Time flies when you are doing what you love.
The same goes with our entrepreneurial experience in the just ended year.
As 2024 begins, it should be for us not only to look back but also improve in our strategic and operational activities.
Of course, there are some who have not yet started the same journey but are willing to set up in various sectors of our local/global economy.
Sure you are welcome as we learn from the experience of others.
Our fellows who have grown through entrepreneurial cycles to be corporates can guarantee that nothing is impossible, especially when we develop and ride on models that talk reality (fusing academics and environmental demands).
Just to reflect on the adage “whether entrepreneurs are born or made just like leaders”, in this journey, we have discovered that development through training contributes to fullness. Hence we should continue to share and evaluate.
What one should accept in this journey is that knowledge is shared for transformational entrepreneurship.
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To my fellows who are still struggling to connect the dots, I say don’t give up. This time we correct for the best.
That is the same reason why we are moving towards a rewired entrepreneurial focus.
It is clear and highly prescribed in various spaces that there are some traditional, notable reasons for failure by most entrepreneurs.
I agree with these and it seems to be still affecting many of our current promising SMEs.
These include lack of marketing skills, ignorance in information technologies (especially in the advent of artificial intelligence), poor financial management and general managerial deficiencies (planning, organising, leading and controlling).
This is true in these dynamic operating environments where machines are now above all what humans should have done.
Truly, some mistakes by most of our business leaders have left societies to question if management and leadership have a water and oil mixture relationship.
They fail to plan, organise and control key resources.
Surely we have seen many spending their effort on controlling resources rather than organising for allocative and productive efficiency.
That is the same reason we have to talk to the rest at this juncture where entrepreneurs should assess themselves not only as leaders but managers.
Also to remind is that everyone in charge of any type of business from private to public sector is an entrepreneur.
Where entrepreneurship has been regarded to be one’s ability to use land, labour and capital for a profit.
Most of our business practitioners whether as owners, hired senior managers, shareholders and officers are always found wanting in this perspective.
Some spend most of their effort on raising capital (whether generated or borrowed) not on how to convert it for the highest possible profit.
Which goes on to tell us that all entrepreneurial resources are scarce and should be given different priorities in their usage at every stage of doing business.
For instance, when an entrepreneur concentrates on factory structure development at the expense of attracting highly skilled labour/experts.
This is even more evident in the service sector where humans tend to lead all cogs of the value chain.
Let us rewire wisely towards successful entrepreneurship.
The opportunity cost of some decisions we make in this journey is higher than the vision that we have set not only for ourselves, but for all stakeholders including customers and shareholders.
In doing business no man is an island.
Of course, we all have unique ways of running a strategy, but we operate in the same environment where we need each other for market gains.
That is the same reason why we have different economic/industrial structure from a perfect competition type, to a monopoly, monopolistic and oligopoly.
As much as these are somehow unfavorable economics jargons to some of our entrepreneurs they control our market existence.
Find time to appreciate some of these constructs and adjust accordingly.
Just for some appreciation every business that you start or have started has someone who is providing almost a similar product/service like yours which makes it a perfect completion.
However, through market research fused with an understanding of both offensive and defensive strategy you will be able to develop uniqueness that makes your business become a monopoly through excellence.
Brand investment and management can do such magic together with superb customer care, relationship management and sustainable partnerships.
In some of our previous editions, it became so clear that there are critical setting-up matters we have overlooked as housekeeping matters.
Let’s take a closer look at these for us to understand their impact on doing real business.
Registering a company is the one thing we have discussed repeatedly but still many of our entrepreneurs are operating as informal traders relying on underground deals.
For instance it further restricts a business to get some tax discounts when dealing with some established businesses as a profitable B2B model (because it will not have a tax clearance).
Besides, any requested profile for a potential business exchange requires registration, tax clearance, health license and so forth to fully complete a checklist for engagement.
I am sure our entrepreneurs are increasingly getting a glimpse of the needed rewiring for rewarding business in the year 2024 and beyond.
Till then, let’s rewire!
*Dr Farai Chigora is a businessman and academic. He is the head of management and entrepreneurship at the Africa University’s College of Business, Peace, Leadership and Governance. His doctoral research focused on business administration (destination marketing and branding major, Ukzn, SA). He is into agribusiness and consults for many companies in Zimbabwe and Africa. He writes in his personal capacity and can be contacted for feedback and business at [email protected], www.fachip.co.zw, WhatsApp mobile: +263772886871
