The Coming Etrepreneurship Boom

According to a new study conducted by the Ewing Marion The Kaufmann Foundation, a nonprofit group that encourages entrepreneurship, the United States might be on the cusp of an entrepreneurship boom–not in spite of an aging population but because of it.   The report makes the point that contrary to popularly held assumptions, the highest rate of entrepreneurial activity belongs to the 55-64 age group.  Many assume that the 20-34 age group is the hub of entrepreneurial activity because more willing to take greater risks.  In actuality, they have the lowest rate.  Here’s what the study found:

• In every single year from 1996-2007, Americans between the ages of 55 and 64 had a higher rate of entrepreneurial activity than those aged 20-34.
• For the entire period, the 55-64 group averaged a rae of entrepreneurial activity roughly one-third larger than their younger counterparts.
• The average age of founders of technology companies in the United States is 39, with twice as many over 50 and under the age of 25.

The study goes on to say that the increase in life expectancy also means that Americans are not only living longer but also living healthier longer, suggesting that those entrepreneurial 60 year-olds could be 2020′s entrepreneurial 70-year-olds!

The study concludes that given the shifting age distribution of the country, the continued decline of lifetime employment and the experience and knowledge such employees carry with them, and the effects of the 2008-2009 recession, we may be about to enter a highly entrepreneurial period.

Click here to read the entire Kauffman Foundation study.