Ruwad - July - September 2010

TOP SHOT

HUSSAIN AHMED JAWAD GHULOOM

TUTORIAL

CLOUD COMPUTINGTHE LATEST BUZZWORD

SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR ALI AL HASHMI

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

JUL - SEP 2010 Ruwad Founding Members:

ROUNDTABLE R

SME FINANCING

CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS

An Alam Aliktisaad Wala’mal

P r e s e n t a t i o n

July-September, 2010

From The Editor’s Desk AN IMPORTANT STEP Small and medium enterprises play a vital role in promoting economic growth and sustainable development and creating employment opportunities. One of the main characteristics of these enterprises, compared to bigger ones, is the small investment required, a factor which makes them less vulnerable to risks.

This advantage paves the way for administrative and technical development and helps open up new vistas of individual entrepreneurship and promote a culture of self-reliance among the youth. It also reduces the pressure on the public sector in creating employment opportunities.

Small and medium enterprises constitute over 90 per cent of the total enterprises in the Sultanate, according to the latest data released in 2009. The contribution of SMEs to Oman’s GDP was 23 per cent, the same year.

CONCEPT Akshay Bhatnagar

MARKETING Business Head - SBU Kush Gupta

CONTENT Khalfan Al Rahbi A. Harikumar Mohammed Fahmi Ghalib Abdullah Al Fori

Marketing Team Jisha Velluvan

DESIGN Art Directors Sandesh S. Rangnekar Minaal G. Pednekar Designers M. Balagopalan Khoula Rashid Al Wahaibi Aliya Saif Al Wahaibi Senior Photographer Rajesh Burman

CORPORATE Chief Executive Sandeep Sehgal Executive Vice President Alpana Roy Vice President Ravi Raman Senior Business Support Executive Radha Kumar Distribution United Media Services LLC

Photographer Sathya Das Production Manager Govindaraj Ramesh Ruwad Branding Partner

Published by United Press & Publishing LLC PO Box 3305, Ruwi, Postal Code - 112 Muscat, Sultanate of Oman Tel: (968) 24700896, Fax: (968) 24707939 Email: publish@umsoman.com All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. The publisher does not accept responsibility for any loss occasioned to any person or organisation acting or refraining as a result of material in this publication. Alam Aliktisaad Wala’mal accepts no responsibility for advertising content.

Copyright © 2010 United Press & Publishing LLC Printed by Oman Printers Correspondence should be sent to: Ruwad, United Media Services PO Box 3305, Ruwi 112, Sultanate of Oman. Fax: (968)24707939

An Alam Aliktisaad Wala’mal Presentation

Financing and capital adequacy are the key issues that crop up whenever we discuss the difficulties and challenges faced by these enterprises, although there are some other challenges which are no less important.

To examine the difficulties faced by this sector, Ruwad organised a round table discussion which was attended by authorities concerned and entrepreneurs.

The participants were of the opinion that funding and procedural delays were the main difficulties faced by these enterprises. Some of them described these procedures as discouraging and inflexible rather than effective safeguards while alloting funds to start or expand business.

An important suggestion held forth by the discussion was the idea of a loan guarantee fund to streamline the funding. Besides, some other important and innovative suggestions and ideas also came up for discussion.

The participants commended the initiative of Ruwad to organise such a discussion and in the presence of competent authorities. They called it an important stride towards finding solutions to some of the difficulties and challenges faced by small and medium enterprises in the Sultanate. The dialogue was held in an open and transparent manner touching on many innovative ideas and efforts and plans for the development of this vibrant sector.

Khalfan Al Rahbi khalfan@umsoman.com

CONTENTS NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

and solutions

COLUMNS

By Abdul Qader Ahmed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

By Abdullah Al Jufaili . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

BEST GLOBAL PRACTICES . . . . . . . .14 Earn by planning weddings

TUTORIAL Cloud computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 COVER STORY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Roundtable discussion on SME challenges

TOP SHOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Hussain Ahmed Jawad Ghuloom SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR . . . . .20 The business of colours

1

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

NEWS

SECOND EDITION OF SME DIRECTORY LAUNCHED The Ministry of Commerce & Industry’s Directorate General for The Development of Small and Medium Enterprises has launched the second edition of SME Directory. The directory is part of the ministry’s efforts to guide small and medium enterprises in Oman. The directory includes the services provided by the DG-SME and those provided by other public and private sectors in support of the sector. It is a must reference for those who are already running their enterprise or plans to turn an entrepreneur.

CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY CONTINUES TO GROW The SMEs targeting the construction sector in Oman need not worry about the economic slowdown. Oman’s construction sector has posted real growth of 14.21 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in 2009, to reach a value of RO 1.31 billion ($3.39bn), according to a report by Business Monitor International. The transport sector is one of the key areas generating value added growth for the construction industry. BMI has forecasted that the industry will register an average annual growth of 5.8 per cent between 2010 and 2014.

SME INVESTMENTS FUELLING ICT EXPANSION Investments made by SMEs in newer and sophisticated technologies have contributed to the expansion of Oman’s ICT sector, according to Allied Telesis. Francesco Stramezzi, Vice President - Channels EMEA, Allied Telesis, said: “Using the latest technology and power saving techniques, we reduced power consumption by up to 50 per cent over a wide range of network devices. The company has also placed more focus on Triple Play technologies and is introducing innovative products to address data core network requirements. Our initial focus for the first year is to establish our channel model ,” he added.

2

INTILAAQAH REVAMPS TO BECOME A ONE-STOP-SHOP Intilaaqah which was launched in 1995, announced recently its revamped programme. Intilaaqah is a Shell flagship social investment programme modelled on an international programme.

On the occasion of Oman’s 40th anniversary, Shell has added another $7 million to the fund and also announced the migration of Intilaaqah and Intilaaqah Enterprise Fund as a single programme under the brand name Intilaaqah.

Going forward, Intilaaqah will be one-stop-shop for entrepreneurs, which will provide financial support and business development services.

Abdullah bin Hamoud Al Jufaili, Intilaaqah’s Deputy General Manager said, “The programme will offer funding ranging from US $ 50,000 to one million to qualified SMEs and business development assistance services along with comprehensive online training modules and tools. We seek to utilise the available electronic channels to reach wider audience, and in that regard we are delighted to launch this year’s Intilaaqah Best Entrepreneur Awards which will be completely run online.”

July-September, 2010

BANKMUSCAT SUPPORTS INJAZ OMAN PROGRAMME

BankMuscat is supporting Injaz Oman, a non-profit organisation which seeks to educate and inspire young people to succeed in a global economy. Every year, a select group of BankMuscat staff members volunteer to conduct varied sessions for students in schools across Oman. The Omani team sponsored by the Bank won the “Young Arab Entrepreneurs Competition 2009” held as part of the ‘Company Programme’.

Said Al Badai, Assistant General Manager – Branches of BankMuscat said: “The Bank’s participation in Injaz Oman Company Programme is aimed at making a difference in the lives of young people. The Company Programme enlists volunteers from the Bank to work closely with students and schools to infuse a greater understanding of business and finance in order to help them build a strong foundation for good business practice. Working with qualified business sector volunteers, students develop an understanding of the economic principles that influence business decisions, while acquiring work readiness skills.”

ODB AWARDED FOR SME ACHIEVEMENT Oman Development Bank (ODB) was awarded a plaque of merit on SME development for its achievement of implementation of an internal credit risk rating model by the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP). The award was received by Sheikh Al Fadhel Al Harthi, Chairman of ODB.

YAHOO! LAUNCHES SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP COMPETITION Yahoo! has initiated a new social entrepreneurship campaign and competition in partnership with Nahdet El Mahrousa, an Egypt-based non-governmental organization (NGO). They are spearheading an unprecedented online campaign called “Social Innovation Starts With YOU” to encourage social entrepreneurship among young Egyptians.

This campaign is aligned with the US Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship that took place recently in Washington.

In the Social Innovation Competition, individuals from across Egypt are invited to be the next social entrepreneurs of the year by developing new ideas in the fields of education, health, environment, and a wildcard category.

The campaign’s website http://eg.socialinnovation.yahoo. com serves as an entry point for aspiring entrepreneurs by providing an online toolkit of inspirational stories, advice, resources, and Web services to get them started.

Ten winners will be honoured with monetary grants and technical and management support to help bring their ideas to life. Among the winners will be already existing social entrepreneurs who will receive support to scale up their efforts and achieve wider impact. In total, Yahoo! will contribute $500,000 to the campaign, and as part of that, will provide close to $250,000 in monetary grants to awardees. In addition to monetary support, the awardees will receive training and mentoring support for three years to help ensure their success.

3

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

COLUMN

OPEN LETTER TO OMANI ENTREPRENEURS

BY ABDUL QADER AHMED

Life without challenges must be very boring. The reality is that all entrepreneurs and their businesses face tough challenges during early stages of their ventures. Some of them assess the challenges and plan to overcome.

Others fail in the process. You “Omani Entrepreneurs� have a lot in common with your counterparts in the world.

In this letter, we would like to highlight some common challenges faced by most entrepreneurs. This is the outcome of discussions with entrepreneurs who are at the early stages of forming a business or have been in business for a period of two year or less.

Key Challenges The following are the key challenges faced by most entrepreneurs.

Business Plan Most of the Entrepreneurs do not have written business plan, some do not even see the benefits of having a plan and others feel they are too small to write a business plan. Most entrepreneurs are driving in the dark. In the last few months, I interacted with many brilliant Omani entrepreneurs, who do not have answers to some basic questions such asWhat is your monthly sales? What is your operating cost? What is your margin?

Who are your competitors? And do you

4

have records of business dealings? I came across only a few entrepreneurs who can precisely and accurately answer all these questions. Definitely these are not very sophisticated questions but the basics that anyone should know about their business.

I urge you to pay special attention to business planning. Many entrepreneurs we met argue, preparing business plan is expensive. My humble submission to you and to them is that driving your business in the dark is much more expensive. I know every one of you have the basic component of a plan, all you need to do is to write down and seek professional help. Seeking professional help does not necessarily means going to major consultant firms. There are many organizations in Oman that support SMEs and I am sure, they are all willing to assist, however you need to make the effort to approach them.

Basic Bookkeeping We all know that businesses fail mainly because of mismanagement of cash.

Basic bookkeeping or keeping records of your financial dealings is paramount to understand your business and its cash flow. We believe business should always be a value creator. RO 1 invested should earn you more than RO 1, if it

is not, then it is not creating value. We met Entrepreneurs who are not having basic bookkeeping. There are many inexpensive ways of basic bookkeeping.

As a result, entrepreneurs get excited when they make a few sales and see reasonable balances in their bank accounts. Do not make investment decisions, do not buy new cars or go on holiday solely because you have cash in your bank account. Be aware, not all the cash in your bank account is yours. It belongs to your landlord, to your staff, to your suppliers and others.

Conclusion Finally, the above are some of the key challenges and entrepreneurs need to assess their businesses sometimes on daily basis. Remember every decision you make will either create value or destroy it. Surround yourself and partner with successful individuals who have great expertise and experience. They can add value to your business venture.

Do not assume you are on the right direction, make sure you are on the right direction. You can only do that when you have a business plan and when you are financially keeping track of the business.

The author is general manager of the Fund for Development of Youth Projects (Sharakah)

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

TUTORIAL

CLOUD COMPUTING – THE LATEST BUZZWORD ‘CLOUD COMPUTING’ IS CHANGING THE WAY HOME OFFICES AND SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS ARE RUNNING THEIR COMPANIES. BUT IS IT RELEVANT FOR SMES? RUWAD TAKES A LOOK Overall global cloud computing market is expected to be over $70 billion by 2015. There has been a lot of hype recently about ‘the cloud’ from the likes of Microsoft and Google. What is it and what is its impact on small business?

‘Cloud computing’ provides companies with the ability to store data and access software services online via the internet.

Traditionally, data and software was set up and stored on stand-alone PC desktops and connected via a network.

This back-up system was then managed and maintained by network specialists on a daily basis. Larger businesses were able to justify the high costs against staff capacity however, it was a different story for the small businesses where cash flow was tight and staff resource low. This is where ‘cloud computing’ comes into its own. The advantages to small businesses are that they no longer need to set up servers for their staff IT needs, nor employ specialist staff to run a scaled down version of an IT Department to support that need. Fortunately due to today’s technological advances everything is looked after online in ‘the cloud’ by the service provider. The great news is that if your computer gets lost or stolen all your data won’t be lost as

6

it is backed up ‘in the cloud’ and you can access it instantly from another computer, giving you peace of mind. You don’t have to spend endless time loading up the software onto each individual computer.

Advantages of a cloud computing • Cost-effective - Low start-up costs make cloud computing attractive, especially to small businesses and entrepreneurs.

• Low cost for sporadic use - Some cloud-based business services, such as Google Apps, do not need to be purchased for one-time or infrequent computing.

• Ease of management - No need to worry about keeping licenses current or purchasing additional hardware.

• Scalability - High-growth companies can easily expand the number of users and locations at modest cost.

• Device and location independence -

July-September, 2010

TUTORIAL

The way you access a cloud could be your desktop. It could be someone else’s computer. It could be a smart phone.

• Rapid innovation - Because vendors are able to roll out new features incrementally, they can respond to user needs more rapidly.

Things to keep in mind before taking a plunge One has to factor in the key aspects related to conventional computing viz-a-viz cloud computing as per the following: What is the total cost of ownership?

Lower client hardware costs, faster implementation and time to value, and possibly lower license costs all change the calculation.

What are the hardware, software and maintenance considerations?

In a cloud-based computing environment, computer memory, speed, and disk space are not so significant because data is stored and computation occurs “in the cloud.” For software, a key issue is managing updates. Typically, in cloud-based computing, updates trickle in incrementally. Does this present problems for users, or does it introduce risks of feature changes that impact your data? Good questions for your service provider.

What’s the best fit for your business process?

When comparing systems, some cloudbased applications may not have the feature depth of their traditional onpremises counterparts. However, some activities such as document sharing and setting up work-groups on the fly may

be easier with cloud-based applications; similar capabilities in a traditional environment may require additional software tools. Also, examine how the application will impact work flow.

For instance, in the traditional world of software applications, you might send a document to your co-worker via email and be confident that at least one of you would have a copy if something happened.

In fact, you would likely have two copies of the document on your system – one in a folder and one in your sent email queue. By going through your sent emails, you can always recover earlier drafts if you must. However, if you create a document in the cloud, there is only one copy of that document, and it’s not on your computer. Does this change the way you typically work? Does this change the way you manage your documents?

What are the security risks?

In a cloud-based software environment, physical security is stronger because the loss of a client system does not compromise data or software. However, how secure is the service provider’s system against outside attack? What do you feel about possibly having your proprietary business information in the same cloud as your competitor’s?

What happens if there is a system failure – is the data secure? How reliable is your service provider? These are all questions you should ask.

How do you work in an offline environment?

With on-premises applications, employees usually can access some key information even when online access isn’t available. Cloud applications may address the issue quite well or not at all, so this is an excellent question for your service provider.

Do write back to us on your thoughts or experience on the deployment of cloud computing in your business.

7

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

COVER STORY

AN AMBITIOUS INITIATIVE A DISCUSSION ON THE CONSTRAINS AND CHALLENGES FACED BY SMES IN OMAN ORGANISED BY RUWAD HAS CALLED FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A LOAN GUARANTEE FUND AND STREAMLINING PROCEDURES FOR SANCTIONING LOANS

8

July-September, 2010

COVER STORY

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Sultanate are facing a number of constraints and challenges, especially with regard to funding and capital adequacy. In order to explore this problem in depth and find practical and viable solutions, Ruwad held a roundtable discussion which was

attended by authorities concerned with the development of this sector and representatives of SMEs. Khalfan bin Salim al-Rahbi, deputy editor of Ruwad was the moderator.

Participants of the discussion were, Sheikh Salah bin Hilal Al Mawaly,

Director General for Small and Medium enterprises, Ministry of Commerce and Industry; Yousuf Yaqoob Al-Busaidi, board member of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI) and Chairman of the Entrepreneurs Forum of OCCI; Abdul Qader Ahmed, General Manager of the Fund for the Development of Youth Project (Sharakah); Sami bin Zaher Al Wuhaibi, founder of Al Wali fast-food restaurant; Khalid Alsafi Al Hariby, MD Tawasul Foundation; Hafidh Hamood Al Jufaili, General Director Twin Link; Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Rasbi, founder of Research and Development Foundation and Ghalib Abdullah Al Fori from Ruwad.

Moderator: What is your role as the Director General for the development of SMEs? Salah bin Hilal Al Mawaly: “Role of the Directorate is to conduct awareness and training programmes for entrepreneurs and find alternative funding sources in coordination with government agencies to resolve the financing problems faced by SMEs. Before the inception of Directorate, there were only two units to finance such projects in the Sultanate; but today all banks have the units to finance them. Besides, our responsibilities include introducing appropriate legislation and facilitating a favourable environment to enable SMEs function successfully.

Moderator: What is the role of the Entrepreneurs’ Forum of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI)?

Yousuf Al-Busaidi: OCCI is neither a legislative nor an executive body. But the board of directors of the chamber

9

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

COVER STORY

has understood the importance of focusing on these enterprises. It has conducted in association with authorities concerned, special training programmes for entrepreneurs. The Entrepreneurs’ Forum played a major role in organising the Exhibition and Conference on SMEs, which was held in coordination with the Directorate General for the Development of SMEs. Besides, we organise Meet the Entrepreneurs, a quarterly event for entreprenuers.

12 years, the fund has been a success.

We have financed many projects and operate as a nonprofit social institution.

We provide material support for projects giving loans from RO 10, 000 to RO 200, 000 and financial, legal, administrative, marketing or technical expertise needed and other services. Though initially we did not concentrate on providing solutions to the problems faced by entrepreneurs, now we are doing that also.

Moderator: Fund for Development of Youth Projects (Sharakah) was set up by the Royal Decree. What is the role of the Fund?

Abdul Qader Ahmed: The role of the Fund includes financing and assisting SMEs to set up their own businesses which will create more job opportunities and contribute to strengthen and improvise these industries. Over the last

Sami bin Zaher Al Wuhaibi: We established arguably the first fastfood restaurant in Oman in mid-2003 with personal investment. Later we restructured the company and opened the second branch. After a year and a half, we started seeking finance to expand our business. When we approached banks and other financing institutions for assistance, we faced many obstacles. At last, we approached GroFin Oman, an SME specialised financier which assisted numerous entrepreneurs to grow. We found their procedures very impressive compared to banks and other finance institutions.

The Entrepreneurs’ Forum played a major role in organising the SME conference and exhibition Yousuf Al-Busaidi 10

Moderator: What do you mean by these obstacles?

Wuhaibi: Sometimes the finance companies would demand guarantees which will be almost impossible. When I applied for a loan, the bank asked me to mortgage the property of the project which I did not own. I suggested giving my enterprise as a guarantee. But the Bank refused though the value of my enterprise was very big.

Another problem is related to procedures. As small and medium

We conduct various studies on the obstacles faced by SMEs in order to find solutions Sheikh Salah Al Mawaly enterprises, we face problems in getting workers. Sometimes, we have to wait for more than six months to get necessary employment permission. It is unfair to compare our enterprises with large companies. For instance, why can’t we be exempted from taxes, at least in early years?

Moderator: Sheikh Salah, what do you think of this?

Mawaly: Such observations are very important for us as we in the Directorate conduct various studies on the obstacles faced by these projects in order to find appropriate solutions. The procedures have become less complicated during these days. You can, for instance, get the registration certificate of a business within half an hour. But when it comes to projects like restaurants, sometimes we need to apply strict procedures because it is related to human health.

July-September, 2010

COVER STORY

Wuhaibi: We have been paying rent for eight months for our Al Wali fast-food shop in Sohar, but yet to open it.

Municipalities and Water Resources and Environment and Climate Affairs (in some projects that requires approvals of the Environment Ministry). I think there is an urgent need to establish a body to explore the necessary legislation to accelerate the process and avoid delay.

Mawaly: It is a matter of time and I think with the new electronic systems to be implemented by the government such issues will be sorted out soon.

Moderator: What do you mean by the electronic system?

Mewaly: With the application of electronic system, we can save time and effort. We will get rid of the manual system which takes a lot of time and efforts.

Wuhaibi: The main problem is getting labourers which takes an unprecedentedly long time.

Mawaly: In some cases, we need such measures to create a balance of sorts.

The Ministry of Manpower has its own laws and policies. We have to take a middle path without becoming too tough or too easygoing when it comes to procedures. When you want to launch an enterprise there are certain procedures which you must go through. You have to find out national labourers and train them appropriately before beginning the project.

Moderator: Does the Directorate provide any help to entrepreneurs to overcome the difficulties posed by certain procedures?

Mawaly: Yes, we are helping them overcome some difficulties. But some procedures are necessary and cannot be waived. Besides, we regularly contact the Ministry of Manpower and discuss many topics related to reducing the burden of

But here the procedures will drag on for months, disrupting the opening for a long time Abdul Qader entrepreneurs.

Moderator: But why should young Omanis confront all these difficulties?

Why can’t we provide more facilities to them?

Mawaly: We provide all assistance in accordance with the established procedures. We cannot bypass some necessary procedures and exclude some important measures. Evading some of the procedures will have adverse consequences affecting the whole society.

Abdul Qader:Sorry for the interruption.

But in Europe such things will take less than one month. But here the procedures will drag on for months, eating into around 30 per cent of the capital and disrupting the opening for a long time. I think the government is mainly responsible for this problem, especially the Ministries of Manpower, Regional

In America those who want to open a project will get the official approval along with a list of all necessary requirements and regulations they must adhere to. After six months, it will be examined whether the entrepreneurs have complied with or violated the requirements and necessary action will be taken afterwards.

Earlier, investments used to come to other countries in the region except Oman. Then we understood that the problem lies in lack of relevant investment promotion and established the Omani Centre for Investment Promotion and Export Development (OCIPED) which has achieved great success.

Mawaly: On this subject we must be realistic. In America there are no problems in terms of manpower.

Besides, we must consider Omanisation and the necessity to create employment for Omanis. We have some responsibilities to our country and its people. Our enterprises need to contribute to the welfare of people and country. It is not reasonable that we employ expatriate labourers while citizens of the country remain jobless.

It will not take six months to set up a restaurant if you do not want to recruit expatriates. And we have one-stop facilities to expedite the procedures.

11

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

COVER STORY

transactions when many other countries have already implemented it.

If we really want the development of SMEs which already contribute up to 23 per cent of GDP, we must streamline our procedures to keep pace with what is happening all over the world.

We are talking about future plans for internet transactions when many others have implemented it Khalid Al Haribi Abdul Qader: But the one-stop acts as an intermediary. It receives the application but does not make any decision. Is there an intention to develop the work of the one-stop or revise the procedures at the ministry?

Mawaly: As per future plans, one need not come to the Ministry to complete the procedures and transactions. One can do it sitting at home and will have access to the commercial register. He can understand the shortcomings of his application at the same time.

Khalid Al Haribi: I have observed that there are four stages for an SME: Stages of establishment, exploration, expansion and innovation. But there is an overlapping in certain stages especially in expansion and innovation which refer to the development of enterprises. We are talking about future plans for internet

12

Another difficulty is that many people do not know about funding sources.

Yet another problem is that banks are reluctant to offer services to the willing entrepreneurs. Banks should assume their responsibility by reducing restrictions and giving easy access.

Abdul Qader: All major banks have set up development fund for youth projects as part of their social responsibility. But the real problem lies in its application.

Mawaly: The Directorate has recently published second edition of the directory of the services for all small and medium enterprises. It carries names of all financing sources. The directory also gives information about the documents required. Besides, the Directorate always consults with funding and supporting institutions to streamline the proceedings.

Recently we conducted a study about a loan guarantee fund to provide funding for people looking for loans, in cooperation with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Oman Development Bank and several other banks. I think the fund will contribute significantly to ensure the availability of funding for entrepreneurs.

Abdul Qader: Banks look at the returns

that accrue from the project. Now all the banks have specialized units for financing small and medium enterprises because they have paid special attention to their importance and have established special services for financing these projects.

Mawaly: Banks realized only recently the importance of financing these enterprises which constitute more than 90 per cent of all enterprises in the Sultanate. It became necessary for banks to create categories and divisions for funding. Since small and medium enterprises are mostly successful in the country, banks are more encouraged to finance them to cash in on their expected growth.

Busaidi: Entrepreneurs lack a genuine partnership with the bank.

The relationship between the two is that of a lender-borrower. And if the project fails, the owner will be subjected to legal proceedings. But I think banks should have a greater role in providing appropriate solutions to various problems and obstacles faced by businessmen.

When entrepreneurs do not have sufficient experience and knowledge in the beginning, banks should come forward to provide them with advice and counselling and refer them to legal and financial authorities. It is also good for the bank because if the business becomes successful, banks can retrieve their loans very soon. Communication between the two sides is also very important because there are a lot of entrepreneurs in need of guidance. Banks should stand by them and provide them administrative and technical support.

July-September, 2010

COVER STORY

One of the biggest difficulties I faced was getting Omani employees Mohammed Al Rasbi Mohammed Rasbi: I started my enterprise in 2009. It is located in Knowledge Oasis Muscat. I started it with a personal investment. One of the biggest difficulties I faced was getting Omani employees. The process of obtaining funding needs to be streamlined.

Mawaly: The process is easy through the websites of these agencies. You can have an idea of the procedures and requirements for submitting application, but many ignore this service even though it saves their time and effort.

Hafidh Hamood Al Jufaily: I got first place in the competition for the best business idea. The cash prize was sufficient to set up the project.

One of the biggest problems faced by many entrepreneurs at the beginning is to give confidence for others. Sometimes the project may end up a failure if the employees are not competent.

Moderator: Does the Business Forum in OCCI give any advice to new entrepreneurs and make them aware of the importance of dedication for the project?

Al Busaidy: We do not have specialized programmes for it. But we discuss the difficulties faced by entrepreneurs and conduct meetings with experts on the requests of entrepreneurs and businessmen. We provide them the opportunity to attend such meetings to discuss the difficulties and issues directly with the authorities. They can also attend conferences, lectures, seminars and courses organized for them free of charge.

staff or providing a percentage of profits to them.

Moderator: Sheikh Salah, do you expect that the Loan Guarantee Fund can solve the problem of funding?

Mawaly: The fund cannot solve the whole problem. But I believe that it will solve part of the problems. We have a strategy to search for alternative funding, to find solutions to some problems, set up new ideas and explore the best and most convenient ways to get funding. The fund helps the applicants by arranging their papers and providing them with required documents thereby helping them expedite the procedures to get funding

At the end of the discussion, everybody agreed that the establishment of a loan guarantee fund is an important step to ensure the funding for SMEs. The participants also highlighted the necessity of streamlining procedures.

Hariby: Human resource development is another important area. Entrepreneurs should avoid the most unlucky situation of its trained staff migrating to other well-off companies and institutions.

Mawaly: Of course; everybody wants to work in big organizations which provide better facilities and growth prospects.

You can retain your human resources by providing them with better facilities such as entering into a partnership with the

Hariby: Other important topics are encouraging creativity and exploring what is new and different. We must go beyond the traditional methods because creativity is essential.

Mawaly: The development of SMEs hinges on the collective efforts of the government and society. There are a lot of plans which are currently being implemented, including training programs and setting up nurseries for business and others.

Sometimes projects may end up as failures if employees are not competent Hafidh Al Jufaily 13

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

BEST GLOBAL PRACTICES

EARN BY PLANNING WEDDINGS WEDDING PLANNING HAS BECOME A LUCRATIVE INDUSTRY FOR ENTERPRISING OMANIS WHO HAVE A FLAIR FOR MANAGEMENT AND FASHION TRENDS

The wedding is no more a home manageable event where one requires different service providers to be contacted and negotiated. It consumes precious time and resources! So, in this busy life, it has become the

14

responsibility of professional wedding planners to make A to Z arrangement for weddings. A wedding planner works day in and day out so that his customer can sit back comfortably and enjoy wedding proceedings.

Are you thinking of starting your own business? If you like to work with people, enjoy planning big parties, and are good at negotiating and networking you might consider becoming a wedding planner!

There are many Omanis who have

July-September, 2010

BEST GLOBAL PRACTICES

become professional wedding planners.

Role of a wedding planner A wedding planner is one who has anything and everything to do with your wedding day celebrations. A wedding planner not only visualises and plans in advance but also organises and executes the event with perfection. He pays attention to minutest of details with utmost patience and a people friendly attitude. It is not only bride or groom that a wedding consultant has to deal with but each and every relative or friend that one can imagine. Only a people person can get through the entire process of wedding coordination with diplomacy to harmonise everyone’s needs.

What makes a successful wedding planner?

Several factors contribute to your success as a wedding planner. Creativity is the basis of a good wedding planner.

You must be able to come up with solutions for different scenarios. Budget weddings, theme weddings, managing last-minute hiccups, dealing with wedding day disasters… all require creative trouble shooting.

flowers. A good knowledge of religion and marriage related customs and traditions are a must.

But the single most important factor in determining your success as a wedding planner is confidence. It’s the confidence that you have in your abilities as a wedding planner that determines how successful you are. And the only way to gain confidence is through knowledge.

There are a couple of institutes located in Europe and other markets that offer specialised courses in wedding planning. The profession has become so popular and organised that a number of associations of industry stakeholders have also come up. The UK Alliance of Wedding Planners (www.ukawp.com) is one such example.

Why get into wedding planning?

Recession or no recession, people will continue to get married and spend significant amount of money on the

related celebrations. Which other industry is recession proof? In Oman and rest of the GCC region, wedding planning industry is still in its infancy but there is tremendous scope for growth in the coming years. With exposure to latest trends through satellite channels and Internet, people are becoming more conscious of organising their wedding in a more memorable and attractive way. And to do this they are increasingly relying on professional wedding planners.

Even though you may be new to the trade, if you are able to do good work and earn the confidence of your clients, you can expect to do good business as growth will come through client referrals. So make sure you give utmost attention to clients’ requirements and meet their expectations. It is difficult to determine the earnings in the initial stage but as you grow and join the top league, you can expect to make around 20-25% of the wedding budget as well!

One also needs to be organised and have an eye for details. For example, managing a gala event requires the ability to juggle many contractors and get things organised quickly and effectively. The ability to network well and build relationships with wedding service providers also helps.

A wedding planner must have a good fashion sense. He or she should have knowledge on colour, music, and

15

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

COLUMN

INSPIRATIONAL QUOTES

BY ABDULLAH AL JUFAILI In this issue, we have selected some inspirational entrepreneurial quotes to inspire you to succeed.

“Associate yourself with people of good quality, for it is better to be alone than in bad company.”

Booker T. Washington “The most valuable thing you can make is a mistake - you can’t learn anything from being perfect.”

Adam Osborne quotes (American entrepreneur, 1939-2003) “Those who enter to buy, support me. Those who come to flatter, please me. Those who complain, teach me how I may please others so that more will come. Only those hurt me who are displeased but do not complain. They refuse me permission to correct my errors.”

Marshall Field, entrepreneur “The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.”

Vidal Sassoon, entrepreneur “The rich buy assets. The poor only have expenses. The middle class buys liabilities they think are assets.”

Robert T. Kiyosaki, author, entrepreneur, investor “The link between my experience as an entrepreneur and that of a politician is all in one word: freedom.”

Silvio Berlusconi “I wanted to be an editor or a journalist, I wasn’t really interested in being an entrepreneur, but I soon found I had to become an entrepreneur in order to keep my

16

magazine going.”

Richard Branson - Entrepreneur “I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others... I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent.”

Thomas Edison “Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut, no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you’re generally better off sticking with what you know. And the third is that sometimes your best investments are the ones you don’t make.”

Donald Trump “A dream is not something you see in your sleep...

A dream is that which does not let you sleep.”

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, Former President of India “If it’s to be it’s up to me.”

Brian Tracy “Entrepreneur is not a job title. It is a state of mind of people who want to alter the future.”

Guy Kawasaki “People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstances. The people who succeed are the people who look for the circumstances they want. And if they can’t find them, they make them.”

George Bernard Shaw The author is deputy general manager, Intilaaqah. He can be contacted on abdullah.al-jufaili@shell.com

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

TOP SHOT TUTORIALS

CREATING THE PERFECT FIT HUSSAIN AHMED JAWAD GHULOOM, CEO OF AL WAQIA SHOES LLC, HAS PLACED OMAN ON THE FOOTWEAR GLOBAL MAP WITH HIS COURAGE OF CONVICTION but did it with an astounding success.

Business is all about taking risks. That’s the core principle for Hussain, a graduate from Portland State University, United States of America, who modestly ascribes his success to following his father’s advice: “Just do what you want.”

Of course, the modern footwear factory specialising in military and safety boots — Al Waqia means ‘Protection’ in Arabic — did not come easy. Started as a turnkey project in 1995 with two partners, it started becoming a liability within a year.

Production was primarily for export — but there was no export beyond a lone container to the UK. Plus, technology was changing and their production process had become obsolete.

By the year 2000, the writing was on the wall — with a half million Rial liability. That was the time when Hussain decided to call a spade a spade. And within a year, he became the sole owner of Al Waqia Shoes Company by paying off his partners.

From thereon he has not looked back and has moved from strength to strength.

I

f you log on to the website of Al-Waqia Shoes Co. LLC, it states -- ‘We are one of the leading manufacturers and exporters of safety, military, and uniform footwear in the Gulf. We are the one and only company in the Sultanate of Oman manufacturing safety shoes and military boots using state-of-the-art facility since 1996.’ Reads incredible!

For anyone looking at starting an enterprise of his own, manufacturing of footwear may not even come to his mind forget about being top of the mind. But Hussain Ahmed Jawad Ghuloom, the owner and CEO of Al-Waqia Shoes, is a man of a different mettle. He not only thought of doing the unpopular

18

Al Waqia is known in the global market as the producer of highquality footwear with international standards. The company is either serving or has served almost all the key industries.

“Customers return to us because we listen and respond to them quickly. We regularly communicate with our customers to make sure that we meet their requirements and also provide them with custom-made products which suits to their requirements.

With our latest sophisticated production facility coupled with skilled manpower, we are continuously designing new models, so our offerings are always up-to-date with the latest market trends,” states Hussain.

For today’s teens aspiring to become entrepreneurs, Hussain’s advice is: “Every person has got a sixth sense. Always listen to it!”

0&3 T $PNQBOZ 4QFDJBM PO 0NBO 0JM .BSLFUJOH $P

4DBMJOH /FX )FJHIUT 1

FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADERS

SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR

THE BUSINESS OF COLOURS ALI AL HASHMI WHO ACHIEVED REMARKABLE SUCCESS THROUGH HIS PAINTING COMPANY NARRATES HIS STORY TO GHALIB ABDULLAH AL FORI

I

t was his love and strong passion for colours that inspired Ali Al Hashmi to launch a painting company. Slowly he mastered the techniques of how to be a creative and innovative painter and also emerged as a successful entrepreneur. Now he teaches his children whatever he learned.

Sitting in the office of his company, Al Shaa Al Lama Trading, the sole agent of Impex Colours, a leading Italian paint manufacturing company, Ali Al Hashmi told the remarkable story of his success.

20

”I founded Al Shaa Al Lama Trading in 1996 in collaboration with a leading decoration and painting company in Dubai, which was the exclusive agent of Amour Coat and Nova in the Gulf,” he said.

“The beginning was with plaster of Paris and then we switched over to painting walls. I did not attend any training courses in this field but maintained constant contacts with and learned from people who had a long and good experience. I have benefitted greatly from these contacts which helped me keep abreast with the latest trends in the field

of painting. I learned from them how to produce new colours by mixing different dyes. I tried it myself before explaining to my workers,” said Al Hashmi.

“In 2002, I got a contract to paint the interiors of a luxurious villa of a senior public figure,” he said. “I was asked to bring in a foreign specialist in this field.

An Italian specialist who had sufficient experience in this field was brought.

When he started working, I used to accompany him and watch his work. I learned from him many things about

July-September, 2010

SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR

mixing colours. I understood that we can explore with colours whatever we imagine. Paint factories give you only the materials, but it is up to you to mix and design them according to your tastes,” noted Al Hashmi.

“I do not have any electronic machine for mixing paints and create new colours. I do it on my own. On many an occasion, customers ask for colours not mentioned in the manuals of paint companies. They simply imagine some colours and share it with me leaving to me the risk of producing it. Thank God, I have been greatly successful in overcoming these challenges,” he said.

Difficulties and obstacles Al Hashmi said he had an understanding with some big companies in the United Arab Emirates who imported paints from aboard. “They have many customers and large-scale projects.

When I got a project in the Sultanate, I contacted one of these companies,” he said. “They mixed colours to produce the exact colour required for the project and sent the samples to me to get the approval of the costumer. After sending for the approval, there were delays in getting the required colour from the company. It meant that the company did not have stock of that particular colour,” he said.

“This delayed some projects and started to affect my credibility before my customers,” Al Hashmi noted. “But now after I got the agency of a big paint company, things started to change a great deal,” he said.

Painting is not that easy as envisaged by

I went to Dubai with samples of the new colours I had developed. He was impressed by the colours I had developed with the paints. He wanted me to implement a project of a British resident in the Sultanate, who was a customer of the company. The project was painting a number of villas in the Sultanate which I did successfully. The customer personally conveyed his happiness,” Al Hashmi said.

Advice “Thank God, there is a lot of work in our country. Our young people should seek the opportunities and exhibit their will and resolve to brave the challenges. There are many works which do not require a large amount of investment. Our youth should not despair because they have a lot of opportunities. If a group of people come together, they can set up an institution and build their life successfully, without waiting for their opportunity to come in a private or public company.”

some people. It is a combination of art, skill, experience and knowledge about the quality of the paints, Al Hashmi said.

Beginning of a new chapter Al Hashmi said towards 2008, he started to contact some big European painting companies. “I signed an agreement with IMPEX to give me samples of some primary paints they have,” he said. “I continued the process of mixing these colours to create new ones. In May 2008, the owner of IMPEX wanted me to meet him when he visited Dubai.

Need for funding “I am currently considering buying a machine for mixing dyes which is very expensive,” he said. “When I found myself in need of financial assistance, I approached Sharakah. They have agreed to finance after going through all documents of the project, he said.

Major Projects “I have painted villas of eminent persons and the interior of the building of Etihad Airways. Besides, I have painted Bariq Shati and another project in Sohar,” Al Hashmi said.

Future Plans “My aspiration is to bequeath this art to my children,” Al Hashmi said. “One of my sons is very interested in it and has knowledge of the basics of this art,” he added. He is doing technical courses on this topic to refine his skills.”

Hashmi is currently doing new experiments to replace the conventional colours mixing natural and chemical substances such as gypsum and lime extracted from the mountains and sands. He seeks to develop colours which are not harmful to man and the environment.

21