The Business Strengthening Model for MSMEs is the result of 2 years of work carried out in the municipality of Envigado1, in the execution of participatory budget projects2. The objective being the business strengthening of MSMEs and economic units of a region.
During the execution of the first program (August 2009), we observed that the owners of the MSMEs and the economic units to be intervened were tired of so much training and that in each training the same topics were given and this was not productive for them; We chose to talk to them and carry out an analysis of what they really required and look at how these training could be productive.
It was possible to conclude that the problem consisted in that the group of people to be trained was very heterogeneous: at the educational level, the type of business, the social component, and age. As a result of this, it was concluded that apart from giving training, something else was needed, that something else consisted of an on-site accompaniment, where what was learned in the training was applied and at the same time making a sectorized grouping by type of business.
The specialized accompaniment is expensive, it was decided to carry out the accompaniment with last semester students, at the business practice level, of a program related to the topics that were being worked on, with the advice of a specialist in those topics. We call this student a sponsor or tutor.
A bstract
The model of strengthening for small enterprises is the result of a 2 year period developed in the city of Envigado, in the execution of community projects in our city. Been the objective, the strengthening of small enterprises and the small businesses of the region.
During the execution of the first program (August 2009), we observed that owners of the small enterprises to be studied, were tired of so many advisory and classes of the same subjects which was not productive for them, so we opted to discuss with them and make a deeper analysis of what they really wanted and needed in order to make the advisories productive.
We came to the conclusion that the problem was consisting of the heterogeneous group of people to be trained, in regards of their education, type of business, social component and age. Based on this, we concluded that we should offer something beyond training; we needed to work with them directly in site, where they could apply all the knowledge separated by type of business.
As the Specialized advisories are expensive, we opted to develop the training with the support of last semester students that were doing their professional internship, this student were called tutors or mentors.
P a l open keys. Model, MiPyme, Business, Strengthening, Course
Introduction
The insertion of the MSMEs and more of the economic units in the productive chains and in turn in the different clusters of each region, present a series of circumstances that do not allow them to stay in the market, an increasingly competitive market. For this reason, it is considered that every business organization and more economic units, have problems at the business level since they do not have, for the most part, methods and practical solutions that help them solve these difficulties and this results in a loss of competitiveness, with the problems that this entails, loss of employment, closure of the establishment and a low self-esteem of the people and communities involved both directly and indirectly.
The most common problems found in this diagnosis are the absence of knowledge in managerial management, in aspects of human development, marketing, administrative, production, accounting and legal, as well as the organizational climate, customer service, productive informality, financial management and communication with the supply chain, in short, everything related to good administrative practices.
The context from which we start is based on the following postulate: MSMEs that represent 94% of the country's businesses and 33% of the employed population. Its participation in industrial employment amounts to 60% and in the added value of the industry to 48%. In commerce, they represent 95% of employment and 74% of production. The economic crisis of recent years has notably affected micro-enterprises, which have suffered mortality rates of over 50%. The main problems of MSMEs are associated with their low levels of productivity, explained, in turn, by technological lag and scarce physical and human capital 3.
Next I present the structure of the work: a justification, the objectives, the methodology, the development of the objectives and some conclusions.
Justification
The short-term activities to support MSMEs are based on awareness-raising programs for business development processes, to continue with support in business management from a structured and self-managing knowledge strategy, which allows replicating sustainable practices within its staff, in human development, marketing, administrative, production, accounting and legal aspects; This makes it possible to notably improve the Entrepreneurship processes, the ventures created and the potentials to be established, implying higher levels of quality of life through the generation of employment and sustainability of the company.
This strengthening management allows the generation of medium and long-term support strategies, where sustainable impacts are truly observed at the business level in the intervened communities.
The target population to intervene are all those MSMEs and economic units of a specific region, which operate both in formality and in business informality and those business opportunities that can be framed within the supply chain of the identified productive groups, as potentials for regional economic growth and development, which we will call by unification Economic Units.
O General bjective
Strengthen the Economic Units of a region both in urban and rural areas, contributing to greater productivity and competitiveness, to the reduction of business mortality and to the increase in the supply of employment.
O specific bjectives
- Implement a business school model strategy that fosters the sustainability of the Economic Units Design a positioning strategy for a Unit for Support and Strengthening of the Economic Units of a locality Identify the training needs of business groups (Economic Units) of a similar economic activity.
Methodology
A descriptive methodology is used based on the structural elements of the model: a collection of information from the economic units with an inquiry instrument and is developed in three phases: design-planning, execution and evaluation-closure and a discussion is held with the entrepreneurs and community leaders, in order to provide feedback on the model.
R i esult
A training and support program was designed that is able to explain, show and deliver, the necessary tools that allow an entrepreneur to apply in his Economic Unit and thus avoid insolvency, unemployment, bankruptcy, disappearance, of this type of companies, improving commercial, organizational, administrative and production processes, thus being able to promote local economic development.
This model aims to make the Economic Units solvent and productive, where what they have learned is reflected in their business and in this way, good business practices are developed. During these 2 years, this model has been applied on 2 occasions, in 2009 in zone 3 and in 2011 in zone 8 of the municipality of Envigado, with excellent results.
In zone 3, an average of 47 economic units participated, 120 hours of training were given, they participated in 20 sessions in the classroom and attended 6 reinforcements and 18 hours in the zone, where participants had the opportunity to listen, participate and learn from topics as varied as: Human Psychology, Human Development, Research, Consumer Psychology, Marketing, Legal, Accounting and Financial Aspects, administrative and managerial data, production processes, among others.
In zone 8, which we are currently carrying out, we have a participation of 40 economic units, the training part was not dictated because it was phase II of that project (phase I of training was carried out by another institution), 45 economic units have been worked, with a total of 301 hours of advice in 55 visits made.
D evelopment of Specific Objectives
1- Implement a (1) business school model that promotes the sustainability of economic units.
It was based on the local economic units and the typology of social entrepreneurship that our institution carries out and of a traditional nature. Where the average Colombian looks for tools to support himself and his families and with a projection of a life plan.
The strategy of the Business School Model developed is based on two general pillars:
- The human being and the family being The social being and the entrepreneurial being
To develop these pillars, a training, advice and support program was designed that is able to explain, show and deliver the necessary tools that allow an entrepreneur to apply in his company, economic unit. Among which is:
- Provide it with human and family tools that allow the entrepreneur to relate and communicate in an appropriate and productive way Orient all its processes towards the client and their needs Show and teach how to use tools in areas such as human development, marketing, administrative, production, accounting and legal Work in a way In particular, with companies in the region for similar economic activity.
The Business School has 3 main activities: academic, support and advice, closing.
- A cadémica. With eight classroom modules:
- Humanities / Research, Human Development, Marketing, Administration, Production, Accounting, Legal, Internationalization / Social Responsibility.
We refer to the first and last modules, the humanities and research and the internationalization and social responsibility, which make one of the differences over any other teaching model in business strengthening; where the added value is to focus on the dimension of being-being, being-family and being-society, in the humanities part, in addition, we seek to sow them the seed of the new and amazing that there is around their economic unit, in the research part. In the last part of the capitation we state that internationalization is not selling to another country, internationalization is leaving its area of influence and opening and expanding it, in addition, the importance of their economic units and them with respect to social responsibility, both with the environment,as with the economy and society in general.
- A companionship and advice: a series of specific advice is carried out on site, we have practice students attending the course, called godparents or tutors; These are assigned some economic units of those who attended the corresponding module. As each class ended, the sponsors sat down with the representative of each economic unit to socialize what has been done, what is understood and what needs to be reinforced, this in order to clear up any doubts that have arisen during the class; the sponsor agrees a meeting with them no later than the day after the module is finished, with the aim of applying what they have learned directly in their business.
In the event of a doubt / concern that the sponsor cannot resolve, it is taken to the reinforcement workshop, which is managed by an advisor, an expert in that subject. In addition, specific consultancies and training are given, which are carried out through appointments made with the sponsor, the employer and the specialist in the specific subject.
- A ctivity closing. It is a final activity where the final results must be presented and published to representatives of the community in general, directly involved in the process. In addition, a fair is held where what has been learned and applied in their economic units is presented by entrepreneurs. At the end, a certification is made, which is given by the Institution to each of the economic units that completed the process.
2- Design a strategy for positioning the unit to support and strengthen the economic units of an area.
As a general strategy, a unit to support and strengthen the region is being worked on; where we understand by support and strengthening unit, an educational institution dedicated to generating and delivering tools that improve the productivity and competitiveness of businesses and companies in the region, that also teaches them to be competitive and profitable, that shows them the advantages of being structured, organized, having their productive, commercial and legal processes up to date and finally that it teaches them how to properly keep an accounting and guide them in the way in which economic and financial results are interpreted and analyzed.
From these basic ideas, the support and strengthening unit must generate basic objectives, so that some activities to be developed can be considered, by actors who carry them out and verify them. Among these objectives we have:
- Identify companies that wish to carry out training processes Separate economic units by commercial activity and by economic sector (associativity) Identify specific training needs by commercial activity and by economic sector Establish specific training processes, including resources
3- Identify the training needs of business groups (economic units) of a similar economic activity.
During the course of the academic activity, participants have the opportunity to listen, participate and learn about topics as varied as: Human Psychology, Human Development, Research, Consumer Psychology, Marketing, Legal, Accounting and Financial Aspects, administrative and managerial data, production processes, among others. Where the classes are theoretical and theoretical-practical, in which you can see closely what the theory, norms and laws say and in the others you can appreciate and show what other companies do and what they should do, to establish and implement these apprenticeships in their own companies.
C onclusions
It was achieved that the owners of the Economic Units accepted that training cannot be left aside and more on issues related to their companies. In addition, they were given to understand that training increases personal growth.
Any company that wants to exceed its goals, grow and be more productive and profitable, must carry out a series of activities and tasks within it, which support its commercial and productive activity. These tasks and activities make the difference between similar Economic Units and applying what they have learned will allow it to grow.
The model in its academic part, seeks to give economic units the basic tools that allow them to organize and structure their companies, so that they can carry out the functions of each one. Achieving the appropriation of the following:
- In the marketing module: promotion and communication tools between the economic unit and its client. Knowledge of your environment. Product development, with the correct establishment of prices, adequate advertising and proper management of promotions. Improve customer service. In the legal module: theoretical-legal tools that allow them to know the benefits of being legitimized, formalized and structured. Have the RUT4 and be registered with the Chamber of Commerce. Keep records. Pay salaries, health, pension and taxes In the accounting module: in addition to knowing and properly managing the basic accounting records, it was possible for the economic units to adequately extract the costs of a product, the balance point, making future projections of the number of units to sell,both in pesos and in units and defining their fixed costs In the production module: the proper management of suppliers, raw materials and supplies, direct and indirect manufacturing costs, and the costs incurred for the provision of the service, in short, everything related to the production process. In the administration module: knowledge within your company, of the different activities that are carried out and that support and support all internal processes. In the Human Development modules, Humanities and Research: give theoretical-practical concepts that allow them to have new knowledge, understand behaviors, the work of being, and finally in the Internationalization module: it was possible to create awareness in economic units, that with economic opening, globalization,new consumer trends, new consumers, new needs, new business opportunities are created, new ways of selling and creating together with the Social Responsibility module, knowing and creating awareness of being responsible with the actions when using, processing and sell products, based on cleaner production processes, better processes, use of materials that are friendlier to nature.
The theory seen and worked in the classroom and its application in the business, reinforces the experience that the Economic Units have managed to achieve throughout the application of the model, but this experience must be socialized with other economic units, with clients, with suppliers and friends.
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1 www.envigado.gov.co
2 The participatory budget is a tool of participatory democracy or direct democracy that allows citizens to influence or make decisions regarding public budgets, generally on the municipal budget. (http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presupuesto_participativo)
3
4 RUT, Single Tax Registry.
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