Young people are always encouraged not to follow paths but to pave their own. It has long been said that one of the most effective employment drivers is the formation of innovative and commercially viable businesses. Most black people took advantage of this and started their own businesses. Sounds like a good thing? Maybe not. Most of these businesses fail within a year or two. What causes this?
Funding (or lack thereof)
This is the main killer of many excellent and commercially viable businesses or business idea. I do not dispute the availability of funding agencies either private or government owned. One thing I have noticed is their lack of effectiveness especially when it comes to funding black-owned businesses. This issue should be addressed. Due to the lack of funding, many businesses people resort to the corrupt tendering systems thus compromising their ethics and principles.
Business knowledge (or lack thereof)
The backbone and the strength driving the growth of business lies in the knowledge and understanding of the day to day business operation and the jargon written in those documents. Many businesses succumb due to the lack of knowledge. Consider looking for business management training or take free online courses drive out that ignorance.
The BEE policy
When the BEE policy was introduced, the black masses thought that this would be their way out of poverty and into the mainstream economy. The successes of the implementation of this policy saw black people get a seat at the table. Cyril Ramaphosa is one of the most popular persons to benefit from the BEE policy. He gained shares and franchises in a few large corporations including McDonald's, Lonmin and Shanduka. However, this is not the case for millions of black South African business owners. A recent study by a business consulting agency revealed that one in every 10 business people have benefited whether directly or indirectly from the policy.
These are the top three hindrances that prevent many black people from becoming successful industrialists. The list is endless. We hope that the upcoming policy by the name of "Radical Economic Transformation" doesn't end up as just a rhetoric but it is implemented to rescue the million who have been locked out of the mainstream economy.