Success needs more than
enthusiasm
November 26, 2003
You will
never succeed in your own business if you don't have a really
good idea, and plenty of passion and enthusiasm. But even this
may not always be enough.
That is the word from Adele
Naude of Bizwise, an entrepreneurship training expert, who
points out that many small businesses fail within their first
year of operation because of management problems.
"It
is very difficult, particularly in the case of a one-person
enterprise, for the owner to distance him or herself from the
day-to-day bustle of getting the business off its feet.
"There is little time to devote to strategic thinking
and to making the business decisions required to ensure
sustainability," she says.
Bizwise runs a two-day
course aimed at entrepreneurs looking to start up their own
businesses, as well as at people already in business who are
having problems, or who want advice on where to go
next.
"We concentrate on micro-businesses, because we
believe that this is where the solutions to the country's
unemployment problems lie," Naude says.
"The owners of
these sorts of enterprises are typically people of technical
or sales ability who have opted out of corporate employment
and who want to run their own operations.
"While those
skills are absolutely essential for their success, so are the
classical management skills that are a proven part of
successful businesses."
Bizwise's two-day course runs
over a weekend - these entrepreneurs cannot afford to be away
from work during the week.
The course looks at topics
like entrepreneurship, assessing business opportunities,
operational management, human resources management, marketing
management, financial management and creating a business
plan.
"What makes us different from similar small
business creation courses," Naude explains, "is the emphasis
that we place on practical application of the required
skills.
"The course delegates are given a file with the
necessary theory to study in their own time.
"The two
days of the course are devoted mainly to practical exercises
and simulations."
The fee per delegate is R1 500 for
the two days and the training takes place in Randburg.
For more information contact Naude on 011 745 1503, or
via e-mail: bizwise@telkomsa.net - Cape Argus
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