Understanding Entrepreneurship - The ACRO Model

Entrepreneurship is not something special that a few people are born with. Entrepreneurship is a way of thinking that can be nurtured.

The ACRO model was introduced to focus on the attitudes, skills and behaviours needed to enable young people to meet the needs of business in the 21st century.

Initial research conducted by the Welsh Government identified the characteristics commonly displayed by entrepreneurs. This considered the everyday business tasks and underlying skills and attitudes of the entrepreneur.

The model breaks the characteristics down into four key dimensions and is summed up by the acronym ACRO – this covers all the important aspects of entrepreneurial behaviour:

Attitude

If you want to succeed at anything in life, having the right attitude is vital. This dimension is about understanding yourself, your motivations and how to achieve your goals.

  • Self knowledge, belief and confidence
  • Motivation
  • Aspiration
  • Determination
  • Competitiveness

Creativity

You don’t need to be a genius to be creative. It is about the ability to generate fresh ideas, solve problems and spot new opportunities

  • Problem solving
  • Lateral thinking / ideas generation
  • Spotting and creating opportunities
  • Innovation

Relationships

It’s all about people, the ability to communicate effectively, expressing your own views and ideas, appreciating others’ viewpoint and working co-operatively

  • Working with others
  • Managing difficult situations
  • Negotiation, persuasion and influence
  • Presentation
  • Communication

Organisation

Making informed decisions and fulfilling your objectives by planning and managing situations, resources and risk

  • Planning
  • Managing resources
  • Decision making
  • Research and understanding the environment
  • Managing risk
  • Vision and goal setting

They highlight the skills and attitudes needed by young people to succeed, whilst Wales’ entrepreneurs demonstrate how these are applied in their everyday lives.

These entrepreneurial skills  are relevant for all career choices as its about developing a positive and proactive approach to whatever you do in life, whether it is setting up a business, working for someone else or doing something in the community.

It is about having the confidence to come up with ideas, the initiative and drive to carry them through. It enables young people to be positive, proactive and successful in their approach to life and work.