I could not believe what I was hearing. This young lady's comment really drives home the point that our education system creates job seekers instead of job creators, i.e. entrepreneurs. There will be no jobs for the longest time if we do not encourage entrepreneurship and develop entrepreneurs in South Africa.
Every time I hear people complain that government is not creating enough jobs or government itself, committing to creating X number of jobs, I cringe. Would it not be a refreshing conversation to hear government committing to seeing the creation of new enterprises? Reporting on stats on how many businesses have been registered, how many small businesses have grown their turnover and staff complement? How many small businesses are doing business outside of the borders of South Africa?
It is not the role of government to be creating jobs; it's the private sectors responsibility. To back up this statement, results of the Nedbank Small Business Index™ (NSBI) indicate that South Africa's small businesses were slightly more optimistic in the third quarter of last year, attributed in part to increased levels of support from the private sector.
Overall the index climbed to 47.6, from 46.5 in the second quarter, reaching its highest level since the final quarter of 2013. As regards private sector support being witnessed, the reading ticked up to 51.8 from 49.8 in the previous three months.
For businesses that have crossed over that two-year threshold, there is not much support in sight to help them to grow and thrive. This is where the private sector can play a role in growing sustainable businesses that will create jobs that will employ the millions of unemployed individuals.
Kaya FM in partnership with Nedbank is offering Bizz Boost an intervention that aims to help small businesses to grow and thrive. Bizz Boost offers a small business an opportunity to have a consultant come into their business to consult for a month at no charge to the business. This will be a more in-depth intervention than those that have been previously offered by other players.
Speaking on behalf of Nedbank, Vanessa Singh, Executive Head Marketing: Retail and Business Banking, said, "We are delighted to join forces with Kaya Bizz through Bizz Boost, building on our long-standing association aimed at championing an entrepreneurial culture in our society and promoting sustainable growth for the SMME sector and economy respectively.
"Twelve businesses will be chosen for the consultant to work on. As the consultant on Bizz Boost I am really looking forward to sharing my skills and knowledge with the businesses I will be working with. It is my sincere hope that we can take each business to the next level of excellence and growth."
Businesses that are not chosen for the consultancy will still benefit from the intervention as the progress of the consultancy will be discussed weekly on KayaBizz. The chosen business becomes a case study that other businesses can learn from. This can be a standing appointment for SMMEs to gain new knowledge and insight that will assist their business to grow.
The toolkit that will be made available on the Bizz Boost page will enable businesses to apply the tools in their own businesses as well. Podcasts of the shows will also be available that will be a guide on the tools used and how they have been applied.
The recommendations and solutions offered to each business will be practical and implementable. Every six months we will return to each of the businesses to check on their progress. This will then be reported back on air so that our listeners are aware of the progress made by each business.
Each month will be themed and we will discuss topics that are crucial to the existence of every business. Each week an expert will be invited to the studio to discuss a different angle of the topic. The topics will cover Strategy, Growth and Expansion, Cashflow, HR & Labour issues, Marketing, etc.
Bizz Boost is a wonderful opportunity for businesses based in Gauteng to receive on-air radio exposure, receive a digital intervention from Nedbank and give their business that much needed boost!
Nedbank wants to offer real value to businesses to ensure that they thrive and are sustainable over the long term. Bizz Boost is not about pushing products but rather about a partnership that will stand each business in good stead. Nedbank has taken the responsibility of creating sustainable businesses that will in turn create sustainable jobs.
Bizz Boost goes live on Kaya Bizz at 5pm from Monday, 2 March 2015. Entrepreneurs are encouraged to join us this exciting journey of growth and discovery over the next 12 months.
