Phase one of plan to develop high-growth SMEs launched

The government recently rolled out the first phase of the master plan for the small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), to stimulate their productivity and innovation levels to match those of a high income nation.    

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, in announcing this, said the plan (2011-2020) focuses on developing high-growth SMEs to become home-grown champions that spearhead the economy.

SME competitiveness needs to be developed further not only in the context of SME relations with the global market but also to enable them to compete in the local market in the context of globalisation and liberalisation, he said.

The Asean Free Trade Area and other multilateral agreements make the market more open than before.

   

Najib said requirements for licences and permits have been relaxed, following the analysis by the World Bank that SMEs here had too many requirements to fulfil in order to operate their businesses.

A pilot study on impact assessment by the World Bank on 15 SME programmes found the productivity level of SMEs in Malaysia was low at RM44,300 per worker - one-third of the large companies (RM143,000 per worker) and also lagged behind other countries.

"It has something to do more or less with corruption. Because of this, we will make obtaining licences and permits easy," he told a media briefing, after chairing the National SME Development Council meeting in Putrajaya.

   

He said the task will be given to the chief secretary to the government as the chairman of Pemudah (the Special Taskforce to Facilitate Business), who will later submit proposals to the government.

   

Najib said a "green lane" policy for SME products and services will be introduced to the government as well as government-linked companies.

   

"The opportunities will be given through central contracts to high-potential SMEs that have highly innovative products based on recommendation by the SME Corp and the Malaysian Technology Development Corp," he said.

   

Assistance to penetrate the global market is also being considered for those with potential but have failed to win any prizes.

   

The council also approved the SME Integrated Plan of Action 2011, which encompasses a total of 219 programmes being implemented with a financial commitment of RM5.9 billion in 2011, compared to 226 programmes for a total of RM7.1 billion in 2010.

   

SME contribution to GDP is expected to increase from 31 per cent in 2010 to 40 per cent by 2020 as value added growth of SMEs continued to outpace the overall economy .

   

The quantum leap in growth is highly dependent upon a significant increase of 75 per cent in productivity gains of SMEs, added Najib.

   

As at end February, SME financing outstanding stood at RM130 billion, accounting for 38.3 per cent of total business loan.

Source : Business Times

Act of passion....is it?

Starting a business is often an act of passion, you want to change the world for a better place, love how it makes you feel to do what you do; in short it is often more than only making money – it’s like finding true love in what you do.

You are probably very good at what you love doing or better, because you love what you are doing, you are very good at it. Being distracted and frustrated, however, makes us less focused and our business suffers.

We often do things we are not good at, because we don’t like or even hate doing them. Business suffers again, i.e. a badly designed web-site, or wrong and unfinished bookkeeping.

Luckily we as people work well in groups, we are not islands. Finding ways of dealing with all the unwanted admin is easier today than ever – use virtual assistant services or business process outsourcing to keep you focused on your ‘true business love’.

Only business focus AND business passion makes for a successful small business.

- Azlan Abu Bakar

How do great entrepreneurs think?

Here is one interesting study:

That is not to say entrepreneurs don't have goals, only that those goals are broad and–like luggage–may shift during flight. Rather than meticulously segment customers according to potential return, they itch to get to market as quickly and cheaply as possible, a principle Sarasvathy calls affordable loss.

Repeatedly, the entrepreneurs in her study expressed impatience with anything that smacked of extensive planning, particularly traditional market research. (Inc.'s own research backs this up.

One survey of Inc. 500 CEOs found that 60 percent had not written business plans before launching their companies. Just 12 percent had done market research.)

…Sarasvathy explains that entrepreneurs' aversion to market research is symptomatic of a larger lesson they have learned: They do not believe in prediction of any kind. "If you give them data that has to do with the future, they just dismiss it," she says.

"They don't believe the future is predictable…or they don't want to be in a space that is very predictable."

The article is interesting throughout and hat tip goes to The Browser.

by Tyler Cowen (marginalrevolution.com)