Are entrepreneurs in Singapore generalists as a result of their human-capital investment pattern?

Abstract

Entrepreneurship is a topic widely discussed across many disciplines. Existing empirical literatures suggest that entrepreneurs are generalists rather than specialist, however, a similar study in Singapore‟s context is still considered unprecedented. In essence, the objective of the study aims to answer the question: “Are Entrepreneurs in Singapore generalists as a result of their human-capital investment pattern?” The Probit model was adopted for this study and the observations were self-reported by individuals from all strata of society. Both descriptive and statistical analysis conclusively pointed toward entrepreneurs having a more generalized human-capital investment strategy compared to specialists (employees). Following the analysis and results, the paper discusses a greater role that the government can play in aiding individuals to overcome prevailing entrepreneurial obstacles and create an „organic‟ entrepreneurial culture that permits failure. Going a step further, the paper also discusses the possibility of employees undertaking entrepreneurial activity that would benefit the nation as a whole. Recognising the limitation of this paper, much more can be done empirically. Nevertheless, the results and findings provide meaningful insights for future research moving forward.