Self-confidence, persistence, flexibility, and an affinity for success are the hallmarks of an entrepreneur: A person who'll take an idea and run with it — frequently to the bank.

To customers, there's not much to loyalty programs; on the surface they're usually just a piece of plastic and a "Here's how much you saved" line at the bottom of a receipt.

Nine simple words, "Let me just play Devil's Advocate for a minute," have torched many a fledgling concept, writes Tom Kelley, author of "The Ten Faces of Innovation." The Devil's Advocate is "the biggest innovation killer in America today." But Kelley has a remedy for the Devil's Advocate: the t

"85 percent of CEOs have innovation on a short list of strategic priorities. But then they put it off," said Tom Kelley, the featured speaker at Arizona State University's 2007 Design Excellence Dinner.

In 2003, when corporate turnaround wizard Champ Mitchell became chairman and CEO of Network Solutions, the company was in serious trouble.

A new breed of entrepreneur is combining for-profit ventures with non-profit social causes to create a hybrid brand of philanthropy. Pittsburgh-based leader William E. Strickland, Jr. could be considered the grandfather of the movement.

Each year, the Spirit of Enterprise Center at the W. P. Carey School of Business presents the Spirit of Enterprise Awards™ to companies that demonstrate ethics, energy and excellence in entrepreneurship.

All entrepreneurship is not the same. Innovative entrepreneurs create and commercialize new products, services and business practices, in contrast to the replicative entrepreneurs — those who open businesses that support a growing population, such as restaurants and dry cleaners.

What is small business? According to the Small Business Administration's size standards, an enterprise may still be considered "small" if it employs as many as 1,500 people with revenues up to $32.5 million.

Entrepreneur magazine recently ranked Arizona as the top hot spot for entrepreneurs. However, it is replicative, not innovative, entrepreneurs who are flourishing in Arizona.