FRANCHISE TIMES -
By Norman D. Gacula
Published in The Manila Times - Saturday, September 24, 2005Entrepreneurship is said to have come from the French verb “entreprende” meaning “to undertake.” Webster’s Dictionary, however, defines an entrepreneur as “one who undertakes to start and conduct an enterprise or business, assuming full control and risk.”
The definition I feel best exemplifies entrepreneurship was coined by Joseph Schumpeter (1934). He stated that the entrepreneur is one who applies “innovation” within the context of the business to satisfy unfulfilled market demand (Liebenstein, 1995).
One cannot discount the fact that many successful entrepreneurs in recent years are “innovators.” The likes of Ben Chan of Bench, Andrew Tan of Megaworld, Tony Tan Caktiong of Jollibee and Chit Juan of Figaro Coffee are foremost in my mind.
In OFpreneurship, overseas Filipinos (OFs) fall into three (3) segments: A-OFs, B-OFs and C-OFs.
A-Ofs—can live comfortably even if they don’t work or engage in business once they reintegrate into Philippine society. Their savings and numerous investments are sufficient to sustain their comfortable lives.
B-Ofs—cannot afford to rely on their savings and investments to continue the comfortable lifestyles they had abroad. It is imperative that their funds grow further through other means than low-risk, low-return investment opportunities such as savings and time deposits.
C-Ofs—have very little savings and investments or none at all. It would be very difficult for them to provide for their families needs once they resettle in their homeland.
This article hopes be of great help to the B-OFs and C-OFs because it is I believe that OFpreneurship is one of the best ways for overseas Filipinos to reintegrate successfully in the mainstream of Philippine society; that Successful OFpreneurship = Successful Reintegration.
And why is this so?
B-OFs and C-OFs must continue earning and being productive once they resettle here to support their families’ needs. Otherwise, they might end up losing everything they worked hard for. Therefore, once they reintegrate, they would only have two choices: Employment or OFpreneurship.
If OFs seek local employment, they may be rejected due to overage, overqualification and all sorts of reasons. If hired, they face the possibility of disillusionment and demoralization due to the work culture or to the small salary that they would be receiving vis-à-vis their salaries abroad. If disillusionment and demoralization sets in, low productivity and poor work performance may follow, and ultimately, resignation or termination.
However, if OFs engage in OFpreneurship, the risk of losing everything is still there, but if they succeed, the benefits and rewards may be unquantifiable and limitless. Comparing the alternatives available to OFs including the cause-and-effect and cost-benefit relationships, any logical mind would choose OFpreneurship over the other.
Simple as it may seem, OFpreneurship is a complex and interesting profession that requires a complex set of skills. OFpreneurs need to know about the various functional areas, and how they interrelate as well as organizational, interpersonal and communication skills to effectively manage a business and facilitate interaction with others.
Also, they need to learn a variety of technical tools (including information systems) to help monitor activities and ensure that their efforts produce desired results. Most importantly, they must understand how business can be responsive to the needs of the community at large. But more than the theoretical aspects, OFpreneurship boils down to one important key word, preparation.
Previously, it was stated that “Successful OFpreneurship = Successful Reintegration.” This time, the equation needs to be expanded to:
Good Preparation = Successful OFpreneurship = Successful Reintegration.
An overseas Filipino (OF) who would like to engage in OFpreneurship in the Philippines and reintegrate successfully needs to prepare well in advance. In fact, it is ideal to undertake the preparation even before he leaves our country for the very first time. If it is not possible, at least preparation should be done during the peak of his career, and/or at the height of receiving his high income.
To prepare for OFpreneurship, OFs must first be able to answer the questions below. It may also be considered as their guide or checklist before deciding whether or not they should engage in OFpreneurship.
Family circumstances:
Do you enjoy the support and cooperation of your wife and children in this possible undertaking?
Are they aware of your plans?
Will your family be willing to have a lifestyle, which might be less ideal than your previous lifestyle?
Will they be willing to sacrifice comfort in case the business does not pick up immediately?
Are you willing to tighten the belt so-to-speak?
Do you have anybody in the family who could help you in the business, and who could succeed you in your retirement?
Business skills, attitude and experience:
As a kid, did you teach math, computers, sell newspapers, candies, chocolates or ice cream?
Are you hardworking?
Are you patient?
Are you persevering?
Are you willing to do the dirty jobs yourself assuming you have little financial and human resources?
Did you always look for other ways of making money?
Are you familiar with the basics of business including financing, record keeping, sales and marketing?
Do you have personal and business contacts that you can turn to for advice?
Are you well organized and do you manage your time well?
Health and stress management:
Can you accept failure?
Do you see mistakes more as an opportunity than as a failure? Can you work long hours for extended periods of time?
Do you thrive on pressure?
Are you able to stay calm in a crisis situation?
Confidence, optimism and self-reliance:
Do you believe in yourself and feel that your performance will determine whether you will succeed or fail?
Are you a positive thinker and do you envision your business succeeding?
Are you mentally strong and in control?
Are you willing to pay the price to control your own destiny?
People skills:
Do you regularly ask people for feedback on how you are performing?
Do you communicate well with people and do they believe in what you say?
Do you get people to talk, think and do you help motivate them?
Are you a good listener and good judge of character?
Creativity and innovation:
Are you a problem solver, looking for new and innovative ways of doing things?
Are you at your best when facing a challenge that requires you to use all of your personal resources?
Do you consider change as an opportunity to try new things?
Are you dissatisfied with doing something a certain way just because that’s the way it has always been done?
Assessing the results:
If OFs answered most questions with a YES, then they are most likely suited to the life of an OFpreneur.