The influence of business incubator mentorship strategies on building sustainable, successful and ethical small businesses

Abstract

This study sought to understand the influence of various business incubator mentorship strategies on creating sustainable, successful, and ethical SMMEs. The study was conducted within business incubators in the eThekwini metropolitan region. Mentorship forms a vital part of the business incubation process, serving to make a positive impact on the success, sustainability, and ethical business practices of SMMEs. Despite the efforts made by business incubators, the failure rate of SMMEs remains very high, hence the need for this manner of exploratory study. The study was qualitative in nature and made use of semi-structured face-to-face interviews with mentees within a business incubator setting, management of business incubators, and government officials to gain deep insight about their lived experiences of business incubator mentorship. The information gathered from the interviews was analysed through thematic analysis using Atlas.ti software. In the main, the study revealed inconsistencies and challenges in the implementation of mentorship strategies in business incubators. There is a need for mentorship to be customised, based on the specific needs of certain categories such as women, youth, and rural entrepreneurs, therefore, entrepreneurs do not prefer a “one-size-fits-all” approach. There is greater need for the alignment of mentorship programmes to the needs of the entrepreneurs. In addition, participants believed that programmes ought to be structured and relevant and should offer a formal and informal (practical) component, so as to ensure balance. There is a great need for a suitable mentor reward system linked to mentee performance, to ensure that mentors remain committed, and that they remain in mentorship programmes for longer. More commitment is required from both mentees and mentors. Accessibility to business incubators was cited as a challenge. A conceptual framework illustrating the interconnectedness between the different variables is illustrated in chapter 5. There are some key recommendations for various stakeholders involved in business mentorship and if applied correctly, it could greatly assist in dealing with some of the challenges and ultimately contribute to lowering the failure rate of SMMEs.

Hierdie studie probeer om die invloed van verskillende inkubator mentorskapstrategieë in die sakewêreld te verstaan ten einde volhoubare, suksesvolle en etiese KMMO’s te vestig. Die studie is onderneem in sake-inkubators in die eThekwini- metropolitaanse streek. Mentorskap maak ’n belangrike deel uit van die sake-inkubasieproses, wat bydra om ’n positiewe impak op die sukses, volhoubaarheid en etiese sakepraktyke van KMMO’s te hê. Ondanks pogings deur sake-inkubators bly die mislukkingskoers van KMMO’s baie hoog; daarom bestaan die behoefte aan hierdie soort verkennende studie. Die studie was kwalitatief van aard en het gebruik gemaak van semigestruktureerde onderhoude van aangesig tot aangesig met mentees in ’n sake-inkubator-omgewing, bestuur van sake-inkubators, en staatsdiensamptenare om insig te verwerf in hul geleefde ervarings van sake inkubatormentorskap. Die inligting wat uit die onderhoude ingesamel is, is tematies ontleed deur gebruikmaking van Atlas.ti-sagteware. Die studie het oor die algemeen inkonsekwenthede en uitdagings in die implementering van mentorskapstrategieë in sake-inkubators blootgelê. Die behoefte bestaan dat mentorskap doelgemaak moet word op grond van die spesifieke behoeftes van sekere kategorieë soos vroue, die jeug, en landelike entrepreneurs. Gevolglik verkies entrepreneurs nie ’n “een-grootte-pas-almal”-benadering nie. Daar is ’n groter behoefte aan die instelling van mentorskapprogramme volgens die entrepreneurs se behoeftes. Daarbenewens glo deelnemers dat programme gestruktureer moet word en relevant moet wees, en ’n formele en informele (praktiese) komponent moet bied om balans te verseker. Daar bestaan ’n groot behoefte aan ’n geskikte mentorbeloningstelsel wat aan mentee-werkverrigting gekoppel is, om te verseker dat mentors toegewyd bly, en dat hulle langer by mentorskapprogramme betrokke bly. Groter toewyding word van sowel mentees as mentors vereis. Toeganklikheid tot sake-inkubators word as ’n uitdaging beskou. ’n Konseptuele raamwerk wat die onderlinge verband tussen die verskillende veranderlikes illustreer, word in hoofstuk 5 gegee. Daar is enkele kernaanbevelings vir verskillende belanghebbendes wat by sakementorskap betrokke is en, indien dit korrek toegepas word, kan dit grootliks bydra tot die hantering van sommige uitdagings en uiteindelik die mislukkingskoers van KMMO’s help verlaag.

Lolu cwaningo lufune ukuqonda umthelela wamasu okwelulekwa ahlukene wokufukanyelwa kwebhizinisi ekudaleni ama-SMME esimeme, aphumelelayo, nanesimilo. Ucwaningo lwenziwe ngaphakathi kokufukanyelwa kwamabhizinisi esifundeni seTheku. Umthelela nezeluleko ezinikwa ngumeluleki ziyingxenye ebalulekile yenqubo yokufukanyelwa kwebhizinisi, usiza ukwenza umthelela omuhle empumelelweni, ekusimameni, nasezinkambisweni zebhizinisi elinesimilo zama SMME. Naphezu kwemizamo eyenziwa ngokufukanyelwa kwebhizinisi, izinga lokuhluleka kwama-SMME lisalokhu liphezulu kakhulu, yingakho kunesidingo salolu hlobo locwaningo lokuhlola. Lolu cwaningo belusezingeni eliphezulu ngokwendalo futhi lwasebenzisa izingxoxo zobuso nobuso ezingahlelekile nezenziwe endaweni yokwelulekwa kokufukanyelwa kwebhizinisi, ukuphathwa kokufukanyelwa kwebhizinisi, kanye nezikhulu zikahulumeni ukuze zithole ukuqonda okujulile mayelana nempilo yazo ekwelulekweni kokufukanyelwa kwebhizinisi. Ulwazi oluqoqwe ezingxoxweni lwahlaziywa ngendlela yokuhlaziya imininingwane esizingeni eliphezulu kusetshenziswa uhlelo lwekhompyutha i-Atlas.ti. Ngokuyinhloko, ucwaningo luveze ukungahambisani nezinselelo ekusetshenzisweni kwamasu okwelulekwa ekufukanyelweni kwebhizinisi. Kunesidingo sokuthi ukwelulekwa kwenziwe ngendlela efanele, kuncike ezidingweni ezithile zezigaba ezithile njengabesifazane, intsha, nosomabhizinisi basemakhaya, ngakho-ke, osomabhizinisi abakhethi indlela “yokulingana konke”. Kunesidingo esikhulu sokuhambisana kwezinhlelo zokwelulekwa ngokwezidingo zosomabhizinisi. Ukwengeza, ababambiqhaza babekholelwa ukuthi izinhlelo kufanele zakhiwe futhi zifaneleke futhi kufanele zinikeze ingxenye esemthethweni nengakahleleki (esebenzayo), ukuze kuqinisekiswe ukulingana. Kunesidingo esikhulu sohlelo olufanele lokuklomelisa umeluleki oluxhumene nokusebenza kwabaqeqeshi, ukuze kuqinisekiswe ukuthi abeluleki bahlala bezinikele, nokuthi bahlala ezinhlelweni zokweluleka isikhathi eside. Ukuzinikela okwengeziwe kuyadingeka kubo bobabili abeluleki nabalulekwayo. Ukufinyeleleka kokufukanyelwa kwebhizinisi kuchazwe njengenselele. Uhlaka lomqondo olukhombisa ukuxhumana phakathi kwezinhlobonhlobo ezahlukene luyakhonjiswa esahlukweni 5. Kuneziphakamiso ezithile ezibalulekile kubabambiqhaza abahlukene ababambe iqhaza ekuqeqesheni ibhizinisi futhi uma zisetshenziswa ngendlela efanele, zingasiza kakhulu ekubhekaneni nezinye zezinselele futhi ekugcineni zibe negalelo ekwehliseni izinga lokwehluleka kwama-SMMEs