Enternships Blog
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Business 2012: the greatest inspiration stimulates the biggest ever UK business eventPosted on Sunday 11 March 2012 at 11:25AM by trrpaipai |
A peek at the list of business events this year and you're immediately seized by 2012 as the year of startups and SMEs. At Enternships we have taken note of all of them, particularly one show that will bring you the most renowned business people in the UK, as well as the opportunity to explore and learn everything you need to know about setting up a business. Ladies and gents, it's Business 2012.
Vishal Misal, founder and managing director of Blak Pearl, explains why Richard Branson was there at the conception of the UK’s greatest ever business show.
Entrepreneurs are like artists – they need to create something. Many people feel they cannot be truly happy and fulfilled if employed and I believe self-employment and entrepreneurship are the way forward for making a real difference to people’s lives. I also believe entrepreneurialism can and should be used for the greater good of society. More of which later.
Furthermore, I believe entrepreneurship can be taught, and this is one of the major drivers behind my creating Business 2012. It’s a three-day show at The O2 in London in March, which is free to attend and at which we have the best line-up of inspirational speakers and workshop presenters ever seen on one event programme in the UK. We’re expecting capacity audiences of 75,000 entrepreneurs and business owners for the 600+ seminars and workshops. Do join us.
Just going back for a second to entrepreneurship being a teachable quality, I know for sure I wasn’t born an entrepreneur. I watched my family and my first employers and studied how they planned, what they did, how they reacted. I also studied the strategies of some of the great modern entrepreneurs – most of all Sir Richard Branson. To me, he is one of the most inspirational characters ever to have lived. He inspired me to think big – to shoot for the stars. That’s why, when I created the show, Richard just had to be a keynote speaker. A star, in fact. I can’t tell you how proud and honoured I am to keep seeing his name in the same sentence as mine…
The planetary alignment doesn’t stop there. It’s pure coincidence that Richard’s latest book, Screw Business as Usual, is all about businesses working for the greater good of society. I couldn’t have put it better myself! To me this is the icing on an already spectacular cake.
When I finally met Richard for the first time I was, I confess, a little nervous. He was so kind and unassuming though – and genuinely interested and enthusiastic about Business 2012 and his involvement with it. He told me he believes no one has a monopoly on good ideas and that events like this can open the door to greater connections and business opportunities. He also said to me that he hopes he and members of the audience can come up with some ideas together to make all our businesses even stronger than they are today. How humble is that?
Business 2012 is the latest step in my five-year plan to create a UK-based platform for businesses the world over to meet, discuss and exchange ideas. Ambitious? Yes. That’s one of the many qualities I’ve learned about entrepreneurship.
Enternships will also be there with a stall so come and say hello, meet our team and shoot any questions on startup internships or entrepreneurship in general. It's a good opportunity to meet our founder Rajeeb Dey as well as pay a visit to our friends at StartUp Britain who are partners of the event. See you all there!
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Enternships CEO Is the World’s Youngest Global Leader in 2012Posted on Tuesday 06 March 2012 at 09:34AM by trrpaipai |
It is an honour to announce that Enternships Founder and CEO Rajeeb Dey was named among the Young Global Leaders for 2012 by the World Economic Forum. At the age of 26, he is the youngest YGL in the world in the 2012 intake which plunks a flourishing entrepreneurial career promoting innovative businesses among students and graduates.
The World Economic Forum of Young Global Leaders is a unique, multistakeholder community of the world’s most extraordinary young leaders who dedicate a part of their time to jointly addressing global challenges and who are committed to devote their knowledge and energy to working collectively towards a better future.
“Recovery and innovation will require new, unique ideas and an environment where the best minds, ideas and leadership can thrive. The most important determinant of this will be how we use human talent.” - Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum
Every year, the Forum honours between 100 and 200 outstanding young leaders from around the world for their professional accomplishments, commitment to society and potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world. In Rajeeb’s case this means recognition for his efforts to promote entrepreneurship both in UK and internationally by bridging the existing gap between students and graduates and small businesses.
“Within the World Economic Forum community, the Young Global Leaders represent the voice for the future and the hopes of the next generation. I am particularly proud of this year's honourees, who I believe will address the challenges we face in a meaningful way through fresh thinking and true multistakeholder engagement”, the Founder and Chairman of the World Economic Forum, Klaus Schwab said.
Rajeeb is one of the selected 192 YGLs from 59 countries and all sectors of society (including business, civil society, social entrepreneurs, politics and government, arts and culture, and opinion and media). The new class originates from East Asia (38), South Asia (19), Europe (46), Middle East and North Africa (15), sub-Saharan Africa (18), North America (37) and Latin America (19).
“With the alarming levels of youth unemployment around the world I look forward to engaging with fellow YGLs to explore solutions to help young people access employment opportunities and also highlight entrepreneurship as a viable and rewarding career path.” - Rajeeb Dey, Enternships Founder
Drawn from a pool of several thousand candidates, the 2012 YGLs were chosen by a selection committee, chaired by H.M. Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and they comprise respected international leaders from business, government and media. Past YGLs include David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom; Larry Page, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Google, USA and Zhang Xin, Chief Executive Officer, SOHO China, People's Republic of China.
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Enternships In The Wilson ReviewPosted on Tuesday 28 February 2012 at 09:34AM by trrpaipai |
Rajeeb Dey, CEO Enternships.com welcomes the Wilson review as a positive step forward for business and higher education
I was privileged to be asked to submit a case study to the Wilson Review about our work with entrepreneurial internships and we’re all delighted to be recognised and mentioned in the report released today. I’m passionate about creating opportunities in start-ups and small businesses for young people and todays recommendations that Universities should do more to support such interaction is exactly the message we wanted to hear.
There are over four million SMEs in this country and it’s these companies that hold the key to tackling youth and graduate unemployment. We need to create more opportunities for students to show how much they can bring to a small company and create more chances for students to get valuable work experience.
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Get Britain Trading NowPosted on Monday 27 February 2012 at 10:43AM by trrpaipai |
Last year saw the launch of the successful Get Britain Trading campaign. Today sees the launch of the campaign for 2012, in a bid to bring small and medium-sized businesses closer to students and graduates making their first steps towards a successful career.
And we’re delighted to announce that Enternships is one of our key supporters. As an organisation that exists to create opportunities for young, talented students and graduates, Enternships - like us - has a vested interest in wanting to see a strong, healthy, thriving UK economy.
Sadly, we are not there yet. But that is exactly what Get Britain Trading 2012 is all about. While boasting all new aims and objectives, the core ethos of Get Britain Trading remains unchanged: to lobby the government to make it simpler and more profitable to run a small business.
When we first unveiled Get Britain Trading in 2011 the country was in an altogether different place than we find ourselves today. The UK had yet to wake up to destabilising effects of the eurozone debt crisis, Britain and indeed the EU was just starting to contemplate the impact of a double dip recession, and many businesses were adopting a ‘bunker down and consolidate’ attitude for the anticipated economic storm.
Today we are in a difference place entirely. While it may be too soon to say there’s a chink of light at the end of the tunnel – although some would argue this isn’t the case – there is nevertheless a fresh optimism amongst our members. An attitude of ‘we can get through this’, and the Get Britain Trading campaign reflects this.
The UK economy may be showing signs of stabilising, but we need to make sure that does not turn to stagnation.
So we will continue to lobby Government for a simpler tax system, one that’s fairer and more proportionate, and will help drive employment. We’re also lobbying for measures to reduce business costs. You can read more about the measures we’re campaigning for in the Get Britain Trading manifesto.
One of the areas where Enternships supports Get Britain Trading is our objective of creating employment and improving skills. We believe that colleges and education providers should become much closer to small and medium-sized businesses so that when students and graduates take their first steps onto the career ladder, they find that their skills and attributes help them to get the job they want.
But we can’t achieve these vital aims without businesses’ support. You can help us to Get Britain Trading by joining the campaign at www.getbritaintrading.co.uk. The more firms that join us the more likely we are to achieve our objective of Getting Britain Trading, for the benefit of businesses, those wanting to work in business, as well as everyone who lives in Britain.
Written by Jane Bennett, Head of Campaigns at the Forum of Private Business
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International Students: It's Time To Start Your BusinessPosted on Friday 24 February 2012 at 12:20PM by trrpaipai |
The Home Office recently released a paper outlining the changes being made to the current entrepreneur scheme in place for migrants. It's important for students to understand the opportunities available to them and the government seems to be taking in active interest in investing in the entrepreneurs of the future.
So what's the deal?
In a nutshell, a new graduate entrepreneur scheme is set to be introduced to run alongside the existing entrepreneur route.
At the moment a scheme (named Tier 1 Entrepreneur) is in place for highly skilled non-European migrants, either already in the UK or looking to come to the UK, to either set up or become involved in the running of one or more businesses.
What's great about the new scheme then is that it gives graduates, who don't meet the full requirements of the Tier 1 Entrepreneur scheme yet, the opportunity to develop their business in the UK too.
Individuals who are seen to have “world class innovative ideas or entrepreneurial skills” are identified by their universities to stay and develop their ideas. There will be a limit of 1,000 places in the first year, which will be divided equally amongst participating Higher Education Institutes, and the allocation of places comes with the assurance that the HEI's choice of graduates will not be second guessed.
The individuals are sponsored by the HEI from which they have graduated and are granted initial leave of 12 months. This may be extended for a further 12 months provided the HEI is pleased with their progress.
After this, migrants can switch to the Tier 1 Entrepreneur Scheme or leave the UK.
In
Sounds straightforward, no?
It really is. The bright minded individual just has to spend the majority of their time working on their business, but can work for up to 20 hours in another job if necessary to support themselves.
If the business is successful, then that's great. If an idea is not successfully developed, the HEI is not penalised; the migrant just leaves the UK. Win win.
Basically, the scheme aims to attract the best and brightest who can help boost the UK economy with their cutting edge ideas. Initiatives like this are a great step in the right direction when it comes to encouraging entrepreneurship; after all, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
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A Festival for Business: Global Entrepreneurship CongressPosted on Wednesday 08 February 2012 at 14:54PM by trrpaipai |
You know how much we love events - they're a great opportunity to stay on top of the latest news, meet people in the industry and get your name out there. The Global Entrepreneur Congress 2012, taking place in Liverpool on 9–16 March, is bound to bring some of the most successful entrepreneurs in Britain for three days celebrating with a festival for business.
Enternships is pleased to announce its partnership with the Global Entrepreneur Congress 2012, allowing us to offer our members a 20% discount for the event in March.
Students are also eligible to purchase tickets for a special, reduced price of £75 (+VAT) so if you are a student and want to take advantage of this offer, email students@gec2012.com and mention Enternships in your email.
For the rest of us who are not students, to take advantage of the 20% offer please go the website below and enter the code ETPS20.
To take advantage 20% discount please go to http://gec2012-esearch.eventbrite.co.uk/?srnk=1&ebtv=C
Highlights taking place on Tuesday 13th March In March, Liverpool and the Global Entrepreneurship Congress will provide a festival for business where people, passion and potential will be celebrated, inspired and accelerated. It is a festival for entrepreneurs, a celebration of enterprise, an inspiration for those with the ‘can-do’ spirit to turn dreams into an ambitious reality.
The Global Entrepreneurship Congress will be a powerhouse of business brilliance that inspires people, excites potential and celebrates passion with the aim of “unleashing the will to win”. The event is hosted by Liverpool Vision, Global Entrepreneurship Week and The Kauffman Foundation.
On 13 March, entrepreneurs and aspiring business leaders will experience an inspiring journey through three sessions of speeches, panel discussions and debates centred on three themes that explore the concept of winning in business. By coming to the Arena and Convention Centre in Liverpool (ACC Liverpool) on the 13th March you can expect to:
- LISTEN to world leaders, economists and other experts about programs, policies and research aimed at advancing entrepreneurship.
- GAIN valuable insight and advice from successful and experienced entrepreneurs in various speeches and workshops. Keynote speakers include:
-Sir Richard Branson - Founder of Virgin
-Martha Lane Fox - Founder of lastminute.com
-Sir Terry Leahy - former CEO of Tesco
-Rt Hon the Lord Heseltine - Founder of Haymarket Publishing and former Deputy Prime Minister
-Steve Felice - President, Consumer, Small and Medium Business at Dell Inc.
-Paul Lindley - Founder of Ella’s Organic Robin Rowland - Founder of Yo Sushi! Lara Morgan - Founder of Company Shortcuts
-Doug Richard - Founding Dragons’ Den Panellist and Founder of School for Startups
-Ashok Rao - Chairman of TiE Global Board of Trustees
- MEET and NETWORK with delegates who can help you take the next step in starting and growing your own business.
Book your place at http://gec2012.com and don't forget about the discount codes. See you all in Liverpool!
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Low Jobs Or No Jobs? That Is The Question.Posted on Monday 30 January 2012 at 12:07PM by trrpaipai |
Last week we ran a poll on our weekly newsletter in which we asked Enterns to tell us what they think about the statement Mayor Boris Johnson made the other week regarding work ethics in Britain. We got quite a reaction from our subscribers, voting both pro and against the idea launched by London's progressive mayor, so we compiled a list with the most interesting replies.
Here's what the mayor Boris Johnson told The Sun on January 20th:
"London is a fantastic creator of jobs — but many of these jobs are going to people who don't originate in this country. They are hard-working, good people, and we need to learn from them and understand what it is that they have got that makes them able to get those jobs that young Londoners don't have."
So his idea is that the job spectrum is in a deficit of demand, not of offer. No one really wants to take on the lower end jobs, apart from the foreigners relocating to the UK in order to touch up their income. He suggests the key problem for the British economy is the lack of energy among Britain's youth. You can read the original article here.
There are various factors that influence the equation 'unemployment+immigration+British work ethic', and the truth never seems to stay in one place. On one hand, the mayor is right in saying there are plenty of job offers that are waiting to be filled in retail and food industries, however is also losing sight of the fact that the case with professional jobs is a bit more different.
Our readers have also had mixed reactions to the statement, either putting the blame on a lack of willingness to work or simply on the outrageous economic fall Britain is still dwelling in. Read on:
"Being a foreigner myself and having worked very hard in this country for over 10 years in a low-paid, unrecognised sector (Hospitality, and specifically the Housekeeping side of it --that is, the most essential yet unglamorous part of it) where no English would set foot, I can but agree with Boris; and there are certainly some people whose trouble in finding work is laziness. But are they the majority? At the same time, I have seen a lot of people from this country work hard & long hours --providing the job suited them--, and some of them do try to adapt to new parameters.
On the other hand, I am now also one of the nearly 3 million unemployed, have been also working hard (for near 3 years) at trying to get employment, but there are always more candidates than vacancies, with criteria for employment being always higher --and I am NOT unqualified, unexperienced or unadaptable (or indeed a youngster)... So imagine the non-qualified! Mister Mayor therefore has to be wrong in asserting that the jobs are out there, that we just need to bend down and pick them..."
Some suggest a closer relationship between Britain's politicians, employers and the youth will provide a better understanding of the British economic needs and how they can be met by the new generations of workers:
"Boris Johnson has generalised the youth and there are some people that are desperate to work. It's politicians that are giving youth a bad name and it is unfair on the people that genuinely want to work and that is the majority of people but companies simply don't want to employ English workers because they will pay more in wages. It's simple economics. I think politics is very under representative of the youth and need to be more directly influenced by younger people. Then they will understand what is really happening with the younger generation of people!"
While a dim appetite for taking on jobs might be one of the reasons young people of Britain are without work, there is a wide range of other factors that contribute to youth unemployment:
"Securing an interview presently can come across as such an achievement as many people do not even get that far. Consequently, the number of people and even youngsters on JSA has increased, it's no wonder they have no energy as an end result. However, it does not help that Mr Johnson is making such statements by comparing the UK workforce to "hard-working foreigners" as there are so many adverse factors already affecting people finding jobs. Our London Mayor needs to take a back seat and introduce plans to create more jobs rather than making statements that have the opposite affect."
Some are taking a rather different view, agreeing with Mayor Johnson in saying that work motivation is a crucial factor and that sometimes you just have to be bold and change the usual career path:
"I retrained as journalist after my Software Engineering degree in London in 2008 and ended up doing quite a few internships (because the job market tanked) when I was job hunting, eventually I got sick of interning (basically unpaid work) so I decided to do some voluntary work with an NGO in Bangladesh. Now I'm working in Dubai in PR. Sometimes a drastic change of scenery (or a swift kick up the backside!) helps to bring things back into perspective when you think your career options are limited to one region or country. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to chip in, for all his craziness, Boris Johnson is absolutely right about the poor work ethic of modern British youth."
Others go as far as saying that Britain might lose the lead if it doesn't keep up with the enthusiasm of other emerging countries:
"Unfortunately, how crude it may sound I agree with statement. If people do no realise this, the development of countries like China and Brazil is going up while the relatively UK is declining. People cannot be surprised (am not saying in the near future) but in the feature if they, for example, cannot find themselves travelling as much as before but having tourist flooding in to this country."
What is your take on this debate? Is Britain indeed slacking with job offers, disregarding the economic crisis that is still on-going? Or is the situation really as bad as not being able to keep up with the pool of young talent fresh from universities? Give us your comments here.
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Are You Ready? Bringing Enterprise In EducationPosted on Thursday 26 January 2012 at 11:46AM by trrpaipai |
Enternships is a big fan of initiatives that bring enterprise and business innovation forward. We love those that involve young people even more and this is precisely what 'Are You Ready?' is all about: a comprehensive programme and campaign to create an urgently needed culture of enterprise in education.
Their approach is to harness ‘enterprise’ as a vehicle for transformation – raising aspirations, developing skills and bringing the community together through schools and colleges to create a more prosperous future. The 'Are you ready?' experience and belief is that young people need to be enterprising, develop an entrepreneurial mindset and have the confidence and ambition to take on the challenges and opportunities of life in the 21st century.
How it all started
It’s been six years since they launched their first enterprise programme and the ‘Ready’ model and ‘Inspire’ enterprise training are now internationally acclaimed. The original project, Rotherham Ready, won the prestigious Enterprising Britain competition for ‘creating a culture of enterprise’ and Rotherham was named the ‘Most Enterprising PlaceinBritain’ 2010 as a result.
The national programme ‘Are You Ready?’ won the StartUp Britain ‘Best Enterprise Support Award’ at the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards in 2011. This project received very good feedback from OFSTED too – after HMI spent a week in 2008 looking at how it inspired schools and colleges to give enterprise education a high priority.
This team believes that education has a key role to play in helping young people prepare for the challenges and opportunities of life in the 21st century and that supporting them to be ‘enterprising’ is a key part of their development. Can't argue with that!
How they do it
The 'Ready' target has a bold and unique take: they target young people – from four-years-old right up to young adults of 19 – to ensure a progressive development of enterprise skills, qualities and knowledge. Attitudes and mindsets are formed at an early age, so it is critical that we start developing enterprising skills, qualities and knowledge in the primary years and ensure it progresses through secondary education and beyond.
The idea is to train teachers to develop enterprise through the curriculum and as part of school culture so that enterprise is not seen as a bolt on – it is seen as an approach to teaching and learning and a way of giving relevance and meaning to the curriculum and school life. The ‘Inspire Pioneers’ tour aims to take this acclaimed training programme around the UK, working with teaching practitioners from Early Years to Higher Education.
The campaign
In November 2011 a campaign was launched and HM e-petition to highlight some of the major challenges faced by young people and our society. The campaign and e-petition call on the government to do three things:
- Make enterprise and entrepreneurship education a key part of all young people’s learning entitlement through the National Curriculum.
- Make enterprise and entrepreneurship education part of teacher training and development.
- Make enterprise and entrepreneurship education part of the Ofsted inspection framework.
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Business in You: new campaign launched by Prime Minister David Cameron and StartUp BritainPosted on Monday 23 January 2012 at 12:31PM by trrpaipai |
Everyone is capable of setting up a business; you just need to find your passion. This is the message in the new campaign being launched today in Leeds by the Prime Minister and StartUp Britain, whose co-founder is Enternships’ CEO Rajeeb Dey.
StartUp Britain will join the Prime Minister in Leeds this morning to spearhead the new campaign, which aims to inspire and support the people of Britain into becoming entrepreneurs.
“Enterprise is what we do in Britain. This is the year that, more than ever, we've got to go for it", said Cameron who is determined to “get behind Britain's grafters, doers, hard-workers and entrepreneurs”.
The ‘Business in You’ initiative comes in support of other projects the government has rolled up for small firms and would-be entrepreneurs, including making the government's disused office space available on short-term leases to them. This campaign will provide help in the form of free video tutorials, workshops and web-based seminars.
The message StartUp Britain co-founder and Enternships CEO sends is clear: “The jobs and growth will come from entrepreneurs and thus I'm particularly keen to send the message out to young people to look at entrepreneurship as a viable and rewarding career path and that in the midst of the bleak employment market entrepreneurship provides hope and opportunity”, says Rajeeb Dey.
The campaign is championed by successful businesses and entrepreneurs, including Huddle’s Alastair Mitchell, Paul Lindley from Ella’s Kitchen, Moonfruit’s Wendy Tan-White and Richard Moross, Moo.com.
Whilst unemployment continued to increase a change has also been registered in terms of work patterns with the number of self-employed people and part-time workers rising considerably. A possible scenario might be that people have decided to take control of their future, become entrepreneurs and start their own businesses. This campaign launched by StartUp Britain and the Prime Minister aims to highlight that support is out there to help them fulfil their ambitions.
StartUp Britain and Enternships are a big fan of such projects because, as founder Rajeeb Dey puts it, “young people have the ability to not only take a job but in fact make a job; let’s make 2012 the year of the entrepreneur."
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Breakthrough Initiative Boosts Entrepreneurship in the UKPosted on Friday 13 January 2012 at 13:25PM by trrpaipai |
Saving the economy? Driving innovation? Piece of cake! Enternships is proud to announce a new partnership with Santander Group in a new initiative that is bound to bring the best graduate talent to work with the fastest growing SMEs in the UK.
Breakthrough Enternships is part of a larger program which provides investment for fast-growth SMEs and supports local enterprise and community initiatives in order to help create jobs, inspire tomorrow’s entrepreneurs and fuel a private sector-led economy.
The problem: It’s ironic that in the current economic climate employers are struggling to find good people while graduates are expressing concern over their ability to access the jobs they want. The Breakthrough programme’s Enternship initiative addresses these recruitment issues while providing not only valuable experience for the next generation of businesspeople but also fresh recruits for today’s talent-hungry employers.
The solution: Under this programme, Santander seeks to identify and support successful, fast-growth SMEs as they work to break through to the next level. Spanning across four to five years, Breakthrough will make £200 million available for investment in up to 50 businesses that fall under the category of ‘Growth Champions’.
What’s in for the enterns
Enterns can gain valuable first-hand experience by contributing to a business where their drive and education can make a tangible impact. They can also find a route into smaller companies that may not otherwise benefit from a typical graduate recruitment programme, allowing Enterns to work more closely with senior staff. Getting that first break can often make all the difference between landing a promising career and remaining on the shelf, and having the Santander brand on your CV could make all the difference to an employer.
What’s in for the employers
Businesses taking part in the scheme gain access to the valuable skills of an enthusiastic entern who is keen to learn and make a contribution. Santander will fully fund the placements, also handling the associated administration and marketing. In addition, there is also the longer-term benefit that results from matching motivated graduates to businesses looking to fill permanent positions.
Authors
