JOURNAL OF ENTREPRENEURIAL STRATEGIES IN AGRICULTURE
Year:2017 | Volume:3 | Issue:6 |Papers Count:7

In dynamic business environment, that profit streams in future is unreliable, the firms continually need to search and exploit new opportunities. As a result, it is essential for firms have more attention to performance and factors affecting on it, to maintain an active presence in this field. Now a day, entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial orientation is at the central point of view of researchers and managers in theory and practice of management in organizations. The purpose of this study is examining the effect of entrepreneurial orientation and knowledge absorptive capacity on SME performance of Agro industry in Mazandaran. The sampling method is stratified random sampling and the sample size consists of 99 firms. Data have been collected thought Questionnaire that its validity confirmed according to experts opinion. Its reliability was calculated 0.95 with Cronbach's alpha formula. The results showed that entrepreneurial orientation and knowledge absorptive capacity have a positive and significant effect on the firm performance. In other words, higher levels of entrepreneurial orientation activities lead to higher level of performance. In addition, the findings has showed that continuous exploration of knowledge outside the firm, absorption and internalization of required components of them among individuals an teams can improve the firm's performance. According to findings, we have introduced that the managers can improve the firm's performance with entrepreneurial orientation, and preparation to knowledge absorptive capacity.

Increase of unemployment has pushed millions of people around the world toward entrepreneurship and knowing opportunities for new businesses. The research was accomplished aiming to survey the attitude to entrepreneurship in agricultural quick-impact companies in the city of Birjand. The present research is considered practical in terms of purpose and of non-experimental kind in terms of method how to control the variables. The statistical society of the research has included founder company-owners, agricultural quickimpact companies. Also, it has been selected 130 company-owners by proportionate assignment in random sampling in 2016. In the present research, in order to measure the reliability of measurement tool, it was distributed the designed questionnaire among 30 company-owners and it was analyzed using SPSS20 computer software after filling out. The findings from t-test represent that there's a positive and significant relationship between the variable of attitude to entrepreneurship and the variables of experience of attending in motivation and purposefulness and entrepreneurship training classes. Also, the results of one-way analysis of variance test (F) which has been accomplished by grouping using LSD and Duncan's test represent that there's a significant difference in terms of attitude to entrepreneurship among various age groups. As the age category under 30 years (young) and the age category from 31-40 years include more attitude to entrepreneurship than the age category more than 41 year.

In recent years, Turkmen carpet as an important source of Turkmen families’ income, faced with different challenges. This study aimed to identify Turkmen carpet production deterrents from viewpoint of rural women weavers, in Gonbad Kavoos County, based on descriptive and survey research method. The target population in the study consisted all of women weavers in Aqabad rural district in centeral district of Gonbad Kavoos County in Golestan province (N=120). Using random sampling, 95 of them were selected as research samples. Data gathered through a questionnaire and its validity was confirmed by expert’s panel. The reliability analysis was conducted with Cronbach’s alpha method and coefficient was 0.84. The factor analysis results showed about 66/326% of the variance of carpet production inhibitors can explain with ten factors: policy and operational, individual, cultural, supportive, legal and personal health, marketing, technical and motivational, economical, price and institutional and occupational health, respectively.

According to rural women's contribution and importance also their entrepreneurial spirit, there is no doubt these two issues are very important to better achieve rural development programs if they will consider together. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to review the education role in improving rural women's entrepreneurship. The study population included all 110 rural women entrepreneurs in Borujen city, of those a sample of 86 people was selected by a simple randomized method. The content validity of questions was verified by a group of experts and specialists and reliability of the questions was done during a pre-test using a Cronbach's alpha coefficient and it was 0.899. Data were analyzed using SPSS software 19 version. The results showed that the women's awareness about entrepreneurship is at average level, but majority of them agreed to the role of education in improving entrepreneurship with a positive attitude. The results of factor analysis test revealed that the factors affecting the development of rural women entrepreneurship can be divided into three main factors that respectively were: specialized training about entrepreneurship, use from pioneer women's entrepreneurs' information and experiences, and use from mass media and internet. In order to develop entrepreneurship among rural women to use practical training courses, experienced women's entrepreneurs and modern media are strongly recommended.

Nowadays, facing toward the entrepreneurial Universities and optimal performance in entrepreneurial higher education system is the main strategy in agricultural higher education system. In this regard, the main of this study was to analyze the effectiveness of agricultural higher education system on improvement of entrepreneurial capabilities among agricultural students (M.Sc. and PhD levels). By using of stratified random sampling method, among graduate students of agriculture in University of Mohaghegh Ardabili (N=995), sample size of 288 was determined. The research instrument consisting of standardized test "to measure personality traits of entrepreneurship in Iran" with standardized international test of entrepreneurship center of Durham University in England and five variables of the effectiveness of entrepreneurial higher education system. The results showed that the majority of respondents, in terms of achievement motivation and internal control were "relatively high" level; but in terms of independence, risk taking and creativity were at "relatively low" and "low" levels, respectively. Other findings suggest that only there was significant difference between two abilities of independence and risk taking, among M.Sc. and PhD students. Also, the upper GPA among respondents has increased their achievement motivation; but the increase in GPA, has not made a significant impact on entrepreneurial capabilities. According to regression analysis, totally, three variables of content and curriculum (Beta= 0.392), management and infrastructure factors (Beta= 0.304) and methods of teaching and training (Beta= 0.229) explained 60.2 percent of factors affecting on improvement of entrepreneurial capabilities among respondents. Therefore, the priority of educational planning to enhance the independence, risk taking and creativity of students in the three effective variables will be effective in improving the effectiveness of the agricultural education system.

The main purpose of this paper is to identify the challenges and barriers of entrepreneurship development in the conversion industry of horticultural products in North Khorasan Province and prioritize those barriers and finally provide solutions to the barriers to the development of this industry. For this purpose, the required information was obtained through face-to-face interviews and completed a questionnaire with 20 managers and experts from Jihad-e- Agriculture Organization, Department of Industry, Mine, Trade, Chamber of Commerce and Agricultural Bank of North Khorasan Province. The results show that the barriers to financing in the first place are the factors affecting the transformation industries of North Khorasan province, after which the market-related bottlenecks are ranked second, the lack of strategic planning in the gardening products conversion industry is ranked third, paperwork In the process of issuing licenses (bureaucratic system) and the weakness of the private sector management system and the cooperative of conversion units, they are ranked fourth in the fourth place, and the weakness of coordination between government agencies is in the fifth position. Therefore, it is proposed to pay a loan with easier conditions and a longer repayment period Will happen. It also, reduces the creation of a single window between organizations for licensing, costs, and the timing of the start-up of workshops and conversion industries, and the implementation of focused marketing programs to engage in regional and cross-border markets and seasonal markets will help solve the problem market bottlenecks.

Rural entrepreneurship is one of the new approaches to achieve sustainable development and agricultural sector is an important part of the rural economy providing ground for its growth and development. Agricultural development is the basis of investment, employment and reduction of unemployment. So, it is necessary to identify factors affecting rural agricultural entrepreneurship. The main objective of this study is to identify factors affecting agricultural entrepreneurship development from the perspective of entrepreneur farmers and agricultural experts. In terms of method, this research is of descriptive - surveying type and in terms of objective it is an applied research. The statistical population of this research is 550 of farmers of Sarbaz county 225 of which were selected as the sample using a Cochran formula. The survey instrument was a Researcher made questionnaire the validity of which was confirmed by a group of farmers and agricultural experts and its reliability was estimated about 0.783 using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. the data has been analyzed with the help of 23 Spss software. Based on the results, five factors of economic, environmental, social, behavioral and promotion have played a role in the development of agricultural entrepreneurship among which the Economic factors with average rating 3.25 have the greatest impact on agricultural entrepreneurship and then, environmental, social, behavioral and promotional factors respectively are the greatest impact have influenced the agricultural entrepreneurship. Therefore, there should be a provision for providing farmers with financial and credit facilities (financial support) for agricultural entrepreneurship, facilitating network co-operation, and increasing the competitiveness of farmers (free market space).