Ruwad

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS Q4-2009

COLUMN TIPS FOR ENTREPRENEURS

ASK THE EXPERT VIEWS ON FISHERIES

TUTORIALBEGINNER’S GUIDE

A l a m A l i k t i s a a d W a l a ’ m a l

P r e s e n t a t i o n

An

ENTREPRENEURS WHO PURSUED THEIR DREAM

Ruwad Founding Members:

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October-December, 2009

Column � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 2By Abdullah Al Jufaili, Intilaaqah

Column � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 5By Dinkar Kishor, AGM, Fund for Development of Youth Projects

Cover Story � � � � � � � � � � � � 8Successful models

Ask the Expert � � � � � � � � � 17Rajeev Singh of Ernst & Young

News � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � 18

Road map � � � � � � � � � � � � 20

CONCEPTAkshay Bhatnagar

CONTENTMohammed FahmiSunil FernandesFatma Al ArimiGhalib Abdullah Al Fori

DESIGN

Art Director Sandesh S. Rangnekar

Designers M. Balagopalan Khoula Rashid Al WahaibiAliya Saif Al Wahaibi

Senior Photographer Rajesh Burman

PhotographerSathya Das

Production Manager Govindaraj Ramesh

MARKETINGBusiness Head - SBUKush Gupta

Marketing TeamSanjeev Rana

CORPORATEChief Executive Officer Sandeep Sehgal

Executive Vice President Alpana Roy

Vice President Ravi Raman

Senior Business Support Executive Radha Kumar

Distribution United Media Services LLC

Published by United Press & Publishing LLC PO Box 3305, Ruwi, Postal Code - 112 Muscat, Sultanate of Oman Tel: (968) 24700896, Fax: (968) 24707939 Email: [email protected] rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. The publisher does not accept responsibility for any loss occasioned to any person or organisation acting or refraining as a result of material in this publication. OER accepts no responsibility for advertising content.Copyright © 2009 United Press & Publishing LLC Printed by Oman PrintersCorrespondence should be sent to: Ruwad, United Media Services PO Box 3305, Ruwi 112, Sultanate of Oman. Fax: (968)24707939

A PENChANT FOR RiSK

For aspiring entrepreneurs, there’s always ample information and advice on what one must do, and what one must avoid while engaging in a particular business. Information, advice and suggestions are however, no guarantee to success. The Ruwad team spoke to an array

of successful entrepreneurs in the last one month. We realised that while advice is important, what was pertinent in most of the entrepreneurs was a zeal to pursue something they believed in, taking substantial risks in the process.

While some left the comfort of a steady job, others deployed their entire savings into their pet projects. Some of the interviews should provide good inspiration for aspiring entrepreneurs, who wish to pursue their projects.

The edition also features a column by Abdullah Al Jufaili, who provides tips for budding entrepreneurs – the tips are insightful and practical.

Financing projects is always a major concern, while setting-up a project. In the absence of collateral security or third party guarantee, adequate and timely finance at reasonable rates, has remained an area of concern. Ruwad columnist Dinkar Kishor discusses the collateral issue and makes recommendations.

Read the Ruwad for more such articles, while providing your comments/feedback on the edition.

Sunil Fernandes [email protected]

From The Editor’s Desk

An Alam Aliktisaad Wala’mal Presentation

CONTENT INSIDE

Ruwad Branding Partner

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FOr ThE NExT GENEraTION OF BuSINESS LEaDErS

Column

If you are preparing to be an entrepreneur, you have to be alerted that studies point out that the failure of many entrepreneurial projects is

mainly attributed to mismanagement, lack of carefully studied plans or strategy and lack of good investment environment. Here are some important tips that could help would-be entrepreneurs avoid mistakes:

Abide by trade rules You have to ensure regular payment of rents, salaries and renewal of your licenses. You have to treat your customers and partners well and avoid offering any product that has adverse effect on society or environment.

Build good customer baseGood reputation is the best thing that can help you in expanding your customer base. Try to provide a distinguished service that makes your customer return back to you. Try to be honest with your customer. Avoid favoritism because it leads to failure or loss of funds.

Maintain contacts with respective departments The Directorate General for the Development of Small and Medium Size Enterprises at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is endeavouring to assist small and medium sized enterprises through promoting their products, laying strategies, providing free of charge training and councelling. Other agenies that support entrepreneurs include OCCI , SANAD, ODB and Intilaaqah Programme.

Learn from your mistakesFailure is very common in business. The most important thing is to learn from your mistakes. Accept advise and consult those with long standing experience in the field.

Improve your skills constantlyAs far as possible try developing your skills and performance; the sky should be the limit in this regard. Try to learn accounting bases so that you can create a balance between your income and expenditure. Try to develop

10 tips for would-be entrepreneursBy ABdullAh Al JufAili

The success of enTrepreneurial

projecTs would depend a loT on

many aspecTs. a few poinTers below

will provide a good insighT

don’t expect

making gains

overnight as many

small ventures

have to wait for

more than a year

to yield fruits


your marketing skill by taking a course in marketing.

Be social You have to be open to people and know your competitors in the market as your competitor today might be your partner in the future.

Be patient Don’t expect making gains overnight as many small ventures have to wait for more than a year to yield fruits.

Be creative Don’t try and copy others, when promoting your own products. Try to look for new marketing techniques.

Take rest You have to balance your work obligation and body requirements. Don’t forget to allocate certain times for rest and entertainment.

Use Modern TechnologiesICT applications can assist you in maintaining good records and monitoring your cash flows. Register for a business email, create a website or a blog to promote your products or services. You may also use SMS to promote your upcoming events.

The author is Director, Intilaaqah. He can be contacted on [email protected]

Column

5


Column

“SME is the Buzz word of the day!” SMEs are a major engine of economic growth in developing as well as developed countries. History shows that many of the large conglomerates started as SMEs at one stage. With the digital revolution sweeping the world, SMEs are as capable as the large sector enterprises in reaching out to markets in a global economy. The SME sector plays a vital role in enhancing productivity and creating employment opportunities. In an increasingly globalised world marked by competition and innovation, the SMEs have to be encouraged, supported and also guided to upgrade their capabilities.

The Western economies realised decades ago that small and medium enterprises are really the main drivers of the economy. While big businesses are necessary to preserve and maintain structure within the economy, surely they have considerable problems of their own. Mega corporations of the earlier era have increasingly lost their edge to smaller, nimbler

organisations, which have sprouted all over the global landscape.

The Middle East is now a new turning point for SME’s. The SME sector in Oman is relatively young in terms of its life cycle as compared to other similar markets, though the potential for growth is tremendous. However, the growth of SMEs in Oman is plagued by various factors, one of the major being lack of financial resources. In the absence of “COLLATERAL SECURITY” or Third Party Guarantee, adequate and timely finance at reasonable terms to entrepreneurs having viable business proposals in SME sector has been a major bottleneck. In this issue I would like to dwell upon an alternative to the “Collateral Security” !

Governments across the globe are increasingly leveraging variants of Credit Guarantee Mechanisms to promote entrepreneurial growth in the Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) sector in their

CollAterAl free lendinG – An option for sMesBy dinKAR KiShoR

The sme secTor plays a viTal role in

enhancing producTiviTy and creaTing

employmenT opporTuniTies

There is enough

evidence to

suggest that a

strong and vibrant

sme sector in the

country is one of

the key elements

responsible for

attaining higher

growth rates

6


Column

respective countries. The overwhelming success of International Credit Guarantee organisations as an alternative to Collateral Security, indicate that the global experience has been rewarding not only in terms of achieving the primary objective of entrepreneurship development but also in evolving a new and sustainable framework for debt financing viable business opportunities without security concerns.

In the Asian context, credit guarantee institutions have been in existence for several decades and are an integral part of the financial system in almost all the countries. Korea has one of the largest Credit Guarantee companies in the world in terms of guarantees issued. It also has nine other provincial guarantee corporations with a central re-guarantee organisation. Malaysia has a unique institution which combines the roles of a credit institution, venture capital company, credit rating agency and guarantee company. India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand and other countries in the Asian region have fairly well developed and mature credit guarantee organisations operating with Governmental support.

I strongly recommend that the Government

takes the initiative and asks the leading banks and development institutions to join hands in making a kitty and formation of an independent organisation as a “Credit Guarantee Fund/Trust for SMEs in Oman”. A ceiling of say RO50,000/- (initially can even start with RO25,000/-) of financial assistance may be fixed. Out of the approved amount a maximum of 70-80% could be guaranteed by the Trust. Thus any budding or existing entrepreneur will have an option to Collateral Security. It has to be a fee based activity. The Trust will have to be professionally managed and technology driven. The margin of 20% to 30% is to be left unguaranteed, to be shared by the funding agency / banks in order to make them accountable / responsible in sharing the risk while taking the financial decision as well as follow-up and monitoring. The aim should be to make the Trust a self sustainable agency over a period of time.

The criticality and importance of SMEs in driving growth story needs no elaboration. There is enough evidence to suggest that a strong and vibrant SME sector in the country is one of the key elements responsible for attaining higher growth rates. Addressing the vital issue of employment of a large number of the under-privileged and disadvantaged sections of society, overcoming the obstacles to rural and semi-urban prosperity, optimising utilisation of locally available resources, providing an enabling environment for young Omanis to participate in the nation building task should be areas of foremost concern for development! Providing such an Agency/Trust for supporting SMEs, will directly contribute to the growth of the economy and the sector.

The author is Assistant General Manager (Operations), Fund For Development of Youth Projects (SAOC)

The sme sector in

oman is relatively

young in terms

of its life cycle as

compared to other

similar markets,

though the potential

for growth is

tremendous

8


CoVER SToRy

suCCessful Modelssuccess is difficulT buT noT impossible, if one has The required

deTerminaTion and dedicaTion To ambiTions. MohaMMed FahMi RaJab and Ghalib abdullah al FoRi conducTed a few inTerviews

wiTh owners of small and medium sized enTerprises. below are

a few individuals, who may serve as role models and source of

inspiraTion To oThers

Rayan Al Kalbani, CEO of Mazoon Environmental & Technological Services Me and my colleague Yaqub arrived at an idea from our work with one of our professors at Sultan Qaboos University. We developed this idea and turned it into a viable and feasible project in 2008. The idea of the project is not only new to the Omani market but to the Gulf markets as well. We provided the bulk of the required funds for the project and the

remainder was arranged through KTM which hosted us as an incubator after winning at the BBIC. We also got RO5000 from Ernst & Young. At the moment KTM provides us with every possible assistance and finance without interests (through finance agencies).

Mohammed Al Rasbi, CEO and Founder of Research and Development Enterprises

After completing my studies abroad, I had many career options in the private and public sector. I decided not to join either of them and try my own venture. I heard about Intilaaqah program and KOM. I believe I had to make use of the support provided by both the institutions to small investors. I applied for their support and got their approval.

As for the capital, it should be noted

Rayan Al Kalbani Mohammed Al Rasbi

9


that if you are an incubator, you will not need a lot of capital, because in the first year you only pay the operational costs.

Majid Al Yaqubi, CEO, Real Reflection We conduct studies and research to provide alternative solutions for the different companies in the local market. I would like to encourage Omani youth to become entrepreneurs because private business is cost effective and profitable. Since childhood, I was fond of electronics and therefore I used to keep tab on the latest in gadgets and gizmos. I used to compare what we have with what is available on the internet. I found a cost differential, which is why I started my venture to ensure providing customers with required supplies at affordable rates.

Hamad bin Khamis Al Aghbari, Director Manager, Muscat GeoSystems I was among the first batch of graduates in GIS from the Sultan Qaboos University. I noticed that most of the companies operating in the

field were foreign companies, which made costs high. I believed that we could render similar services at lower rates. As you know, GIS deals with information which is very important for any sector. We should also maintain confidentiality of the information we are dealing with. When you deal with local companies, you get more assurance about the confidentiality of your information. When I decided to establish a company with my friend, the capital we had was only about RO1000. This capital was not enough to start our venture especially since the cost of a single original system was not less RO4000. Although we still suffer from lack of capitalisation, we still maintain our competitiveness it the market.

Mohammed Zahir Al Sheriqi, GM and Deputy CEO of Al Wathba Modern Systems (Inter Design)I always had hopes that someday I would have my own company. Although I did not have the required

capital to start the venture, I collected some money from my friends to meet important needs. As for the future development plans for this project, I will sign a contract soon with one of the companies specialised in programming and manufacture. There is a scheme under study now to produce cartoon films. I am fully satisfied with the performance of the company because everything is going ahead of the carefully studied plan.

Abdullah Sulaiman Al Sharji, Owner of Al Ghadeer Mineral Water Bottling Factory I have always dreamt of having a venture that secured a good source of income for me and some other Omani youths. I thought of mineral water business because:

It provides considerable number of yjob opportunities It builds national capacities and ypromotes entrepreneurship It does not need big capital y

Majid Al Yaqubi Hamad bin Khamis Al Aghbari

RUWAD_W42XH25.pdf 10/12/09 12:30:34 PM

RUWAD_W42XH25.pdf 10/12/09 12:30:34 PM

It helps us to make better use of your savings It encourages us to be creative y

Salma Al Hashmi, Manager of Envent Managing business is not an easy job therefore you should have the support of your relatives and friends. I was lucky as I go the required support from my husband and my father. I benefited a lot from my husband’s experience in banking industry and I am really grateful to him.

Walid bin Zahir Al Wuhaibi, Manager, Al Wali Fast Food While studying in the US, I used to work at restaurants to gather money for my studies. I felt a strong desire to have my own venture and be an entrepreneur, therefore I opened Al Wali chain of fast food at Al Bahja Center in 2003. The high turnout of the restaurant encouraged me to open new branches in Muscat and Sohar (total of four presently). I intend to open more branches in the future

and become an internationally renowned brand.

Firas A H Al-Abduwani, CEO & One of the founders for Hussam Technology Co. Although I studied mechanical engineering and got my Phd in oil engineering, my love for electronics urged me to change my career. As you know communication is the core of most of businesses today. Any country advancement is now measured by the sound infrastructure it has especially in the communication field. Few years ago we had only one provider for the communication services namely Omantel. Banks, for example ,

require high efficiency and secure systems to process their transactions. The services rendered by Omantel to banks were not that attractive in terms of price. Nawras was looking for business solutions to meet the market needs. We joined hands with them and became the only company that began selling visual equipment to Nawras. At

i nduSTRy SCAn

12


Mohammed Zahir Al Sheriqi Abdullah bin Sulaiman Al Sharji

Salma Al Hashmi

CoVER SToRy

13


that time, Law did not allow the sale of wireless laser systems to any company rather than Oman Mobile and Nawras. We submitted a proposal to TRA to allow us to sell the system. When we got TRA approval , we faced another challenge in terms of capitalisation. Thank God, we managed to overcome this challenge.

Khalid Bakhit, Director and CEO, Al Jazeera International for Investment (Al Turki Transport) I have worked in the customer service department at Oman Mobile for almost 15 years. The lesson I learnt from this long experience is that it is easy to get a customer, but it is difficult to maintain the customer’s loyalty to you.

The quality of the service provided by you to the customer plays an important role in maintaining and expanding your customer base. I started a venture in land transportation and tried to offer the best possible services to maintain my customers. The idea came to me nine years ago but the government, at that time, did

not give licenses to start such ventures. Although I appreciate the hard work of the existing companies, still I feel that the services rendered is far beyond expectations. With long routes, such as Muscat / Salalah , you have to ensure that the journey is enjoyable for your passengers through providing them with high quality service. To ensure rendering excellent services for our passengers:

We ensure that the bus windows are yinsulated with high quality insulated glass to keep the bus cool. We provide each bus with a small ycooler for refreshment and water. We provided electronic platform ythrough which passengers can reserve their tickets and confirm departure and arrival times. We provide each bus with ceiling ymounted big LCD screens. We also provided headphone for passengers.

In the future, I plan to extend the business to rest of the GCC countries.

Walid bin Zahir Al Wuhaibi Firas A H Al-Abduwani

Khalid Bakhit

14


Company name CEO BusinessDate of

incorporationContributors to

success

The impact of global crisis on

the company

Source of funding

Marketing methodsEvaluation of performance

Mazoon Environmental & Technological Services

Rayan Al Kalbani Treatment of oil pollutants by biotechnology & chemical tests

June 2008 Providing distinguished services

Although the impact is great, we are determined to continue

Personal and the financial award received at BBIC

Direct contact, website and attending events

Good, despite the challenges

Research & Development Enterprise

Mohammed Al Rasbi IT September 2003 Good planning, strategic location and sound management

Not much as we have emergency plans in place

Personal Through marketing plan that is updated annually as per the market needs

Excellent

Real Reflection Majid Al Yaqubi Conducting electronic studies 2007 Save time, effort & money

It provides feasible alternatives that meets the current market conditions

KM & SANAD Meetings, distributing brochures and participation at media gatherings

Performance has not been up to expectations due to lack of awareness of technical solutions in the market

Muscat GeoSystems Hamad Khamis Al Aghbari GIS, remote sensing and survey Jan 2008 Specialisation in business and full dedication to manage the company business

Recession is temporary and will resolve soon

Personal Participation at EXPOS and meeting with decision makers

Good

Al Wathba for Modern System

Habib Al Kindi Graphic design and computer services

Sep 2008 Cooperation among staff and opening the doors for talented people

We help companies market their products

Personal Personal relations with public and private agencies

Doing well

Hussam Technologies Firas A H Al-Abduwani Communication & wireless networks 2006 Providing new and modern products

Not that much because the Sultanate is insulated to a great extent

Contacts with local banks

Direct contact with customers and attending events such as EXPOS and conferences

Constantly developing in terms of size and quality

Al Jazeera International Investment (Al Turki Transport)

Khalid Tabouk Land transportation (goods and passengers)

Provide distinguished services

We have been affected but we still fulfill our obligations towards our customers

Groffin Good

Al Wali Fast Foods Walid bin Zahir Al Wuhaibi Restaurants June 2003 Dedication to the management of the company

The crisis has affected all sectors including ours

Personal and through Groffin

Publishing ads in different media

Good

CoVER SToRy

15


Company name CEO BusinessDate of

incorporationContributors to

success

The impact of global crisis on

the company

Source of funding

Marketing methodsEvaluation of performance

Mazoon Environmental & Technological Services

Rayan Al Kalbani Treatment of oil pollutants by biotechnology & chemical tests

June 2008 Providing distinguished services

Although the impact is great, we are determined to continue

Personal and the financial award received at BBIC

Direct contact, website and attending events

Good, despite the challenges

Research & Development Enterprise

Mohammed Al Rasbi IT September 2003 Good planning, strategic location and sound management

Not much as we have emergency plans in place

Personal Through marketing plan that is updated annually as per the market needs

Excellent

Real Reflection Majid Al Yaqubi Conducting electronic studies 2007 Save time, effort & money

It provides feasible alternatives that meets the current market conditions

KM & SANAD Meetings, distributing brochures and participation at media gatherings

Performance has not been up to expectations due to lack of awareness of technical solutions in the market

Muscat GeoSystems Hamad Khamis Al Aghbari GIS, remote sensing and survey Jan 2008 Specialisation in business and full dedication to manage the company business

Recession is temporary and will resolve soon

Personal Participation at EXPOS and meeting with decision makers

Good

Al Wathba for Modern System

Habib Al Kindi Graphic design and computer services

Sep 2008 Cooperation among staff and opening the doors for talented people

We help companies market their products

Personal Personal relations with public and private agencies

Doing well

Hussam Technologies Firas A H Al-Abduwani Communication & wireless networks 2006 Providing new and modern products

Not that much because the Sultanate is insulated to a great extent

Contacts with local banks

Direct contact with customers and attending events such as EXPOS and conferences

Constantly developing in terms of size and quality

Al Jazeera International Investment (Al Turki Transport)

Khalid Tabouk Land transportation (goods and passengers)

Provide distinguished services

We have been affected but we still fulfill our obligations towards our customers

Groffin Good

Al Wali Fast Foods Walid bin Zahir Al Wuhaibi Restaurants June 2003 Dedication to the management of the company

The crisis has affected all sectors including ours

Personal and through Groffin

Publishing ads in different media

Good

CoVER SToRy

17


ASK ThE EXPERT

QuestionWhat are the prospects for fish processing and fish powder production plant in Oman? Can I get a loan from the government or a financial institution for it? Being a small set-up will I be competitive enough to sell my products in the international market? Is there any industry body which can help me market my products outside Oman?Hashim Al-Mahrzi, Salalah

ResponseThe government does support the fisheries industry as part of its goal of economic diversification. As part of the Vision 2020, the government aims to increase the contribution of fishing to GDP from 1% to 2%. While this is a relatively small contribution compared to other industries, the expectation is nonetheless to double the size. There are various initiatives provided or facilitated by government and include tax breaks and soft loans where the terms and rates are favourable as well as the development of infrastructure around fisheries. The exact requirements and offerings will vary depending on the line of business and scale of the requirements. There are two basic routes along which you could proceed. In the first instance, you could develop a brand and market your products as your own. The second option would be to provide the raw material and processing private label products whereby your produce is branded under an existing name of a third party. Much of the locally caught and processed fish is sold on the international market. Depending on the type of fish, the destination markets might be in Asia (Japan and South Korea, for

example) or in Europe (Italy and Greece, for example). Bilateral agreements usually exist between producer and distributor whereby the local, Omani operations enter into a contract to supply fish or derived products to specific distributors in the target market country. This allows for a greater degree of security in terms of prices as these will be set periodically rather than on a spot basis. There are certainly competitive advantages to being large where economies of scale might benefit the overall cost per unit of the end product. However, large companies are also slower to react to changes in the market conditions and customer needs. Here, being small can run to your advantage as your company should be more agile to adapt to changing needs.

When considering the fisheries industry in Oman, one must tread with caution as the historical performance of some companies has not all been positive. First consider the existing market and whether it is an attractive market to enter (in terms of size, degree of development and room for expansion). Then look at the competition to see whether there are already a number of players doing what you would like to do. Consider also the seasonality which may impact how you manage direct and indirect costs (temporary labour compared to permanent labour, for example). In addition to historical indicators, there is some doubt as to the reserves of fish available. Recent studies suggest that some of Oman’s staple fish such as the kingfish have been overfished. Further pressure from fishing might reduce the viability of the fishing industry further or bring about change in regulation, the implications of which you will need to understand fully.

please email your queries

on entrepreneurship to

[email protected]

and they will be answered

by rajeev singh of e&y

Rajeev SinghPartner, Ernst & Young

treAd with CAution

18


‘i AM An entrepreneur’Shell Development, in association with the Ministry of Education, has initiated “I am an Entrepreneur” campaign. The campaign seeks to raise the awareness of school students in all regions of the Sultanate to consider the option of starting their own businesses, by presenting a number of success stories of young entrepreneurs who have benefited from the Intilaaqah programme. The campaign will identify characteristics that students need, to become successful owner Manager, qualities that they must have, and urge students to think creatively about having their own business as an option.

The campaign will target 10th and 11th grade’s students in various regions, who are selected by the Ministry of Education’s specialists. The initiative will include several activities, including a lecture on entrepreneurship, a meeting with one of the young entrepreneurs to talk about his or her experience in addition to a documentary film about the success stories of a number of young Omanis

who have benefited from Intilaaqah programme. Students will participate in the competition synonymous with the campaign that aims to encourage students to develop their research and encourage them to expand their knowledge in the field of entrepreneurship. In addition to that, a number of vocational guidance specialists and administrators will be trained throughout the campaign, to enable them to spread the idea among students from other schools.

nEWS

Hotel owners and operators across the Arabian Gulf are forecast to spend a total of more than $1.25 billion this year on kitchens and laundries for new properties, according to details of a Proleads research house study.

“The study shows that while globally the hotel sector is experiencing something of a slowdown, substantial new business is available for hotel equipment and service providers in what is still a regional growth industry,” says an industry analyst.

Kitchen and laundry equipment accounts for 2.12% of the value of a hotel project. The study shows that across the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries, total kitchen and laundry budgets are expected to exceed $617 million this year and $634 million in 2010. The forecast budgets in Oman are expected to remain at around $11 million, both this year and next.

GrowinG business opportunities in hotel equipMent

19


nEWS

The global economic downturn may have caused economic upheaval and shaken businesses around the world but confidence among young entrepreneurs remains high, according to a new survey by Shell LiveWIRE International, the leading international network to inspire and develop enterprise in young people. Over one in three said that their business confidence remained unchanged during the depths of the recession. More than six in ten expect their businesses to perform either slightly or significantly better over the next 12 months. Women are even more optimistic than men that their turnover and profits will rise over the next year.

Given the current economic climate, entrepreneurs see the introduction of new products and services (by 21% of respondents), and the development of new markets at home (by 15% of respondents) as being the two biggest opportunities for their businesses. However, entrepreneurs are still watchful of the effects of the global recession, and they highlight reduced demand (by 19% of respondents), and late payment (by 16% of respondents) as the two greatest risks facing their businesses during the current economic

climate. Business confidence among male and female entrepreneurs is about the same with just over a third of women (35%) and just under a third of men (32%) saying that their business confidence improved over the past 12 months. Women are, however, even more optimistic than men

that their turnover, profits and demand for their products and services will rise over the next 12 months.

Two local entrepreneurs Jamal and Anwar Al Asmi, founders of RealityCG, whose business is thriving during the economic downturn, commented:“New opportunities were born from the economic downturn as our business had to look beyond our cash-cows. In turn we broadened our view of the market by rethinking about who we serve and how we service our clientele to ensure we could make up for any lost ground. This has been good for us as we were forced to get out of the lull of our comfort zone, bringing a new wave of energy and courage to do things a little differently. In retrospect the downturn is really an up-turn … just that we had to stand on our head to see it. Nothing it seems motivates like necessity.”

CisCo entrepreneur institute trAininG CenterAMIDEAST and the Cisco Entrepreneur Institute are collaborating to provide training that will help translate Oman’s entrepreneurial potential into new jobs and economic growth.

Under a recent agreement with the Cisco Entrepreneur Institute (CEI), AMIDEAST will establish training centers at its offices in Oman, Lebanon and Morocco. Scheduled to begin in late October, courses in Muscat will include “Starting a Business,” “Growing a Business,” “iExec Enterprise Essentials,” and “The Entrepreneurial Mindset.” Stanford and Cornell Universities – consistently ranked as having the top graduate schools of business – are among the CEI curriculum and training partners, providing content and learning resources for the workshops.

AMIDEAST instructors, who successfully completed CEI virtual training via WebEx in July, will deliver the courses using an open source, web, and media-enabled platform. This allows for in-person, remote and blended learning environments, thus taking advantage of Cisco’s computer networking technologies and innovative, Internet-based educational programming.

YounG entrepreneurs reMAin Confident

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