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I think we over estimate the impact startups have on job creation. The recent home runs (google, facebook, zynga, groupon) have created astonishingly large val
by johnrob 16y ago
I think we over estimate the impact startups have on job creation. The recent home runs (google, facebook, zynga, groupon) have created astonishingly large value with relatively few employees - a few thousand on average. Startups are good at creating wealth, but not necessarily jobs (we still have record level unemployment in silicon valley). Our country needs to put millions of people to work; the 20k jobs created by startups are not going to solve that problem.
Theoretically, the unemployed workers can adapt to the "new economy" and re-establish themselves. Empirically, however, that's not happening.
Startups are more likely to aid the jobless via welfare (from tax revenue) than by actually employing people.
- gsmaverick 16y agoNew startups don't just create jobs for the people they themselves hire. Google & Facebook in particular have created far more jobs than those on their payrolls.
- tomjen3 16y agoIt is possible for a writer now to make a good living selling his self-published ebooks on Amazon's kindle platform, to maintain a living writing blogposts for an audience larger than many smaller magazines ever had, etc. But that is beside the point: job creation isn't the goal of any business nor is it the responsibility of any business to hire a certain amount of people, and the country as such doesn't need to put a large number of people to work - people are responsible for their own life and if they are not willing to do that (and you may very well be right about that I don't know), that is their own problem.
- PetoVera_Matt 16y agoI disagree, Tom. You see, I believe entrepreneurs are heroes, and as such they need to lead and guide people who are unwilling to lead themselves for the greater benefit of all.
- tomjen3 16y agoNobody can change others, and there are plenty of guides online about personal development if that is what one is interested in.