KPMG in partnership with Tamkeen organized a one day conference on Entrepreneurship. The event was held at the Intercontinental Regency Hotel on Monday, May 27th, 2013
Professor Filipe Santos, an associate professor of entrepreneurship at INSEAD and the conference’s keynote speaker, was an engaging guest with a lot of interesting things to say. Santos definitely hit the overriding target: he discussed how to model the development of sustainable business, and how to intellectually equip entrepreneurs to use panoramic perspectives to grow companies on a global scale.
Conference Kickoff
Jamal Fakhro led off the conference. He talked about recognizing the importance of small and medium enterprises, especially in a growing Bahrain economy. Fakhro recognized that small and medium enterprises, or SMEs, could help push Bahrain’s economy forward from its already prosperous position. Filipe Santos followed Fakhro to discuss the steps that entrepreneurs can take in modeling their enterprises. He specifically targeted individuals involved in SMEs.
The Building Blocks of Business
Santos argued that entrepreneur-led companies are the backbone of economies and the source of job creation. He stressed that looking at the big picture is of utmost importance when planning and developing a business. Throughout the talk, Santos did not underestimate the difficulty of growing business in a global economic environment. Instead, Filipe Santos offered an architectural guideline – building blocks – of a successful business. These building blocks comprise what Santos sees as a successful and working business model.
The Filipe Santos Model
The steps focus on goal-oriented techniques, including targeting the right customers, and communicating correctly. Santos was able to design these building blocks using his real-world experience, education, and lifetime expertise in areas like family enterprise and business modeling. Each piece of the Santos model is a building block, which urges entrepreneurs to examine a different aspect of the business.
The Spirit of Small Business
The entrepreneurial spirit was in the air at this conference where small and medium enterprises were the stars of the show. The big-picture at the conference was seeing the big picture. Professor Santos urged his guests to “step back from the complexity of day-to-day business decisions and focus on the essential elements of their business model – their source of competitive advantage.” This piece of advice is simple but effective.
More Than a Meeting Place
The crowd at the conference was filled with entrepreneurs, business owners, and other officials. It was an excellent opportunity to forge key partnerships, which by no slight coincidence is the eighth building block of Professor Santos’ business model. Santos advised the attendees to create “strategic alliances” and his talk was an opportunity to do so. This conference was more than just a meeting place for ambitious and successful people. It was an excellent opportunity for entrepreneurs to share ideas and explore potential partnerships.