Thursday, October 9, 2008

SME learning experience

Starting a small business is always a exciting experience . There are also lot of problems. However , I would like to refer them as learning opportunity . To start with there is lack of clarity with the business .I think , that is not the right time to incorporate the business . As there are lot of things, gets changed.

So, it is more important to wait for sometime to let the ideas to settle down. There is also requirement of intensive market research inorder to make the idea more clear and to get a clear set of target customer. Besides, it is a common tendency to spend a lot of money in the office and decoration . However, it is not a wise idea to spend a lot of money in office and decoration , unless the business requires a retail outfit to start with.

The rules of starting and small business is in fact applying the " Keep it simple " principle.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

SME Training and Capacity Development

One of the way corporate could achieve its sustainable development goals is by SME trainning and capacity development on the larger community where it is having its organisation . This infact has a direct effect on the economy of that particular location and create better acceptance from the local community . It is one of the best way to handle the unrest, which is reportedly growing in different place of India and World, while creating different Heavy Industries on a location.

Lonmin is following this path in South Africa(Mooinooi area) to create a better relation with the larger community .Lonmin is a primary producer of Platinum Group Metals (PGMs). It creates value by the discovery, acquisition, development and marketing of minerals and metals.It has offices in Johensburg and a mine in Mooinooi area. It is funding a business incubation centre which will further facilitate the process of SME training and capacity development in the localities.

This is a fantastic model which other business can follow to avoid, land and other conflict from the localities , in case of building operation related to 'Heavy Industries'.

Monday, October 6, 2008

Integrating SME Financing and Business Incubation alongwith sustainable business

Can these three most important fields of SME's be integrated ?

SME Financing and Business Incubation though sound closer .Sustainable business stands as world apart.

Let me ask you to look it more closely ? Are they not related ?

Sustainability is a value which every organization should have in there DNA, in order to sustain for a long time. If sustainability is not a part of a business strategy for SME's , it is very hard for them to survive in the present Global situation where we see a certain degree of environmental and social consciousness in the mass. To enable this strategy in a grand scale we need financial instruments and that's why SME finance is inter-related with Sustainable business strategy . The missing link is the business incubation by which SME's could get a infrastructural back up before they startup there enterprise .

From these point of view , three most important factor for SME growth is - a business strategy which is sustainable in nature and which can access to different SME funding instruments and get the infrastructural back up for its intial phases, that its business comes into maturity faster.