Entrepreneurs are made? Or are they?

By definition, entrepreneurs are people who are enterprising, willing to try new challenges and achieve their goals. The dynamics of starting up a business, regardless of its size, require organisation of thoughts, actions and a working plan.  In order to succeed in business entrepreneurs need qualities such as tenacity, patience, passion, determination, people skills and a myriad more, writes Allon Raiz, CEO of Raizcorp

Debate whether an entrepreneur is born or made is ongoing.  What can definitely be taught is how to handle customers, manage employees, maintain relationship and provide benefit for stakeholders, but when your entrepreneurial world is turned upside down and your business faces hardships, you’ll need something more to get you through the difficult times.

In South Africa, only 5% of adults attempt to start up their own businesses, and only a quarter of them survive for longer than three years. Where new small businesses are established out of necessity rather than genuine purpose, there is a 96% failure rate. The damage caused by this kind of failure is terribly destructive, as it usually means the loss of personal assets such as homes and vehicles, and great economic hardship for families.

In order to increase the success rate of entrepreneurship in South Africa and in doing so positively affect the economy and alleviate poverty, there is more support required for entrepreneurs.  It is not possible to possess all the resources needed.  Entrepreneurs should form various relationships and gain support from various sources.  Such support can be provided from sources such as capital investors, employees, the supply chain and financiers

It is this type of guidance that the winners of the brandhouse ™ Pitch & Polish initiative of The Entrepreneurs Organisation will receive. There will be cash prizes, but the bulk of the prizes will be in the form of training, guidance and education, all of which will help the entrepreneur to be more fundable by formal financial institutions.

According to Praag and Vijverberg, (2005) entrepreneurial education is considered one of the most important variables impacting on business success.  Two areas of education are to be considered; managerial training and entrepreneurial training will both influence the propensity to become self-employed.  Entrepreneurial ability without managerial ability would not be sustainable. In addition management and entrepreneurial skill and experience are the most frequently used selection criteria of venture capitalists.  They found that entrepreneurs who have invested in education are more likely to have a growth strategy and run profitable businesses. 

Surrounding entrepreneurs with appropriate guidance, someone who can speak from experience and has the skill to guide and advice on all the important business issues such as strategy, marketing, sales, accounting, legal requirements, staff management and training is required to assist the entrepreneur to make a success. 

There are of course those who don’t believe in seeking outside help, thinking that they can achieve all that they strive for by themselves. Performance psychologist, Toni Gaddie, affirms that while a certain level of success is attainable without assistance, it has been found that one of the characteristics of champions is that they make use of both internal and external support.

Making a success of a business is never easy. When entrepreneurs take full advantage of their own internal capabilities as well as external assistance, they are not admitting failure but rather marshalling all of the resources at their disposal to reduce their chances of failure and maximise their likelihood of success.

The brandhouse™ Pitch and Polish programme is providing free workshops with expert training and tips by Allon Raiz in eight towns around the country to provide entrepreneurs with the necessary training to make a success in business. More details can be found on the website:www.pitchandpolish.com

Alongside brandhouse™ Beverages (Pty) Ltd, other sponsorship partners for Pitch & Polish are MTN, Raizcorp, City of Cape Town, RMB Private Bank and SA Tourism.