Startup MGZN got the chance to talk to Esam Hammad from Tamkeen about the processes behind the organization. Ever wondered what drives the Tamkeen process? Read on for the specifics—from an insider’s point of view.
Could you please introduce yourself, and tell us what do you do at Tamkeen?
I’m Esam Hamad, Enterprise Engagement Manager at Tamkeen. I do many things here, and wear several hats. Sometimes, It feels like I’m a PR manager; other times it feels like I am a relationship manager. I do a lot of marketing and branding related stuff too. I won’t talk about what I do personally in that capacity, but I will talk about our unit, its objective, and enterprise engagement.
Not many organizations in Bahrain have a role for (or a unit dedicated to) customer engagement. Instead, they might have customer service and relationship management. When you hear about customer engagement, you immediately realize that there are two parties involved: us and them (them being the market). Our main objective as a unit is to create a link between Tamkeen and the business community.
This entails many things. It can include meeting with clients and industry partners, such as the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce, the Economic Development Board, Bahrain Development Bank, etc. When it comes to the entities that support entrepreneurs—the ecosystem of Bahrain—we have to build ties with these organizations, and come up with strategies aligned to support our target audience. In this case, it’s enterprise. We do relationship management, as well. We hand-hold large clients; we bring them in and orient them to the services available at Tamkeen, and tell them how they can benefit. We advise them as to how they should go about their applications. We meet with foreign direct investors. We work closely with the Economic Development Board, and actually customize solutions for international companies that originate in Bahrain: for example, helping them find Bahrainis to work for them, getting them training, supporting them with subsidies—there are a lot of customized solutions in that area.
Relationship management is one of the things we do. It’s a function of our team, but it’s not limited to that. We’re also required to orient the market about Tamkeen and what we do. We have regular public forums and industry forums, including specific sectors such as the ICT sector, presented by professional societies. You have, for example, organizations like the American Chamber of Commerce in Bahrain. We meet with these members, and talk about Tamkeen and how it can support them. At the same time, we get feedback. We listen to their issues, and identify gaps in the market that we can potentially relay back to the relevant teams at Tamkeen. We improve and create programs, and bring them closer to what the market wants.
Do you feel like Tamkeen has been filling that role and creating ties with companies, organizations, and the business community? If so, what has been your biggest challenge?
I think we have done a good job building ties with industry partners. All of the stake holders involved are actually supporting our beneficiaries—the enterprises, in this case. We have regular meetings with various banks, partners, etc. When it comes to actually reaching out to our clients, you’re talking about a really big potential customer base in Bahrain.
We sometimes get criticized for not spreading the word enough. We get criticized for spending too much on marketing, and for not doing enough marketing. We need to find a balance.
We launch several mass communication campaigns, to discuss our programs and different schemes. Because there is a level of complexity when it comes to certain programs—like the enterprise support program, for example—we depend upon one-on-one interviews, meetings, presentations, and public forums to spread the word. We’ve actually reached out to thousands of people in the past few years. I think we are doing okay, and there is, of course, always room to do more and better.
The majority of people probably know about Tamkeen, but are they well-versed in the specifics of the programs? There may be vagueness or misconceptions, so it’s our job to clear that out for these companies.
What has been the biggest challenge when it comes to that issue, specifically?
One challenge is actually finding the right channels or stakeholders that represent these segments in Bahrain. Today, if I want to reach out to IT companies, I can go to relevant societies that represent that sector. Likewise with other fields and professions. You have a huge market base that is not represented by any individual organization. We have to reach people in their communities, in their actual villages and towns. We realize that it’s a big challenge. We have a community engagement team, and they have launched an initiative to reach out to people in the local vicinities. It has been going well.
We aspire to have a Tamkeen beneficiary in every home in Bahrain. Enterprises and entrepreneurs are active. These guys are entrepreneurs by nature, and seek information. They seek out the things they want to get. They are proactive.
Other segments are reactive, like youngsters and retired people. You have to be very proactive to reach these individuals, and that’s a challenge. It’s not easy, and while the community initiative has proved successful, we still need to do more.
You mentioned something: the word misconception. What is the community’s biggest misconception about Tamkeen?
There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to the organization at a higher level, especially about how Tamkeen gets funded. Some people might assume the 1% unemployment insurance paid out from people’s salaries goes to Tamkeen. It doesn’t. We are funded through the LMRA fees, which are monthly fees paid by companies for hiring non-Bahrainis.
Tamkeen actually pays out that 1% on behalf of private sector businesses and that amounted to around BD17 million last year.
Secondly, people are a bit confused as to what Tamkeen supports, exactly. They understand that we are a semi-governmental organization that provides funds for trading and starting a business, but what exactly does that entail? We get a lot of funding requests from people. Can you support my son in getting a loan to get married? I’m building an extension to on my house—can you help me with that? I don’t know if we were originally responsible for the misconceptions in the market. Slowly but surely, our role is becoming more crystalized. We have a very specific focus: supporting entrepreneurs with pre-defined expenses is one. Even when it comes to supporting enterprises, many companies assume that we can support the company by paying things such as rent, buying office furniture, etc. We don’t do that. We look at the added value. We support companies facing costs that hinder the enterprise very early on in the establishment phase, and the growth phase.
We have varied solutions, and people sometimes get confused between loans and grants, for example, which are two completely different things. Loans support companies with operational expenses and working capital. Tamkeen does not subsidize loans. We subsidize the interest on these loans. If a company applies for the enterprise support program, we subsidize the cost as a grant. That is where the major difference is.
We don’t blame the market for any misconceptions. There are a lot of programs, and a lot of guidelines and rules applicable to each one. That’s why we are here: for customer engagement. We have customer service centers, the flagship in Seef, a center in Sitra Mall, and another in Enma Mall. We welcome anyone to come and meet face to face with one of our agents.
Lots of people misunderstand how Tamkeen operates. There are misconceptions that Tamkeen is too slow, or that their call center employees are not well-informed. My question is, what happens behind the scenes when I apply for a support program? Why do things seem to take so much time?
When considering the time it takes to process applications and requests, people have to bear in mind the number of applications and requests we receive on a daily and monthly basis. It’s a three way process, involving beneficiaries, suppliers and Tamkeen. The delay can come from any of these parties. And yet we hand our more than 35 payments a day, several of them in the thousands of dinars. We have to act very responsibly with our funds, and ensure throughout the process that the money goes to the right hands.
With the new structuring and processes, we are hoping the approval time for applications will decrease. We have streamlined our applications by offering them online instead of requiring physical submissions.
When someone applies, what happens really depends upon the program. For the enterprise support program, application would take place online, and would come directly to us—customer engagement. We verify that the information is complete and correct before forwarding it to the evaluation team, which looks at the completeness of the information—not in terms of the questions being answered, but with an eye to whether or not they are answered correctly, or if there is sufficient information to evaluate that company.
If there isn’t, we request additional information, or we leave it for the evaluation meeting. The client comes in, meets with an evaluator, and verifies that the information in the plan is presented according to what they had in mind.
Delays can sometimes occur because of the number of applications we receive on a daily basis. When looking at the entrepreneurship eco-system we may not be as agile as other organizations in the market, and that’s only natural. You have seed investors, banks, and many more, all with different processes when it comes to paying out to their beneficiaries. Tamkeen has to also go through a unique process. We have a specific approvals process which we must adhere to. We are trying to speed that up, and automate as much as possible.
From past experience, we know that delays occur might occur in the payment part of the process. At the customers end We are trying to give people options. For example, instead of receiving a check payment, they could get a wire transfer.
Have you seen any positive results, or is it too early to judge?
It’s a little too early, but we’re in the process of giving out the first batch of final approvals for the new enterprise support program. We have yet to reach the actual payment process, but we are thinking positively, and we think it’s going to be much smoother than the previous process.
Okay. I think a lot of people misunderstand the point of having to go to the branch to verify your identity after applying online. It almost seems like a contradiction. Everything is online, but I have to show up somewhere. Why is that?
We’re trying to prevent people from exploiting, as that has happened in the past. We only request that new applicants visit us once. It’s almost like going to the bank to create an account. We just want to have that first point of contact or registration, when the applicant visits us physically, to ensure that the details we have online are congruent with the physical documents presented to us. This is something that is required only once.
We can be quite flexible. We notice that in certain cases, the owner cannot come down him- or herself. They might be spending a few months overseas, so we’re flexible, and we allow exceptions when necessary.
What are the other initiatives you are undertaking to reduce or avoid fraud, other than verifying the companies against their paperwork?
A lot, actually. We have dedicated monitoring teams for all our programs, additionally we in the process of setting up a new fraud prevention unit. As part of the new process, the enterprise support program requires an applicant to fill out a business plan. We want to look at genuine cases in which people actually know what they are doing with the funds. We look at the current situation, and where they plan to go in the future. Based on that, we determine the level of support we can inject into the company.
Through the new system and application process, we believe we will receive a greater number of genuine applications. Previously, if you were a business owner with a commercial registration, you could apply and get up to X for equipment and marketing. Now, it’s tailored to the companies’ actual requirements.
It seems like Tamkeen is focusing more upon quality, and adding value to the economy instead of carpet-funding. Why is this the case?
To be honest, that’s where the actual impact is on the economy. If you look at the success stories, it’s really enterprises that were able to grow in a short period of time. These are the companies that can employ a lot of people, employ Bahrainis, and contribute to their sectors. This does not exclude startups, but they naturally come with a higher risk. There is always the chance that companies will not be able to sustain themselves after a few years.
If you look at international markets, probably three out of 10 companies make it after five years. We understand that, but we are still supporting startups. It’s not as significant as companies that have grown and are able to prove themselves. They can actually scale up. This is where we would contribute more.
Has Tamkeen thought about investing in startups, like owning a small share of a risky startup that might scale up very well in the future—instead of only looking for businesses that are already developed?
It hasn’t been done yet. Previously, we were mandated not to invest our funds. However we are now authorized to invest surplus labor fees, but in specific assets. We have yet to actually invest in startups, but is that a possibility, going forward? Yes—Probably maybe more so with large enterprises looking to expand even further and multiply their output. Large enterprises have proven themselves, and represent a smaller risk. They contribute a lot to the employment of Bahrainis, which is one of our main objectives.
There is the potential to actually invest in companies in the future, though to date, we are far from that.
Before we move on to more casual or personal questions, is there anything else you’d like to cover about Tamkeen? Something I missed?
I’ve been with the organization for three and a half years, and have seen it change quite a bit. The current change we are going through is the most significant. When we casually say Tamkeen 2.0, it actually does feel like a 2.0. We’re upgrading a lot of our offerings and processes, and there is a lot of restructuring going on internally, as well. It’s going to be a learning process. We’re not saying that 2.0 is going to be the ultimate Tamkeen. Things can always be improved and done better, and better. We’re not saying this is a final upgrade, and this is how it’s going to be for the next few years. We realize that there is going to be continuous change.
We are still relatively young. The organization has been operating for seven or eight years in terms of providing support to the market. We’re learning as we go, it’s a continuous learning process, and this has been clearly reflected in our strategy cycles. We’ve done a lot of good for the economy, Bahraini households, and companies, and there is a lot of room to do more and in a better way.
We’re moving as fast as an organization our size can move… Other organizations in the region are quite impressed by what we do. We’re often referred to as a very generous organization, and I believe that to be true.
We have a lot of success stories and have received several local and regional award, but there are even more to come.
We’re obviously very happy to communicate success stories to the community, in terms of what Tamkeen does and who Tamkeen invests in. Do you think this helps Tamkeen—communicating the success stories, and the people behind the success?
Definitely. I think testimonials are the best. It’s just a good way of showing others who can potentially benefit, and helping them realize the level they could reach by getting support from Tamkeen. What we are trying to do here is get more people to take part by showing how others succeeded: show Company X getting from level A to level B in a short amount of time, with the help of programs supported by Tamkeen.
Here are the success stories, and you have the same opportunities. You can go through the same process, and benefit in the same way.
Exactly. Some people opt not to benefit from Tamkeen because of the perceived hassle of applying, waiting, and following up. At the end of the day, it’s completely worth it. These are grants. There are large amounts of money being injected into businesses. Think of it as a long-term partnership, and factor Tamkeen into your long-term plans.
This is something that most companies would eventually get. By sharing testimonials, we are showing that people actually did go through the process. There was light at the end of the tunnel, and they benefitted greatly from the programs.
Speaking of long-term plans, why is it the case that businesses have to apply for an 18-month time frame? Don’t you feel like it might be difficult for new businesses to forecast what they might need in 18 months?
Maybe it’s not really our job to tell people they need to plan better for their businesses or strategies, but this makes it much easier for us to understand where the business is trying to go. It’s much easier for us to deal with a specific case or project as a one-off instead of looking at it in chunks. There’s a lot of administration required when a company keeps changing their plans or comes every other month requesting something new. It’s much better for us—and them—to present the entire plan initially and request the support, so we can conduct a single evaluation instead of five separate ones, and determine the specific elements or activities that we can support.
For example, in the past, when companies were allowed to apply more than once or make changes to their plans, it required as much time to assess a cost-benefit analysis for a blender for a restaurant as it did for a very sophisticated CNC machine for a large manufacturer. It’s not fair to some companies. There is a lot of admin time, and it was basically a waste of resources. We can now allocate these resources to other tasks rather than look at every minute request that comes in.
We are still flexible within the new system. We would like companies to formulate their thoughts and think about their current situation. Where do they really want to go in the future? A lot of businesses tend to think short- term. We want to instill long-term thinking in companies, and hopefully get a snapshot of what they are doing now, and how we can support them in reaching the next level. This will make it easier for us to understand what they are trying to do; to evaluate it and calculate the grants up front rather than holding endless meetings, evaluations, and requests for documents and quotes. It’s actually to their advantage, as well.
Your intentions are good. You want the business owner to think hard about the business and the money they are receiving, which I think is excellent in the long term.
Exactly. If a company applies and gets approved, and they are going through significant change, we have certain channels through which they can revise some of their plans. We’re still flexible, but we’re hoping that most applicants will actually stick to their plans. We’re determining the budget and grant based upon them. When the plan changes, that means the grant calculation has to change. This becomes a bit problematic for us. If they are going through major change, then we can always look at case-by-case exceptions.
Would you mind talking about the indicators that could affect, lower, or increase the grant during the application process?
We utilize a number of factors in addition to a scoring model. I might not be the right person to share this information, because we have an operations team and an evaluation team that does this every day. Some things are pretty obvious, like the number of Bahrainis you hire. We place a lot of weight on factors like revenue. Revenue is a good indication of the size of your operation. The larger the business, the larger the grant can be as a significant contribution to the business.
There are also a lot of factors that examine the entrepreneurs themselves. I think it’s up to the evaluation team to determine. It’s not a big secret. Tamkeen is concerned with the hiring and employment of Bahrainis. The more the company can hire, the better score they will receive in the scoring module.
Who is Esam outside Tamkeen?
I’m a very…is homey the right word? I spend a lot of time at home. Not too many people know this, but I am a musician. Whenever I have time, I’m in my studio working on new ideas and trying to complete old ideas. Working at a place like Tamkeen keeps you busy, even on weekends. I rarely have time to do that. Whenever I can, I spend most of my free time recording and playing.
What kind of music are you into?
I listen to and create all sorts of music. It’s hard to describe the music I make. It’s experimental. My instrument is the guitar, but I blend it with lots of electronic elements, like synthesizers. I program beats and develop unique sounds. The difficult part is actually marrying that with acoustic instruments, like vocals and guitar. I also like to travel a lot. I find great inspiration in it. This year I’ve been to three different continents and five different countries. This is what keeps me going. Traveling is very important to me, to get a different perspective on life. This is really how you measure your own growth, by looking at who you were last year and who you are today. It gives you a good sense of how you are actually developing as a person and as a spirit, if you wish. And travelling is a big part of that growth.
Believe it or not, I think this has a huge impact on output here at Tamkeen. It opens up your mind. I look at my job as a mission more than a career. I’ve worked for commercial organizations in the past: telecom and real estate, both in Bahrain and overseas. I’ve lived for many years outside of Bahrain. Working at Tamkeen is really rewarding, because you see how you can potentially change people’s lives. I’ve seen how the people I met in my first year in Tamkeen have actually changed. A lot of it is due to the support we were able to give them. The improvement in people’s lives is owed to them, and to their effort. We don’t claim that we are the change agent out there, but we contribute to the change. It all boils down to individual will: the effort people actually exert to get where they want to reach. We’re there to give them that push or lift. The ambition comes from the people; it’s they who inspire us to come to work every day and help them to realize their dreams. I come to the office with a smile, and I leave the office with a smile, believe it or not. It can be very hectic, very tough. You deal with all sorts of people, different personalities. We’ve learned to be very resilient. This is actually one of the major areas in which I’ve seen myself grow. I’ve never met so many people as I have in the past three years, from Bahrain and overseas, all of different educational levels, different age groups; it has really opened my mind, and made me a very accepting, social person. I owe that to Tamkeen, really. I hope I can give back as much as I’ve received from the organization.
Thank you Esam for your time, really appreciate it.
Thank you.