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SME's - collectivism yes or no

Written by: Dr. Rob Smorfitt

Article Overview: Collectivism - Africa vs Far East

SME's - collectivism yes or no

I wrote previously about the possible impact of collectivism in Africa upon the level of entrepreneurial spirit/drive in Africa. I would like to pursue that topic a little further in this article.
I really think this is an excellent opportunity for an anthropologist perhaps to collaborate on research into this topic, to try and understand this in depth. If we look at Africa and we look at the Far East, collectivism features in most of these cultures. However, there is undoubtedly a difference between the two.
Unfortunately I do not know enough about this aspect of the Far East, but to the best of my knowledge the countries there tend to be more mono-cultured than Africa. If you look at South Africa and Botswana for example, they are both host to a multi-cultured black population. They are also not exceptions in Africa, more the rule.
Why has the USA been able to dissect and understand in detail the Japanese production systems, and yet they have never been able to replicate them. The USA too is a multi-cultured country, whereas Japan tends to rather be mono-cultured.
As I said, I am way outside my field of expertise, but there has to be a rational explanation for why Africa has such a low level of entrepreneurialism. Someone out there who knows more is welcome to contact me to discuss further.
Rob Smorfitt

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Article Tags: collectivism, mono cultural, multi cultural, SME, SMME, Smorfitt



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Re: In-House or Outsource? - Unfortunately, in the South African context, very few SMEs see outsourcing as an option. They believe it is too expensive, and they are paranoid that someone will "steal their ideas". I believe that the three main functions that cannot be outsourced are marketing, sales and strategy. These must be done in house I believe. If you do not have the marketing skills then get them. Hire a consultant or attend a course, but get the skills. Even if you use a consultant, you need to understand what marketing is about, as no one knows your market like you do. Marketing is made to seem difficult and complex, but everyone who really understands their markets, can easily learn to do their own marketing. In South Africa, labour legislation is extremely inflexibile, and consequently labour broking is a large industry. This is an ideal starting point for SMEs in South Africa, as it is a legally complex area, whih comes with severe penalties. I say do it! Rob Smorfitt
Re: Women and Financing - It's Difficult! - I found this paragraph of interest (in the article from Nana's link: [quote="Nana":3r7womqv]Other studies show that women operate more service and retail establishments than men, which might explain their difficulty in getting financing since financial institutions often consider these two sectors more risky. However, although women are generally less inclined than men to apply for financing, when they do, they are more likely to get it. According to a study by Industry Canada on SME financing in Canada, in 2000 majority female-owned SMEs obtained a loan approval rate of 82%, which is slightly higher than the approval rate for majority male-owned businesses (80%). This suggests that when they do apply for financing, businesswomen submit excellent applications. [/quote:3r7womqv] They say, "Women are more likely to get [financing]." But the difference is only 2 percentage points! Big deal! And, that was only for one year, 2000. I'd like to know what the 10-year average is. Numbers can be manipulated to mean anything you want them to mean...it all depends on what you want to show.


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