One of the greatest challenges in Africa is recruiting the unskilled labour force that makes up the majority of unemployed people. Where we've seen exponential growth in the number of new businesses, in spite of the challenges in accessing markets and funding, skills pose a limitation on the growth of these businesses.
Read moreBuilding sales confidence with a winning mindset
Being an entrepreneur automatically means that you keep learning. You keep developing your skills-sets, understanding new ways of doing business and applying new methods to make your business better. The same principles are applied to sales. If you want to be a better salesperson, with the understanding that all entrepreneurs are salespeople, then you need to keep honing your skills and developing your mindset to have a winning attitude in sales.
Read moreUnderstanding profitability, growth and sustainability
It is my pleasure to embark on this profitability series which will touch on so many aspects of an organisation’s growth and sustainability. In these series, we shall deal with all issues around company profitability, from merely having an appreciation of what it means to understanding how a failing company can return to profitability.
Read moreAdvice from one MomPreneur to another
The idea of being an entrepreneur and a mom at the same time may cause goose bumps in some women, let alone if the business is a start-up or is having some bumpy and rough times in its growth phase. To many women such businesses do not need additional disturbances from family members, be it a husband, children or even relatives, but would rather attend to all business issues 24/7 and 365 days a year without a break.
Read moreENTREPRENEUR SMARTS: Scan the Horizon
It is essential for every entrepreneur to keep “scanning the horizon” - seeing what is new in technology, business, and society as a whole.
Read moreThe Eaglepreneur: How to differentiate yourself
Ever wondered why an eagle is such a unique bird when it comes to the flock of the air? An eagle was created in a very unique way which makes it one of the most used examples when it comes to entrepreneurship and leadership. An eagle has some fascinating characteristics, which when applied in our everyday lives as business women, we find ourselves soaring in high places which we never thought we would venture into.
Read more3 Surefire Ways To Increase Your Business
Sales should always be the hot topic of discussion in your business. Whether you’re having strategy meetings with shareholders or internal staff meetings, the word sales should always certainly come up. Sales is the single most important activity within any business.
Read moreEntrepreneur Smarts: Build a Bicycle First!
I encourage beginning entrepreneurs to rather tackle small, achievable projects first. This allows them to rapidly gain a full set of skills across a complete project, as well as building up contacts, credibility and confidence - rather than getting bogged down, and run down, working on an huge endless project.
Read moreThe Secret to Building Sustainable Businesses
Ever wondered how all these big businesses started and how they came to be what they are today? The likes of Econet Wireless, Delta Corporation and British American Tobacco in Zimbabwe; Sasol, Standard Bank and MTN. I believe each of these companies has a story to tell, and from those stories we learn a lot about running a sustainable business. To some people business is all about making money, to some it’s all about fulfilling a calling, to some it is all about providing solutions to the current problems, be it social or economic ones.
Read moreENTREPRENEUR SMARTS: Don't Be the Squirrel!
Many startups become isolated and insular, focusing on their product to the exclusion of all else - like the squirrel in Ice Age, who is so preoccupied with his nut that he never really interacts with any of the other animals. This is not good, or healthy. These startups are cut off from the support, camaraderie, flow of ideas, and connections that can prove so vital to a product’s success, and from a vital source of ideas for new offerings.
Read moreThe First Step To Becoming Confident In A Sales Meeting
I was privileged enough to attend the very first #LionessMentoring session at the Standard Bank Incubator in Rosebank, Johannesburg this week. One of the things that really struck me, besides the passion and resilience each women entrepreneur displayed, was the complete lack of confidence in themselves and their sales abilities.
Read moreENTREPRENEUR SMARTS: Do the numbers!
I've been spending lots of time with new startups, from pro bono mentoring to judging pitches at the competitions. Lots of the ideas sound plausible but often suffer from a fatal flaw - the numbers have not been done.
Read moreHow Your Life Experiences Can Help Other Entrepreneurs
This past week I was in Cape Town where I was invited to join other entrepreneurs watch a few hand selected startups pitch their business ideas. The startups varied from post revenue all the way to MVP (minimal viable product), meaning they don’t currently have customers, however they do have a working product. As a group of entrepreneurs who have travelled the path, got the proverbial t-shirt and faced our fair share of challenges, a few things really struck me. The reason why we were there was to identify the best matching mentors for each startup. And isn’t this something that is seriously lacking in our startup community - the power and importance of having a great mentor on your team, who can take their life experiences and help you on your journey.
Read moreEntrepreneur Smarts: Learn from other Ecosystems
How well do you understand the ecosystem in which you are working? What will happen next in this space? How will the forces shaping it affect your venture?
Read moreENTREPRENEUR SMARTS: Think about your Ecosystem...
We've spoken in previous newsletters about the strategy of the flower - making sure that your core service or product is surrounded by a set of world-class services (the petals of the flower) to make up a compelling "whole product". But, it's not enough to just build your flower. You must also make sure that your company and its "flowers" are well positioned in the total ecosystem of your industry.
Read moreENTREPRENEUR SMARTS: De-couple Your Business
Your business is stuck, bogged down, cannot move forward... That’s when many of my clients come to me, so this week we’re going to look at how a de-coupling strategy can help some ventures to move forward.
Read moreEntrepreneur Smarts: Personal change....
In my last article we spoke about S-curves, the underlying lifecycle of all innovations, and how important it is to manage transitions from one S-curve to another. Explained in terms of curves, it sounds so easy. But it isn’t. Every curve represents something - a project, a venture, a dream, a team of people - that we have loved, cared for, poured our life into. And when these things change, we have to change too - and that is not easy.
Read moreStarting a business with absolutely NO money
What a scary thought – not only starting a business, but to start off with no capital - yikes! If you read any article related to entrepreneurs, from Silicon Valley to the African continent, the very first thing you read is that they’ve got funding. But is funding the be-all and end-all? What if you don’t have access to immediate funding, but you have an amazing business idea that will change the world? Well, the alternative is to bootstrap it, to become really innovative to start this amazing business idea of yours.
Read moreHow to deal with setbacks in your startup business
For a startup venture, setbacks may be the name of the game, especially in the beginning phases. You’re still learning the ropes, understanding your market, finding the right team and wrapping your mind around building an empire. As a startup, in order to focus and enjoy positive results and to move forward, it’s all about how you, as the Founder of your business, need to manage these setbacks. Do you take them in your stride? Or are you riddled with fear and anguish for days because things didn’t work out?
Read moreEntrepreneur Smarts: Understanding S-curves
Farmers know when to plow, when to plant, when to harvest, for the best crop. Is there a seasonal code to guide people developing innovations? There is. Every innovation follows a lifecycle called an S-curve. Understanding S-curves will help you to take the right actions at the right time.
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