Tsogo Sun expands its entrepreneur development programme
Tsogo Sun has significantly expanded its successful Book a Guesthouse
programme to include Sun1 hotel operators and housekeepers, to form Tsogo Sun
Entrepreneurs, an innovative entrepreneurial development programme for the
hospitality industry. This move saw a boost in numbers last year with an
additional 15 in the Book a Guesthouse programme and 23 Sun1 operators. It was
expanded further this year with the inclusion of 10 housekeepers into the
programme, bringing the total number of entrepreneurs supported from 85
entrepreneurs to 133.
Tsogo Sun Entrepreneurs
is a business benefit and development programme that supports various clusters
of entrepreneurs within the value chain of the Tsogo Sun group and within the
broader tourism industry in South Africa, to support entrepreneurs to
develop professionally-operated, compliant, sustainable businesses.
“The continuing success of the Book a Guesthouse programme and our
commitment to entrepreneurial development, together with the ever-present need
for job creation in South Africa, were drivers in this decision to expand our
programme to include more beneficiaries and offer a higher level of support,
benefits, and services to them,” explains Candy Tothill, Tsogo Sun’s General
Manager: Corporate Affairs.
The programme provides
qualifying entrepreneurs with business development support and benefits
including skills transfer (business development, coaching, mentorship); value
added benefits (endorsement, memberships, marketing, publicity); shared
services (extranet, call centre, preferential discounts, business support);
business tools (risk assessment and recommendations, software systems,
equipment); an integrated supply chain (market access, networking
opportunities); and recognition (entrepreneur rewards, certification, awards).
“Tsogo Sun Entrepreneurs forms part of the company’s far-reaching
sustainability in tourism programme and features a number of established
partnerships with government, corporates, industry bodies and development
specialists to advance our mutual
interests in contributing towards the creation of economic growth in South
Africa by supporting emerging enterprises,” adds Tothill.
MEDO (Micro Enterprise Development Organisation), which has been a
partner with Book a Guesthouse for several years, has now stepped up its
involvement in Tsogo Sun Entrepreneurs and expanded its offering to cover a
wide range of support services, as well as discounts and special offers on
various products and services; procurement support; travel arrangements; access
to SMEasy Accounting systems; tender alerts and corporate listings.
Other partners that work with Tsogo Sun Entrepreneurs
include Beyond Coaching and Tsheto Leadership Academy, which bring coaching and
training to the entrepreneurs, depending on the intervention required. Beyond
Coaching offers a complete repertoire of coaching and related services for
personal or corporate and business development purposes. The Tsheto Leadership
programmes are developed to ensure the entrepreneur has the capacity for
self-leadership to enable them to succeed. It has the licence to use specific
coaching tools. Tsheto Leadership is owned and operated by Queen Ramotsehoa,
while Rienzo Colpo is Director for Beyond Coaching.
Tsheto sponsors the Tsogo Sun Entrepreneur of the Year
Award Winner to receive training in Master 1 - The Awareness
Process, which is then delivered by Beyond Coaching. Both partners provide
training based on the subject materials allocated to them in the Tsogo Sun
Entrepreneurs – Handbook and group coaching sessions for individual
entrepreneurs.
Through Tsogo Sun
Entrepreneurs, the group is in year one of implementing a long-term plan, which
is designed more broadly to address the need for wealth creation in the
country. Says Tothill, “The impact on the Tsogo Sun Entrepreneurs beneficiaries
will be monitored and evaluated and adjustments will be made to the model where
necessary as the plan unfolds. Enterprise and Supplier Development needs to be
undertaken in a manner that really makes a change to the economic landscape in
South Africa. Tsogo Sun has been cognisant of this in the design of the
Entrepreneurs programme, which is expected to take time to develop and
implement, but the results will be meaningful, far-reaching and permanent.”
When entrepreneurs are newly inducted into the programme, they are
required to complete a training and development course over one year, after
which they are assessed and go on to become alumni or are given further
individualised training according to their assessment. Alumni continue to
receive benefits and support on the basis of continued adherence to excellence.
The Tsogo Sun Entrepreneurs programme culminates in an annual conference
at one of Tsogo Sun’s properties. “The growth of the programme highlights Tsogo
Sun’s ongoing commitment to tourism and the South African economy. More than
that, the programme uncovers business people with significant potential for
success within the country and those with the capacity to create sustainable
businesses of an outstanding standard,” says Tothill.
Tsogo Sun has a portfolio of over 90 hotels and 14 casino and
entertainment destinations throughout South Africa, Africa, the Seychelles and Abu Dhabi.
For further information go to www.tsogosun.com or www.bookaguesthouse.com. You can also join Tsogo Sun on Facebook at /TsogoSun and the Tsogo Sun entrepreneurs at /tsogoentrepreneurs alternatively follow @TsogoSun on
Twitter #TsogoEntrepreneurs.
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