Young Enterprise is going to repeat its Start-Up programme for entrepreneurs, building on the success of last year’s pilot programme.
Start-Up is the natural progression for Young Enterprise, which over 26 years has grown from the HSBC Company Programme for Sixth Formers, into a programme for primary and secondary students.
Aimed at those over 18, Start-Up grew from the frustration of those who completed the Sixth Form company programme – but were left wanting more once they went into tertiary education.
Five teams took part in a pilot programme, which was offered under the umbrella of the University’s Degree Plus programme. This year, the Faculty for Economics, Management and Accountancy has also come on board, supporting an extended offering and also recognising the programme’s modules as elective credits.
Start-Up is split between two modules running from October to January and January to May. The first involves setting up the team, identifying the product or service and doing market research . The second deals with the creation of the prototype and the drawing up of the business plan, which is judged in a ‘Dragon’s Den’ environment. During this competition the teams also get a chance to win €15,000, as seed capital through the BYE (Brilliant Young Entrepreneur ) award being supported by Hyundai. The overall winner will also represent Malta in the European competition.
The University has also been very active in promoting entrepreneurship and its Take-Off incubation project will help to nudge successful products and services into commercially viable businesses.
YE is reaching out to Mcast and other tertiary institutions and also wants Start-Up to be open to non-students – in the belief that the more multidisciplinary the approach and team make-up, the richer the experience will be for all concerned.
“People are afraid of entrepreneurship but much of that is perception. They associate entrepreneurship with being a big capitalist or a chief executive, but the reality is that entrepreneurship skills help in many different situations in different career paths,” YE chief executive Lorna Farrugia said.
YE chairman David Pace agrees.
“Perhaps it is clearer when we say ‘enterprising’ as that immediately brings to mind people who understand business, who have a particular mindset,” he said.
“But we believe that this mindset needs to be instilled early on, which is why we have invested in the primary school programme. It is wonderful to listen to seven-year-olds comment on how the tax that their family pays is used to purchase the equipment in their local playground, or on how things bought through online websites have an impact on local businesses.
The YE programme is constantly looking for more input, from sponsors, mentors and business advisers
“And the earlier they start and get engaged, the more propensity there is to continue.”
Ms Farrugia said that people who have taken part in YE are easy to spot – but did YE turn them into achievers or did they join because they were achievers-in-waiting? Thomas Naudi, who took part as a student six years ago, believes that it is a combination – that there must be the innate desire to start with, but that YE channels it and gives it space to develop.
“I was the managing director of the company team and it was the first time that I had had the opportunity to make presentations. And with 12 people in the team I learned a lot about leadership, motivation, dealing with difficult people and so on,” he said.
The YE programme is constantly looking for more input, from sponsors, mentors and business advisers. It has now added another vacancy to the list: CEO. Ms Farrugia is planning to retire soon after five years in the role and a successor is being sought.
“The programme has been built up considerably over the past five years. We have had as many students in that time as we did in all the previous 20 years put together,” Mr Pace said.
“This is a very exciting timefor us.”
Applications for the Start-Up programme are now open. E-mail admin@youngenterprise.com.mt for further information.
www.youngenterprise.org.mt