A group of 12 women in information and communications technology (ICT) who went on a three-week study tour to the USA are back and raring to implement the lessons they learnt into the day to day running of their businesses.
The study tour was an initiative of the Maxum Business Incubator at The Innovation Hub, in collaboration with Washington DC's Meridian International Centre and the University of Maryland-Baltimore County's (UMBC) Centre for Women in Information Technology.
Sponsored by the Office of Citizen Exchanges, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, in the US Department of State, the study tour was designed to build the competence and confidence of participants to start or grow successful businesses.
Participants were unanimous in their observation that the study tour was an enriching experience which would go a long way in enhancing their businesses.
"One cannot underestimate the power of being taken out of your comfort zone and travelling to another country for an entrepreneurship programme such as this one. The learning curve is so much steeper when your senses tune in so acutely to the American entrepreneurial world. The biggest impact was from the dynamic, gutsy American business women we met," said Leslie Maliepaard of WineWeb.
Aspiring entrepreneurs, Lebohang Motsohi and Sibongiseni Dakela alluded to the encouragement and support they received from other programme participants.
"I was just amazed at how all the participants were willing to share information as well as offer help, should I need any. As an aspiring entrepreneur I realised that entrepreneurs all have different stories to tell, but similar experiences. I should learn not to isolate myself in business, but network, network, network! I was also inspired by how we all wanted to make an impact by imparting our experiences and skills to other South African women," said Lebohang.
Freelancentral founder, Jo Duxbury, admitted that her expectations of the tour were exceeded. "I knew we'd be getting training on sales, marketing, finance, etc. What I wasn't expecting was to come back almost a different person - totally energised, incredibly optimistic about being an entrepreneur, and very confident in my skills and abilities," she said.
Anamazing Workshop co-founder, Isabelle Rorke, wasted no time in implementing some of the strategies learnt in the USA. "The workshop on operations for example was most valuable for me since I have a big studio and needed to learn strategies of improving my operations and linking that to sales and marketing. I have already started implementing those strategies into my company and know that it will have a positive impact. I was able to bounce off some of my company challenges with experienced business women and the feedback I received was invaluable," she said.
Another aspiring entrepreneur, Claire Burge commented on how effective the shadowing experience section of the course was. "The networks that arose from the experience are invaluable resources and the action plans that were established serve as a commitment between mentor and mentee. The relationships forged are strong in that the mentors are quick to give feedback and they are reliable sources of information and constructive criticism. The fact that they are total outsiders to our business allows for very diversified and alternative suggestions which every business desperately needs," she said.
Added Rorke: "The US mentors where incredible open, warm and friendly women so it was very easy to develop close relationships with them. It is now easier to e-mail them with any challenges that I am experiencing; this will be invaluable going forward. Maxum and Meridian have given me both international and local mentors. I started with my local mentors before leaving for the States and the feedback that I received was invaluable. My local mentor has a great way of questioning my thinking, thereby broadening my thinking. He has helped confirm some of my strategies which seem like a small thing but having that confirmation helps build my confidence in going forward. The same was true for the international mentors. I feel that I am on the right track and now have new strategies to improve my systems going forward," she said.
In terms of technological advancement, the participants felt that South Africa was on par with the USA. The general consensus was that in fact, South Africa may be ahead in its thinking and implementation with regards to certain technologies and applications.
Commenting on the value of the Maxum programme to participants, Maliepaard said she would recommend the programme to any entrepreneur who is ready to take a leap forward and make radical changes in the way they think and run their business. She would also recommend it to any women who are keen to make a positive change in their lives and the lives around them.
Sibongiseni Dakela concurred: "These programmes are helpful to broaden one's mindset and help women believe that they can achieve much more than they have thought and also they assist in networking, which is one of the key success factors for an entrepreneur, she said. Participants based in Gauteng, Kimberley and Northern Cape will now receive mentorship and ongoing support from Maxum, and the Western Cape-based participants will be mentored by the Cape IT Initiative (CITI), a networking and cluster development agency that brings together people, ideas and capital in an effort to grow the Western Cape by facilitating the creation of jobs and prosperity through IT. In addition, "virtual" mentorship and site visits will be provided by the American businesswomen with whom the participants met during their US programme, as well as by Maxum.
Upon completion of project activities (approx 18 months), programme participants will continue to receive mentorship support from their respective incubators, and will be required to submit annual project reports to Maxum for two additional years to enable progress follow up. It is also expected that long-term relationships between US and South African women who participated in the programme, as well as ongoing linkages between US and South African companies and incubators, will be established as a result of this programme.
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Maxum Business Incubator provides an enabling environment where start-ups from the knowledge-intensive sectors, including information and communications technology (ICT), biosciences, electronics, and advanced manufacturing and materials, are fast-tracked to compete in the global village. The incubation process improves the survival rate of start-up companies by helping them become financially viable, usually within two to three years. Incubation also creates a synergistic environment where entrepreneurs can share learning, create working partnerships and do business together and it helps to open doors to markets and resources.
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