Entrepreneurship Empowerment in South Africa

Howdy Folks,

For the past few weeks we have been working diligently on creating, defining, and starting to implement our required deliverables for our clients.  The difference between this project and typical consulting engagements is the desire to assist the entrepreneur with the implementation component of the project.  We can create all the greatest ideas in the world, but if the client can’t utilize the information/initiatives then what good have we done?  Our task now becomes teaching, handholding. gently prodding, or kicking the client in hopes they see the value in the proposed enhancements.

The part that keeps me up at night is our recommendations do affect peoples lives.  This isn’t a school simulation project.  Our recommendations run the gamut of new marketing materials to properly incentivize empolyees to whether to close the doors and sell the assets off.  There are some very real decisions to be made that are bearing on relatively inexperienced shoulders.  Thank goodness we have all the support we need with our wonderful administrators who are always available and willing to consult with us.

So for the rest of this week we are in strict implementation mode and writing up our reports regarding how we came to these decisions and how we plan on executing them.  Let’s just say the next week and a half will be incredibly hectic and a lot of sleep will not be had.  The positive is our team has taken ownership in the business and we are attempting to implement change as if this was our baby.  We will survive and at the end will have gained one of the most powerful experiences one could hope for.

Justin…

Our team had the unique opportunity to visit Langa, SA; one of the largest townships in the greater Cape Town area.  To give you an idea about the importance of these areas, the largest township about an hour outside of Cape Town, Khayelitsha, has well over 1.5 million people but as you can imagine accurate data is non existent. There are  8 other formal townships in the region and countless other squatter camps where individuals just set up housing anywhere they can find a plot.

The townships were the areas that the white leaders during Apartheid granted for the blacks to settle.  Typically these lands were less than desirable and encompassed marshy lowlands the leadership at the time had little use for.  Now that Apartheid is over, these areas have seen significant improvement.  Now I know what you are thinking; yea for progress.  When I say improvement, I mean electricty in most of these areas and running water in parts of the community;  a fair amount of paved streets and schools are improving.

Despite these challenges, it truly is a magical place in the sense that on certain streets it feels as if you are walking through an American small town, and other parts are much more distressed than anything we can imagine in the US.  These areas resemble a neverending maze of tin and wood pieced together to erect some sort reliable shelter.  Clothes lines are strung every few feet, fires burning outside of homes for food and warmth (it is the winter at this time),  children playing everywhere, and adults huddled together in passionate conversation.  This may seem like a fairly intimidating environment but on a certain level it works in a sort of chaotic harmony.

The most impressive feature of these communities is the overwhelming effort to enhance the place.  Every entrepreneur we speak to wants to grow their business AND help their community.  From organizations to townhalls to neighborhood watch and skill development programs; the townships understand there is a better life out there and they have to power to grow and make it so.

As I was sitting in an eleven passenger van that was struggling with a steep ascent due to the fact that it was holding fifteen people, my adrenaline was flowing. Not because my transport could stall at any moment and rapidly descend in reverse, but because we were approaching Table Mountain. I had been looking forward to hiking the glorified hill since I was accepted into the EESA program in February.
I began the trek full of energy and eager to attack the trail. However, after several steps, my unbridled enthusiasm turned into a quiet determination. I realized that those individuals who told me the journey would be equivalent to climbing three thousand feet of sharply inclined stairs were in fact not prone to hyperbole. It was similar to climbing stairs. Only if the stairs were irregular in shape, not uniform in composition, gave one the false sense of stability, and were periodically slick (on several occasions I thought I was skimboarding).
With that being said, it was a truly amazing experience. There were secluded caves, hidden waterfalls, numerous temperature and climate transitions (the mountain is home to 1400 distinct flora), locals running with their dogs, and a peculiar species of mammal that intently glared at me with glazed, inquiring eyes (I believe it was a cross between a chubby hamster and a stoned beaver). At some point during the climb, while processing everything I had just observed, I was startled to discover the clear, tranquil sky had given way to an ominous, foreboding mist. I was afraid to blink for I feared that when my eyes opened I would be soaring to the top of the Table in the grasp of one of the pterodactyls from Jurassic Park.
Although I was never snatched by a pre-historic beast, I, along with 21 other students (consultants), eventually made it to the flat summit. Once there, the haze dissipated as abruptly as it had materialized, leaving us with a stunning view of the Cape. From left to right and back again, I spent fifteen minutes marveling at the beauty of nature and the ingenuity of man (and woman). I had to take these mental pictures. My camera was dead. Sorry mom! I will send a postcard.

“working together” is just what we’ve been doing here in Cape Town. I truly love everyone I have met and so far this has been a great experience (despite all the random things that have happened, including my Mac crashing with all of our group’s work + my pictures on it). But there’s something about the people here and what we are learing that have really put things into perspective. I already know I’m going to be so sad to leave.

We’ve all met with our clients a few times now and are just about to wrap up a huge part of our consulting project: the SEE model. It’s all anyone’s been talking about around here, a 40 page document that we have been writing for each client this past week. I’m looking forward to focusing on what we will actually deliver to our clients to solve their business problems- let the real challenge begin!

This weekend we are hiking up Table Mountain (if it doesn’t rain too hard) and hopefully I can get the group out to play Quidditch. Can’t leave without bringing Quidditch to Africa.

This last week absolutely FLEW by. We were told at the beginning of the program that the 6 weeks would be gone before we knew it, but I didn’t really believe it at the end of the first week. But now… holy cow. I can’t believe we’re 1/3 of the way through with the program.
The especially difficult aspect to fathom is that we have 4 weeks to determine and implement solutions for our clients’ problems. Our SEE models were due on Friday, so we spent all last week analyzing the businesses in pretty great detail. The hard part, now, is figuring out where the main issues lie and what we are going to do to fix those problems. I’m the accounting/ bookkeeping person in our group, so of course I see those issues as the highest priority; they may not be, and if they are, it will definitely be a challenge to figure out where to start. We talked about some accounting issues in class last week, and even though I’ve gotten an A in every accounting class I’ve ever taken, it was really difficult for me to step back and see the process of accounting as a simplistic system that can be implemented to answer simple questions about the business, like what it’s worth and if it’s profitable. Teaching other people is something I struggle with, so it will be quite a journey for me to convince a sugar processor and a spa owner that taking time out of their normal week to keep a simple set of books is critical for their business success.
Both of our clients seem to be struggling with an issue that Dr. Morris deemed “the chicken and the egg dilemma.” They need cash to be able to perform their business functions (process sugar and perform spa services), but they can’t get cash unless they are getting business. It’s our job to figure out what they really need, what they have, what they aren’t using, what they can leverage, and where they can get money. Then get it. In 4 weeks. I’m excited to start working on deliverables rather than analysis, but the pressure is certainly on, now, to perform way beyond the expectations we have of ourselves. I’m going to have to get comfortable with the discomfort of something totally new.

Kristen, thanks so much for your updates, I really enjoy reading them.

Dick Lester

So I made it!  Talk about eye opening.

No matter how much someone tells you about what to expect, you really can’t appreciate South Africa for what it truly is.  From incredible beauty to the despair of African humanity, Cape Town illustrates it all with incredible honesty.

What a whirlwind experience.  We had our first experience in the classroom with the head of the EESA program Dr. Michael Morris from Oklahoma State.  Let’s just say he has an incredible passion for this program and the good it does for these people.  His expectations for the deliverables we provide for these clients is his number one concern and he will not relent on that mission.  Next we met our South African colleagues who will join our team.  I am fortunate to get to work with Brownyn Lei Lai, a Chinese South African who is a finance honors major, and Berlin Hervin Mbe, a Cameroon citizen who is a getting his masters in finance.  We have also received our first glimpse of our client engagements that we will be working on for the program.  Our team is responsible for Ubizo Tours, a small bus tour company who is looking at expansion into different segments and potential growth possibilities and Kariel’s Butcheries, a mom and pop butcher who has strong revenue streams but poor cost controls.  More on the clients to come.

We have had some time to see some of the town and it can only be described as a place of contrast.  From the most incredible mall area I have ever been in to the woman selling “unique meats” cooked right on the street, South Africa will not let your eyes glaze over for fear of missing something astounding.

In my short time here we have worked extremely hard and found some time to play as well.  So far we have participated in an in-depth township tour, led by our client company; a trip to Robben Island, prison home to Nelson Mandela for 18 years along with many other political activists during the Apartheid era; and enjoyed some time wandering around the beautiful world renowned Waterfront area.  This Saturday we will hike up Table Mountain and hopefully get to experience one of the most incredible views in the world.

Ayoba Africa!

Wow.  Today was quite a day.  We started at 9:00 with a guest speaker, Luvuyo, who was an EESA client for 3 years.  He began in business by selling used computers in the townships, then moved on to the internet café business, and finally is profiting heavily from computer training.  He has 17 locations in different townships around Cape Town, which is really impressive.  He also has future growth plans in the smartphone industry.  One of the most interesting things he said, to me, was that even though he has been highly successful, he never wants to move the business out of the townships.  He is passionate about giving back to the communities he was raised in, but also knows that there is a huge market for computer training in the townships whereas there may not be in the city.

Around noon, we left for a tour of Langa and Guguletu, two townships near the University.  It was a long tour, about 4 hours, but it was amazing.  It turns out that the tour company is one of the clients for this year, and is owned by the son of Namonde.  Two of his partners, also from the township, gave us the tour.  I expected to see corrugated metal shacks with dirt roads, which I saw plenty of.  We were able to go in one woman’s home: a single room with two beds that is home to 16 people.  We tried to fit 15 people standing up, and even that was a squeeze.  Besides the realization of how small some of the living quarters actually are, I was surprised at the disparity even in the township.  There are some concrete, even some brick, houses  with gates and two cars in the township.  The tour guides said that professors and other professionals live in those homes.  We did notice that there were bars on all of the windows.

Despite the conditions, the townships were beautiful.  There was a lot of activity, as the children were just getting out of school.  The children were keen to run up and hold our hands, or just stand there and stare.  The guide informed us that the word we kept hearing them shout means “white person”, with a positive and affectionate connotation, in Xhosa.  Most of the homes were brightly painted, and on one main street, Harlem Ave, plates hanging on the outside of the home proudly displayed the names of popular South African politicians, doctors, and artists who once lived in the home.

We also visited an arts center, where children can go afterschool to work on skills like pottery, painting, or music.  One room had about 15 different African drums, and although two students were in the middle of a lesson, the teacher invited us in to try out the drums.  He conducted everyone and the result was very impressive!

We were told at the beginning of the tour that we would have the opportunity to try “Smiley”, or sheep’s head.  They said we would see why it is called Smiley, and sure enough… the uncooked heads were sitting on a table, not missing any fur.  The head was seasoned and cooked with a blowtorch.  If anyone can believe it, I tried it.  The seasoning was fine, but the texture was like beef fat; I’m not sure that I’ll be having that again, even though the tour guides said it was a delicacy.

I think the most important thing I learned today was that although conditions are less than ideal, residents of the townships seem to be very proud of their home and may not have any interest in leaving.  The community is very strong.  I can’t wait to meet our clients.

Today I met the University of the Western Cape (UWC) member of my consulting team. Based on my experience the previous night at The Barn, a popular campus hangout, I assumed he would be in his early twenties, have a whispery mustache, and speak proper but heavily accented English.

Freddie Esau was none of these things. Although I did not ask his age, he most likely is in his mid to late fifties. Additionally, he bears an uncanny resemblance  in appearance and style to the great Cleveland Brown running back Jim Brown. He is so smooth I have nicknamed him Kool Kat Freddie.

Kool Kat is fluent in several languages in addition to English. He formerly worked for Pick and Pay, the South African equivalent to Wal-Mart, as a manager. In this role, he was in charge of the company’s partnership with Habitat for Humanity in which they built affordable housing for Pick and Pay employees living in the townships. Armed with this experience and the carpentry skills learned as a child, Freddie started his own construction company two years ago.

Although I am sure I will learn much more about Kool Kat over the next month and a half, I was still disappointed that he was unable to accompany the rest of the EESA students to Moyo, the dining place favored by Nellie and other celebrities when they visit the Cape. However, it did give me the opportunity to talk to the other thirteen UWC students as I enjoyed authentic African cuisine (ostrich and hogs tail) and listened to the rhythmic beat of the drums in a scenic setting (we ate in a dimly lit tent structure that was surrounded by tree houses and cascading waterfalls).

As I emerged through customs, I saw a man holding a sign that read EESA. Immediately to his left was a female whose face looked vaguely familiar. It belonged to one of the three team members I will be working with over the next three weeks. If first impressions are any indicator, it is going to be a great experience. Despite the fact that the airline lost her luggage, her attitude was positive and her energy was infectious. The same could be said for the other American EESA students I met throughout the remainder of the day. While the majority of our backgrounds are diverse, our goal is singular. We desire to learn from entrepreneurs in the townships who have overcome (and continue to face) many significant social barriers only to be confronted by ones of the business variety. Hopefully as consultants we can understand and empathize with the former in order to assist in the latter. The process will be physically and mentally taxing but ultimately rewarding and beneficial to both parties. For if we build a relationship based on trust and collaboration, the ventures will begin the slow shift from struggling to sustainable.