The Impact of Business Acumen and Startup Skills on Entrepreneurial Development

Lifuo Makhele
MBA Student, WITS Business School, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. E-mail: lifuom@gmail.com

Brian Barnard
Researcher, WITS Business School, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; and is the corresponding author. E-mail: barnard.b@polka.co.za

A business' performance is influenced by multiple variables such as the entrepreneur's characteristics, behavior and other environmental influences. However, the literature allocates minimal focus on the basics of entrepreneurship such as business acumen and startup skills. The present paper examines the impact of business acumen and startup skills on entrepreneurial development and success by exploring how much of business acumen is required to affect success and how entrepreneurs can develop business acumen. Furthermore, the paper explores the factors that influence startup skills and how entrepreneurs can develop startup skills. Entrepreneurs from various industries with more than two years of entrepreneurial experience were studied. A qualitative research approach was utilized for this study. Open-ended questions were constructed and interviews were carried out with experienced entrepreneurs. Although business acumen is perceived as a basic skill, this study discovered that entrepreneurs face challenges during the startup phase that are attributed to lack of or poor business acumen. Poor market intelligence, financial management and business administration leading to less or no profit generation are some of the challenges entrepreneurs face. This study further identified that entrepreneurs need a sufficient level of business acumen for their businesses to be successful, and that it may take up to a period of five years for one to acquire adequate levels of business acumen. It was also identified that there are numerous learning channels for acquiring the skill such as reading, formal education and mentorship.

Introduction
Entrepreneurship is vital for economic growth and social development of any country. The process of entrepreneurship leads to job creation which in turn has a direct positive effect on the economy. Furthermore, entrepreneurship is necessary for any emerging market to move forward and to integrate into the global economy. The growth engine for economies worldwide is entrepreneurship (Le Roux and Steyn, 2013). The challenge faced by governments and schools has been to encourage entrepreneurship among the general population. There are not enough successful growing businesses in South Africa and not nearly enough successful entrepreneurs for the sustained economic development needed by the country (Le Roux and Steyn, 2013).

Schumpeter (1934) established entrepreneurship as the act of doing new things that are already being done in a new way, e.g., introduction of new goods, new method of production and opening of new markets. Kirzner (1973) defines entrepreneurship as the ability to notice new opportunities that tend to correct the market and restore stability. Rumelt (1987) depicts entrepreneurship as the creation of new business that has originality without duplication of existing ideas. Gartner (1985) argues that entrepreneurship is simply the creation of organizations, that is, the process by which new organizations are brought into existence.

Boshoff and Van Wyk (2001) argue that entrepreneurship has proven to be an attractive career path to South African women, especially who are faced with the demands of family and career responsibilities. South Africa has faced a high unemployment rate in the past that already has a grave impact on social and political stability, economic growth and international market competitiveness.

Phaladi and Thwala (2008) allude to Maas and Herrington's (2006) findings that the primary causes for the discontinuance of new businesses in South Africa are financial reasons, personal reasons, other reasons, too much competition, lack of customers, found another job and retirement. Fatoki (2014) refers to Mbonyane's (2006) literature which observed that the most common causes of business failure in South Africa were lack of knowledge with regard to legal matters, lack of funding and a general lack of business acumen. It can therefore be deduced that some of the factors influencing entrepreneurial development in South Africa are, lack of startup skills and business acumen, networks and culture, financing of new startups, and limited access to domestic and international markets by new entrepreneurs. Generally, people or aspirant entrepreneurs tend to think they have the skills to start a business, however the rate of small businesses' failure to thrive, prove differently.

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) showed the prevalence of nascent entrepreneurial activity, new business and established business in South Africa to have been at the rate of 3.6% in 2009, which was below the GEM average of 5.9% (Herrington et al., 2010). The Total early-stage Entrepreneurial Activity (TEA) index has been principal measure of entrepreneurial activity in participating countries. South Africa ranked 35th out of 54 countries in the GEM TEA base which was below the 11.7% average of all participating countries (Herrington et al., 2010).

The purpose of the present study is to explore the relevant link between entrepreneurial development and business acumen and business startup skills. This study is based on the premise that business acumen and startup skills impact business success and survival.

Brixy and Hessels (2010) assert that entrepreneurship starts with nascent entrepreneurs. Nascent entrepreneurs are individuals that are actively trying to set up a new business they will personally own and manage. Not all people who are actively involved in starting up a business actually end up by starting the firm. Thus, the startup attempt is not always successful.

The understanding of why startups fail and succeed is important to the stability and health of the economy (Gaskill et al., 1993). It is further acknowledged that a firm's performance outcome is a function of many variables, such as the owner's characteristics, behavior and environmental influences.

The objective of this research is to bring a better understanding of how business acumen and startup skills impact the entrepreneurial process and success. Human capital attributes such as education, knowledge and skills have mostly been argued to be a critical resource for entrepreneurial success (Unger et al., 2011). Past research has linked management skills and experience as the most frequently used selection criteria for venture capitalists, thereby being linked to entrepreneurial success.

Financial capital has also been seen as one of the most visible and valuable resources for entrepreneurial success (Cooper et al., 1994). It is argued to be a resource that can create a defense against random shocks and permit the pursuit of more capital-intensive strategies.

However, minimal emphasis is allocated on the fundamental skills of entrepreneurship such as business acumen and startup skills. This study therefore attempts to educate and bring awareness to aspirant entrepreneurs, nascent entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and early stage entrepreneurs on the impact that business acumen and startup skills may have on entrepreneurial success.

The delimitations of the study are:

• The extent of the impact of business acumen on entrepreneurial success cannot be measured through this study.
• The extent of the impact of startup skills on entrepreneurial success cannot be measured through this study.
• The entrepreneurial participants employed in this study operate in various industries, i.e., sampling cannot be done according to industry type.

The assumptions of this study are:

• Business acumen impacts entrepreneurship success.
• Startup skills impacts entrepreneurship success.

Literature Review
Business Acumen
Business acumen is described as the ability to make profitable business decisions (Gleghorn, 2015). It is also described as the ability to make quick and accurate judgments and decisions. Through insightfulness (accurate judgments and decisions) a person with business acumen exercises the intellectual ability to penetrate deeply into ideas. This individual radiates astuteness and his/her actions are characterized by intellectual depth, penetrating knowledge and keen insight. Gleghorn (2015) showed that business acumen affords an individual with skill to handle business client relationships, business processes, competition for the market, efficiency and productivity.

Mcgregor (2011) emphasized the definition of business acumen as the art or process of linking the insightful assessment of the external business finances with the actual execution of a business management strategy to attain a desired outcome. This could translate to the notion that a person or entrepreneur with business acumen has the ability to scan and asses the external environment and therefore would make proper decisions in execution of their day-to-day business management. Business acumen in this context is therefore implied as a tool to propel entrepreneurial development and or business success.

Veliyath et al. (2012), however, saw business acumen as the ability to acquire and leverage human, financial, informational, physical, and technological resources to accomplish the organization's strategic mission. It includes an understanding of how strategies, decisions, and actions interact to impact the overall performance of the organization. It also involves the ability to manage people, execute strategy, generate revenues, maximize assets, and acquire capital to successfully run a business. What this translates to is that in order for entrepreneurs to be business acumen cognizant, there needs to be a form of formal education or training afforded to them. Veliyath et al. further claimed that business acumen is a critical skill for present managers to possess, and saw a general gap or need for the skill to be developed globally as a basic competency for leadership. Prince (2008) reiterated similar views about business acumen as a developmental tool for leadership. He further showed that although many corporations offer developmental tools/education such as financial literacy and business simulations, little focus if any, is allocated to business acumen. He showed that although business simulations have some practical value, they too are flawed as the simulations are set up in a controlled environment and usually the participants are aware that they are being observed. Raffo et al. (2000) however, emphasized that entrepreneurship learning in cultural industries appear more effective when aspirant entrepreneurs are doing or practicing, and reflecting on doing business within their sectoral contexts. They further stated that classic undergraduate and postgraduate business programs do little to enhance real business acumen and real business skills. Entrepreneurship learning is not only about acquiring technical, creative and business skills, but also about the process of developing appropriate social and cultural capital that comes with practice.

Le Roux and Stevn (2013) showed that simulation can be used to train entrepreneurs, however the success lies in the training mechanism which is mostly experiential learning. Furthermore, entrepreneurs often learn in an experimental manner owing to the nature of their work environments. It was therefore concluded that simulation, experiential learning and critical reflection within experiential learning collectively create a formidable training and teaching tool that would help learners to develop the knowledge and experience integral to business creation. Kaplan (2006) implied that business acumen is the second critical skill after leadership. He defined business acumen as the ability to produce a quality product and generate profits, which will require one's ability to manage people, execute strategy, generate revenues, maximize assets, acquire capital and successfully complete other tasks inherent to running a business. It can therefore be deduced that business acumen, as Kaplan (2006) reported, is a set of skills that an entrepreneur acquires externally for their own development which will translate to the success of the business. Overall, it can be said that business acumen will enable entrepreneurs to construct the relevant business model for their startup businesses; they would be able to leverage or weigh the businesses core competencies in order to propel business growth and profitability (Herrington et al., 2010).

Stern and Walters (2005) presented business acumen as understanding the organization's business model and financial goals, utilizing economic, financial, and organizational data to build and document the business case for investing in workplace learning and performance solutions, and using business terminology when communicating with others. To be business acumen cognizant, one has to be an expert in the field or area of their business operations. Stern and Walters further elaborated an entrepreneur as an individual who understands the business/has business acumen, is one that fully understands the organization's business model and the company's competitive position in the market. This individual would understand and know how the business influences its core competencies for growth and profitability. Moreover, they would understand the financial goals of the business and would be able to interpret financial data related to business success or failures measures.

Business Startup Skills
Reynolds and Miller (1992) illustrated that there are two factors following a business startup; the entrance of an economic factor and birth of a biological organism. Reynolds and Miller further showed that the classic model of the economy treats business entities or startups and actors or players in the economic greed, as participants that will succeed to enter or exit the market. The biological analogy organism is likened to gestation of an organizational life cycle. They pointed this cycle as starting from initiation and completed in a time when a new business is created.

Gartner (1985) noted the variation and complexity in new venture creation, differences among entrepreneurs and their ventures are much greater than might be expected. He further clarified that even though a new venture could be an organizational entity, that new venture will not be instantaneously formed, but will evolve over time. He described the creation of a new venture across four dimensions: (1) Individual - which normally translates to the person involved in starting a new organization; (2) The organization - this means the kind of firm that is being started; (3) The environment - this translates to the situation surrounding and influencing the new organization; and (4) New venture process - the actions undertaken by the individual to start the venture. Individuals with expertise are a key element of the new venture. Gartner further alluded to that that a new venture or a new business is seen within the context of its environment, it is forced to seek out the resources and it competes in the market place.

Carter et al. (1996) listed four dimensions that should be accounted for when studying new ventures: the individuals involved in the creation of the new venture, the activities assumed by those individuals during the new venture process, the organizational structure and strategy of the new venture, and the environmental context of the new venture. The new business creation process can also be looked at by how a business idea and or strategy emerges over time, when and how different functional competencies are created to develop and market the first proprietary product, when and how these functional competencies are redeployed to develop subsequent new products in a family of products believed to result in a sustainable business, and how these business development efforts both influence and are constrained by organization and industry contexts. Carter et al. further noted and described nascent entrepreneurs as individuals who were able to start a business as more aggressive in making their businesses a reality. These individuals undertook activities that made their businesses tangible to others; they also looked for facilities and equipment, sought and got financial support and devoted full time to the business. Nascent entrepreneurs show a greater sense of intent; they undertake more activities than those individuals who did not start a business. The financing of new business startups has great implications for any economy, subject to that new business' ability to contribute in employment growth, competition, innovation and export potential (Cassar, 2004). Davidsson (2006) noted that startup is not one decision or certain behavior, but indeed a process. He described business startup as an array of actions that are spread out over time. There is a distinction noted between externally and internally stimulated nascent entrepreneurs. Externally stimulated entrepreneurs are those that start with a wish to strike out on their own, followed by search, screening and selection of business ideas or opportunities, whereas internally stimulated entrepreneurs start with identification of as personal need, they then seek to find fulfillment of that need and thereafter they realize that the problem is general and the solution has commercial potential.

Determinants of Startup Survival
Baptista and Karaoz (2006) reported on short-term survival of startups, and considered three categories of factors: industry-level determinants, firm-level determinants, and entrepreneur-level determinants. They then deduced the industry level determinants of survival related to the current efficiency of the industry and further argued that entrepreneurs may not always be able to effectively compete with incumbent organizations in the industry.

Firm-level determinants of survival relate to firm-specific assets and the competencies of the firm, while entrepreneur-level determinants relate to human capital, efficiency and productivity of the entrepreneur.

Market selection theories suggested that firms are uncertain about their competencies prior to entry in the market, therefore, the firms whose capabilities are not up to the demand of the market exit soon after starting up as it may take some time for firms to discover their capabilities and competencies (Baptista and Karaoz, 2006).

They further noted that organizational ecologists argued that firms need time to set up, to make organization-specific investments, to build up trust within the organization, and to develop systems and routines that are reliable and accountable. They also argued that it takes some years to develop specific knowledge, trust and appropriate routines. Davidsson et al. (2011) noted that certain firms are more intricate and ambitious businesses to set up and that the startup process takes longer. Certain startups give in to the process owing to the cost and intricacy of getting such firms going. Low entry barrier, high price competitiveness industries may be difficult to enter.

Baptista et al. (2014) further argued that although there are two characteristics that drive market entry decision?opportunity costs and availability of resources and capabilities?the success of new business startups or organizations is basically shaped by the prior experiences of their founders.

On the contrary, Hyytinen et al. (2015) suggested that there is a negative association between innovation and a startup's survival, his findings pointed out that the probability of startups engaged in innovation is approximately 6-7% points lower than that of other startups. This is attributed to the effects of the entrepreneur's higher appetite for risk that leads to engagement in riskier innovative efforts. Cassar (2004) argued that startups are more likely to be exposed to distinctive characteristics that are determinants to the firm's survival, such as the entrepreneur's preferences towards risk and control desire and the entrepreneur's potential exposure to finance discrimination or network resources.

Brixy and Hessels (2010) considered human capital as a positive influence on the success of startups. They described human capital as knowledge, education, skills and experience and that these aspects are likely to influence the development of a business idea and the organization of resources for setting up a firm. Investments in knowledge, skills and experiences enhance an individual's cognitive abilities and will subsequently result in more productive or efficient behavior. People who were employed just before starting a business are more likely to succeed and less likely to postpone the startup attempt. People who were not employed however or are out of the labor force are less likely to start a business.

Delmar and Shane (2003) argued that business planning helps new startup founders to undertake product development and venture organizing activities as planning facilitates goal realization. They further added that business planning helps the founders in making decisions quickly as opposed to trial and error way of learning and helps to manage resource supply and demand in ways that will minimize the time-consuming bottlenecks. Honig and Karlsson (2004) on the contrary; argued that startup survival is unrelated to business planning. They showed that performance may not necessarily be an outcome of business planning, and that most organizations adapt to institutional pressures and that those who write business plans prior to startup were no more likely to succeed in nascent activity as compared to non-planners.

Phaladi and Thwala (2008) argued that lack of effective management, financial management, entrepreneurial skills, proper training, resources, technical skills, contractual and managerial skills and inability to get credit from banks and suppliers are critical failure factors of small business startups. These factors can be grouped as internal and external; therefore entrepreneurial skills, proper training, technical skills and managerial skills as internal factors, while things like inability to obtain credit from banks and suppliers could be classified as external. In this case the internal skills or capabilities brought forth by human capital are more generalized. Most new business startups fail while others remain in the startup phase for a prolonged period of time instead of steadily growing.

Startup Business Models
There are three domains of a business model for startups; strategic, operational and economic. At a basic level, the business model is concerned with economics and the logic of profit generation. At the operational level, the business model captures the rudimentary design of a business and so it represents an architectural configuration (Morris et al., 2005). The strategic level emphasizes the overall direction in terms of the firm's positioning in the market. It is further noted that an entrepreneur's business model should be able to address the six key issues being: (1) how the firm will create value, (2) for whom will the value be created for, (3) what the firm's internal source of advantage is, (4) how the firm will position itself in the market, (5) how the firm will make money, and (6) what the entrepreneur's time, scope and ambitions are like (Morris et al., 2006). Chesbrough (2007) reiterated the six attributes that a business model should serve in order to justify the financial capital and to define a path to scale up the business. (1) articulation of the value proposition, (2) identification of the market segment, (3) a clear definition of the value chain structure, (4) an estimation of the cost structure and profit potential, (5) a description of the business within the value network and lastly, and (6) the formulation of a competitive strategy over the firm's competitors. Chesbrough and Rosenbloom (2002) further claimed that a business model for new firms is a structure that creates value and is able to capture the position of that value. They further showed that the first function would require establishment of a series of activities, that is from raw materials through to the final product, while the second function would require the establishment of a unique resource; that is the asset or position which that series of activities in which the firm enjoys a competitive advantage. Gunzel and Wilker (2009) stipulated that a business model is of paramount importance to a startup's success because it emphasizes on the business' value and thus provides the basis for systematic and strategic planning. They further examined the business model reinvention for startups as well as existing businesses and showed that it is important for them to revise their business model over time to keep up with the changing technology, market and regulatory regulations. Furthermore, Gunzel and Wilker (2009) argued that rapidly growing startups may need to adapt their business model to new circumstances/environments. Zott and Amit (2010) additionally emphasized that a business model is used as a tool that enhances the value creation of the firm; it is further shown that a business model lays the foundation for the new firm's value proposition and determines the firm's bargaining power. A business model further aids a new firm in generating revenue at a reasonable cost and also incorporates assumptions about how it will both create and capture value (Gambardella and McGahan, 2010). A business model should reflect management assumptions about what customers want, how they want the service/product and how the enterprise can best meet those needs and generate profit (Gambardella and McGahan, 2010).

The literature review showed that there is not much focus on the impact of business acumen and startup skills on entrepreneurial development. In the light of the above, the following research questions were explored:

• How does business acumen impact entrepreneurial success?
• How much business acumen does an entrepreneur need to succeed?
• How do entrepreneurs develop business acumen?
• How do startup skills impact entrepreneurial success?
• What are some of the factors that influence startup skills?
• How do entrepreneurs develop startup skills?

Data and Methodology
The data was collected using qualitative analysis by way of semi-structured interviews.

Research Paradigm
Mackenzie and Knipe (2006) alluded to Burns' (1997) analysis that research is a systematic investigation or inquiry whereby data is collected, analyzed and interpreted in an attempt to understand, describe, predict or control an educational or psychological phenomenon. For this to be undertaken, researchers need to select a method(s) of inquiry in the form of qualitative or quantitative research methods, although in some cases both methods may be employed in combination. While there are no wrong or right methods, what is of utmost importance is for the researcher to select method(s) that are able to generate data that will help him/her in answering the research question(s) (Willig, 2013). Qualitative design method was employed in this study in the form of semi-structured interviews. This method of inquiry allowed the researcher to collect the participant's view of the phenomenon. The researcher was be able to steer the interview process in order to obtain the kind of data that will answer the research question and lastly, a rapport was be instantly established between the researcher and the participant (Willig, 2013).

Research Design
The objective of the research was to obtain and collect data from experienced entrepreneurs by way of semi-structured interview questions. The participants were therefore encouraged to speak freely and openly about their experiences. This enabled them to express themselves more deeply than is possible through a quantitative method of inquiry.

Advantages of semi-structured interviews:

• A rapport is established and maintained between the researcher and participant.
• Reflections and beliefs of the participant can be captured.
• The researcher follows a guide, but may be able to detect and follow trajectories in the conversation that may help in answering the research question.
• Semi-structured interviews are able to provide reliable, comparable qualitative data (Cohen and Crabtree, 2006).

Disadvantages of semi-structured interviews:

• The outcome may be partly dependent on the competence of the interviewer and how he/she handled the interview process.
• The data collected may project complex dimensions and may be subjective to interpretation.
• The data collected may be difficult to interpret.

Population
The population for this study comprised entrepreneurs in various industries. Their insights and knowledge on entrepreneurial success were explored. Experienced entrepreneurs were selected as they already had experienced the process of establishing a business and running it. The assumption was that they have greater knowledge and understanding of business acumen and startup skills.

Sample
From the population, entrepreneurs with more than two years of entrepreneurial experience were approached. Screening was not based on industry type. Many potential participants as possible were identified and approached, so as to increase the spread and representation of the participants and to generally avoid snowballing. The aim of this study is not to generalize the whole entrepreneurial population but to mainly gain insights on the construct from the selected sample. Further research may be conducted on a broader context on different samples and settings in order to verify the present findings.

Data Collection
Face-to-face interviews were conducted with participants using semi-structured interview questions as a research instrument (see Appendix). Appointments were made with the participants at their most convenient time and place.

A letter detailing the purpose of the interview and anonymity agreement was sent to the participants prior to the meetings.

Data Analysis and Interpretation
Qualitative data analysis basically involves the ability to detect, categorize, theorize, explain, explore and map the dataset collected (Ritchie and Spencer, 2002). A thematic analysis was employed, which is a method used to identify, analyze, and report patterns within the data (Braun and Clarke, 2006).

• Familiarization: The material collected was transcribed into written form. The researcher then gained an overview of the material through a thorough immersion in the data. Key ideas and recurrent themes were listed and written down. Issues which emerged as important to participants were noted.
• Coding: Preliminary patterns were noted and coded. These were contextual features of the data that appeared relevant and meaningful.
• Themes Identification: Common themes and potential sub-themes were identified and extracted from the coded data, thereby forming patterns.
• Reviewing Themes: A clear and identifiable distinction between the themes and the sub-themes was carried out. Themes that formed coherent patterns were aligned accordingly and a story emerged.
• Defining the Themes: At this stage, the themes told a story, they were therefore named in alignment with the emerging story in relation to the research questions.
• Report Writing: The analysis was therefore converted into interpretable report; the narrative of the data was conveyed.

Validity and Reliability
Validity is the extent to which a data instrument measures what is intended to be measured. The interview questions were carefully selected and written in a way that sourced adequate and complete representation of the construct in order to achieve internal validity. Moreover the researcher had the flexibility to probe and gather more information from the participant outside of the guided questions. External validity in this study was not be mostly satisfied, which is the generalization of the construct across persons, settings and time. The aim of this study was not to generalize the population but to gain insights from the sample selected, however the interview questions were constructed in a cautious manner to enable usage in any different sample or setting.

Reliability involves accuracy and precision of the measurement procedure. Golafshani (2003) cited Joppe's (2000) definition of reliability as the extent to which results are consistent over time and are an accurate representation of the total population under study. Reliability in this study was ensured by consistent interview questions to all participants and that the same questions would be employed if a different sample of the same population was to be used.

Results
Business Acumen
Comprehension of Business Acumen
Majority of participants felt that business acumen is directly translated to collective cognizance of entrepreneurial skills and knowledge of the business' financial ideals and relevant market intelligence/insights. They showed that this will be manifested in how a person/entrepreneur responds to the environment or the market's demands. One participant further elaborated that market intelligence brings forth market dominance. Some participants shared that business acumen relates to the direction in which the business is taking, that it is essentially equivalent to the business' vision and business model. Many further added that acumen is a skill acquired through experience.

Business Conduct
Participants showed that business acumen is very crucial for entrepreneurship, and that they are able to diagnose if a person possesses the skill by identifying the depth of understanding the person has when discussing business-related matters.

One participant alluded "you can tell when someone does not necessarily have the background but have a very intuitive understanding of how the market works" therefore relating to a deep understanding of the business and industry. Most further said they can tell through conversations if a person speaks the right business language.

The participants further showed that the relevant or right business knowledge will then be manifested in how the entrepreneur makes sound and fruitful business decisions for their business.

Application
Participants felt that application of business principles is generic, that business acumen can be applied across all business industries. They further expressed that understanding the principles of finance and marketing is not something that is industry specific, that these principles are similar across the board. They however showed that business acumen can be specifically refined for a specific industry. That is over and above knowledge of the basic business principle, a person will further have business principle knowledge specific for the industry they are operating in. One participant indicated "industry knowledge and expertise ensures that one can make quick and usually correct judgments on situations in that field, however business is typically the same, irrespective of industry".

One participant separately showed that business acumen is something that is grounded on ethics and values, that one has to learn as much as possible of the industry they are operating in, as that requires commitment, dedication and discipline.

Knowledge Acquisition
Views of education and work experience as ways of acquiring business acumen were prevalent across the participants. Most participants felt that knowledge acquired from formal education has aided in shaping their knowledge of business principles.

They further felt that getting experience is also very important. One participant showed that acquiring context specific knowledge and expertise enables one to have insights not available to those that are outside the context. "Failing and making mistakes are the most important part of learning; you acquire acumen through going into business, failing and learning from those failures. The lessons learnt, enable you to be better prepared the next time around" he articulated.

There are some participants who felt that having someone who is experienced in business as a coach is beneficial as business acumen is a skill that can be passed from one person to the next.

"For me it was very tough, but I got lucky with mentorship programs that I participated in", one participant added. The participants therefore felt that mentorship and coaching programs were also advantageous in acquiring the skill.

Other participants felt an entrepreneur can gain knowledge through a myriad of sources such as reading, continuous learning from others, accumulating experience, conversations with those that have walked the journey before, and exposure to business. One participant showed that people can actually start small and build on past experience, and also transition from addressing immediate and direct requests, issues and problems, to being more strategic and proactive.

Challenging Aspects of Business Acumen
Some participants strongly showed that general business administration and operations were more difficult to discern for most startups. They felt that startups often struggle with the basics of business administration in order to realize profits. "If you cannot run or administer your business you can limit your business growth greatly, and I find that entrepreneurs, especially startups, struggle with structural or administrative side of things" she expressed.

Some participants also strongly felt that market intelligence and implementation of ideas are the most difficult aspects to learn. To say one has acumen, participants felt that the person should be able to read the market signals and therefore act accordingly by refining the business model. In this regard, some participants stated that the ability to know one's market, competition and to forecast the business and the market are the most longest and challenging aspects of business acumen to learn.

One participant showed that entrepreneurs generally struggle to grasp the concept of competition; they fail to observe the competitors they are sharing the market with, thereby becoming unconscious to the competition arena. There were views that entrepreneurs also take longer to learn understanding the principles of finance and financial management.

Duration of Learning
There were differing views amongst participants regarding the time it takes for entrepreneurs to be business acumen proficient, some participants showed that acquiring adequate levels of business intelligence varies with each industry, depending on the complexity and sophistication of the industry they are operating in.

One participant showed that some industries may require very little or basic levels of business acumen. Another participant showed that an entrepreneur may enter an industry at the right time when it upturns, such that their acumen is less apparent and in that case such a person can be seen as lucky because their business would have improved with very minimal levels of business acumen.

There were also parallel views that developing business acumen is a perpetual process, that it does not have a ceiling, it is continuously developed and grown. "You never reach the apex, there has to be continuous improvement, so you never say I've reached the top" he further elaborated "In fact I believe there is nothing really called the best, because once you say something is the best it means you cannot improve on it."

There were participants who respectively thought that an adequate level of business intelligence can be obtained in a short time as nine months; one said it could take up to three years depending on the industry the entrepreneur is in, while another participant said it could take up to five years to gain adequate experience. One participant emphasized that the quicker an entrepreneur identifies his weakness, the quicker he can seek help for his business to develop.

How to Succeed
Participants showed that it is essential for entrepreneurs to have a deep level of commitment and dedication in order to be successful. One participant showed that in order for entrepreneurs to succeed, they need to possess drive, as passion and enthusiasm alone will not bring an adequate level of business acumen for success. They further showed that one has to be fully cognizant of how their business will operate and of the market they are operating in. "I think the most important question every entrepreneur needs to answer to themselves is; why am I doing this? Is it because there is an opportunity, money or passion? The better one answers the why, the better successful their business can become". There were also popular views that need to have reached a level where they are able to evidently know how their business makes or will make profit; they need to have established if their product or service will be viable. One participant further indicated that for a business to be successful, it can be as simple as understanding the basics of profit making and how the market functions. Another indicated that in order for entrepreneurs to reach an expert level of business acumen, they have to specialize in that particular industry they are operating in, such entrepreneurs will then be experts in their fields.

One participant's view was that operating a business should be a team effort; they expressed that an entrepreneur may not know all the aspects of running a business, that the sooner such a person identifies their areas of weakness and aspects of business they struggle with, the quicker they can get help from someone who has walked the journey before. This participant emphasized on the importance of mentorship and or team effort when starting a business. He showed that using this strategy can speed up entrepreneurial success.

Business Opportunities
Majority of participants believed that a good business opportunity (an opportunity with a fair or good chance of success) will still need an entrepreneur with business acumen to differentiate it for success. "Certainly, it rings true on so many levels, many millennial people studied information technology, some remain employed, some unemployed within the sector because what they used to do is now automated, but some have went on to enterprise their skills and started successful businesses. So it takes business acumen to set yourself apart regardless of how much opportunity is glaring at you", one participant noted.

Therefore the participants believed that an entrepreneur needs both sufficient acumen and good opportunity. One participant further elaborated that acumen would normally help to ensure that a good opportunity with a good value proposition is selected.

Another participant showed that although acumen might not be the only element that contributes to entrepreneurial success, it increases the entrepreneur's understanding of how to sculpt a business or proposition and how to realize profit. One respondent explained that an adequate level of business acumen can still turn around a mediocre opportunity into success, whereas a lack of acumen altogether can ruin a good opportunity, therefore business acumen strongly relates to implementation success.

The Entrepreneurial Process
When asked about at what stage entrepreneurs should utilize their business skills, most participants showed that entrepreneurs should use business acumen right from the beginning and at each and every stage of the entrepreneurial process.

To put more emphasis, some participants went further to show that one should actually use business acumen even before the actual start of the business, that it should start at opportunity identification. Business acumen in this regard determines how the entrepreneur perceives opportunity, the decisions they will make which will all directly translate into the success or failure of the business.

One participant showed that an entrepreneur should use acumen from the time they have an idea that they wish to turn into a business. "From the minute your idea comes, play around with business acumen even if you are just imagining, what product and how the market is". There were also views that entrepreneurship does not follow a predetermined process; that a product may exist before the market, therefore business acumen is required throughout the process in order to make sense and to give direction the business should be taking. One participant expressed, "The entrepreneurial process is a dynamic thing; it does not really work in a point after point process. You may have a product, but no market. You may have a market but you have not yet developed a product that makes sense for it". They further said in this regard, business acumen therefore is required to help break down the process of entrepreneurship into meaningful steps, to learn from the market what is required while refining the process, product or service being offered.

Entrepreneurial Education
In the light of how participants acquired their business education, the general views were pointed to imparted knowledge. "By spending time with other entrepreneurs, it's more powerful than the classroom setting. I find the imparted knowledge to be more organic and more real" one participant said. They showed that it is better to avoid reinventing the wheel, by rather learning from others and their experiences while also gaining as much perspective and background knowledge as possible.

One participant shared that acumen can be developed by reading the work of other successful entrepreneurs; that reading is a quick and cheap way of gaining knowledge and insight. There were also some generic views that business acumen can be learnt through attending support programs and skills training, by attending business conferences and through formal education.

One participant showed that although it is important to learn from the formal education and to learn from others, it is also very important for an aspirant entrepreneur to then develop their own thinking. "Whichever way you can learn" she said, "it should be a self-driven process, critical reading of at least 10 different Google web pages to gather information and formulating your own truth out of that matter is probably the best" she elaborated.

One participant indicated that aspirant entrepreneurs can experiment and make mistakes while they are still in a secure environment of employment. In this time, entrepreneurs can learn and focus on the industry they are employed in, do research on who the players are in that industry, the market and the industry's needs.

There were also general views that mentorship is another good way of learning. Participants showed that it is important to learn from the experiences of others who have already walked the journey. Others showed that it can be beneficial to learn positive aspects from successful leaders and seeking help from knowledgeable people.

One participant showed that in order to learn, an aspirant entrepreneur should first identify his/her weaknesses and seek help.

Startup Skills
The Difficulties of Startup
Participants felt that starting a business can be a challenging process depending on the nature of the industry and the sophistication of the business. They showed that the entry requirements of the industry such as regulation and legislation can determine the difficulty of starting a business. "If you want to start a medical laboratory for example, your first stumbling blocks are the administration issues, the paperwork, and the regulatory stuff, that's basically the legislative stuff that you must comply with." Other participants felt that the difficulty is the ability to penetrate a pre-existing market. Therefore starting a business will require product refinement and exposure to the market, "because the market does not know you yet, your products have not yet been refined by the market processes" the participant expressed.

Most participants further showed that there are a lot of uncertainties with starting a new business; therefore this can prove a challenge as the entrepreneur will have little or no reference. In this regard, starting a business requires self-confidence, courage, agility, perseverance and the ability to function with ambiguity. Another factor that participants felt can bring difficulties in starting a business is the lack of startup resources, such as money, hiring employees and required services.

Other participants indicated that most entrepreneurs struggle with defining their vision and getting it right, and that in most cases they end up finding their own way. Another supplemented that entrepreneurs struggle with getting the first basic processes and components in place, that it in this regard it would then help to take small steps.

The Startup Agenda
During startup, there are particular activities that participants felt are the most important, most expressed that having a clear value proposition as crucial; one should therefore have a product that solves a problem that customers are also willing to buy. "Now what is being sold is convenience, so a simple product that will solve a problem. If you have people who are willing to buy your product, the rest will follow", the participant expressed.

One participant showed that it is important to have a unique customer proposition so as to greatly consider the customer; that entrepreneurs should not only focus on implementing a great idea.

The participants further conveyed that it is crucial for the entrepreneur to understand the competition in the market and should know how to compete. They showed that marketing the product or service is also important, because a great idea without business and market insight may be more likely to fail. "Market understanding is something I have come to view as lacking. I come across various tech startups that do not take the time to understand the market or user; they are focused on building a cool product. The essence of entrepreneurship is the provision of solutions to existing challenges and/or problems to a market that needs it and willing to pay for that solution" the participant indicated. One participant showed that it is imperative for an entrepreneur to do a lot of research about the industry when starting up, and to continuously assess, develop and refine the business model. Other participants showed that one will need to know the technical side of the industry together with the financial side of the business. Others showed that it is important to know the external business environment, entrenched in the business activities and therefore knowing one's business proposition in that regard. One participant showed that finding mentors and role models in business is very important, together with finding and understanding what is relevant for the business.

The Startup Process
Participants indicated that the duration it takes to start a business can range from days to years depending on the nature of the business and its sophistication "if you start a bank, you might need two years of paper work to and fro, if you start a popcorn business you might need one day".

One participant further showed that the type of business may involve a lot of innovation, a sophisticated value chain and a lot of processes and systems to be put in place, such a business may take longer to establish.

Another participant disclosed that the duration may depend on the amount of preparation that was done before and how the business is positioned; that if proper planning was lacking, it may take longer to start.

One participant shared that startups usually take longer than anticipated, as the process is about development and learning. Another participant showed that it usually takes one month to physically set up and open a business; it however does not imply that the business will be profitable in one month. Another participant however elucidated that although it may be quick to start a business, as a lot of startups do, the most important factor is to find customers first. Therefore it may take time to build a sustainable business. "Starting a business is not a lengthy process, but building it to a sustainable business is, there are no shortcuts to success" the participant indicated. One participant shared different views that there is a difference between staring a business and getting started in business. The participant showed that the process normally requires a lot of tenacity and resolving a lot of ambiguity "Getting started in business is what is lengthy and requires tremendous ability for ambiguity and tons of tenacity, remaining in business is more bruising and challenging".

Value Proposition and Startup Success
Participants shared views that while a clear value proposition is important for business success, it may very well be useless without market intelligence. Having a clear vision and the need to push the idea counts, but the market also determines the outcome. Another participant further elaborated that a sound value proposition still requires market exposure and acceptance; the proposition would thereby gain reputation and recognition in the market. It was showed by another participant that entrepreneurs need to do a lot of market research because although an idea might look and sound flawless on paper, it can only be evaluated by the market. The business will in this regard still have to face the market competition, and will still need to connect with the customers.

One participant explained that entrepreneurial failure is multifaceted, and does not only depend on value proposition. The participant showed that the proposed offering may be brilliant, but failure may arise from poor financial management, employing the wrong people and the timing may be wrong. However, the entrepreneur can always refine the value proposition along the way.

Other participants showed that an entrepreneur needs a clear value proposition, but that alone does not always guarantee success. It was also shared that business acumen comes into manifestation in such matters, an entrepreneur with adequate business acumen will in this regard, be able to implement the value proposition into fruition. "Having a clear value proposition but with no business acumen means you are probably going to fail", the participant shared. "Value proposition on its own does not mean much, it can mean maybe you have a good idea but implementation depends very much on business acumen" they further added.

One participant indicated that having a value proposition is good for an entrepreneur, as it will help in generally competitive environments. They showed that the value proposition is how the entrepreneur differentiates their business from other competitors who are probably more powerful and better resourced. The entrepreneur will therefore have to be good at what they do and be known for it. "But into a pre-existing sector, the likelihood is, there are bigger players that are doing what you are doing, they will cut your margins because they have the economies of scale; Be good at what you do and be known for what you do regardless of how small it is" the participant indicated.

Challenges of Startup
In the light of what entrepreneurs typically get or do incorrectly during the startup phase, participants shared mixed views. Some showed that it is important to get the financial model right first, that it is crucial to separate the personal finances from the business ones. Getting the financial model and processes right. Being disciplined with the time we spend on the business, basically failure to treat the business as an entity one participant showed.

Other participants had views that entrepreneurs typically manage the human resource processes poorly. "Bringing the wrong people into the business, the quality of people you bring can make or kill the business. The first thing we like to do is hire our family members that are unskilled" one participant shared.

Another participant shared that often in the startup phase; entrepreneurs take too long to make decisions or may be indecisive. Being too slow in taking action can be detrimental to the business growth. One participant showed that sometimes entrepreneurs tend to loose or divert focus, mostly to survive in the short term. This participant explained that if business growth is slow in the beginning, entrepreneurs tend to quickly change the value proposition for short-term profit gains. Some participants showed that it is very important for entrepreneurs to be realistic and to remain practical in the beginning; they may not have thought the opportunity thoroughly. Some entrepreneurs tend to fall in love with the ideas and fail to secure or implement the business aspect. Participants further showed that some entrepreneurs tend to celebrate too early in the startup phase. "Starting your own business is a labor of love; it is about delayed gratification and divorcing yourself from social pressures of commercial trappings" one participant articulated.

Learning Startup Skills
Most participants shared that they acquired entrepreneurship skills by having conversations with skilled and experienced business people. One participant showed that it helped to be inquisitive by asking a lot of questions and interacting with successful entrepreneurs. Another participant further showed that learning through others is a practical skill that no school can offer.

One participant believed that the best way to acquire startup skills is to get one's hands dirty; that learning while in the employment space can be both safe and beneficial for one to gain experience "work for a non-profit organization, learn about organizing, while you do your income generating job".

It was explained that the aspirant entrepreneur can therefore learn business functions such as product design, manufacturing and marketing, this way the aspirant entrepreneur will gain industry knowledge and experience before starting their own business. There were also views that exposure to business through family and friends is another way of gaining experience, it is also this way that the entrepreneur will learn people skills "I was fortunate to grow in a household where I had a mom who began enterprising when I was still young, so I saw her and worked with her a couple of times" the participant further indicated "I learnt early that it is a business to consumer kind of relationship, you have to be really good to people and they will support you".

Some participants showed other ways of learning as through mentorship, reading as well as through formal education. Other participants alluded that failure is another important way of learning "there is nothing that teaches you like failure, learning from your mistakes is the best teacher" one person said.

Business Plans and Business Models
Participants expressed that business plans and models are relevant for entrepreneurs to succeed as they help them to organize and structure the thoughts about the business; the business plan becomes a reference.

Others shared their views that business plans and models serve as guiding principles and they give direction. One participant further showed that business plans and models help to set the course and to plot direction, but they also emphasized that one needs to update and to refine their plan according to the market environment as they go along. "If you do not know where you are going, you will find that anywhere will be your destination, a business plan allows you to have a vision, and it is a thing that changes constantly so you refine your course as you get feedback from clients". It is therefore crucial to adjust the business plan according to the market demands.

Another participant explained that a business plan is simply a reflection of the aspirant entrepreneurs' thoughts and their level of thinking. They showed that this contributes to success because the aspirant entrepreneur will then be forced to thoroughly consider their business idea.

One participant further indicated that even in its informal form, creating a business plan and thinking about it helps the aspirant entrepreneur to gain some knowledge and insight about their prospective business and industry. One more participant showed a business model is important as it provides clarity and direction; they showed that a business model helps to evaluate whether the strategy employed by the business is working, it also helps to manage change in that regard." At startup phase things change and can change quickly, so also it does not always work as planned. There is so much flexibility, especially at the beginning, it constantly shifts".

Business plans are also crucial prerequisites and in some instances may be mandatory to qualify for certain opportunities such as startup funding. "It is a prerequisite, and if you want to apply for financing, if you want to be compliant to certain opportunities, you have to have a business plan, that is what is preached."

Opportunity and Implementation
There were general views that majority of entrepreneurs predominantly fail because of poor implementation of what they set out to do in the beginning of the business. In this regard, participants felt that implementation can influence success, and is a significant part of success, in some instances more significant than the opportunity the entrepreneur might have selected. A lot of entrepreneurs are therefore likely to fail because they could not see the implementation through. One participant indicated that entrepreneurs partly fail due to poor implementation but they can improve on their attempts in the future by learning from their mistakes, "I do not really believe in failure, it is a lesson so you take that lesson and fix it to make the outcome better the next time; that is implementation. Failure to me does not exist, so you implement that lesson in your next attempt" the participant indicated.

One participant shared a view that entrepreneurs also fail because they give up on temporary failure. The participant showed that entrepreneurs will always face challenges even when the business has been established, that what is required is tenacity to secure ultimate success. Another participant showed that although implementation impacts success; a skilled entrepreneur will still make more of an opportunity than one without skill, even in less exceptional opportunities. More participants showed that the opportunity the entrepreneur selects has a greater impact than its implementation, however that opportunity must commence with a clear and unique value proposition. "Looking at the Porter's model, where does one fit in the value chain? Most people do not check where they fit, why sell pens not ink? Often we do not figure out where we are in the market? Where the opportunity cost is, where do we find the most money? Examples are Amazon, Uber and Google. Amazon found the money by cutting out the retailer."

Another participant indicated that entrepreneurs fail to update their plans according to the market environment, in the same vein, entrepreneurs may not stick to their original plan, "maybe they are not following the plan as it is and have far derailed from it and they are not adjusting what they do, or adjust the plan according to where they are". One more participant however indicated that implementation can be more important than opportunity; that some entrepreneurs are still able to innovate and turn a lesser appealing opportunity into a mature business. "There are guys who are producing toilet paper but toilet paper has been long ago produced by others, but they are able to innovatively position themselves and have manufacturing facilities which are very close to what the off-take will be".

Startup Skills and Success
Majority of entrepreneurs shared views that an opportunity with a fair or a good chance of success is dependent on the entrepreneur's skills for it to succeed. They showed that an entrepreneur's business acumen, startup skills and experience have an impact on entrepreneurial success. "People with higher level of business acumen have a chance of succeeding than those that do not have it. So if you put a very good and effective doctor and make them a hospital manager because they are good with patient care, but have low business acumen, you lose twice; you lose a good doctor and he will mess up as a manager" one participant indicated.

One participant indicated that although startup skills impact success, the skills can however be learnt, what is more important for an entrepreneur to have is tenacity and resilience in order to learn enough skill to pull through.

One more participant indicated that entrepreneurs should not venture alone, but should rather identify the gaps and weaknesses and bring the right people in the business to offer help and support.

It was also elucidated that opportunities may seem good on paper, but may still fail because the entrepreneur lacked certain key skills related to fully and comprehensively understanding the target market. Another added that the entrepreneur with a good opportunity will still need to plan properly and to correctly execute the implementation of that opportunity for them to succeed.

One participant shared a different view that over and above the quality of the opportunity, there are other external factors that impact startup success, factors that are outside the entrepreneur's control. The participant showed that these factors could be labeled as luck. "Being at the right time at the right place; that luck is not necessarily poor luck, knowing what you are offering it is possible to meet someone who will contribute to your business success, say at a meeting."

Risk Reduction Strategies
When participants shared on the strategies they employ during a startup and of ways of reducing risk, they each presented diverse views in accordance with their experiences. Participants indicated that the entrepreneur must first take time to learn the market they wish to serve, the dynamics of that market and the competitors thereof. They also showed that it is essential for an entrepreneur to put a lot of thinking into what their unique value proposition is going to be and how they will capture that value. One participant further indicated that risk is inevitable and one should take calculated risks, they have to think logically and constantly challenge their cognitive biases whilst also reasoning about likely outcomes. Another participant indicated that an entrepreneur can achieve this by doing proper planning, unpacking, assessing and interrogating their plan of implementation so as to identify any gaps. This could be done by talking to others and doing a thorough market research.

Another participant showed that it is best for an entrepreneur to have a business plan of a quality that can attract investment. "Your business plan has to be something someone is willing to put money in. You must be very prudent in financial matters." The participant further indicated that getting the right people into the business is another way of reducing risk and to be able to attract and retain customers.

One other participant shared that when starting, an entrepreneur must have a clear plan, a clear vision, goals and objectives they intend to follow. They emphasized that it is also important to have access to experts to assist in terms of skills that might be lacking. "If you use what you have learnt about running a business, like marketing, finances, strategy and others then you have a good chance of success. If you do not use those skills employ the people who have those skills or you can consult" the participant indicated. One participant shared views that the strategy to use during a startup is to establish one's own niche in a big market. The participant showed that this would prove better than trying and hoping to capture an entire new market. The participant again indicated that during startup, partnering with bigger players in the market, in essence one would then be collaborating rather than facing head on competition. It is best to get one foot in first, and then develop the areas that one lacks at. "So you have to partner, find the big players in the industry and ask how you can be of help. As soon as they agree in one way or the other, do it and labor, cut your margins short and get started, because you use their clients, their equipment, and their business opportunity to develop your skills. So that is how you reduce risk and absorbing as much as you can at minimal risk." Another participant showed that during startup, discipline is a key element in reducing risk. The participant emphasized that taking the business as serious as one would as the corporate world is very important. The participant indicated that the same rules and regulations applied at corporations or when one is employed are applicable to startups; the entrepreneur must therefore take responsibility and accountability "Do not always take yourself to be a startup, in this case you need to take yourself as seriously as when you were employed, some disciplines that build corporates can build your business, respect the time, prepare when you go for meetings, do not just wing it" the participant highlighted.

Financial accountability, proper governance and having a support structure are beneficial key factors to adopt when staring a business. Another participant indicated that it would be on the entrepreneur's interest to be much focused and to thoroughly understand their business model and their value proposition. They further emphasized the importance of getting customers involved from the start so as to build a customer foundation first before investing in resources. "In the beginning there was no plan B, how we reduce risk now is by understanding our value proposition, what we are offering, and also how do we get people involved from the start to get to our goal quicker" the participant indicated. One participant showed that another way of reducing risk when starting a business is by starting small, that in that regard, one can then build on and expand from an already successful business that is well-known. The participant showed that although there will always be a degree of risk remaining, taking baby steps helps. "I serve the same market with every business and/or product I have, I just expand the product offering and in that way substantially reduce the risk but the risk is not eliminated." Another participant further supplemented that in the beginning, piloting, project management, product improvement and market intelligence are important risk reduction tools. The participant showed that the entrepreneur in this regard would not be fully committing before the product or service proves itself. "Reducing risk depends on the space you are in, if in the app developing tech space then minimum viable product, the test-phase, but if its huge investment, you may not want to quit your job yet. The best strategy is spending more time in planning" the participant indicated.

Discussion
This discussion of the findings on business acumen and startup skills, answers the study's research questions respectively, in comparison with the context of the literature.

Business Acumen
This study brings to our awareness that business acumen plays a significant role in the development and success of entrepreneurs. An entrepreneur who has business acumen is one that fully comprehends the market they are operating in and has a grasp of their business financial processes. A business's good financial standing and the entrepreneur's market intelligence translates to profit dominance.

This is seen to be in agreement with Stern and Walters (2005), that an entrepreneur as an individual who understands the business/has business acumen is one that fully understands the organization's business model and the company's competitive position in the market. Business acumen sets the course of direction the business is taking, therefore an entrepreneur who has business acumen essentially has a full comprehension of their business model and the vision of the business as agreed by Stern and Walters. Possessing business acumen means the entrepreneur has a deep understanding of the industry and of the market they are operating in; that entrepreneur will therefore make fruitful and profitable decisions for their business. This opinion was reinforced by Veliyath et al. (2012). It includes an understanding of how strategies, decisions, and actions interact to impact the overall performance of the organization.

This study further shows us that business acumen is generic, that it can be applied across all industries. It was illustrated that business aspects such as marketing and financial management are not industry-specific but are principles that are applicable to all businesses across all industries. In order to be business acumen cognizant, one would therefore have to learn as much as possible from the industry they wish to or are operating in. Business acumen is grounded on ethics and values, therefore the entrepreneur will have to have a sense of commitment, dedication and discipline.

How Does Business Acumen Impact Entrepreneurial Success?
This study has shown that although business acumen is considered by many people as a basic skill and easy to learn, there are challenges that entrepreneurs face especially in the beginning of the business. It was discovered that most startups struggle with the discernment of business administration and business operations, thereby impacting profit generation for the business negatively. In the literature, Gleghorn (2015) describes business acumen as the ability to make profitable business decisions.

This study again revealed that without business acumen, entrepreneurs fail to assess the market indicators properly. It was suggested that poor or lack of market intelligence is equivalent to lack of business acumen as indicated by Stern and Walters (2005) in the literature. Entrepreneurs with poor market intelligence will therefore fail to refine their business model accordingly in order to produce the desired outcome as agreed by Kaplan (2006). The findings of this study further showed that starting entrepreneurs fail to observe the competition they are sharing the market with. Stern and Walters (2005) showed that an entrepreneur who has business acumen fully understands the organization's business model and the company's competitive position in the market in order to propel the business to success. This study further discovered that starting entrepreneurs generally take longer to learn the principles of financial management as Veliyath et al. (2012) indicated in the literature.

It is therefore evident that an entrepreneur who has business acumen will make better decisions for the business than one who does not possess the skill.

How Much Business Acumen Does an Entrepreneur Need to Succeed?
The second research objective of this study on business acumen focused on exploring how much business acumen an entrepreneur needs to succeed. The findings of this study thereof revealed that in order to succeed, a person would need to have sufficient level of business acumen. In light of the aforesaid it was discovered that there is a range of time an entrepreneur can take to learn sufficient levels of business acumen varying from nine months to five years. It was again discovered that the learning of business acumen is a perpetual process as one has to continuously develop their skill and that the sooner an entrepreneur identifies their lacking areas, the quicker they can learn and develop their skill.

Another emerging factor suggested was that in some cases there is some level of luck that can strike in the entrepreneur's benefit when they enter the industry that is thriving or by partnering with well-resourced and experienced people at the right time. In such cases, such an entrepreneur would be successful with little or basic levels of business acumen.

The research further established that in order to have adequate levels of business acumen to succeed, entrepreneurs will need to have commitment, dedication and determination to their course. In alignment with Stern and Walters (2005) and Gleghorn (2015) as depicted in the literature, entrepreneurs with adequate levels of business acumen are those that are fully cognizant of how their business operates, their stand in the market and know how their business generates profits. It was again discovered that it requires a team effort to learn adequate levels of business acumen. Mentorship programs and learning from others can assist an entrepreneur with skills that he is lacking. An emerging factor discovered was that in order for one to have expert levels of business acumen, they have to focus and specialize only in the industry they are operating in; in this regard they will eventually become experts in their field.

How Do Entrepreneurs Develop Business Acumen?
The final research question on business acumen focused on exploring how entrepreneurs can develop business acumen. In light of the aforesaid, this study revealed that aspirant entrepreneurs can gain context specific knowledge through experience; being exposed and working in the specific industry the entrepreneur wishes to participate in enables that individual to have insights not available to those that are outside the context. This is in line with the findings of Raffo et al. (2000) as indicated in the literature.

Formal education and work experience were also discovered to be other ways of acquiring business acumen as shown in the literature. The study further revealed that mentorship and coaching are other fruitful and beneficial ways of acquiring business acumen as the skill is transferable from one person to the other. It was further found out that there are actually other numerous learning sources that an entrepreneur can embark on to acquire business acumen, such as reading entrepreneurial materials and having conversations with other experienced entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs can gain perspective by reading on the work of other successful people and developing their own thinking thereof. This way one can acquire as much background knowledge as possible and derive their own constructs suitable for the type of business and industry they are operating in. One emerging point was that it can be beneficial for entrepreneurs to start a business while they are still in their formal employment, this way they can learn from their mistakes while they still have the financial security of their job. It was further discovered that the quickest way to learn is by identifying one's lacking skills and seeking assistance thereof.

Startup Skills
This study discovered that there are challenges that entrepreneurs face during the startup phase. Entrepreneurs deal with a lot of uncertainties in the beginning; therefore in order to succeed they need to have perseverance, courage and confidence. The regulatory and legislative administration requirements of starting a business may as well serve as stumbling blocks; these regulations differ with each industry one partakes in.

It was also revealed that it can be difficult for entrepreneurs to penetrate an existing market as in the beginning the market may be not familiar with their product or service. Other factors shown were that usually entrepreneurs face lack of resources such as financial capital and human capital. During startup phase, entrepreneurs struggle to define their vision and following it, although they eventually find the way, it can take some time.

How Do Entrepreneurs Develop Startup Skills?
This research pursued to explore how entrepreneurs can develop their startup skills. In light of the aforementioned, this study discovered that in order to acquire the skill one will need to be realistic and to remain practical about the opportunity they have selected to pursue. People tend to excessively admire their ideas and fail to analyze the idea thoroughly. Entrepreneurs should therefore challenge their own cognitive biases by reassessing their plan thoroughly to evaluate all likely outcomes.

Having conversations with skilled and experienced people was revealed to be another way of learning startup skills. The study further revealed that entrepreneurs can also learn through being exposed to entrepreneurship by family members and friends. This is proven to be a passive and useful tool for one to learn of how businesses function. Participating in mentorship programs, reading entrepreneurial material as well as formal education were identified as other forms of learning.

Aspirant entrepreneurs can as well acquire the skills while they are still in their formal employment setting; this way they get to learn the skills whilst still preserving their job security. Whilst on this course, they can establish a customer foundation by either piloting their product offering or by starting small. One emerging factor not illustrated in the literature was that entrepreneurs can also acquire the skills through their past unsuccessful attempts. Failure is the best teacher as one will now know how their past mistakes led to unprofitable business.

What Are Some of the Factors That Influence Startup Skills?
The next research question focused on exploring the factors that impact startup skills. In this regard, this study revealed that starting a functional business is dependent on the preparation that was put in before the actual business could start. The study also revealed that it can take longer for an entrepreneur to build a sustainable business. It was further discovered that the duration is dependent on the nature and the sophistication of the business. This is in alignment with findings of Davidsson et al. (2011) as depicted in the literature. Entrepreneurs deal with a lot of ambiguity when starting; therefore those who have tenacity will withstand the challenges and acquire the skills, This paper goes on to reveal that during startup, entrepreneurs with poor skills tend to hire the wrong people for the business, such as family members which can lead to business failure as emphasized by Brixy and Hessels (2010). When in doubt or lacking on certain skills, it would prove fruitful for an entrepreneur to seek help, therefore getting the right people into the business will impact on the success of the business.

Starting entrepreneurs tend to take too long to make important decisions for the business; entrepreneurs also tend to divert focus from the initial business model when they encounter profits deficiencies. It was further discovered that in the beginning people tend to celebrate too early and fail to delay gratification.

How Do Startup Skills Impact Startup Success?
The final research question on startup skills attempted to explore how startup skills impact business success. This study suggests that a clear value proposition determines entrepreneurial success. It was discovered that an entrepreneur who is able to define their value proposition clearly will have market intelligence and be able to scan competitive environments. An entrepreneur with a clear value proposition will therefore know how to compete.

Another emerging factor this study discovered is that in order to attain success, entrepreneurs have to get the financial model right first and exercise financial accountability, to put the relevant processes in place and to be time oriented and disciplined. It was further discovered that as a starting point, business plans and business models are relevant for entrepreneurs to succeed as showed by Delmar and Shane (2003) as well as Gunzel and Wilker (2009). These foundations will enable the entrepreneur to plot direction, to structure their plans and to serve as a guidance and reference for implementation. This study further determined that a good opportunity with a fair chance of success is dependent on an entrepreneur's startup skills for it to succeed. In addition to the skills an entrepreneur has to have confidence in their product or service, tenacity and resilience. Over and above startup skills and having a good opportunity, an entrepreneur with a higher level of business acumen and experience will have a higher chance of succeeding. An entrepreneur can also select to bring knowledgeable people into the venture in order to enhance lacking skills to fill the gaps.

Conclusion
Business acumen and startup skills are integral values to entrepreneurship. These generally known factors are often underestimated and it is assumed that entrepreneurs possess these skills. An entrepreneur with business acumen is a person who has a deep overall understanding of the industry and the market they are operating in to yield profits for the business. In the same vein, an entrepreneur with startup skills, among other factors, is one that is able to clearly define their vision and value proposition for the business and follow it through to implementation in order to yield profits.

Entrepreneurs deal with a lot of ambiguity in the beginning of the business, therefore it is only those with tenacity that will withstand the pressures of uncertainty. During startup, entrepreneurs tend to employ the wrong people, they become reluctant to seek help on skills that they are lacking and they tend to take too long to make important decisions for the business. Business acumen and startup skills are integral to entrepreneurial success. These skills are not just basic and simple, they have to be learnt to be understood. Entrepreneurial development and success is dependent on these factors, therefore more emphasis and education has to be allocated to entrepreneurs to equip them with sufficient levels of these skills even before starting their own businesses.

Limitations:
The present study suffers from certain limitations:

• The data collected was not representative of the whole population; data size is relatively small in qualitative analysis (Denzin and Lincoln, 2005).
• Comparison or predictive analysis was not done. The study served to only gain insights from participants on the phenomena being researched.
• The outcome of the construct did not represent the entire entrepreneurial population, However, more research can be conducted to verify the findings.

Recommendations for Future Studies:

• A similar study to be conducted to explore the most effective ways in which aspirant entrepreneurs can learn business acumen; The findings will help to establish entrepreneurial education for effectiveness.
• Further research to measure business acumen metrics in relation to entrepreneurial success. The findings will enable entrepreneurs to gauge themselves against the standard in order to attain further education if required.
• It may be useful to set up a study to explore the effectiveness of networking and entrepreneurial support groups for entrepreneurial development.
• A study focusing on startup difficulties and risk reduction strategies during startup will educate prospective entrepreneurs and afford awareness on what to expect and how they may overcome the bottlenecks.
• A research to explore how early entrepreneurial education (incorporating it in schools curricula) can bring about a better understanding of entrepreneurship resulting in it being selected as a primary career in the future.

References

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