With the number of jobs dwindling in the formal sector, and the emergence of outsourcing, many professionals are finding that using their expertise as a consultant is the way to go. Being a consultant offers several benefits: you are your own boss, you can set your hours as well as the clients you offer your services to.
However, when developing a business plan for your consulting enterprise, its also vital to ask yourself a few questions to ensure that your business gets off the ground in the most successful way.
InvesteQ Capital is a 7 year old company whose focus is to provide financing solutions to SMEs in Africa. The InvesteQ Capital Entrepreneurship Competition is a business plan competition preparing Kenyan SMEs for finance.
Eligibility
Kenyan businesses registered in Kenya
Financing requirement is between US$ 10,000 and US$ 1,000,000
You aim to be profitable in the next three years.
Your business is a growth business with a yearly growth rate in sales and/or employees of 30% annually.
The Enablis Entrepreneurial Network East Africa, Chase Bank and the International Labour Organization launched the annual business plan competition aimed at supporting emerging and existing entrepreneurs on July 5th 2011.
The 2011 competition got a boost when the ILO’s Youth Entrepreneurship Facility generously increased their sponsorship to share the title sponsorship with Chase Bank.
The competition is also supported by Inoorero University, Business Daily, Safaricom Foundation, MobiKash, Rhino Special Products and the Kenya ICT Board.
The competition is a platform for Kenyans with business ideas to realize their dreams.
You’re in the wrong place if you just have an idea without a business plan, design methodology, or track record. However, if you are ready to launch with all of these things and are committed to working at the intersection of money and meaning, then you are welcome to apply for 1 of 50 scholarships to SOCAP11.
Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life. - Confucius.
We recently stumbled upon Meme (pronounced “meem”), a technology site tracking innovation, social media, culture and business. The site features an interview with Richard Branson, the renowned entrepreneur - best known for his Virgin brand of over 360 companies.
At the conclusion of the interview where Branson is asked about his philosophy on focus he responds: “I tend not to think of work as work, or business as business. I am passionate about any business or challenge I put the Virgin name to, this helps me to stay focused. I truly believe you have to love what you do and be the best in the market – simply by providing the consumer with the products they want.”
This triggered recall of another interview with social entrepreneur Ami Dar of Idealist.org on Dowser, a site that tells stories about people who are creatively attacking social problems. For those not in the know, Ami Dar is the founder of Idealist.org an interactive platform where people and organizations can take steps towards building a world where all people can lead free and dignified lives.
When discussing what motivates him, Ami Dar in the Dowser interview said “It can be frustrating at times, but when people ask me, ‘How do you motivate yourself, how do you keep going,’ I’ve never felt that I have a choice. I’ve never in a million years imagined working for a different organization. This isn’t a job, it’s not a workplace. It’s what I do.”
After the initial excitement of the brain wave that will change the world and revolutionise society has long ended; and the entrepreneur sets to the task of actually making their vision happen, sometimes set backs or sheer fatigue sets in. Then the visionary who was once so elated over their business idea starts to view it as work.
Though it has been said that employees work in a business while entrepreneurs work on their business, however particularly for the micro-entrepreneur sometimes all of a sudden the purpose of the idea looses prominence and the entrepreneur only sees the necessity of getting the work done.
After a while even that business plan we spent so much time on prior to launch gets thrown by the way side and it becomes a matter of survival to stay afloat. At this time it’s important to step aside, pick up the plan and assess whether you still see the bigger picture and whether it still excites you. If it does, then like Richard Branson and Ami Dar think of your business as a vocation. Your legacy to the world.
A recently published report titled "Oxfam Poverty Footprint: Understanding Business Contribution to Development" poses serious questions - even for youth entrepreneurs operating micro-businesses. In fact, we would go so far as to say that the nascent stage of business, is exactly the right moment to think about the question: What is my enterprises' footprint on society?
The report which is a prequel to a second outlining the actual methodology for undertaking a footprint survey outlines the reasons why it is important for entrepreneurs to consider their business impact. The report posits that an awareness of the effects of a business on society and people living in poverty can help a business to improve it's operations, understand risks and present new opportunities.
Specific areas of focus include assessing value chains, how the business affects the wider society's standard of living and the social implications of environmental practices. And though Oxfam stipulate that such a footprint survey should be undertaken by independent researchers, ultimately it remains the responsibility of business owners to ensure that their enterprises leave a lasting and positive legacy.
