On the occasion of today’s publication of the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) , the above-average entrepreneurial energy of students in Liechtenstein – when compared internationally – was demonstrated once again.
Entrepreneurship is an important factor for all modern economies. The development and promotion of entrepreneurial spirit is high up on the wish lists of economic policy agendas. But how entrepreneurial is Liechtenstein really, and how does it compare internationally?
An internationally coordinated research project, the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS), addressed these questions in 2011/2012 for the third time. As part of a global survey, the “entrepreneurial spirit” at universities and colleges was measured in 26 countries. A total of 93,265 students took part in the survey. The study, evaluated by the Institute for Entrepreneurship at the University of Liechtenstein, showed a top position for Liechtenstein, both among German-speaking countries and when compared internationally.
The Entrepreneurship Index was ascertained, this being the most important variable for determining the entrepreneurial spirit of students. With 13.3 index points, Liechtenstein is above the international average of 12.4 and therefore significantly outperforms all the German-speaking countries (Germany 10.5, Austria 10.6 and Switzerland 11.4). This confirms the results of the GUESSS studies from the years 2006 and 2008, where Liechtenstein already held a top position.
Building on this, the students were asked about their realistic career intentions, both directly after their studies and five years later. Directly after completing their degree, 81 per cent of students would prefer to be employed, 7 per cent want to start up their own company, 5 per cent want to enter the family business and 7 per cent intend to follow another career path. This picture changes dramatically five years after finishing the degree programme. The career goal of being an employee decreases significantly from 81 to 23 per cent. This development is balanced by two tendencies. Firstly, the intention of founding their own business increases from 7 to 36 per cent; secondly, the intention of entering the family business increases from 5 to 30 per cent. Therefore, the proportion of potential business founders five years after completing their studies has increased fivefold and the proportion of those intending to enter the family business has even increased sixfold.
Whether this large potential of business start-ups can be realized, depends, among other things, on the barriers to founding companies and the reference frameworks at the university. The subjectively perceived barriers to founding a company (for example financial risk or too much legislation) is, with a value of 3.6 points in Liechtenstein, significantly below the international average of 3.9 points. The reference frameworks comprise specific services offered by the universities and colleges and can strengthen or weaken the entrepreneurial intentions and activities of students. The universities were evaluated based on, for example, their lectures and seminars, networks and coaching as well as the financing of start-ups, both in terms of quality and quantity. Here too, Liechtenstein produces above-average results. All the services offered by the university were assessed by the students as very satisfactory or satisfactory.
As the question regarding career intentions showed, in Liechtenstein an above-average number of students want to enter the family business. This large degree of interest may be because a total of 35 per cent of all students have a parent owning at least one business. Here Liechtenstein lies 6 per cent higher than the international average and has the highest proportion of students from family businesses in all German-speaking countries. This provides the University of Liechtenstein with a future field of activity, in order to satisfy the specific needs of students coming from family businesses. The University of Liechtenstein has already taken the first steps. In the spring of 2012, a Centre of Competence for Family Businesses was set up. In addition, from the winter semester 2012, a new Major, Family Business, will be offered as part of the Master’s degree programme in Entrepreneurship.
There are several reasons for Liechtenstein’s top results. Particular attention must be drawn to the education provided by the University of Liechtenstein, which is not based on a general degree programme in Business Administration but instead has a clear entrepreneurial focus. At the University of Liechtenstein, entrepreneurship is promoted strategically and applied practically. Alongside training – for example in the development of business plans and active promotion of implementing these business ideas into real start-ups – the University of Liechtenstein and the Principality of Liechtenstein can count on an excellent infrastructure which is very supportive of starting up a new business. Another reason may be down to the entrepreneurial climate in the Alpine Rhine Valley. Entrepreneurship is being offered in a region where business ownership has a long tradition and where entrepreneurial initiatives are supported by economics and politics.
GUESSS Survey 2012 (PDF)