Who We Are
The primary objective of the Business Development Initiatives (BDI) is to empower emerging entrepreneurs to successfully launch, manage, and grow businesses that will sustain their families and impact their communities.
BDI has been designed to provide a comprehensive and progressive approach to business education and training, launching a business, ongoing management and mentorship capacities, and ultimately to provide business success and growth. To accomplish this, multiple organizations are working together collaboratively to provide different capabilities and skill sets.
Foundations for success are laid during a one-week Business Orientation phase focusing on an understanding of worldview, empowering personal and community development, and asset-based holistic development and transformation.
The BDI cornerstone is a four-week Business Startup course. Attendance is open to all for the Business Orientation training, but when it comes to the Business Startup course, access is restricted. Attendees undergo a rigorous interview of more than 130 questions to assess their level of potential for entrepreneurial success, and the process is working. Over a twelve-year span, attendees of the four-week Business Startup course in various countries across Africa have launched thousands of businesses with over 73% of these still in operation! The Business Startup course focuses on spotting a business opportunity, conducting market research, developing a strategy and business plan, developing financial, marketing, and management processes, and conducting business launch and operations.
Follow-up is crucial to the overall success of the program and each student. Each course graduate is contacted on a regular basis over a twelve-month period following graduation. In addition, ongoing support is still available following the twelve-month period upon request.
Business Startup attendees provide their own business launch capital. With as little as $7 USD, hundreds of successful businesses have been planted across Africa. Many of these emerging entrepreneurs have experienced significant success. Unfortunately, expansion capital in the small to medium enterprise range is hard to find. For this reason, each country level BDI will facilitate establishment of a Business Development Growth Fund (BDGF). Access to small to medium enterprise business loans enables proven entrepreneurs to expand their operations and impact their communities as they hire more local labor. The BDGF, once capitalized, is designed to be self-sustainable through low interest repayments and ongoing investments by successful attendees of the training. Peer accountability is leveraged to increase motivation and reduce the risk of loan default.
As businesses grow, leaders need additional training in fundamental business processes and skills like leadership, strategy development, financial management, logistics, process management, human resources, marketing, and public relations. Advanced business training in proven business processes is provided through an appropriate mix of mentors, consultants and subject matter expert trainers. An on-the-job training (OJT) program is also provided through the local business Mentor Network to help young leaders gain experiential knowledge. Subject matter experts provide some advanced training services for free and some is fee for service.
Successful BDI Alumni are asked to take a leadership role in helping support the next generation of emerging entrepreneurs through mentoring, promotion, sponsorships and donations to the BDI. By “paying it forward”, successful business owners and alumni help empower the next generation of local leaders.
The long-term goal of the BDI is to create a self-sustainable initiative to support training and development of emerging business leaders in each country. This is accomplished by conducting series of training events designed to create sustainability. In the first training event, students are trained and future trainers are identified. In the second training event, trainers are trained along with another class of students. In the third training event, the new trainers train a class of students and their delivery is assessed. This process results in qualified trainers to carry on the training.
Financial sustainability of the BDI is facilitated through diverse income generation strategies, careful control over expenses, alternative approaches to cover facility and operational expenses, corporate social responsibility sponsors, and fund raising initiatives as necessary.
The BDI has achieved significant success in Africa during its Pilot Project. The program is now expanding across other regions of Africa and into Asia and the Middle East. To meet an accelerating demand, individuals are now being equipped and prepared to travel to other countries and train new trainers. We hope you will join with us, and the BDI Team of partners, to empower local families and communities for sustainable success.
Michael McCausland
Executive Director
Humanitarian International Services Group (HISG)
