By Dr. Ayman El Tarabishy
President & CEO of the International Council for Small Business;
Deputy Chair of the George Washington University School of Business, Department of Management
10
INSIGHT:
Motivated by togetherness and sustained through passion, family businesses present the ideal template to build a business on a foundation of kindness, humanity, and social fabric. Family firms’ ability to invest primarily in their employees has led to shocking short and long-term recovery even after moments of crisis. Exemplified during the 2008 economic crisis, family-run enterprises survived “by sacrificing profitability to preserve employment.” This perfectly portrays how the firms that value both social and financial capital have a greater opportunity to succeed compared to those that focus solely on financial capital.
A family that is committed and trusting magnifies a family’s strengths and discourages weakness. Families who are healthy and humanely oriented will become stronger and excel, even under challenging circumstances. However, those that are fractured and divided will only separate further.
ICSB RECOMMENDATION:
Continue to emphasize and encourage the creation and sustainability of family businesses. Each family’s legacy will continue to help them see who they are and understand what defines them as a cohesive collective. This nature of “togetherness” ties family businesses easily with Humane Entrepreneurship, meaning that other, non-family firms can look to the guidance of family businesses’ human-centered approach as a model with which to align themselves.
09
INSIGHT:
Today, entrepreneurship and innovation are concentrated primarily in urban areas. The rise of the entrepreneurial city is becoming a global movement aided by improved telecommunications, prudent public investment in the start-up community, and an energetic, globally focused generation of youths. From Washington D.C. to Detroit, Michigan, and from Salerno to Italy and Macao, major urban centers have plans to transform their cities into what we call an entrepreneurial town.
However, the pressures of COVID-19 halted the establishment of many entrepreneurial cities, causing many businesses to reconsider the benefits of concentrating their business in the suburbs and more rural areas. Additionally, technology’s widespread nature has helped reduce the inequality between rural and urban spaces. We now realize we may be entering a new era of the suburbs. More and more professionals and working families recognize that they can attain high-quality living and working space outside of major urban areas. You can work as a top-level professional while being immersed in nature.
ICSB RECOMMENDATION:
The map will be reconstructed, and the current trend encourages the most innovative and entrepreneurial talent to see the world as its new home—unconstrained by borders. Teams no longer have to come to a major urban city to launch, fund, and scale their companies. Suburbs and even some rural areas can position themselves as a destination and a home for entrepreneurs of any size and in any location. The reason is simple: nature is evolving and changing the playing field, and a new balance is underway. The human relation to space is rapidly changing as we realize that business resources are not necessarily confined to a specific geographic location.
08
INSIGHT:
The inward reflection that stemmed from the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that the world must not forget the central role that the arts have had and continue to have in our lives. As lockdown orders cemented, families and individuals realized the importance of incorporating art and creativity into their lives. By redecorating your home, creating a new business idea, or playing an instrument, entrepreneurs everywhere welcome the unique opportunity of reimagining the role of museums, galleries, and concert halls.
The technological revolution has introduced new ways for traditional areas of art to spread their reach. Even the reach of a small, local museum can become global, allowing its message to reach new and diverse audiences. There will always be an emphasis on and reverence for experiencing art in person, which leaves entrepreneurs with ample space to respond to the human need to curate and experience art in difficult times.
ICSB Recommendation:
Not only should entrepreneurs be looking to the arts for growing opportunities for collaboration, but our need for arts highlights a missing piece in many of our entrepreneurship education programs. By restructuring how we look at the interaction between the arts and entrepreneurship, we will create products and services that feed an essential need for all local and global communities. Art accessibility will become an even greater topic of interest as we situate ourselves in the post-COVID-19 world.
07
INSIGHT:
Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are increasingly important to the innovation equation. They allow individuals to think profoundly about local and global problems while designing and applying real-world solutions. Consequently, it should not be surprising that small businesses drive a significant percentage of the STEM economy. Small businesses are the most human and personal form of entrepreneurship, and as a result, they are perfectly positioned to take advantage of the growing technological capacity at our disposal. However, we must remember that because small businesses are the most human and personal form of entrepreneurship, they can reflect the issues and inequalities of their space. Therefore, we must always remember to be aware of the past mistakes made in small businesses to correct them consistently. One of the core mistakes made in the STEM field has been the field’s gender inequality. Therefore, addressing this inequality is one of the most important short term goals we can set for ourselves.
ICSB Recommendation:
As the STEM and small business economies grow, let us be sure to recognize how “gender differences in STEM entrepreneurship expose issues unique to female entrepreneurs in STEM fields.” Women are known as the most suitable group of frugal innovators for multiple reasons. First, many women have the experience of running and managing the household, which could be viewed as a micro-business. Additionally, women have personally felt the oppression that frugal innovations seek to abolish.
It is inspiring and motivating to see the evolution of STEM moving so quickly. However, we should not assume that equality and fairness will necessarily follow the STEM fields’ growth. We must continue to be conscious of the need to focus our STEM efforts on gender equity and other efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
06
INSIGHT:
We are living through a revolution towards cohesion. We must emphasize that within every structure of society, including business, “respect for human dignity demands respect for human freedom.” We seem to have mistaken the value of every individual human with the value of economics. Consequently, we have accidentally turned economics into an opposing force for humane endeavors. However, the current situation brought about by the pandemic has allowed us to start anew. Within this restart, we must then consider the mistakes made in the past and rectify them. It is imperative to understand the characteristics of humanistic management, with empathy acting as an essential “driving factor for employee engagement and communicative business culture, leading to a better understanding between organizational members and stakeholders.” Empathy is often thought of as the “starting point of design thinking,” and it seems perfectly reasonable that this would be a guiding principle in reimagining and reshaping our new world.
ICSB RECOMMENDATION:
From empathy comes a commitment towards equity. At the firm-level, equity encompasses the “extent to which a company treats individuals in a fair and equal manner.” This essential component of the work and world culture promotes “a sense of proportion,” agreeing that “the outcomes individuals receive should be awarded in proportion to their inputs and outputs” and understanding that not all individuals are starting in the same place because of historical, embedded discrimination. We have to begin centering the experiences of the marginalized, atypical actors who have suffered on the old business ecosystem’s periphery. To form companies, nations, and people who work for equitable solutions for all, we must agree to unearth the past that has created these inequalities and challenge the present that continues to recreate them.
05
INSIGHT:
ICSB in December 2019 said the number one trend for 2020 was the End of the Status Quo. We called it because the status quo is no longer enough. To say it falls far short (to the tune of 60 million jobs that need to be created by 2030) is an understatement of fact, and it is failing even strong economies and (in particular) vulnerable ones alike. The wheels of change need to be set in motion immediately.
Then Covid-19 happened, and it was much harsher and more dramatic than ICSB expected. The new decade started with much death and sadness. Human Progress took a step backward.
Yet, what makes us human is the unequivocal and relentless will to hope!
ICSB RECOMMENDATION:
Forward momentum in these areas is still being seen to some extent. Sustainability is on everyone’s mind. The Gulf region continues to open itself up. The middle-class in Africa is on the rise, and countries re-examine their social contracts with their citizens. But is it enough? MSMEs have power and can play a crucial role in shaping the destiny of their businesses. They have actions and options available that they can take to minimize the disruption to their businesses. MSMEs must educate themselves to understand the supply chain, how it works, and how it affects their business in various ways. It is also essential for them to know and understand the alternative actions that can be taken. Many voices, many perspectives, and many heads can be better than one. Silence will not end the struggle, but letting our collective voices be heard can influence positive action.
04
INSIGHT:
As a business transforms from its creation to implementation, identifying and prioritizing market opportunities is essential. However, managers often face one of the most challenging tasks when striving to increase their company’s growth capacities.
Traversing market opportunities is too often left to simple chance when in reality, anyone can capitalize on available market opportunities if they can understand the systematic frameworks at play. Fully understanding these frameworks and tools will allow you to make informed strategic choices and present your applications to build team cohesion around your preferences.
This is where Digital Distinctions and Platforms can be the edge for entrepreneurs and SMEs. It is not just the strategy that is needed but the perfect online platform as well. The strategy has to be executed well. The art of foresight, leadership, and accountability is required. You have to have all three aligned perfectly. If not, the competition will destroy you.
ICSB Recommendation:
There is no flexibility in the modern business world without a digital presence. The tools exist for small businesses to create an online, global platform that can work towards solutions for various societal needs with very few input resources. The future of education is digital, and tying your business’s investment in digital presence to skills training or other educational opportunities is a smart, cost-effective way of growing your footprint..
03
INSIGHT:
During these difficult times, everyone is talking about survival, uncertainty, and loss—loss of revenue, relationships, and resources. It’s normal and human to feel fear and uncertainty and wonder about your business’s future. Currently, experts estimate that one-third of companies will fail, another third will prosper, and the remaining third are in dire need of support.
We know that disasters and economic downturns bring unprecedented challenges. But what if the worst thing that ever happened to your business was also the catalyst to unlock your courage once again? What if the obstacle you are experiencing right now is your opportunity to grow more robust, adaptable, and more successful than you’ve ever been?
What if you could do more than survive? What if you could thrive?
ICSB Recommendation:
We are beginning with a simple yet intrinsically complex question: how can we innovate with limited resources in a way that will create products and services that are accessible to all? In taking a step back, we might see the solution more easily; we must do better with less. In introducing the concept of frugal innovation, we can begin to think about how SMEs can escape the volatility of crisis and change and eventually start finding solutions that uplift the values of ingenuity, empathy, and resilience.
#1 Know thy business. Owners must review operations, contracts, and agreements to be thoroughly knowledgeable about their enterprise’s current status.
#2 Focus on the employee. Small business owners must spend time with employees, exploring employee contentment, and ensuring their focus aligns with the company’s more excellent vision to endure.
#3 Connect with your customers! Owners and managers need to speak directly to their clients to gain better insight into useful innovations to meet their current needs.
02
INSIGHT:
In 2015, ICSB began discussing the human element in Entrepreneurship. The concept of a human-centered approach across the various processes and components was simple and powerful. The idea was proposed by Dr. Ayman El Tarabishy, CEO and President of ICSB, Dr. KiChan Kim, Past President of ICSB, and Dr. Paul Swiercz, Professor Emeritus at GW University. At that time, the idea was not well received and was rebuked for lack of clarity. They told us that focusing on the human was shortsighted and ineffective compared to the dynamism of business and the accelerating speed of technology. They said Humane Entrepreneurship was naive and inconsequential. Think Again!
MSMEs are about doing business in a humane way. They hold a special place in people’s hearts because they are as human as we are. We currently see a trend in very non-human centric business models that take industrialization, robots, and artificial intelligence. This trend continues to grow and does not look like it is going to end any time soon. Yet, the heart of humankind will always yearn for a human touch.
ICSB Recommendation:
Technology is a necessary tool to improve business operations, but it is the human element that makes MSMEs unique and long-lasting. Businesses must not forget to inject human-ness into their practice—it is a crucial ingredient to their success. Humane entrepreneurship is all-encompassing, and no matter where business trends lead, it will never go out of style with employees and customers who seek humane and warm treatment. It is never the wrong course to take.
Small businesses must prioritize the well-being of their employees and the sustainability of their business practices. This is paramount across all industries. We have seen the consequences that companies face when they fail to prioritize human and environmental health. The assurance of wealth creation and continued operation only occurs when your employees and customers are confident that your business cultivates an environment of safety and health. This commitment to humane and sustainable business practices and investments will continue to develop into an even more critical metric in determining small businesses’ success today and in the future.
01
INSIGHT:
Women make up the bulk of small business employees and have succeeded at creating a robust, innovative, and crucial small business ecosystem despite historical and current challenges to their participation in the business world. There are realistic, concrete solutions to the challenges that allow women a real place to transform the business world positively. Women overwhelmingly are the managers of their household, a chore far more cumbersome than most business management positions. They have experience in investing frugally to maximize services in the face of economic pressures.
Women have consistently met challenges with creative, quick thinking that has mostly prioritized sustainable, community-driven solutions to issues, which are precisely the values and experience we need to be centering at this moment. We can see this through the benefits that companies have brought in after hiring and promoting women executives, which have consistently been between a 15% and 69% increase in profits (Kathy Frey, WE Conference, 2020). Simply put, women are one of the top growing economies in an ecosystem looking for new growth opportunities.
With the dual challenges of the COVID-19 crisis and the looming instability that will accompany
climate change, we have to begin changing the ways we view, understand, and carry out humane entrepreneurship and sustainable investment. One of the essential steps we can take to empower women in the business ecosystem is to have women decide for women. Women’s autonomy is often overlooked because the struggles they face are hidden; a fact we saw throughout the world as many women were left out of stimulus packages passed in response to the COVID crisis. We must recognize that it is impossible to transition to sustainable, humane standards of entrepreneurship and investment without empowering and centering all women. Once we give women the support they deserve and put them in positions to influence that direct the business ecosystem activity, we will see improvements in every part of our society.
ICSB Recommendation:
Empowering women, especially in leadership, is one of the most straightforward, most cost-effective ways businesses can improve themselves. We do not have to reinvent the wheel to create a more prosperous and equitable world. We have to recognize the value of those who have been overlooked for far too long and put those people in the best places to succeed.
We recognize that there cannot be we in the entrepreneurial community until we all step up and begin breaking down the barriers that continue to hold women back from their fullest potential. Women are core to our work in creating sustainable patterns of change and focusing on Humane Entrepreneurship. We honor the Womenpreneurs who are core to every social, economic, and cultural structure. Get ready because 2021 is Womenpreneurs’ year.
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