Julia Langkraehr is a United Kingdom-based trainer and entrepreneur, who works for the Entrepreneurs’ Organisation as an international facilitator. She was in Nigeria recently and spoke with journalists on mentoring and networking, among others. SAMUEL AWOYINFA was there
What is your relationship with the Entrepreneurs’ Organisation, especially the Nigeria chapter?
I have been a member of Entrepreneurs’ Organisation, London, UK chapter since 2003, and became a certified forum trainer in 2007 and since 2004 I have been a Member Leader volunteer who helps to lead the organisation, both in London and on the Europe, Middle East and Africa regional council.
In January 2012, I hosted all EO Presidents meeting in London, where I met Nigeria chapter’s President and Chairman, Publicity, Mr. Abdlrazaq Shittu, and Mr. Agekameh Dele, respectively, who are founding members of EO Nigeria and on the EO Lagos board. Since meeting them, I have been supporting and coaching them. Last week, I came to Lagos to train new members, train moderators to become member leaders, and facilitate a strategy summit for the EO Nigeria board.
How does EO help individual entrepreneurs to develop their businesses, most especially those entrepreneurs from developing countries like Nigeria and others?
The mission of the organisation is to engage leading entrepreneurs to learn and grow. It delivers the mission in three ways. First is the peer to peer learning, through local fora, local leadership positions and through network (basically, it gets entrepreneurs together so they can share and learn from each other.
Second is what I call once in a lifetime experiences -members have opportunity of attending regional conferences around the globe, having access to intensive entrepreneurial masters programme, among others.
Third, they are connected to experts, who provide mentorship, which exposes them to varied areas of entrepreneurship.
From your interaction with EO members from Nigeria, what are those traits you have seen in them and the country?
I had a very positive experience with both the EO Lagos entrepreneurs and visiting Lagos as a tourist. First, I am impressed with the persistence, tenacity and passion of the EO members I met who want to grow strong, profitable companies with international standards. They are hungry to learn from their peers in Lagos, but also from members in other chapters around the world, both in their specific industry and different industries for contrast and comparison.
How does EO support women entrepreneurs that combine running their businesses with taking care of their husbands and children?
Again, I had the pleasure of working with two EO Lagos women entrepreneurs who are business owners, wives and mothers. I was impressed with their ability to create a work/life balance while still having ambitious plans and goals for their respective businesses. EO connects these Lagos female members with other EO women business owners around the world who face the same challenges and are able to share best practices and support them.
How does EO assist the youths aspiring to become entrepreneurs after their education?
EO has a Global Student Entrepreneur Programme that works with universities and colleges to find and encourage students who are actively running a business to apply for this award programme. It’s held on a local, regional and global basis and connects these student entrepreneurs to EO members, who can offer support and mentorship.
EO chapters around the world also invest time and energy in speaking to grammar and secondary school students and some members also donate their time to mentor young entrepreneurs. EO is supportive of all entrepreneurs.
Business sustainability is a problem in a country like Nigeria; what advice do you have for Nigerian businessmen and women on how to sustain their businesses?
I would encourage all entrepreneurs to use best practices in developing their company culture, best hiring practices, identifying their niche or expertise, evaluating margins and establishing efficient business processes in order to build and grow sustainable businesses.
I personally use a lot of best practices, which I learned from both business experts and my peers in the organisation. I believe these best practices are of vital importance in an economy like Nigeria.
What are those basic requirements that keep business thriving from your experience as a seasoned entrepreneur?
For me, those requirements are: One must have a good company culture, continue to hire, train and inspire players and identify a well-defined industry, sector, and market niche. Besides, you must know your unique selling propositions and able to identify your target prospects. You must also know the selling process or selling cycle, and close the right clients.
You must continue to re-evaluate and develop strategies to grow the business so you have a sustainable, re-occuring revenue streams and profit in order to manage your cash-flow, among others.