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This chapter explores the relationship between entrepreneurship skills and decent work (DW), and how policy can help achieve this. We review the entrepreneurship skills literature in the context of DW, highlighting the key entrepreneurship skills needed in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Thereafter, we extract lessons from selected policy initiatives in countries with broad similarities (Australia, Canada, United States and England), through the lens of DW. Our review draws on peer-reviewed journals and key United Nations and global entrepreneurship platform publications. Entrepreneurship skills deficiencies have a detrimental impact on the success and sustainability of SMEs. Yet, SME's survival and growth is currently crucial, whereby organizations need to transform in response to changing environmental, political, technological and consumer needs. This is intensified by the challenges of Covid-19, severely affecting DW and productivity. To develop and retain even a semblance of ‘decent work’, entrepreneurs need to develop appropriate skills and there is a need for suitable policy addressing this. In this chapter, we present lessons learnt based on our review and provide recommendations for entrepreneurship skills development policies aligning with DW.

Entrepreneurship Education (EE) has received substantial attention, both in the popular press, as well as in academia, owing to the socio-economic impact it holds. However, while the importance of entrepreneurship is universally acknowledged, specific higher-order outcomes EE aim to achieve have not received the same level of attention. This study aims to fill this void by analysing teaching and learning approaches to EE in Africa, as well as the competencies that these EE initiatives aim to build. The study makes use of a qualitative research approach in the form of a systematic review of EE studies conducted in Africa. The systematic review aimed to uncover which approaches and competencies EE initiatives apply. Results indicated that teaching and learning of EE in Africa are mainly focussed on learning for and about entrepreneurship, and to a lesser degree through entrepreneurship. The study therefore proposes the development of higher-order competencies in the form of envisioning and constructing. The study contributes in practice by proposing a shift in the approach to EE by building competencies in the areas of visionary thinking and market expansion, rather than gaining market share. The study also makes a theoretical contribution by critically reviewing teaching and learning approaches on EE and developed competencies, and expands the role that EE can play in market development and opportunity creation.

Entrepreneurship education has been largely treated as a pedagogical “black box.” Despite the emergence of popular entrepreneurship models such as business planning, the lean startup, or business model canvas, neither theoretical nor pedagogical foundations are typically evident. This limits the accumulation of useful evidence that could inform better teaching practices. In this chapter, we develop a set of conceptual models anchored in learning theory regarding how entrepreneurship education should be taught to students. These conceptual models are built on the techniques of entrepreneurship pedagogy such as experiential education. They are developed for three groups of students: students without any entrepreneurship experience, students with previous entrepreneurship experience, and students who are currently running their start-ups. A set of potential variables that could be used for course evaluation purposes is also included. The proposed models meet the needs of students with different levels of entrepreneurship experience. Theoretically, we demonstrate that entrepreneurship students should not be treated as a homogeneous group, as they have different levels of startup experience and different educational needs. Lecturers of entrepreneurship programs could choose the suitable model proposed in this chapter in teaching based on the characteristics of their students. The chapter provides novel insights with regard to how entrepreneurship programs should be designed for students with different levels of entrepreneurship experience.

Entrepreneurship education should catch up with the current developments in today’s digitally interconnected and virtual world. As all forms of conducting business become digital, essentially entrepreneurship needs a new digital competence-based learning approach. This chapter proposes a Digital Communications competency profile that every modern entrepreneur should possess. The proposed profile incorporates digital marketing (DM) as it recognises the need for major changes in entrepreneurship educational programmes. The proposal is based on an extensive literature review, which reveals that future demand for competencies goes beyond basic traditional entrepreneurship skills to include digital communication. It is shown that future entrepreneurs should possess advanced communication skills, in DM, which includes social media marketing, digital marketing strategies, search engine optimisation, content marketing and E-mail marketing. These competencies would facilitate customer involvement and open innovation. As a result, via the process of co-creation creative ideas can be transformed into successful products and services. The modern entrepreneurship profile underlines the paramount role of digital communications skills, which should be incorporated in entrepreneurship educational programmes.

Entrepreneurship education is being taught to undergraduates in tertiary institutions and fresh graduates in youth programmes to encourage start-ups and create employment as a strategy to stem youth unemployment. As such, entrepreneurship education programmes are expected to include rigorous processes of programme design, implementation and evaluation so as to achieve changes in behaviour, attitude and action of participants measureable in terms of start-up and jobs created. Two entrepreneurship education programmes implemented in Nigeria are evaluated to ascertain the level of effectiveness in design, implementation and evaluation and the outcomes in terms of start-ups and employment created. Research methods adopted in the two programmes combine observation techniques with content analyses, action research in case study and focus group interviews. In addition, test-retest techniques in a quasi-experimental design, with a structured questionnaire is adopted in programme number two only. The findings are that while it is suspected that the design stage is jumped in programme number one, in programme two, the design is poorly done. Implementation is ineffective in the two programmes because objectives did not arise from programme design as they ought to and evaluation methods are inappropriate and so ineffective. The recommendations include review of the design of the two programmes to generate appropriate and measurable objectives; adopting implementation strategies that will achieve the measurable objectives generated from revised programme designs and adopting appropriate evaluation techniques that has capacity to measure outcomes and impact in addition to outputs.

Although much of the discussion on entrepreneurship education focuses on introducing entrepreneurship skills into other disciplines, the reality is education should be already about challenging existing practices and ways of thinking. This chapter argues that the trend toward integrating entrepreneurship skills into other curricula presents an important shift in teaching practices for sport management teachers. If we begin with the assumption that other disciplines do not have an entrepreneurial mindset, then sport entrepreneurship education cannot be sustainable in its own right but rather needs to be integrated as the foundation for all education courses. Therefore, a number of new approaches to entrepreneurship education are beginning to emerge about the need to develop stronger links between business and other disciplines. These potential synergies will help bring sport entrepreneurship education to the forefront of other disciplines and change sport student's mindsets in terms of learning practices. This chapter aims to contribute to the growing field of sport entrepreneurship education by presenting and analyzing existing research and to suggest future research areas.

The chapter presents recent development in the field of entrepreneurship education of several European universities – partners within Erasmus+ project on blended learning entrepreneurship course development, covering subjects from everyday instructional and practical approaches to support (under)graduate entrepreneurship and theoretical connections with modern worldwide educational and socioeconomic policies. Theoretical overview of the subject of entrepreneurship education is presented in the first part, and in the second part, good practice of BLUES Entrepreneurship course is discussed (BLUES Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union: Blended-learning international entrepreneurship skills programme; European Entrepreneurship Experience project). The chapter discusses the needs of universities and university professors and entrepreneurship instructors by highlighting how blended learning addresses some challenges of entrepreneurship education implementation while also brings some new challenges in managing such a course. Blended learning is suggested as a conducive environment for entrepreneurial learning in both academic and nonacademic settings. Based on the presented methodology entrepreneurship professors are able to implement and/or adjust the BLUES methodology within their own course, parts of it or the whole course that is provided through online massive open online courses (MOOCs) and toolkit for face-to-face exercises in class. Chapter provides a systematic and integrated perspective with relevance for business students, educators and policymakers.

The objective of this study focuses on the characterization of the Latin American entrepreneurial profile from a psychological perspective. In order to do this, a journey through time was carried out in the study of the entrepreneurial subject, from the great classics to the contemporary era, the era of knowledge, innovation, technology, and revolution. In the Latin American context, the role of the entrepreneur is limited due to vulnerable institutions, corruption, populism, and socioeconomic inequity. However, the new information and communication technologies constitute an ideal route for growth in the region. The fundamental element is the psychological profile of the entrepreneur, which is made up of a set of personal characteristics, among which innovation, achievement motivation, self-efficacy, moderate propensity for risk, creativity, perseverance, proactivity, flexibility, locus of control stand out, internal, adaptability, responsibility, ability to recognize opportunities, autonomy, commitment, handling problems and managerial skills. Finally, case studies from countries such as Mexico, Peru, and Chile are presented. It is a documentary study which reflects that Latin American entrepreneurs share the same psychological attributes as those who live in developed countries. However, obstacles arising from the lack of environment and public policies are imposed on entrepreneurial activity. The culture of a country and the formative role of education can become limiting or enhancing factors; therefore, it is necessary to bet on beliefs and convictions attached to innovation, which strengthen the psychological attributes of the entrepreneurial spirit.

Entrepreneurship education and digital marketing courses tend to be studied separately although some topics around digitalisation are similar to both. The aim of this chapter is to discuss in more depth how entrepreneurship education can embed more digital marketing techniques. This is useful particularly in response to the COVID-19 crisis where most entrepreneurship education courses have moved to an online format. To take advantage of this increase in digital technology, entrepreneurship educators need to embed more effectively digital marketing techniques within their courses. This will lead to an embrace of a digital marketing philosophy that is conducive to the overall understanding of entrepreneurship education being about how to progress based on emerging technology changes. Suggestions for future research are stated in the chapter that highlight the relevance of digital marketing for entrepreneurship educators.