Is Entrepreneurship training for you?

Today in Kenya, for a person venturing into business, they most likely have some basic education of the related field. The education may be in the form of either college education or an equivalent of hands-on experience from working and interacting with the industry. These two forms of learning go hand in hand with each other where people with basic scholar education and work experience generally do well in business. A large percentage of Kenyan business persons who are in small enterprises would not have had the chance or the privilege of experiencing both, and thus, they would need something extra to bridge this gaping hole; they would need Entrepreneurship training.

So, what exactly is this Entrepreneurship training we are talking about? It refers to the training schemes that are meant to develop persons for self-employment, organizing, or managing an enterprise on their own. This is exactly why Maple Management Ltd came up with this training program – to impart the foundations of Management and Entrepreneurship for the many business people out there.

I got the opportunity to attend the first edition of the Entrepreneurship training courses 2013. The event was held at the ‘Consolata Shrine Hall’, a stone’s throw away from Westlands central business district. By 8:00 am, guests were already streaming in, kicking it off without a hitch and the place being almost a full house by the time it hit 10:00 am. The comprehensive training events are part of a broader purpose to connect and grow SME’s, and in the end creating a platform where the businesses can raise and discuss the issues affecting them. Maple has designed several of these courses, where professional consultants come to lecture on common topics that will equip the attendees with skills on how they can apply this knowledge and in the process commercialize it.

A variety of speakers talked on the various sectors where they are most experienced in. One of theexperts, Mr. Elvis Kamau, a business development executive at Open World Ltd, spoke a great deal on sustainable products and market development for sustainable businesses. Some of the objectives he sought to clearly address during the session was on the need to give the small businesses the tool kit they needed to start a company and then guide them through with skills they needed to succeed.

The old assertion that you can’t teach entrepreneurship is finally looking like a myth with every passing day, and this is because earlier no curriculum existed to support such a broad topic. With such ventures being introduced and consistent programs being rolled out country-wide, there will no doubt be an increase in modern business strategies and thus spur growth across the sector.

Entrepreneurship does not require an IQ. When you fail…you compose yourself, learn, and move forward.