Endeavor Global - Assignment Example

? School: Topic: WEEK 7 DISCUSSION Lecturer: WEEK 7 DISCUSSION Introduction The dream and hope of every entrepreneur is to succeed in his area of business venture and bring lasting impact to the society in which he finds himself. However, this dream and ambition is often short-lived for some entrepreneurs, especially those who find themselves in emerging markets. A case can be made as to why there is a bias against entrepreneurs from emerging markets with the level of trade and economic development in those countries (Nath, 2008). Generally, economic growth and development in emerging markets is not as rapid as what prevails in developed markets. To this end, entrepreneurs are faced with several difficulties, among which is the need to raise capital to fuel the growth of their businesses. It is against this backdrop that the works of various non-governmental organizations who aim at fostering entrepreneurship through the provision of technical and financial support in emerging markets remain very crucial. In this paper, the role of Endeavor Global as a non-governmental organization with such similar focus is critically analyzed. The analysis shall be taken from an appraisal perspective, aiming at examining the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of the organization. NGO’s Mission and Operational Practices Endeavor Global has a simple mission of “lead the global movement to catalyze long-term economic growth by selecting, mentoring, and accelerating the best High-Impact Entrepreneurs around the world” (Endeavor, 2013). This mission spelt out by the organization clearly defines the operational practices that they follow in the accomplishment and achievement of their goals as an organization. First, the organization functions as a catalyst for economic growth. This means that the organization believes that economic growth would take place in one way or the other among businesses and companies. However, it takes an extra effort to facilitating the rate of expected economic growth and this extra effort is what Endeavor Global seeks to stand for. Again as part of operational practices, the organization sets itself up for strict research and development into emerging markets to identify and monitor entrepreneurs whose business operations bring them to that stage or level of global competitiveness that can be referred to as ‘High-Impact’. By high-impact, reference is made to entrepreneurs who have been identified to have great potential for impact (Crabb, 2008). Finally, the organization is concerned with issuing out specific technical and financial support to all such high-impact entrepreneurs that are identified. Successful creation of social change Indeed, the entire paradigm of operational complexity that is practiced by Endeavor Global is focused on the creation of social change and the improvement of markets in emerging countries. This is because the organization operations on the theoretical principle of social entrepreneurship. By social entrepreneurship, reference is being made to the selection and support of entrepreneurs who exhibit key ideologies of operation such as being mission-related, have a perceived need of clients, and have need for profit, though not making it a primary motivation (Sesan, 2006). In effect, Endeavor Global has focus for entrepreneurs whose ultimate goal is to influence and improve society through their business operations. This must however not be mistaken for nonprofit organizations as it is very much possible to be profit oriented and yet focused on social growth and change. Apart from this approach taken by the organization, the fact that is makes its target of entrepreneurs from emerging markets alone can be said to be a huge focus on social change. This is because there is enough research evidence to support the notion and thinking that most of the world’s social challenges and problems that need to be changed and improved are in emerging and developing markets (Hundnut & DeTienne, 2010). In effect, any support given to entrepreneurs in such countries to foster social entrepreneurship is tantamount to causing social change. Success rate of the organization Data from Endeavor Global shows that last year alone, Endeavor Entrepreneurs generated as much as $258 on every dollar that was donated to the organization (Endeavor, 2013). This is a very colorful measure of the kind of impact that the organization is making in emerging markets. Indeed, the focus and attention of estimating whether or not the organization was successful will not be taken from the collective quantum of monies that the organization gave out. Rather, the estimation of success will be judged from the impact that the monies that came from the organization to entrepreneurs had in the lives of the entrepreneurs and society as a whole. With each dollar generating $258, it can be concluded that there was 258% of growth rate or impact rate on the activities of the organization. Such feat of success can clearly come only in an atmosphere of strict monitoring and evaluation of entrepreneurs. It is not surprising therefore that for the 15 years that Endeavor Global has been in existence, it has engaged as many as 30,000+ candidates for the status of high-impact entrepreneurs, out of which 700+ high-impact entrepreneurs have been selected from over 450 companies in emerging markets. Recommendations on Priorities The success rate of Endeavor Global may be impressive and commendable but this does not mean that the organization must rest on its efforts. There are several ways in which the organization can prioritize its approach to emerging markets. Specifically, it will be suggested that the organization gives emphasis to different types of emerging markets. From a global rating of the Next Generation (N-11) countries, there are four major categories of countries that can be found. These are developed countries, newly industrializing countries, developing countries and least developed countries. Presently, much of the focus and attention of the organization is on developed and newly industrializing countries such as South Korea, Mexico, Indonesia, Iran, Turkey and Philippines. It is recommended that due to the small size of developing and least developed countries, which makes it very challenging for entrepreneurs from those countries to compete on the global scale, the priority of the organization should now be challenged at such countries as Egypt, Nigeria, Pakistan, Vietnam and Bangladesh. Once this is done, the aim of making social change will be further enhanced because there exists very huge social developmental gaps in those countries (Morris et al, 2006). Conclusion Several justifications have been given through the paper as to why the role of Endeavor Global in various emerging markets is very crucial and relevant. As much as a case has been made for Endeavor Global, a conclusion can be expanded to reach the scope of all well meaning non-governmental organization that has made social entrepreneurship their goal. From the discussions, it has been established that social entrepreneurship is a foremost avenue of ensuring that entrepreneurship is not only seen or perceived as a business benefit venture but as an avenue for social change and development. In order to make this great vision long lasting for non-governmental organizations, it is very important that the need to stay focused with their ultimate dreams and aspirations will be made a central part of their domain of operations. This is to say that the commitment to be always associated with none else that socially imparting entrepreneurs must be kept alive if society as a whole will be made to benefit from their efforts. In situations where their attention becomes shifted to business intense companies, society begins to lose out on their importance (Easton, 2005). References Crabb, P. (2008) ‘Economic freedom and the success of microfinance institutions’, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 13 (2), pp.205-219 Easton, T. (2005) ‘The hidden wealth of the poor’, The Economist, 377 (8451), pp.3-6 Endeavor Global, 2013. High-Impct Entrepreneurship. [Online] Accessed from http://www.endeavor.org/ [19th October, 2013] Hundnut, P. & DeTienne, D.R. (2010) ‘Envirofit International: a venture adventure’, Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice, 34 (4), pp.785-797 Morris, S.S., Woodworth, W.P. & Hiatt, S.R. (2006) ‘The value of networks in enterprise development: case studies in Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia’, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 11 (4), pp.345-356 Nath, C.K. (2008) ‘Creating entrepreneurial environment through NGO: a case study’, International NGO Journal, 3 (8), pp.130-142 Sesan, G. (2006) ‘Social enterprise in Africa: an emerging concept in an emerging economy’, International NGO Journal, 1 (1), pp.4-8 Read More