Entrepreneurship Recommendations at the Obama Jobs Summit

Posted by: Mark Marich on December 04, 2009 Source: Policy Dialogue on Entrepreneurship

At yesterday’s White House “Jobs Summit”, Kauffman Foundation president and CEO Carl Schramm laid out five strategies to boost entrepreneurship and create jobs. Schramm, an economist, author on entrepreneurship and former entrepreneur, joined about 130 business leaders, economists and CEOs from across the United States to identify ways the government can stimulate job growth.

A recent Kauffman Foundation study shows that, in 2008 and most of 2009, firm foundation declined."With unemployment at 10.2 percent, Washington needs to create an environment where entrepreneurs and new companies can thrive and create the jobs that our country desperately needs. Young firms drive economic growth and will be the solution to economic recovery," Schramm said. His five recommendations to boost entrepreneurship and job growth are:

•    Create a "Founders Visa" for immigrants who found new companies in the United States to keep their businesses—and the jobs they create—here.
•    Offer a payroll tax holiday so that young companies can afford to hire and expand.
•    Provide clarity about taxes and future regulations to avoid unintended and harmful consequences to entrepreneurs.
•    Create entrepreneur fellowships for recently graduated Ph.D.s, giving them an opportunity to commercialize their research.
•    Offer Sarbanes-Oxley exemptions to certain young companies so they can offer IPOs more quickly.

These strategies are based on rigorous research showing that new firms drive job creation. According to studies from the Kauffman Foundation, companies less than five years old have created all net new jobs in the United States since 1980.

Category:  Capitol Hill  Workforce  Tags:  obama, carl schramm, kauffman foundation