ENTREPRENEURSHIP
CATALYST
INITIATIVE TO PROMOTE ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN BARBADOS & THE CARIBBEAN
AGENDA
• Importance of Entrepreneurship
• Building an Ecosystem
• Filling in the Gaps
• How?
• Venture Accelerator Models
• Incubator Models
• Benefits to Barbados
POWER OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
• A clear correlation is evident between economies with high levels of entrepreneurship and economic
strength and growth worldwide
• Research has shown that fast growing firms are responsible for 10% of job creation
• Entrepreneurship is a catalyst for innovation, competitiveness and economic growth and provides
significant economic and social wealth
• New technologies
• Jobs
• Innovative products
• Economic wealth
2013 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report
BUILDING AN ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM
• Several important elements are needed to develop an ecosystem that fosters high-impact new venture
creation and growth
• Below are key components required to foster an entrepreneurial ecosystem
• Accessible Markets
•
Barbados has a fairly robust consumer segment and is also uniquely placed within a 1 hour flight to Latin America, 3 hours to the United
States and 7hrs to Europe -- 3 high-potential markets
• Human Capital/Workforce
•
Free primary through tertiary education system has equipped Barbados with a highly skilled and qualified workforce
• Funding & Finance
•
Outside of bank loans and limited grants, funding for new ventures are family and self-financed
• Mentoring & Advice
•
There is a wealth of knowledge available from successful business leaders and entrepreneurs (Charles Williams, Mark Maloney, David Lavine),
however it is not being leveraged.
• Entrepreneurial Education/Training
•
While the quality of education is high, it has focused on traditional topics in business and law.
FILL IN THE GAPS
• The goal of this project is to build a program to foster an innovation driven economy through
entrepreneurship in Barbados and the wider Caribbean
• The program seeks to influence the social, cultural and political context and improve the entrepreneurial
capacity to create an ecosystem conducive to producing highly innovative and scalable businesses
Model for Entrepreneurial Processes Affecting National Economic Growth
Entrepreneurial
Opportunities
Social, Cultural,
Political, Context
Entrepreneurial
Framework Conditions
Business Dynamics
Entrepreneurial
Capacity & Preferences
Source: Reynolds, Hay & Camp (1999)
National Economic
Growth
HOW?
• The emphasis is to use a two-pronged approach and address entrepreneurial
training with an education focused accelerator program
Model
2
• New start-up
• Existing businesses
• Incubator
Grow companies to
significant scale
• Mentorship & Advice
• Funding
• Provide seed funding for start-ups
• Prepare businesses to seek and receive funding
• Identify and cultivate potential angel investors in the region
1
3
Entrepreneurs seek to
build companies
Entrepreneurs
stay in Barbados
Successful Entrepreneurs
support next generation
4
VENTURE ACCELERATOR MODELS
• New start-up accelerator is focused on attracting high-impact entrepreneurs from
across the Caribbean with revenues between $0 - $100,000USD
• The 4 month long program will be heavily focused on providing the tools entrepreneurs will
require to launch and grow a highly scalable and sustainable business
•
Formal courses & workshops
•
Professional mentorship
•
Web development & design services
•
Legal services (Registering, Incorporating, Copyright)
•
Accounting services
•
Demo Days
• The Small Business Accelerator is aimed at helping stagnant companies with revenues above $100,000 accelerate
their growth.
• Several key hurdles inhibit growth, owners not wanting to grow (lifestyle businesses), failure to innovate, lack of support among
others
•
The small business program will provide the same tools but tailored to the needs of growing existing businesses
INCUBATOR MODEL
• The incubator seeks to attract promising entrepreneurs and businesses from across
the Caribbean to a hub where they can get the support needed, network and learn
from each other
• 6-12 month incubation periods will be available
• The model is grounded on the idea that traditionally graduates remain the local community
and provide jobs and support
• The wide array of companies and industries coming to Barbados will diversify the local
economy
• The incubator will provide cutting-edge technologies at below market rates and
resources
• Office space & furniture
• High-speed internet
• Telephony services
• Color Printers & Copiers
• Business Workshops
BENEFITS TO BARBADOS
Barbados Entrepreneurship Foundation has mandated for Barbados to become the #1 Entrepreneurial hub in the world, there
are significant benefits to be had from Entrepreneurship
• Entrepreneurship creates and retains wealth
•
The wealth created by entrepreneurs stays in the community through reinvestment in employees and business infrastructure
• Job creation
•
Startups and scale-ups create jobs faster than traditional firms. On average, scale-ups contributed to 32% of newly created jobs over the
past 3 years in developing economies
• Retains, Attracts Talent and Knowledge
•
Keeping talented and innovative minds in the society builds stronger civic leadership, better students, more productive workers, and
enterprise creators
• New ideas & solutions
•
Novel products and more efficient processes benefit local citizens
• Diversified Economy & Increased Foreign Investment
•
Barbados has seen recent significant declines in FDI, this program seeks to attract funding while decreasing the dependence on global
economic pendulum swings especially affecting the tourism industry
• Intangible benefits
•
Citizens of Barbados would have a greater sense of security, optimism and community pride
THANK YOU
KOFI CALLENDER
KCALLENDER1@BABSON.EDU
246-244-7055