’ and even ‘high tech new ventures’ to
describe the new business that combine entrepreneurial skills and technology.
Technopreneurship comprises of identifying modern technologies and even creation of
technological opportunities by a presentation of commercial products and services. The
technology-based entrepreneur is a process and formation of a new business that involves
technology and these ‘technopreneurs’ use technological innovations and translate such
technology into successful products or services.

Technopreneurship is the process of investing in a project which gathers and

activate expert members with different assets, which relates to advancement in scientific and
technological knowledge, in order to create and acquire value for a specific enterprise, the
social context in which the entrepreneur operates also plays an important role in nurturing
this concept, one of such ways are through attachment, where entrepreneurs are being
embedded within the confined structure in the area in which they operate. The government
should incorporate many promotional campaigns towards the success of technopreneurship
and should launch several initiatives to promote technopreneurship as a witness of economic
development.

Factors Influencing the Success of Technopreneurship

Technopreneur is an entrepreneur who is technical know-how, creative, innovative,

dynamic, dares to be different and take the unexplored path, and very passionate about their
work. Industrial development is the only way to achieve the socio-economic empowerment of
the people in the country which provides employment opportunities, income generation and
remove the regional imbalances. Hence, the government concentrates more on the
development of entrepreneurship. It becomes a vibrant part of the economy and transformed
into new dimensions like social entrepreneur, agropreneur and technopreneur. Everywhere
technology plays a dominant role not only in business process but also in social distribution
mechanism.

Technology has become more popular and powerful with the help of IT & ITeS
industries in the country. Therefore, IT based industries are the backbone of the technology
and innovations in business. Technopreneurship is not like other business, there is a need for
updating and automation of their process and acquire technology and innovation mindset
people as human resource. The cost involved in technology becomes a major problem in the
industries which makes a sustainability of the business. Most of the IT and IT enabled
industries were spending a huge amount of money to establish the appropriate technologies to
compete with other players in the market.

A technopreneur does not look upon his initiative as a means of bringing competitors
to repair, but as the master key for opening wider and brighter views for the benefit of the
entire community of technopreneurs. The domain of technology is nothing if not a tempting
view of an infinite range of possibilities and admits of the communal partnership of
technopreneurs with no danger for any of them of compromising their own unique solutions
and actions. Competition, not competition, will be the dominant mode of co-existence in the
emergent technopreneurial culture. Replacement of existing technology and services are the
major challenges which gains major production cost in these industries. Acquiring skilled
manpower in another challenge in these industries.

Analysis and Interpretation

Technopreneurs Educational Qualification Vs Factors Influencing the Success

H0 : There is no significant difference between the educational qualification and factors

influencing the success of technopreneurship.

Sum of Mean
Dimension Source df F Sig.
Squares Square
Between Groups 41.056 3 13.685
Personal
Within Groups 106.188 33 3.218 4.253 0.012*
Factors
Total 147.243 36
Between Groups 32.371 3 10.790
Intellectual
Within Groups 145.738 33 4.416 2.443 0.081
Factors
Total 178.108 36
Between Groups 147.069 3 49.023
External
Within Groups 279.688 33 8.475 5.784 0.003**
Factors
Total 426.757 36
**Significant at 1% level; *Significant at 5% level

Oneway ANOVA was applied to find the significant mean difference between the
educational qualifications and factors influencing the success of technopreneurship and the
result showed that there is a significant difference between the education (Graduate,
Postgraduate, Professional and Others) of technopreneurs towards personal factors (F-value =
4.253, p<0.05). Also, it is seen from the above table that there is no significant difference
between the educational qualification of technopreneurs and the intellectual factors (F-value
= 2.443, p>0.05) and there is a significant difference between education and the external
factors (F-value = 5.784, p<0.01).

Technopreneurs Experience Vs Factors Influencing the Success

H0 : There is no significant difference between the experience and factors influencing the
success of technopreneurship.
 Sum of Mean
Dimension Source df F Sig.
Squares Square
Between Groups 96.056 3 4.098
Personal
Within Groups 51.188 33 1.551 2.642 0.000**
Factors
Total 147.243 36
Between Groups 72.754 3 24.251
Intellectual
Within Groups 105.354 33 3.193 7.596 0.001**
Factors
Total 178.108 36
Between Groups 92.403 3 30.801
External
Within Groups 334.354 33 10.132 3.040 0.043*
Factors
Total 426.757 36
**Significant at 1% level; *Significant at 5% level

Oneway ANOVA was applied to find the significant mean difference between the
experience and factors influencing the success of technopreneurship and the result showed
that there is a significant difference between the experience (less than a year, one to five
years, six to ten years and more than ten years) of technopreneurs towards the personal
factors (F-value = 2.642, p<0.01). Also, it is seen from the table that there is a significant
difference between the experience of the technopreneurs and the intellectual factors (F-value
= 7.596, p<0.01) and the external factors which are influencing the success of the
technopreneurs (F-value = 3.040, p<0.05).

Training Attended Vs Factors Influencing the Success

H0 : There is no significant difference between training attended and factors influencing the
success of technopreneurship.

Sum of Mean
Dimension Source df F Sig.
Squares Square
Between Groups 59.100 3 19.700
Personal
Within Groups 88.143 33 2.671 7.376 0.001**
Factors
Total 147.243 36
Between Groups 5.324 3 1.774
Intellectual
Within Groups 46.357 33 1.405 1.263 0.000**
Factors
Total 178.108 36
Between Groups 74.900 3 24.967
External
Within Groups 351.857 33 10.662 2.342 0.091
Factors
Total 426.757 36
**Significant at 1% level

Oneway ANOVA was applied to find the significant mean difference between the
training obtained and factors influencing the success of technopreneurship and the result
showed that there is a significant difference between the training obtained (Entrepreneurship
Development Programme, Incubation Centres, Skill Development Centres, PMEGP Training
and training never obtained) towards personal factors (F-value = 7.376, p<0.01) and
intellectual factors (F-value = 1.263, p<0.01). Also, it is seen from the above table that there
is no significant difference between training obtained and the external factors (F-value =
2.342, p>0.05).

Technopreneurs Year of Existence Vs Factors Influencing the Success

H0 : There is no significant difference between the years of existence and the factors
influencing the success of technopreneurship.

Sum of Mean
Dimension Source df F Sig.
Squares Square
Between Groups 43.007 3 14.336
Personal
Within Groups 104.236 33 3.159 4.538 0.009**
Factors
Total 147.243 36
Between Groups 7.572 3 2.524
Intellectual
Within Groups 170.536 33 5.168 0.488 0.693
Factors
Total 178.108 36
Between Groups 30.465 3 10.155
External
Within Groups 181.636 33 5.504 1.845 0.000**
Factors
Total 426.757 36
**Significant at 1% level

Oneway ANOVA was applied to find the significant mean difference between the
years of existence and the factors influencing the success of technopreneurship and the result
showed that there is a significant difference between the existence (less than two years, two
to four years, five to ten years and more than ten years) of enterprise towards personal factors
(F-value = 4.538, p<0.01) and external factors (F-value = 1.845, p<0.01). Also, it is seen
from the above table that there is no significant difference between the years of existence and
the intellectual factors which are influencing the success of the technopreneurs (F-value =
0.488, p>0.05).

Location of the Enterprise Vs Factors Influencing the Success

H0 : There is no significant difference between the location of enterprise and factors

influencing the success of technopreneurship.

Sum of Mean
Dimension Source df F Sig.
Squares Square
Between Groups 12.914 1 12.914
Personal 3.365 0.075
Within Groups 134.329 35 3.838
Factors
Total 147.243 36
Between Groups 1.394 1 1.394
Intellectual 0.276 0.603
Within Groups 176.714 35 5.049
Factors
Total 178.108 36
External Between Groups 7.761 1 7.761 0.648 0.426
 Within Groups 418.996 35 11.971
Factors
Total 426.757 36

Oneway ANOVA was applied to find the significant mean difference between the
location of enterprise and factors influencing the success of technopreneurship and the result
showed that there is no significant difference between the location (Urban and Semi-Urban)
of the enterprise towards personal factors (F-value = 3.365, p>0.05). Also, it is seen from the
table that there is no significant difference between the location of the enterprise and the
intellectual factors (F-value = 0.276, p>0.05) of the technopreneurs and also the external
factors which are influencing the success of technopreneurs (F-value = 0.648, p>0.05).

CONCLUSION

Technopreneurship in Tiruchirappalli district is one of a unique study which offers

information about demographic and economic status, business performance, skills required to
be a technopreneur, reasons for technopreneurship, factors influencing the success of
technopreneurship and problems faced by the technopreneurs. With this view, the study
concludes that Tiruchirappalli district having more technology based educated youths, but the
number of technopreneurs is very less due to lack of awareness. Therefore, educated youths
should motivate and encourage them to involve in technopreneurship activities. Performance
of technopreneurs in the study area is significantly good, but they are facing a lot of problems
such as financial, operational and marketing problems. If the governing authority properly
monitors and regulate the technopreneurs, they will be the major contributors in regional as
well as national economic growth.

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