Raphael’s entrepreneurial DNA is reformulated in search of sustainable development
Entrepreneurship is undoubtedly a relevant characteristic of Rafaela, which expands the “SME” network and allows the creation of a diverse and attractive productive ecosystem for many cities that take it as an example. So much so that many local programs are aimed at entrepreneurs.
In this frame, CASTELLANOS newspaper interviewed the Minister of Economic Development, Innovation and Employment, Patricia Imoberdorf, who delved into aspects related to this topic.
-How do you feel about the “Rafaela Emprende” from this administration?
-In this new phase, we have changed the name of the Secretariat to “Economic Development” instead of “Manufacturing” because we understand that it is a broader concept that aims to create, promote and maintain local productive capacity to produce and generate economic surplus and employment that improves the quality of life of the population of the territory. And this production capacity, or even better, the efficiency of local production, depends in part on the supply of business development services and the relationships or networks that exist in the territorial environment.
In this sense, together with Mayor Leonardo Viotti, we believe that “Rafaela Emprende” is and must remain a space to create dynamic competitive advantages for local entrepreneurs based on the constant implementation of organizational, managerial and technological innovations. “Rafaela Emprende” must continue to “exploit” the entrepreneurial DNA that characterizes the people of Rafael, it must continue to attract those entrepreneurs capable of generating good business ideas, train them, help them, provide them with specialized support services through its network of public institutions, private and knowledge to turn these ideas into competitive, profitable, sustainable businesses and future companies in the near future.
– How will they present it?
– Now we are organizing what will be the 16th edition of the program.
To do this, we met with all institutions that are part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem to continue to develop it and strengthen ourselves together with the common goal of strengthening and growing the entrepreneurs of Rafaela (the future SMEs of our city).
The plan is to continue the training, technical assistance and tutoring scheme that has been worked on in previous years, incorporating suggestions received from those who completed the program last year and in previous editions.
In addition, we are thinking about further deepening strategic alliances that will allow us to become closer to entrepreneurs, intelligently addressing each need, that is, creating or using new or already existing instruments, both from the state itself and from other institutions and that help to solve , make it easier for those who want to start in Raphael and grow.
-What tools do you think entrepreneurs need in Raphael and the SME sector?
-To answer this, I tell you that one of my first actions as secretary is to raise the need to evaluate the impact that “Rafaela Emprende” has had on the territory, and for this I have asked to conduct a survey of businesses that passed through program from the very beginning (in 2009) until 2022.
During January, the Rafaela Emprende team spoke to and attempted to contact approximately 450 people who had gone through the program, of which more than 32% had already responded to the outcome measurement survey we had developed.
The main objectives of this survey are:
• Know the current status of the companies that were part of “Rafaela Emprende”.
• Identify the contribution the program has made to the entrepreneur and his enterprise.
• Identify current needs.
The latter, as we understand, will help us to plan new and specific actions according to the needs surveyed and identified by the participants themselves.
It can be assumed that, in this regard, entrepreneurs focused especially on 3 points:
• Need for financing 66.7%
• Difficulties in business management 27.8%
• Insufficient infrastructure 25.9%
— How do you work with the business community?
-Regarding Rafaela Emprende, we work together with the trade union that unites local entrepreneurs – CCIRR in its traditional and young versions – through mentoring, a network of entrepreneurs and specific activities aimed at Rafaela entrepreneurs.
– Were you able to assess from the new management whether many entrepreneurs have fallen into the background in recent years, the crisis and so on?
-We are doing the survey I mentioned earlier, wanting to measure the impact of what was done in the program, to observe these people and their endeavors in terms of growth, stability, failures, significant changes (such as changes in direction and creation of new business), or abandoning the projects with which they participated in the program.
From the results, it can be assumed that among the questions we ask, we can say that the reasons why they decided to start were:
+Aspiration for personal growth.
+ The search for greater work independence.
+ Identification of a market opportunity.
The enterprise continues
+62.1% continue and
+12.4% have changed their business field, but still remain entrepreneurs (this group mostly answered that the reason for the change was the appearance of a new business opportunity).
Regarding the usefulness of the program’s tools in business management, more than 74% found them useful, and 24% found them somewhat useful.
Business growth, stability or decline: 50% say it has grown; 37% assure that it has remained stable; 13% indicate that they have regressed.