9 hours ago
How local governments can back the entrepreneurs building their regions' futures
Entrepreneurship is increasingly viewed as the most dependable source of broad-based economic gains. Nearly all net new jobs come from new companies and a 1% rise in entrepreneurial activity correlates with a 2% decline in poverty.
Post-pandemic growth — led by women, particularly women of color — shows investments in 'inclusive entrepreneurship' worked, but systemic barriers to capital, networks and opportunity still limit would-be founders.
A policy 'field guide' recommends redirecting 5% of procurement to firms under five years old, eliminating early registration fees, reforming noncompetes, strengthening libraries as entrepreneurial hubs, designating a clear entrepreneurship leader and elevating existing ecosystem efforts rather than duplicating them.
Entrepreneurship can sound like rich people's problems. In certain settings, talking about business starts and business growth all sounds like the cavorting of the well to do. A growing coalition says that's all wrong.
'Entrepreneurship is not just about starting companies,' said Victor Hwang. 'It's about enabling people to solve problems in their communities with innovation and drive.'
Hwang refined his bookish charm and pro-entrepreneurship pitch while an executive at the Kansas City-based Kauffman Foundation, which is widely credited for advancing the research and the field of new-business support. This work now gets called ecosystem building, or place-based, entrepreneur-led economic development.
Hwang's policy-focused Right to Start nonprofit has just kicked off a national campaign called America the Entrepreneurial, to put entrepreneurs at the center of next year's 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. Hwang is also among my co-hosts of Builders Live, a monthly podcast on ecosystem building. Ahead of the Global Entrepreneurship Congress, in our most recent episode, alongside investor Brian Brackeen, we checked in on the most surefire policies Right to Start recommends for state and local officials.
Entrepreneurship is not a distraction from well-rounded and inclusive economic policy. It's increasingly recognized as the most dependable source of gains, including the following:
Nearly all net new jobs come from new companies
Every 1% increase in entrepreneurial activity in a county correlates with a 2% decline in poverty — and average household income increased by $500
41% of Americans say they'd launch a business if they could, but just 2% actually do
One key input of economic mobility is access to information about the programs and resources (a role we at Technically play)
Investments into what has been called 'inclusive entrepreneurship' in the 2000s and 2010s worked. Entrepreneurship has popped post-pandemic, led by women, especially women of color, but barriers remain.
'The reason I founded Right to Start was to change the narrative and the policies that limit entrepreneurship in this country,' Hwang said.
A checklist for policymakers to support entrepreneurship
Though more is to come, his Right to Start launched ' field guides ' for policymakers, at the local, state and federal levels. A few of their most common recommendations, mixed with a couple from own reporting:
5% to start: 'Dedicate a small percentage of current funding to new entrepreneurs and young businesses, and track the impact…Redirect 5% of government procurement dollars to businesses under 5 years old.'
Identify an entrepreneurship leader: This could be an existing lead (like a commerce director), provided they truly prioritize entrepreneurship.
Zero barriers to launch: ' Reduce or eliminate registration costs and fees for new businesses in their critical early years,' relying financially on more established firms.
Separate new business from small, medium and large businesses: They need different things, and it is the 'new' that create the most positive economic outcomes.
Easy access: 'Strengthen local libraries as hubs of knowledge and digital tools for entrepreneurs.'
Noncompete reform: 'Unleash entrepreneurs who want to create new jobs by freeing them from unfair bans and noncompete restrictions.'
Support existing efforts: Most states and regions have existing 'ecosystem building' efforts. Rather than recreate them, elevate and redirect residents there.
This mirrors advice we've given mayors in the past. To support entrepreneurship: Remove barriers, invest in workforce, celebrate homegrown solutions and amplify the priority. (We've made more general tech policy recommendations too)
Entrepreneurs start alone, but don't grow without help
Many of these steps are intentionally modest. Hwang, though, has a far more ambitious plan: for entrepreneurship to be at the very center of all economic policy.
Brackeen, managing partner of Lightship Capital, echoed that idea.
'The barriers that exist for entrepreneurs, especially those from underrepresented communities, are systemic, and we need systemic change,' Brackeen said. 'It's not about handouts. It's about access — access to capital, access to networks and access to opportunity.'
The best economic policy doesn't pick industries, it supports entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs don't pick places to start businesses, they pick places to live and then start businesses there. The ' Ecosystem Stack ' prioritizes both lifestyle issues (like housing) and amplifying these successes.
This works. According to new analysis, regions with a dedicated news outlet covering startups earn 60% more media coverage and, over a decade, grow their ecosystems twice as fast as similar peers.
The takeaway? Entrepreneurs may start alone, but their companies don't grow that way. Policy, platforms and narrative all shape what happens next.
'If we want more startups,' Hwang said, 'we need to fix the system so it doesn't favor big businesses at the expense of new ones.'
