Flexible
Entrepreneurship Development Programme
Programme Details
Institute for Enterprise Culture & Entrepreneurship Development
Snehapuri, Karumom P.O, Thiruvananthapuram-2Ph: (0471)2164180, 2493783; E-mail- [email protected]
Preface
Congratulations for taking an interest in FEDPRO! If you are thinking of entering business, this is best time for several reasons. Globalisation together with several local factors are fast transforming Kerala into a land of opportunities.
Unfortunately our State does not have the entrepreneurial might to exploit this tremendous opportunity. Entrepreneurship is confined to certain communities and regions. This organisation has been doing small but significant intervention to solve this major inadequacy. To know more about it and its interventions, please visit our website www.iecedkerala.org. A major objective of IECED is widening the entrepreneurial base of Kerala by taking the message of entrepreneurship to all communities and castes and regions of Kerala. IECED has been trying to achieve this objective by creating models of successful entrepreneurship in every part of the state.
As you would also agree, our state has tremendous potential for industrialization. Kerala stands top among Indian States in household consumption. Some unofficial estimates hold that Keralites who form just 3% of India’s population consume10% of consumer goods manufactured in the entire country. This means that Kerala is a mammoth market. It is a widely known fact that almost 80% of manufactured consumer goods are imported into the state. Total bank deposits in Kerala are to the tune of Rs. 90,000 crores of which not more than sixty percent is given as loan here. The educated youth number over 40 lakhs. Kerala is the centre of some of the important raw materials like rubber, coconut, spices, coir and minerals. Most of it is exported out of the state and brought back as finished products. Thus the state is abundant in all requirements for an industrial take off namely money, man power, materials and market. What we are lacking in is entrepreneurs of high calibre who can make use of these and transform the state into a hub of income and employment. For the last 50 years, our ministers in charge of industries and high ranking officials have been slogging in foreign lands to invite entrepreneurs to Kerala !
The solution to this impasse is creating well rounded entrepreneurs locally. There has been some efforts in that direction. Some government organizations and banks have been conducting Entrepreneurship Development Programmes running to six weeks or so. Conducted at a particular place within rigid timeframes, these programmes are not easily accessible to all. Their ‘academic’ approach is another limitation. For these and other reasons, these programmes have mostly attracted unemployed youths. They have not made much of an impact in the industrialization process of the state. On the contrary, they have paved way for a mistaken impression that entrepreneurship is something meant for unemployed. Due to paucity of sufficient participants, of late even these programmes are few and far between.
One disquieting aspect of the industrial scene of Kerala is the tendency of ‘fishing without wetting one’s hands’. Without putting in any hard work, select a product which has been found successful in the vicinity and get a project report prepared by a consultant and submit it to financial institutions ! Those who are lucky get loan and some of them have indeed succeeded. Usually majority of them fail. Even in the case of those who succeed, the underlying factors are not selection of product on scientific lines or efficient management but mere chance factors. This tendency did irreparable damage to the industrial scene of Kerala. It created poor models for the future entrepreneurs. Devoid of creativity and innovation, the industrial scene of Kerala has stagnated in the quagmire of low technology-low capital product lines.
This programme is a modest endeavor at breaking this vicious circle. There is a need to inculcate a culture of entering business with meticulous planning and preparation. This does not mean slogging a lot. What is needed is working hard in a systematic and scientific fashion. This would avoid wastage of lot of money, energy and time and in the process the task itself will become light. Essentially this programme is a framework for such an approach.
Of course, this is no substitute for your hard work. It is your enthusiasm, inquisitiveness and hard work that compel us to work hard for you. Only a ‘wantrepreneur’(a person who has a compelling desire to become an entrepreneur) will benefit from this programme. Are you one?
As you will find later, this programme mainly targets those who have a product line in mind. However, any determined ‘go-getter’ can benefit from this programme.
The focus of the programme is modern small and medium scale enterprises which are technology oriented and capital intensive. Naturally those who have the wherewithal are the first ones to benefit from this programme. Nevertheless, this programme is meant for the have-nots as well. We propose to equip as many participants as possible to avail of the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust Scheme of Government of India which offers collateral free loans upto Rs. 50 lakhs for small scale industries. Anybody who has a business plan backed by painstaking study of the product and market should be able to take advantage of this scheme.
In the end you would ask this question: what this programme offers to a ‘wantrepreneur’ ? The answer is:
• Heightened Confidence: Scientific and systematic approach followed through out this programme will instill confidence in you about the success of the business you are in. You will find yourself empowered. You will know why and how you will succeed.
• A Self-made Business Plan: The business plan you will prepare under our guidance using the most widely used software in the world will ensure easy financing and smooth implementation of the project.
• An Institution to Count on: You can look forward to our intervention, counselling and guidance as long as you need it.
Dr. Jose Sebastian
Director
FEDPRO: Its Rationale and Relevance
Conventional interventions like structured Entrepreneurship Development Programmes(EDP) are viewed mainly as a solution to the problem of unemployment. Those who become entrepreneurs through these programmes often enter the ‘me too’ product lines and remain as small fry businessmen. Only rarely such entrepreneurs achieve significant growth.
The experience of several developed countries have shown that entrepreneurs of high calibre are mostly drawn from employed people. Those who are working in the areas of production, processing, quality control, technology, marketing or management resign their jobs and launch their own ventures either in the same or related field. Since their knowledge and skills are limited to one or two areas only, they may have to acquire skills in other areas. The societies in these countries provide ample opportunities for acquiring these skills without affecting their current occupations or livelihood. Training programmes with flexible timings, online business coaching, counselling and guidance are some of them. While remaining in the job itself, they do the necessary groundwork for venture launching and this considerably reduces the risk factors. This pattern has ensured a steady stream of high calibre entrepreneurs in these countries.
Though not as widespread as in developed countries, this is a pattern obtaining in developing countries like India as well. Even in Kerala, some of the best entrepreneurs have ventured out after resigning their jobs. The prime objective of this programme is to promote entrepreneurship of this kind. The programme is mainly targeted to the following categories of people.
• Those who have proven capability or in-depth knowledge either in manufacturing, processing, quality control or marketing of a product or service. They may be at present working in a business enterprise or organization.
• Those who are totally dissatisfied with what they are doing at present. They generally have an intense desire to launch a venture of their own. They have the patience and readiness to put in hard work.
• Those who have developed or having an innovative product/service through their own research or enquiry. Those who have an idea to improve upon an existing product/service by applying a new technology or provide new features to it are also included.
• Those who are at present holding managerial positions in small and medium scale enterprises and want to launch their own ventures.
• Those who are at present running very tiny enterprises and want to diversify into modern small scale enterprises.
• Those who want to initiate their children to an entrepreneurial career. They want to start and make it a success and pass it over to their children in due course of time.
• Those who do not fall under any of the above categories but are confident of identifying a product through painstaking enquiry and hard work.
Modus Operandi of FEDPRO
The basic approach of FEDPRO is to place the participants in a state of mind of being awake to the emerging opportunities around them for wealth creation. This will prompt them to relate their financial and non-financial resources-skills, experience, knowledge– to the emerging opportunities and acquire new skills to seize them. The programme has four components. (i) Distance learning; (i) Class room learning; (iii) Counselling and guidance; and (iv) Post-Programme Handholding
(i) Distance Learning
Distance learning is a major component of FEDPRO. A specially designed handbook entitled ‘Samrambakarku Oru Aasoothrana Sahayi’ (which will be supplied to the participants) is the core of the whole programme. The participants may also buy and read the book “ Engane Ningalude Cherukida Vyavasayathe Nasippikkathirikkam ?”
published by IECED. Focused reading of the handbook will go a long way towards achieving the objectives of the programme. In order to help the participants to relate the theoretical or conceptual aspects to the actual environment of business, the programme requires the participants to undertake a series of activities and exercises. They are structured in such a manner that they can be performed during the day to day activities like shopping, browsing the internet, watching the television, reading the news papers and traveling and therefore do not require any additional effort or time. Visiting suggested websites, observing the price-quality profile of products in the shops, observing product presentation and packing, observing buying behavior of consumers, observing the changing tastes and preferences, watching advertisements in print and electronic media, interacting with entrepreneurs are some of such activities. The participants will be supplied with a compendium of various activities and exercises relating to each chapter of the handbook.
The participants are expected to discuss/share with the Business Counsellors of IECED the doubts, observations and comments arising from reading the handbook and undertaking the activities over phone, email or post. It is proposed to form a discussion
forum for the participants of FEDPRO to communicate each other, share ideas and
observations of general interest.It is compulsory that the participants of FEDPRO have their own email IDs. It is desirable that they have personal computers with internet connections, preferably broadband. The participants should acquire a working knowledge of MS Word and Excel.
(ii) Classroom Learning
The class room learning sessions will be organized on Sundays and holidays at a centre nearest and most convenient to the participants. Depending upon the number of participants, it may even be organized in one or two centres in each district. Following are the objectives of the class room sessions.
To remove the inferiority complex (if any) and to covert the personality of participants from introvert to extrovert and outgoing;
To improve the communication skills of participants;
To serve as a forum to promote trust between participants so as to facilitate pooling of resources for joint ventures and bigger projects;
To serve as a forum to identify areas of co-operation and networking;
To discuss and clarify in detail technical matters contained in the handbook(like preparation of the business plan using the software, cost-volume-profit analysis etc.);
To share with others the knowledge and experiences gathered through undertaking various activities and exercises;
To present seminars and lectures by experts/officials on topics of general interest to participants such as:
Licenses, sanctions and permits for starting industries Special economic zones
Schemes of KINFRA, KSIDC, INKEL etc. Credit Guarantee Fund Trust Scheme
Machinery Hire Purchase Scheme of National Small Industries Corporation
Business opportunities in particular product lines such as coconut, spices, food processing, rubber, electro-chemicals etc.
The participants will be informed the time, venue and other details of class room sessions in advance.
(iii) Counseling and Guidance
As the programme progresses, the participants
will begin to zero in
on certain product lines/services to base their enterprises. The participants will be effectively counselled individually to avoid pitfalls at this stage by making them consider the various options in a given situation. The other objective of counselling and guidance is to help the participants to prepare the business plan. It is proposed to introduce Business Plan Pro, the most widely used software for business plan preparation to the participants.(iv)Post- Programme Handholding(PPH)
The first phase of the programme ends with the preparation of business plan by the participants. The participants will be continuously assisted from the time of submitting the loan applications. The participants can count on IECED for removing the blocks if any, at subsequent stages by taking up the matter at the highest policy level. PPH will continue to be provided to those who need it during the production and marketing phases as well.
Business Mentoring
The participants are encouraged to identify a successful entrepreneur of the locality who will act as a mentor. It is expected that the mentor would provide access to all departments of his venture so as to provide the participant a close view of the day to day functioning of an industrial enterprise.
Time Frame of the Programme
There is no set time frame for the programme. Entry to the programme is open round the year. Faster learners who feel confident about their projects can proceed to implement it. Those who lag behind or discontinue the programme in between can resume it according to their convenience. However, those participants who remit the full fee alone will be on the roles of IECED and they alone will be eligible for PPH.
Programme Fee
The fee of the programme is Rs.10,000 for one year. There is the option of remitting the fee in two equal installments of Rs.5,250. The filled in application form should accompany MO/DD/cheque favouring IECED towards the full fee or the first installment of Rs.5250. The second installment will have to be remitted after six months. Fee once paid will not be refunded under any circumstances.
The out of pocket expenses for attending the class room sessions like travel, lunch, tea and snacks will have to be borne by the participants. IECED may arrange visits to the industrial centres or research institutions in other states for groups of participants and in such cases the entire expenses will have to be borne by the participants. In order to continue the programme or avail of the services connected with the programme after the expiry of one year, Rs. 5000 will have to be remitted for every six months.
