Entrepreneurship Academy: Call for participants

We’re looking for YOUNG ENTERPRENEURS to participate in 5 stage  project which will be held in Georgia, Italy and Moldova.

The chosen participant HAS to take part in all stages!

Description of the Project

 The following Long Term Training Program is focused on sustaining the idea of promoting the SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises). Hence, the proposed activities will stimulate entrepreneurship among  the project participants (both directly involved in the mobility activities as well as those reached through CB activities) and will equip them with the necessary competence and support needed for a start up. The training program will consist of 6 modules, all in all having the goal to raise awareness, understand, reflect upon and practice entrepreneurship. There will be 3 participants representing Armenia.

The project Modules are:

1. Training Course Entrepreneurship Literacy – 02-08 June 2019, Georgia

During this module participants will explore the basic concepts and characteristics of entrepreneurship by developing a vision of what a company should be, and then executing that vision by translating it into concrete steps and what needs to follow through. They will learn about the entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship; community needs and problem analysis; market research and understanding the personal strengths;  introduction to a business plan and a financial strategy;  targeted recruitment and management etc. Furthermore the module will focus on the soft skills and the role of an entrepreneur, aiming to understand values and attitudes towards business, developing entrepreneurial competencies of participants by strengthening personal skills, understanding personal limits, and developing strategies and systems to transcend these limits.

2. Needs and Market Research – June – September 2019, all involved countries

Generating and vetting business ideas, researching participants’ own fields of interest and own distinctive strengths. Participants will research the local market and analyse the needs of the community and sending organisation that could help them to brainstorm on their potential entrepreneurship ideas. The research will be done based on a common guide developed by the implementation team for this purpose. That will help participants to efficiently analyse the potential investing field.

Here, participants will be working together with their sending organisation and will be supported by the peer forum on Facebook Group and by the implementation team. They will also be mentored by their sending organization and experts from the local organizations coming to support SMEs.

During this module participants will be encouraged to research the possible investors and also to look for the programmes opened to sustain youth entrepreneurship both at the local and European level.

At the same time, youth workers engaged in the project will have the commitment to analyse and research the entrepreneurial learning needs within the formal and non-formal education and link it with one required by the employers.

3. Training Course Make a Step forward – 23-29 September, Cagliary, Italy

The training will look on the research work done back home and will help the participants to develop their business plan and financial strategy. At this stage, they will move from theory to practice by putting the ideas in the business plan format and meeting with successful entrepreneurs. As the business plan is the first step to be taken, participants will get familiar with the differences of the business plans applied by the profit and non profit  organizations. Also, the topic of entrepreneurial activities run by NGOs will be widely discussed and promoted.  Important topics such as short and long term investments, accounting and taxation, risk  assessment, management and marketing will be explored in order to increase participants’ knowledge and  awareness while implementing their business ideas.

Another important topic to be explored are the local and European programs coming to support SMEs, both financially and by providing consultations and training.  At the end of the module participants will be invited to create an action plan to be followed at the implementation stage.

The youth workers will have the opportunity to share the entrepreneurial learning needs and seek the ways to address the gaps between the education, practices used in the field and the competencies employers look for. During the module, youth works will develop the concept of the “One Day CEO” project, based on the information and knowledge acquired during the project. The event will be based on the simulation method, participants being taken throughout the process to create and transform a business idea into action. The implementation will be done when back home and will involve engaging the local youth. The events will be aim at introducing young people into the  entrepreneurial world and  supporting the development of their entrepreneurial competencies, thinking and attitude.

4. Step In event /One day CEO local events – September – April 2019, all involved countries

At this stage participants will work towards opening their businesses accordingly to the developed action plans and based on the knowledge acquired. They will be monitored by their sending organizations and have the full support of the local organization coming to support SMEs and project implementation team.

Another action within the module is the implementation of the One day CEO event, involving both trained participants and local youth. The event will raise awareness of the importance of youth entrepreneurship and self- employment. Through a simulation activity, young people will be encouraged to test their abilities to develop an innovative business idea, implement it based on the market and consumer’s needs, and taste entrepreneurial ups and downs in regard to financial capacity, human resources and time limits. Participants will develop their leadership skills through learning from innovation and best practice in the business. A One day CEO web page will be created where partner organizations will be able to share the activities and outcomes. The online platform will also be used as a guide for other organizations and youth to run the test.

5. Seminar “Value to Share” – 13 -19 April 2020, R. Moldova

The participants and representatives of the sending organizations will evaluate the entrepreneurial ventures implemented, impact on the local communities, the opportunities and challenges faced during the project, values of failure and work on the project follow up. The event will see the best practices in field of youth entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial learning being shared with the ambition to encourage further support of entrepreneurial initiatives at local level for youngster, particularly those with fewer opportunities. Last but not the least will be developed a friendly youth guide to open a business for young people.

Costs: Travel costs reimbursed according to Erasmus+ regulations

Accommodation + FB food covered

TC materials, facilitation in Armenia for the local modules

Insurance for each participating period

Visa Support

In case of interest please send your CV and Motivation letter with a short summary of your business or business idea to fiohapplications@gmail.com with a title ENTREPRENEURSHIP_ACADEMY

Deadline for applications: 12.05.2019

Costs are covered according to Erasmus+ rules: More details regarding the costs will be provided soon.