22 January 2010
A group of enterprising students from South Eastern Regional College’s media, business and construction departments braved the elements in blustery, windswept Enniskillen to learn what drives entrepreneurs to start businesses and what qualities these individuals display.
The students participated in a variety of mental, practical and physical activities designed to help them identify latent entrepreneurial attitudes and encourage them to consider self employment as a viable career option.
The key objectives of the programme were to help students:
- Identify and develop the skills involved in being resourceful particularly in relation to maximising resources and managing time.
- Identify and develop effective negotiating skills. The importance of sales and negotiating within a business, closing a deal, and the importance of success.
- Self motivation, in particular the importance of adopting a positive mental attitude supported by problem solving.
The students undertook a variety of personal and team challenges culminating with the "ultimate business strategy game - Sink or Swim". Each team had to create a raft building business that not only kept its head above water but left the competition in its wake. The game was divided into 2 specific progressive business phases:
- Getting Afloat - the initial set up of the business
- Staying Afloat - the subsequent running of the business
Critical factors such as decisive leadership, problem solving, clear and concise communication, negotiation, structured delegation and ultimately trust were challenged throughout the game providing an excellent realistic learning opportunity for all involved.
Senior Lecturer, Jim Hunter said, "This programme provided a unique insight into the key skills and qualities needed to start a business and provided the students with the opportunity to understand that enterprise and entrepreneurship is within us all. Indeed, six of our students were so inspired that South Eastern Regional College will be sign posting them to the next stage in helping them to take that step into self employment."