Chances are that many of today’s private sector colleges and universities began as entrepreneurial ventures and still hold to the precepts of entrepreneurship. From a training perspective, current trends in entrepreneurship teachings see the successful entrepreneur as one who not only has vision and strategic planning ability, but one who must also apply skills in performance management and teaming.  To move any entrepreneurial organization or institution forward it is crucial, when engaging in the strategic planning process, for leadership to not only understand and communicate goals, but to continuously link employee and organizational performance to those goals as the ongoing needs of the organization change.  And from an employee perspective, entrepreneurial success requires that we look at what must be in place to change a group of people connected to their managers to a performance-based team connected to the organization’s mission.

Do we hold to the entrepreneurial spirit within our institutions? What needs to be in place from an entrepreneurship perspective to sustain and grow successful institutions in a changing and competitive environment? First, our institutional missions and core values must be in place and reflect the emphasis on student success and positive compliance that drive our existence. Second, we must have in place the infrastructure and human capital necessary to meet the needs of our students and employers while enhancing institutional performance.