Enterprise Development Division Programmes
The Enterprise development division provides various programmes to assist SMMEs in all phases of business development. These include the following:
The Export Development Programme aims to develop and generate export-ready small enterprises that are globally competitive and able to grow markets both locally and internationally. The programme is designed to help small enterprises in South Africa to acquire and apply practical skills in developing their export capabilities. Click on the link for more info
The women enterprise coaching programme
Focuses on the development of women through achieving a specific personal and professional competence. The programme was conceived after conducting extensive research on the challenges experienced by women owned businesses. The programme seeks to group diverse women together so as to have maximum transfer of skills, networking and experience sharing.
The objective of the coaching programme is to develop and enhance management competencies of owners and business managers by creating an environment conducive for the establishment of networks, sharing of experiences and exchange of information.The programme provides women owned enterprises with knowledge, skills and tools needed to grow their businesses , guide them through business operations, handholding through strategic processes whilst gaining the resources necessary to facilitate their business growth. Click on the link for more info
Empretec Programme
Seda’s Empretec Programme promotes the creation of sustainable support structures that help promising entrepreneurs build innovative and internationally competitive small and medium sized enterprises. Empretec also encourages the formation of mutually beneficial business linkages among SMMEs as well as with transnational corporations.
The core product of the Empretec programme is its Entrepreneurship Training Workshop (ETW). On the basis of written applications and business-focussed interviews, participants enter the programme through an initial achievement motivation workshop which encourages the individuals to focus on their roles as entrepreneurs and challenges them to critically examine their personal strengths and weaknesses. The ETW is an opportunity for the participants to become more familiar with the behavioural competencies of successful entrepreneurs, strengthen and enhance those behaviours in themselves, and finally to be able to apply the behaviours in their own businesses.
The programme targets existing small enterprises,entrepreneurs with viable business ideas,entrepreneurs with bankable project proposals,Cooperatives and enterprise Development Practitioners and Personnel. The Empretec Model is aimed at sharpening the entrepreneurial competencies of participants and building the skills necessary to implement and manage businesses successfully. The experiential and interactive nature of the workshop allows for self-appraisal and hands-on experience in order to establish the competency levels of participants. The Empretec model uses a well-structured approach to screen entrepreneurs to identify those needing assistance in setting up their own businesses or assist in charting a growth path for existing enterprises. Click on the link for more info
Seda’s Supplier Development Programme
Seda’s Supplier Development Programme is aimed at strengthening the performance of supplier firms by enabling them to acquire the skills and capabilities required to make them globally competitive. The programme attempts to raise awareness on opportunities available to supply to corporates and state-owned enterprises. The programme also assists them to reduce the costs of supply. The supplier development Programme presents several advantages to the buying firm as well as the supplier which yield benefits to the economy. The Goals of the Programme are as follows:
- Capacitating SMME participants so that they have the ability to do business with corporate sector entities;
- Providing a platform for SMMEs to access potential business opportunities provided by big businesses;
- Improve growth and diversification through procurement; and
- Facilitate localised supply chains.
The objectives of the Programme are to reduce cost to supply; Improve technology; increase productivity and quality; facilitate internal reorganisation of how business operates; improve logistics; ensure conformance to environmental regulation; and contribute to employment creation.
Self-employment amongst the youth receives high-priority support by the national government and in this regard Seda initiated a programme to focus on introducing entrepreneurship in schools with the aim of ensuring that, while still at school, learners are equipped with entrepreneurial skills needed to create and grow businesses. Click on the link for more info
Through the Entrepreneurship in schools programme learners are guided to develop the attitudes and entrepreneurial mindset needed for success in entrepreneurship. As the programme is introduced from an early age, by the time learners leave high school they will know what it takes to start and run a business. The Entrepreneurship in Schools programme focuses on grade 8 to 12 educators and learners and is aligned with the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) and supported by the Department of Education.
The objectives of the programme are to influence the learners’ mindset by encouraging them to become job creators instead of job seekers once they leave the schooling system; to equip learners with entrepreneurial knowledge and skills needed to start and manage their businesses; to improve entrepreneurial activity amongst the learners and educators; to contribute to the development of a generation of people who are creative, innovative and willing to take risks; and to expose learners to role models that will enhance the development of self-respect and self-confidence. Click on the link for more info
Manufacturing Support Programme
The Manufacturing Support Programme seeks to explicitly respond to the specific current challenges, needs, skills and capabilities of the country’s small businesses in the manufacturing sector, while at the same time charting a path to assist SMME manufacturers to be competitive. The objectives of this two year programme are :to facilitate and contribute to growth for small businesses involved in the manufacturing sector with regard to their manufacturing process, technology adoption, R & D, and innovation capabilities, identify gaps and seeks to take the businesses to the next level. It also aims to provide a comprehensive suite of services or manufacturing support business development interventions designed to boost the competitiveness and capabilities of qualifying small manufacturing businesses. The programme’s offerings are demand driven and are customised to the small manufacturing businesses’ needs and include the following:
- Specialised Manufacturing business diagnostic assessment;
- Equipment purchase & acquisition for qualifying small businesses;
- Market intelligence;
- Customised manufacturing skills and capacity development;
- Productivity improvement;
- Product Development;
- Linkages with industry players and exposure to manufacturing best practices;
The programme is delivered through the Seda delivery network in the various provinces in
partnership with various implementation partners to provide support to qualifying
clients. Click on the link for more info