Entrepreneurship development in Japan: An empirical analysis

Objective: The purpose of this article is to evaluate the entrepreneurship development of Japan and comparing its performance against leading countries in the same region, mainly Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Research Design & Methods: We implement the Global Entrepreneurship Index GEI methodology, where the GEI methodology focuses on quality-related institutional and individual aspects of entrepreneurship. Moreover, we utilised a novel feature of the GEI the Penalty for Bottleneck PFB methodology to produce induction of which entrepreneurial elements should be addressed and how much effort needs it to lighten Japan bottleneck. Findings: Japan’s entrepreneurial performance is relatively modest compared to some countries in the same region, especially in individual variables. Japan’s entrepreneurial profile strengths are in the institutional features (e.g., country risk), while the instability in the profile back to individual variables (e.g., population perception and motivation). The country has three fundamental bottlenecks in its performance opportunity perception, start-up skills, and networking pillars. The GEI data used in the study only covers the 2006-2016 period. Japan should be focused on the three bottlenecks opportunity perception, start-up skills, and networking to improve its entrepreneurial performance by developing an education policy that focuses on entrepreneurship. Contribution & Value Added: This paper identifies the vulnerable aspects of Japan’s performance by using a novel methodology that combines individual and institutional variables in a single model. Also, the use of (PFB) to detect which entrepreneurial components should be addressed.