The back bone of any economy especially one like Nigeria are the small businesses. But trying to build a business from scratch isn't an easy process, there are many challenges faced by SME and this challenges are more pronounced than ever during the initial growth of such business.
At HT-limited we work hand-in-hand with business owners to help translate a business from the planning stage all through to the execution. Some of our solutions to this growing challenge are:
- SME Mentoring Programme
- Strategy Sessions
- SME Training Programmes
- Managing the HR Functions for SMEs
SMEs are believed to be the back bone for the development of any economy because they form the bulk of business activities in a growing economy like that of Nigeria. This is manifested in the following ways:
Employment Generation: 30% contribution to global GDP Employment generation capacity of about 58% of the global working population. SMEs play a critical role of principal safety net for the bulk of the population in developing economies. Their labour intensity structure accounts for their recognition as a job creating avenue.
Rural Development: SMEs constitute major avenues for income generation and participation in economic activities in the lower income and rural brackets of developing societies especially in agriculture, trading and services. The employment opportunities provided reduces rural-urban migration and allows for even development.
Economic Growth and Industrialization: National economic development prospects hinge on entrepreneurial energy of vibrant SMEs as most big business concerns grew from small scale to become big icons.
Better Utilization of Indigenous Resources: The considerable low capital outlay required for setting up SMEs enables them to convert minimal resources into productive areas or ventures. They offer veritable outlets for technological advancement especially in businesses with rudimentary technological requirements.
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THE CHALLENGE
In our study and close working relationship with SMEs in Nigeria as ‘SME Toolkit Certified Trainers’ we have identified pertinent challenges that are common to a wide spread sample of SMEs in and around our nation; these include:
- Inadequate and inefficient infrastructural facilities, which tend to escalate costs of operation as SMEs are forced to resort to private provisioning of utilities such as road, water supply, electricity, etc.
- Incidence of multiplicity of regulatory agencies and taxes which has always resulted in high cost of doing business and poor management practices, and low entrepreneurial skill arising from inadequate educational and technical background of many SME promoters.
- Regulatory compliance which ordinarily reduces the cost of doing business for the private sector and incurs costs- time and money, adverse effects on small firms.
- Under capitalisation, difficulty in gaining access to bank credits & other financial markets, corruption, lack of transparency, very high bureaucratic costs.
- The most worrying of all among these challenges is funding. Most SMEs are not attractive prospects for banks as they want to minimize their risk profile.
- In Nigeria the situation is not very different until recently, when the bankers committee intervened in 2001 with a scheme themed “Small and medium industries Equity Investment Scheme”(SMIEIS).
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OUR SOLUTIONS
Over the years at HT-Limited, we have had successful relationships with SMEs; this has been hinged on our understanding of their business space, the challenges they face and the impeccable solutions that we have been able to proffer in ensuring that their businesses can run at optimal levels. Over and above proffering solutions to SME business needs, we have been confronted on several occasions with the fundamental gap of “How To” translate strategic roadmaps into action plans for SMEs.
This gap has necessitated our drive to offer SME businesses a range of solutions that seek to guide them through the translation of their corporate strategy into actionable plans without necessarily over-shooting their over-heads in the process of execution.
As ‘SME Toolkit Certified Trainers’ and lifetime member of “Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) – Pan African University”; we have access to limitless resources in providing the necessary support for the growth and development of SMEs in Nigeria; hence our offerings in the following areas:
- Managing the HR Function for SMEs – Job Functions and Specifications Audit, Human Resource Information System (HRIS), Compensation Management, Performance Management Systems Document, Company/Employee Manual, and other HR functions as the need may arise.
- SME Mentoring Programme – Strategy articulation/review and action planning sessions.
- SME Training Programmes – Business Plan writing and Strategic Management (SME Owners), Bookkeeping and Accounting, Customer Service, Marketing, Operations Management, Process Auditing and Ethics (SME Staff members).
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OUR APPROACH
We have created a program estimated to last for six-months; and within this period we intend to deal extensively with the strategic, operational and business developmental features of your business along the lines of Managing your HR Function, offering you mentoring services and SME specific training courses.
We would endeavor to see you through engineering or re-engineering processes for your business; offering pragmatic and practicable solutions to the issues that confront your business’ success.
The duration of our business mentoring program would be punctuated with four (4) training courses aimed at providing you with the requisite knowledge needed to move you forward for every milestone of business improvement we achieve together.
While we understand the limited financial and human resources available to you, we would introduce you to the concept of achieving much with less; this will demystify the theories a lot of SME businesses carry in trying to build capacity before imagining doing big things; “first-things-first – if you can imagine it, you can achieve it”. We would provide you with the necessary support in translating those imaginations into realities following proven business concepts available to the SME business-space globally.
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ACCESS LOAN
Creative Industry Loan (CIFI): From ₦30,000
CBN Medical Intervention Fund: From ₦100,000 -
COACHING
Coaching Fee: ₦20,000/hour
Covers the following:- Access to finance
- Access to Markets
- Competitiveness
- Managing Business Growth