Global Entrepreneurship Monitor: Spain GEM Report 2015
The Rafael del Pino Foundation, in collaboration with the Santander International Centre for Entrepreneurship (CISE-UCEIF), the Spanish Network of Regional GEM Teams, and Banco Santander -through the Santander Universities Global Division- have launched a new project to promote entrepreneurship in Spain.
The Rafael del Pino Foundation, in collaboration with the Santander International Centre for Entrepreneurship (CISE-UCEIF), the Spanish Network of Regional GEM Teams, and Banco Santander -through the Santander Universities Global Division-, organised the presentation of the report "Global Entrepreneurship Monitor: GEM Spain 2015 Report" on 12 May 2016.
GEM is an annual observatory, since 1999, whose main mission is to provide data on the measurement of the rate of entrepreneurial activity in the participating nations, regions and cities, as well as a broad description of its characteristics, its relationship with economic development and a diagnosis of the state of the main institutional conditions or environment for entrepreneurship.
This report provides institutions and actors involved in entrepreneurship with quality information and indicators to foster entrepreneurship. The time series and comparisons across economies and cultural backgrounds are also of great value for understanding and learning about the mechanisms that promote entrepreneurship.
GEM Spain, within the framework of this global project, is formed by the Spanish Network of Regional GEM Teams, made up of researchers from 19 universities. It has the support of 90 institutions.
Summary:
On 12 May, the Rafael del Pino Foundation organised the presentation of the report "Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. Spain 2015". The event began with the words of Pedro Alonso, director of Santander Universities Spain, who referred to some of the results of the report, such as the fact that there are already more university students who prefer entrepreneurship to working for a company or for the Administration. He also pointed out that the perception of failure is improving. This was followed by Federico Gutiérrez-Solana, director of the Santander International Centre for Entrepreneurship, who pointed out that society is more aware that innovation and entrepreneurship are essential for a sustainable, productive and growing economy. He added that it is necessary to manage knowledge, thinking that it is the raw material of the future. For her part, Ana Fernández-Laviada, executive director of GEM Spain, explained that the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor is a worldwide project in which countries from five continents participate and in which Spain already has eighteen research teams. What GEM does is to study the entrepreneurial phenomenon (the values, perceptions and aspirations of entrepreneurs) and the environment in which it develops (obstacles, support and recommendations). The final part of the event was taken up by a round table to analyse the report. Iñaki Peña, technical director of GEM Spain, explained that, according to the report, the main obstacle to entrepreneurship for half of the people is the fear of failure, especially if there is no second chance. The same percentage of people think that they are qualified to become entrepreneurs, while three out of seven people say that they know people with whom they can share this type of project. Peña also pointed out that, in eight years, the percentage of people considering entrepreneurship in the next three years has risen from 6% to 12% and that half of them are encouraged to try it. He also said that there has been an increase in the number of people who decide to become entrepreneurs out of necessity, that the presence of women is gradually increasing and that there is a greater presence of university students among entrepreneurs. Finally, he indicated that half of the companies that are created have an investment of less than 17,000 euros, that in 70% of the cases the money comes out of the entrepreneur's pocket and that only 30% think about innovating and 20% about exporting. This is a consequence of the environment. Conchi Gallego, director of the Social Enterprise Network, pointed out that in social entrepreneurship fear is a little less, that the way to learn entrepreneurship is through entrepreneurship and that there is a need for a quarry based on education in entrepreneurship. He also said that entrepreneurship is an attitude of life and that an enterprising society cares about the people around it, solving social challenges or changing the environment around them. Finally, he denounced the lack of legal formulas for social entrepreneurship. In this sense, he considered it necessary to have tools and tax incentives for investment and to move towards hybrid financing models. For Aurelio Jiménez, Director of Development at the Incyde Foundation, the attitude towards failure refers to the environment, due to the debts that may be accumulated by the person who fails. He also pointed out that the self-employed are also entrepreneurs, but with different support to companies. He also warned that there is a mismatch between the qualifications and needs of the most visible entrepreneurial projects, i.e. technological projects, which are more difficult to set up than a basic company. Finally, Miguel Ángel Martínez Vidal, Director of the Department of Methodology and Development of Statistical Production, said that 25% of entrepreneurial projects do not reach the first year of life, 40% do not go beyond the second year and less than half are still active at the end of the fourth year. He also said that just under 300,000 businesses a year are being created and just over 300,000 are being destroyed and that they are mostly created in the service sector. And that young innovative companies are much more innovative than established ones.
The Rafael del Pino Foundation is not responsible for the comments, opinions or statements made by the people who participate in its activities and which are expressed as a result of their inalienable right to freedom of expression and under their sole responsibility. The contents included in the summary of this conference, written for the Rafael del Pino Foundation by Professor Emilio González, are the result of the debates held at the meeting held for this purpose at the Foundation and are the responsibility of the authors.
The Rafael del Pino Foundation is not responsible for any comments, opinions or statements made by third parties. In this respect, the FRP is not obliged to monitor the views expressed by such third parties who participate in its activities and which are expressed as a result of their inalienable right to freedom of expression and under their own responsibility. The contents included in the summary of this conference, written for the Rafael del Pino Foundation by Professor Emilio J. González, are the result of the discussions that took place during the conference organised for this purpose at the Foundation and are the sole responsibility of its authors.
