In June 2021, the "SocBizAccelerator" project was launched, aimed at supporting Belarusian social enterprises in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and other modern challenges. It is planned to increase their financial stability and social impact through training, mentoring support and exchange of experience with local and foreign colleagues.
The project includes two areas: trainings for representatives of social business and training of trainers as part of the system of support and development of social entrepreneurship.
The project participants, with the help of experienced practitioners, will study the business diagnostic tool, learn how to assess needs and identify bottlenecks, find internal reserves for the sustainability of the enterprise, and prepare an action plan to overcome the consequences of the crisis. Trainers trained to work with the diagnostic tool will be able to expand the list of services provided to small and medium-sized businesses at the level of acceleration programs.
As part of the project are planned, in particular
- Assessing the needs of social business amid COVID-19 in different regions.
- Three-day offsite intensive on diagnostics of social enterprises in bootcamp format. Experienced trainers and business practitioners will help to identify hidden risks and main problems for business development, identify growth points for further development and implementation of business strategies, new products and services with the help of project mentors.
- Session for trainers from all regions of Belarus. Along with diagnostics, trainers will gain knowledge about the methods of conducting business training, including the modular structure of training, building a thematic module, ways to increase the attention of participants, mini-lectures, building material, case methods.
- 6 online workshops from successful social enterprises from Germany, Ukraine and Russia to share best practices and build new partnerships.
- Mentoring and other support for social innovation.
- Video tutorials and educational materials will be available to entrepreneurs and trainers to further disseminate diagnostic practice.
The "SocBizAccelerator" project is being implemented by IOC Dortmund (Germany), non-profit organization ODB Brussels (Belgium), School "Social Entrepreneur" (Gomel, Belarus) and by the Belarusian non-profit organization Svet Dobra with the financial support of the German Foreign Ministry.
SocBizAccelerator started in June with an off-site bootcamp near Minsk, where teams diagnosed their enterprises and developed strategies to improve their business together with Alexander Pankov, a business coach and founder of the Here and Now group of companies. You can read more about this stage of the program in the articles:
- The acceleration program for the Belarusian social business in the face of modern challenges has been launched.
- How Social Enterprise Diagnostics Helps Face Modern Business Challenges.
The SocBizAccelerator project had several goals. The first is to help Belarusian social enterprises overcome the consequences of the covid crisis they faced in 2020. The second is to strengthen the local team of mentors who have their own experience of successful business, as well as an expert business vision. Also, within the framework of the program, each social business had its own mentor - and in close work, cooperation, it was possible to carry out business diagnostics as efficiently as possible and implement the planned changes. Mentors devoted 200 days to joint actions with social enterprises to improve the financial and social component.
What master classes were held for mentors, what main topics were of concern to experts and experts, read in the articles:
- What should a coach do at an event to make it easy and efficient?
- Adizes organization life cycle model: training for mentors of the SocBizAccelerator project.
- Why an organization needs change that creates problems: the Adizes methodology for social business.
In order for Belarusian social entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs to get as much experience, ideas and inspiration as possible, the project organized five master classes with social innovators from the Eastern Partnership countries, Russia and Germany. You can read in detail about the master classes and also be inspired by examples in the articles:
- A successful example of social business in Moldova: catering makes a profit.
- Who and why united Georgian artisans ?
- How the desire to compost in Kyiv grew into a successful social business.
- How much can you earn on garbage? The founder of the project “Ukraine WITHOUT Smity” tells.
- Bags and backpacks made from rubber boats carried by migrants: social enterprise MIMYCRI (Germany).
- In order for a social enterprise to survive in a crisis, you need to invent more.
Based on materials from https://by.odb-office.eu/