TRAINING

ENTREPRENEURS:
THE BRC EXPERIENCE
Presented during the Workshop on
BDS
May 14,2008 * Bacolod City
 Getting to know NDBRCFI briefly

A non-stock, non-profit development
foundation dedicated to the upliftment of
the quality of lives of Filipino
communities

SEC-registered since 1993

Main office is located at Notre Dame of
Dadiangas University in General Santos
City

Member of various national, regional and
local networks and accredited by PCNC
in 2002

Given the “Asian Management
Development Award for Development
Management” in 1994
 NDBRCFI’s Main Services

ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT

Training

Research

Business Consultancy

Financial Assistance

TECHNICAL TRAINING FOR OSYs

PRIMARY HEALTH CARE DELIVERY

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

SPECIAL PROJECTS

Sponsorship/scholarship

Health Outreach in rural areas/ indigenous groups
 A quick look at history

Started out as the SBMAC in 1978

Its history was anchored on training and
research

Initial study: reasons for failure of small
businesses

Belief: “business skills would bolster
survival and success”

Academe can play a major role
 OBJECTIVES OF TRAINING
PROGRAM

General Objective:

to improve business skills and attitudes of existing
and would-be entrepreneurs so that their businesses
will grow and in the process continue to provide and
create jobs, and improve income

Specific Objectives

to help develop basic skills and attitudes among
participants-entrepreneurs and instill knowledge and
information on business/ entrepreneurship through a
variety of learning tools and methodologies

to make participants understand and appreciate basic
concepts and practices in business in order to gain more
confidence in developing their businesses and/or starting
their own enterprises
 TOPICS

First-ever formal training: “Understanding
and Preparing a Simple Marketing Program”
in Oct 84 with 23 participants

Business Management Training

Business Regulations, Simple Bookkeeping, Cash
Budgeting, Pricing for Profit, Recording
Transactions, Good Credit Management, Effective
Selling, How to reduce costs, Preparation and
Analysis of Financial Statements, Labor-
Management Relations, Small Business
Management, Financial Management, Preparing a
Simple Business Plan, Credit and Collection, etc

Technical & Skills Training

Food processing, fish processing, dressmaking,
backyard piggery and poultry, Cattle fattening,
improving quality in furniture, Beauty Culture
 TOPICS

Business Management Training

Business Regulations

Simple Bookkeeping

Cash Budgeting

Pricing for Profit

Recording Transactions

Good Credit Management

Effective Selling

How to reduce costs

Preparation and Analysis of Financial
Statements

Labor-Management Relations,

Small Business Management

Financial Management

Preparing a Simple Business Plan

Credit and Collection, etc

 TOPICS

Technical & Skills Training

Food processing/fish processing

improving quality in furniture &
garments, backyard piggery and
poultry, cattle fattening

Dressmaking

beauty culture,handicrafts

flower arrangement, etc
 WHO DO WE TRAIN?

Individual entrepreneurs (existing/ would-be)

Groups (cotton growers, fish vendors, market vendors,
fishing cooperative officers, flower vendors, cattle growers,
etc)

80% are women

40% are in 30-40 age group; 35% -above
40 years old and, 20% are below 30
WHO DO WE TRAIN?

Bulk are: Micro and cottage
entrepreneurs

asset sizes of between P150T and
P1.5-M with 5-9 workers

asset sizes of P150T and below with
1-4 workers

Also, “below micro”

entrepreneurs

asset sizes of below P50T and with 1-
2 workers, mostly family members &
usually belonging to low-income
groups
 Categories of Businesses
Category Asset Size No. of
workers
Micro Below P150,000 1-4

Cottage P150,000 to P3-M 5-9

Small P3-M to P15-M 10-99

Medium P15-M to P100-M 100-199

Large Above P100-M Over 200

 LINKAGES

Linked with various organizations (government
and private) in bringing training to entrepreneurs

DTI, DOLE, Dept of Agriculture, People’s Economic Council, TLRC,
BFAR, local government units, national govt agencies

Professional groups and private corporations

PICPA, Dole Phils, Pioneer Hi-bred, Cargill, other local
companies

Strongest and oldest link is with DTI

WHO DOES THE TRAINING?

Own Training Staff

Teachers/Professors;
MBA students with
business experience &
exposure

Local business people

Government people

Outside experts/
consultants
 HOW DO WE TRAIN THEM?

Initially, more of lectures and
inputs with open forum/ Q&A

Case studies, testimonies of
experts/guests, sharing of
experiences among participants

Workshops, practical exercises
(ex bookkeeping, etc)

Field visits, shop visits – mostly
for technical topics

Adult-learning/ structured
learning exercises (using
Technology of Participation/
CEFE/ management games, etc)

Development and use of
simplified modules (for “below
micro”)
WHERE DO WE TRAIN?

urban areas in General Santos
City

Later on to Maitum, Alabel, Glan,
Polomolok – in Sarangani
Province and South Cotabato
(SOCSARGEN)

Focus on barangays with
potentials for economic
development and job creation
 WHERE DO WE TRAIN?

Inside the school – NDDC now NDDU
– participants felt they were going
back to school themselves

Later on in various venues:
classrooms, chapels, barangay halls,
offices of coops and organizations,
basketball courts, training rooms,
beach houses, etc
 HALLMARKS OF A BRC
TRAINING

It is not free

Simplified and customized to
“fit to their level” –especially for
“below-micro” and less
educated

Practical and not-that-
theoretical: theoretical inputs
and lectures are kept at a
minimum

Flexible: both in schedule, content
 HALLMARKS OF A BRC
TRAINING

Facilitative, participatory and

interactive

Coupled with on-site consultancy/
business advice

Output and results-oriented

No training, no loan
 IS IT THAT ALL
EASY?

At times, it is difficult to get number of desired
participants

Existing business conditions

Free time of participants

Some are interested only in getting loans

Some groups give training for free

Slightly prolongs the loan process

Low educational level in some areas

Training cost is highly subsidized in certain areas
 TRAIN, TRAIN, TRAIN

The Asia Foundation enabled 25 colleges
and universities to visit the BRC and its
services and help replicate the concept in 6
areas

BRC was tapped to train former MNLF
combatants under the USAID SWIFT-ELAP
programs on the area of skills and
entrepreneurial development in Central
Mindanao

Developed simplified modules on enterprise
development and trained trainers who will
deliver them in areas of ChildFund Japan
 HAVE WE BEEN EFFECTIVE?
ARE WE MAKING A DENT?

Impact of training (involving knowledge &
attitudes) may take longer time to be realized

Business success and attitudinal change cannot
be attributed solely to a single factor (for
example, Training)

In-house evaluation results revealed that
participants “learned something” and “were
able to apply some of what they learned”
A FEW INTERESING STORIES

Sari-sari store- “Credit and
Collection”

Tuna chorizo maker –
“Financial Management”

Furniture maker – “Simple
Bookkeeping”

Parents’ organization –
“Business Planning”

Food processor – “Pricing
for Profit’

Upholstery/tricycle body
fabricator – “Small
Business Management”
 PRESENT AND FUTURE
DIRECTIONS

Continue to offer stand-alone
enterprise development
trainings

Partner with various groups
and organizations for their
livelihood training needs
(including LGUs)

Strengthen training services to
local companies on topics
specific to their needs
TRAINING IS DOING OUR SHARE IN
EDUCATING A SECTOR NEEDING IT:
MICRO, COTTAGE AND BELOW-
MICRO ENTREPRENEURS
 Training is education;
it is also our passion and
mission
Damo gid nga salamat sa
inyo tanan kag
Maayo nga gab-i