An analysis of Core Competence and Unique Value Proposition as normative entrepreneurship elements

The search for a "best practice" of entrepreneurship has been a big part of the science of entrepreneurship of our millennium. Using text analysis, this article empirically investigates the way 756 entrepreneurs from three different cohorts conceptualize two of the 27 elements in such a suggested normative model. The two elements explored are "Core Competence" and "Unique Value Proposition". Our findings are that there may be two problems with the use of these elements. Firstly - the number of entries from each case suggest that entrepreneurs struggle with finding and settling on a "unique" statement for either of the two elements. Secondly, a percentage of the entrepreneurs seem to struggle to differentiate the two concepts from each other. Finally, there seem to be differences between the three investigated cohorts concerning the findings, where higher education and more experience may make it easier to utilize and understand Core Competence and Unique Value Proposition as parts of the entrepreneurial process.