The Innovators - Planters Development Bank

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SME Entrepreneurship Cash or Crown By Mary Grace Rosas Decisions. Decisions. Plagued with the question of whether to have more profit and immediate company growth or maintain control over the enterprise, company founders are, more often than not, tormented out of their minds. These people understand the reality that at some point their company must hit its puberty stage and soon may be well on its way to maturity. However, it is never easy to watch one’s creation handled by someone else. At the same, it is also difficult to forfeit opportunities for better profit acquisition and growth, especially if it is a known fact that the enterprise is well worth other people’s investment. When ventures are started, most founders live in the bubble that the company will grow and mature right before their eyes, with the help of their own wits and wisdom. For a company to become more profitable, investors are taken in to put their own money on the line. In having percentage on the risks involved in the business, these investors are largely capable of delegating what in their perspective is best for a proper return of investment. Most of the time, this means a change of the CEO running the show. The fire is lit and the smoke is more like an existentialist dilemma for the founder. The Parent Who does what? In a given enterprise, the founder’s wisdom is the root of everything. Hence, their title. More than this title suggests, though, is the affection these people give to their business. It is essential to note that when struck with the need to choose between being in control and more returns, the founders think as parents do. The emotional attachment makes the decision-making doubly hard, and the idea of “made with love” is taken literally. Anxiety on the outcome of letting go runs high for most Founders, because they would rather see the fruits of their labor as the person who brought it to its ultimate goal. As a parent to a child, they have lofty outlooks and faith on the success of their venture in their own hands. However, the company will run the risk of retarded expansion and return of investment. Founders who decide to keep the company fully under their wing maintain established company culture. Fruitfully existing employee-employer relationships are also kept, and the company remains dependent on current runner’s creativity and decision-making skills. More than anything, the founder even experiences an irreplaceable parental fulfillment. This is especially true if the founder’s intent in starting the company was not rooted at the slightest on immediate profit. Although the company stays as a small enterprise, it maintains its very essence and stays on a more profound footing. The Entrepreneur Belief in the capacity of one’s “offspring” means being able to see the company morph into the best that it can be. For this reason, many founders, although not entirely keen on handing the company over, still relinquish their control. Mustering all courage and logic, this difficult decision can change the fate of a company. Not only will it usher a new regime, but it will also bring the company to the next profit level. Unlike the founders who kept running their companies, those who decide to perceive the change of CEO as something beneficial, typically earn more. In exchange, they have to give up their crown and watch on the sidelines as the enterprise expands far and wide. The act is a huge compromise as this means handing over the company to family, friends, or angel investors who could help. It is also the founder’s admission of a point of inadequacy of skillset that can get the company across. This can be turbulent for the company. A company is born of a founder’s vision and all elements involved are based on this ideal, the employees, the system, and the culture. Giving up control can cause a traumatic rift, especially to loyal employees. As there is an admission of inefficiency on a certain area of management, doubt is created. Instead of a positive turnaround, the company may even face failure. To be or not to be Finding their company in the midst of becoming the biggest, most profitable venture, but needing to give up reins may be the most poignant experience of founders. The emotional attachment to their creation and the unknown nature of possibilities push them into contemplation of true priorities. For founders who want nothing but unrestricted control over their brood, patience and hardwork will be their best weapons. Their venture may not grow over night, but they will see through its every milestone. They are advised to keep within their already existing market and product line, which their current skills can handle. In doing so, there will be no form of inefficacy and the company will be running on self-assured foundation. On the other hand, for founders who are eager to see their child grow and prosper, open-mindedness and courage are key values. A number of risks will present itself, yet for the sake of their intense desire, they should pass these hurdles in flying colors. Welcoming investors from other fields, new contacts, and new ideas must be deemed normal if not innate. This way the enterprise will never stagnate. But what if? Unlike a story with no happy ending, the founders may actually find a healthy compromise between the need to prosper and the desire to stay in control. It only requires a thorough review of what the company is necessitating. Founders who are found to be unfit for the role of CEO may start getting their noses into what can equip them for the job. They can take courses or train under the branches of their own company. As the saying goes, “one can only become a good boss, if one has been an employee.” The founders can start small. With enough humility they can acquire the skills that lag them from becoming efficient CEO cum Founders. The learning process may take time, but at least it will bring their ultimate dream into fruition. The ultimatum Whatever option is taken into consideration, founders must keep in mind that it is not only their success on the line, but also that of the rest of the members of the enterprise. Priorities must be kept in check, and if there should be compromises, it must be made in nothing but honest hope for the improvement and prosperity of the company and the people who make up the company. SME | 18
SME Tech Review Mobile Broadband: A Primer 3G. HSDPA. LTE. If you’ve wondered what these stand for, here’s a quick guide to wireless broadband. By Art Ilano Business has gone mobile. With more professionals communicating, working on their e-mails and sending documents via portable devices such as laptops, tablets and smartphones, it’s only a matter of time before businesses begin wondering what the most optimal wireless solutions are for transmitting critical data. Here’s a rundown of mobile broadband options available in the market thus far, and what they can mean for your business. 2G. Think of this as the Internet in slomo. Once upon a time, this so-called second generation (hence 2G) standard was the state of the art as far as speedy net connections were concerned, but that was way back during the time of dial-up modems (remember those?). Today, what we call 2G has actually evolved into “2.5G,” and is also known as GPRS networks. But it is still considered to be a sluggish way to get mobile internet. The plus side? It’s available practically everywhere. So if you’re just out to use instant messaging or other text-based applications, such as Facebook Messenger or Twitter, then 2G is passable. But once you start throwing in images or Instagram-type feeds, then you’re going to be in trouble. 2G is available on all mobile networks, and practically all net-enabled phones will be able to access it. 3G. This is the most common highspeed mobile network that’s available for commercial use. But even this so-called third generation of mobile broadband has a lot of flavors under it. Plain vanilla 3G, also known as HSPA for High Speed Packet Access, typically hits 1.7Mbps in real world speeds. That’s more than ten times the speed of 2G. A more advanced variant is known as HSPA+, or Evolved HSPA. This faster variant of 3G can reach up to 6Mbps in actual use. That’s over three times as fast as regular 3G. In many broadband modems, you can tell when a connection is HSPA or HSPA+ by looking at the light: a dark blue means HSPA while light blue means that you’re on the faster HSPA+ connection. WiMax. You may still hear about this occasionally, but let’s just say that WiMax is a slowly vanishing standard. WiMax was envisioned to be akin to Wi-Fi on a citywide At A Glance scale, using microwave transmissions. However, it is already being eclipsed by the aggressive rollout of LTE networks, and even the lone widescale WiMax service provider in the country is migrating towards LTE. One reason: WiMax can only promise high speed connectivity (up to 30Mbps!) if you happen to live close to the broadcast tower. Most people will get just a middling 1Mbps. LTE. The state of the art in high speed mobile Internet connectivity, Long Term Evolution may very well be the standard in wireless broadband for years to come, offering speeds of up to 20Mbps at the moment, which is over three times faster than HSPA+. Great for all kinds of net usage, with blazing fast speeds that make your videos whiz by and huge downloads finish in a flash. The downside at the moment: it is still being rolled out, so there are still relatively few areas that support LTE. Also, so far only the top of the line devices can access LTE. But this should be rectified over time. Service Typical speeds What to know 2G 3G (HSPA) 3G (HSPA+) WiMax LTE / 4G 56kbps to 115kbps Up to 1.7Mbps (over ten times faster than 2G) Up to 6Mbps (over three times faster than plain 3G) Up to 30Mbps (in theory). More likely you’ll get 1Mbps. Up to 20Mbps Better known as 2.5G or EDGE. Available everywhere. But good only for text-based data. Pretty decent net connection. Not the fastest out there, but good enough for surfing and most net uses. The best balance of speed and availability. Sorry, think of this more as a footnote in the history of mobile communications. The fastest you can get on a commercial scale. However, not yet widely available. SME | 19
Page 1: FEATURE Tilah Seed Center reaps suc
Page 4 and 5: SME Staff Box | Contents PUBLISHER
Page 6 and 7: SME Newsline Plantersbank seal Spec
Page 8 and 9: Bizbeat News and trends of interest
Page 10 and 11: SME Focus Management Ride the Techn
Page 12 and 13: SME Focus Marketing Check your bran
Page 14 and 15: SME Focus Operations Don’t forget
Page 16 and 17: SME Focus Strategy Entrepreneurial
Page 18 and 19: SME Focus Sales Back in the (Prover
Page 22 and 23: SME Cover Story The father and daug
Page 24 and 25: SME Cover Story Partnership with IB
Page 26 and 27: SME Feature The Game Changers By Ru
Page 28 and 29: SME Feature When rice biyaheros fro
Page 30 and 31: SME Save Mother Earth In other word
Page 32 and 33: SME Worth Reading Technology Matter
Page 34: SME Billboard POS Facility for SMEs

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