How an Entrepreneur Development Center facilitates promoting students’ business ideas

Entrepreneur Development Center—Ignite The Entrepreneur In You!

Entrepreneurs identify the problems, the gap in existing markets, offerings, create new opportunities, think creatively and innovatively to bridge those gaps by taking calculated and informed risks, endure in the face of challenges and failures, and fulfill the needs and demands of various segments. These traits differentiate an entrepreneurial mentality from other mindsets and are essential in achieving success as an entrepreneur.

These characteristics might be present, in varying degrees within an individual but need to be recognized, developed and utilized over a period of time. Every individual has the potential to become an entrepreneur provided they receive the appropriate guidance, mentoring and professional training. Students aspiring to start their own business should be successful job-givers instead of job seekers with the assistance of our Entrepreneurship Development Center (EDC).

The Entrepreneur Development Center (EDC) is a specialized unit that encourages students to bring forth their business ideas by regularly organizing business plan competitions, judged by domain experts from industry and academia. These ideas are then processed, debated, deliberated, improved and the bussing entrepreneurs are encouraged to improve the same by offering a variety of research tools, assistance, and the necessary support in the form of infrastructure, guidance, advice, industry-mentorship, and legal aid as they ideate, conceptualize and eventually start their venture.

The EDC helps students promote their business ideas in several different ways, as spelt out below:

Training sessions and workshops: The Entrepreneurial Development Center (EDC) provides a wide range of training sessions, workshops, and seminars to educate students on various issues. Some of the topics covered include company incorporation, conducting market research, securing funding, and competitor analysis. These sessions impart the requisite knowledge and skills essential to develop and implement their business plans.

Mentoring and coaching: The EDC connects the students with professional mentors, coaches who can assist them in discovering potential clients, improving marketing skills, and better managing their finances. These mentors and coaches are available to students through the EDC. Exposure to personalised coaching goes a long way in enhancing their academic success.

Networking opportunities: EDC provides networking opportunities with industry professionals, successful entrepreneurs, investors, and other business stakeholders. The students, by participating in these networking events, gain rich insights, opinions, and support from persons who have knowledge and expertise in their chosen field.

Funding and resources: Students at the EDC have access to a variety of resources, including potential sources of funding, office space, equipment, and different types of office furniture. With the assistance of this program, students will be able to avoid the initial financial and logistical challenges. This will enable them to concentrate on their businesses.

Competitions and events: The Entrepreneurial Development Center regularly hosts competitions, events, and other entrepreneurial activities. These encourage the students to present their business ideas and receive feedback from judges and industry professionals. A student’s self-assurance can be enhanced by participating in such activities. These activities help students to network and learn from each other.

Join forces with an existing organization: The EDC invites outside speakers, motivators, and mentors from diverse industries to add value to the program. For a budding entrepreneur, it may be an immense gain, if he is able to collaborate with a medium-to-large firm that displays interest in the entrepreneur’s project from the very beginning.

Infrastructure: The EDC is a fully functional division, equipped with all infrastructure requirements that an aspiring entrepreneur may require over a period of time. The infrastructure consists of central air-conditioned independent cabins, workstations, exclusive meeting rooms, broadband, well stocked pantry, library, parking areas besides professionally-managed services like reception area, housekeeping, correspondence address, courier on-demand services and printing/photocopy machines.

Overseas study program: The EDC proposes to plan faculty-led, short-term or semester-long, study abroad programs with concentration on business and entrepreneurship. This shall be a fantastic opportunity to get students out of their comfort zones, challenge their brains with fresh concepts. It will also provide them with opportunities to connect with professionals in other countries. The relocation to a new nation not only integrates the study of entrepreneurship with activities in the local community at the grassroots level, but also produces robust and impactful programs for both– the teaching staff and the students. When students reach this level, they will feel encouraged to continue with their entrepreneurial efforts.

The purpose of all of these activities, projects, events, visits, and talks is to inspire students to think creatively and be motivated in their studies.

Students can graduate from college with a complete toolkit that will enable them to handle the world of business in this rapidly changing world if they have access to the appropriate networks, mentors, opportunities, and money during college. But we must not lose sight of the bottom line—we are trying to encapsulate a lifetime’s learning into a handful of sessions spread over a few months.

According to me—therein lies the challenge!

(The author is Mr. Anil Somani, the chairman of FOSTIIMA Business School- Delhi, and the views expressed in this article are his own)