Millennials who start their own businesses are more interested in growing their influence on their local communities than their parents were, but many also have altruistic motives: They want to use that influence to improve those communities.

That’s according to HSBC Private Bank’s “Essence of Enterprise” report, which finds 26 percent of entrepreneurs in their 20s set up their business with a view to making a name for themselves, compared with 17 percent of over-50s.

While 1 out of 4 millennial entrepreneurs sets up a business to make a difference and get recognition for their impact, they prioritize their influence and its impact on the local community, compared with older generations.

Nearly a quarter of those in their 20s, the report finds, say having a positive impact on the community is an important goal; that’s considerably higher than entrepreneurs aged 50+, where only 13 percent have that as a goal.

In the U.K., young entrepreneurs are more than twice as likely to say having this positive influence is important, compared with older entrepreneurs (15 percent compared with only 6 percent). But the different generational goals are even more pronounced in the U.S., where the difference moves 12 percentage points (29 percent compared with 17 percent).

In Asia-Pacific, the focus is more on wealth building, with nearly half (45 percent) of millennial entrepreneurs launching their businesses with the goal of increasing their personal wealth. That compares with 40 percent in the U.S. and 29 percent in Europe.

There’s even more of a gap between the two global age groups when it comes to environmental and social considerations. Entrepreneurs in their 20s are more likely to push harder on these issues compared with the over-50s (37 percent compared with 25 percent), particularly in mainland China. In the latter region, almost half of millennials focus on this area, compared with under a quarter of over-50s (41 percent compared with 23 percent).

Millennials also spend nearly twice as long, on average, participating in community activities or volunteering (54 minutes, compared with 30 minutes, on average per day). Again, the difference between young and old is largest in China, where the time difference amounts to over an hour extra a day (one hour and 18 minutes compared with just six minutes).

Millennials also boost their support networks through a greater focus on company strategy and internal staff management, and put in half an hour more daily to these tasks than their older counterparts.

They’re also less likely to get involved in the day-to-day delivery of products and services; that frees up an average of 42 minutes a day by empowering employees to make important client-facing decisions. This greater emphasis on overall business strategy and managing talent internally strengthens their networks.

Instant Insights /

Millennial entrepreneurs seek influence to boost communities

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