Beyond the Harvest

A majority of highly successful entrepreneurs seem to accept a respon­sibility to renew and perpetuate the system that has treated them so well. Somehow they are keenly aware that our unique American system of opportunity and mobility depends in large part upon a self-renewal process. There are many ways in which this happens. Some of the fol­lowing data often surprise people:

• College endowments. Entrepreneurs are generous and frequent contributors to college endowments, scholarship funds, and the like. At Babson College, for example, one study showed that as many as eight times as many entrepreneurs, compared to all other graduates, made large gifts to their colleges.13 One cannot walk on any college or university campus in America and not help but notice the huge number of dorms, classroom buildings, arts centers, and athletic facilities named for the contributor. In virtually every case these con­tributors are entrepreneurs whose highly successful companies enabled them to make major gifts of stock to their alma mater, like Arthur M. Blank (Home Depot), Daniel Gerber (Gerber baby food), and Franklin W. Olin (engineer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist). At MIT over half of the endowment comprised gifts of founders' stock. Today that figure is probably even higher.

Community activities. Entrepreneurs who have harvested their ventures very often reinvest their leadership skills and money in such community activities as symphony orchestras, museums, and local colleges and universities. These entrepreneurs lead fund-raising cam­paigns, serve on boards of directors, and devote many hours to other voluntary work - particularly in the United States. British entrepre­neur Duncan Collins is astonished by the level and intensity of phi­lanthropy in the United States: "In many parts of the world entrepreneurs might have a community interest to which they con­tribute. In America successful people devote large chunks of their time to serving on the boards and contributing to not-for-profit organizations."

Investing in new companies. Postharvest entrepreneurs also rein­vest their efforts and resources in the next generation of entrepre­neurs and their opportunities. Successful entrepreneurs seem to know that perpetuating the system is far too important, and too frag­ile, to be left to anyone else. They have learned the hard lessons.

The innovation, the job creation, and the economic renewal and vibrancy are all results of the entrepreneurial process. Government does not cause this complicated and little-understood process, though it facil­itates and/or impedes it. It is not caused by the stroke of a legislative pen, though it can be ended by one. Rather, entrepreneurs, investors, and hard-working people in pursuit of opportunities create it.

Fortunately, entrepreneurs seem to accept a disproportionate share of the responsibility to make sure the process is renewed. And, judging by the new wave of entrepreneurship in the United States, both the marketplace and society once again are prepared to allocate the rewards to entrepreneurs that are commensurate with their acceptance of responsibility and delivery of results.

Conclusion

Entrepreneurs thrive on the challenges and satisfactions of the game: it is a journey, not a destination. First and foremost, successful entrepre­neurs strive to build a great company; wealth follows that process. It is clear that, as Ray Kroc stated, "Your company is green and growing or ripe and rotting." A growing company will have many more harvest options than a stagnant one. Indeed, the company that does not grow might very well find itself forced into a sale during a crisis.

Harvest options mean more than simply selling the company, and these options are an important part of the entrepreneur's know-how. Entrepreneurs understand that to perpetuate the system for future gen­erations, they must give back to their communities and invest time and capital in the next e-generarion.

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