Most developing economies put very little emphasis on developing new industries or sectors, focusing instead on strengthening existing revenue streams. Business is the driver of economic expansion, investing funds, time and effort into opportunities for a calculated return. Yet, so call business educational program produces mostly managers and other specialists in management such as, accountants, HR, procurement, etc., conservative by nature. Risk is at the root of returns, and without risk-takers, an economy is at the mercy of current foreign and domestic market forces without the essential component, hope.Education which only focuses on accreditation sends a clear message to all in society that job creation is and must be, for the foreseeable future, at the top of the national agenda. Job creation however, is driven by economic expansion; the willingness of people to invest their hard earned savings to open or expand trade, the extraction of raw materials from the earth, the processing of such materials into usable products, tourism and transportation activities, but when confidence is nowhere to be found, the economic activities will decline, the effects of inflation will set in, investment will slow and jobs will be lost.
The turnaround should have been planned and implemented with the knowledge of economic cycles; seven seasons of growth, seven seasons of decline. During the growth period a heavy emphasis must be place on developing industries and diversifying the economy out of traditional activities, expanding revenue streams by using five to ten percent of every dollar in growth to fund and incubate new ideas. So by the time decline sets in to the traditional sectors, new industries or sectors are matured and ready to fill the void, saving jobs.
Management must be conservative in implementing the strategic plan, to protect shareholders’ equity and offer modest returns, to keep their own jobs. Hence, who is seeking the next big thing that can bring economic expansion back to the forefront? A highly educated individual who has been trained and rewarded to be risk adverse, cannot see the benefits and will not encourage an untested business idea without fully backed financial guarantees. Therefore only Government led programs and intervention can support such development activities, creating jobs, decreasing imports while increasing exports and generating foreign exchange.
The point is made; risk must be taught and encouraged throughout the education system to constantly produce a crop of new ideas to spawn new economic development. The future is in the minds of the entrepreneur; independent self motivated individuals creating jobs, inventors creating new equipment and systems, innovators improving on products and processes, investors seeking superior returns, industrialists combining inventions, innovations and investments to set up new economic grow sections and most obviously, instigators masterminding strategic plans for management to successfully implement.
Rationale
T.A.J & Associates Company Limited uses this occasion to comment on topics that have been covered, both academically and by the mainstream media, to add its opinion and point out investment opportunity, not to invoke any social action.
