Endeavor UAE, the non-profit accelerator, wants to add at least five more entrepreneurs to its list of 10 as part of plans to foster entrepreneurship in the country and create jobs.
The UAE chapter of Endeavor, which was established in 2013, currently has 10 entrepreneurs from six companies that include the property portal www.propertyfinder.ae, the mother and child clothing retailer www.mumzworld.com, and www.duplays.com, website that organises sporting leagues and events.
“We find high-potential entrepreneurs and we put them through a very rigorous selection process. We support them in growing their business by connecting them to world-class mentors and services,” said Noor Shawwa, the managing director of Endeavor UAE. “And then once they achieve success, however they define that, we help them multiply their success by coming back, where endeavour becomes a very good platform for them to give back to the next generation of entrepreneurs.”
Entrepreneurs go through a gruelling six-month selection process before they are chosen by Endeavor, which after selection provides them with services to help them grow and create jobs, as well as give back to the community.
Companies that are chosen are typically scale-ups, ie firms that have $2.5 million in annual revenue, have at least 40 employees and are four years in operation.
Endeavor is sector and nationality agnostic and looks for entrepreneurs who will be leaders and give back by mentoring future members of the Endeavor programme.
Entrepreneurs who are selected should have the right leadership skills and a good business and apply at a time when they are at the stage of taking their company to the next level.
Endeavor provides selected entrepreneurs with help to access capital, although it does not force them to get any kind of funding. Endeavor also provides them with advisory board members, access to services and access to talent to help them grow.
Globally there are 22 Endeavor offices, with 1,000 entrepreneurs from 650 companies.
In the Middle East, there are offices in Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Jordan and Turkey.
The UAE office has 13 board members including Fadi Ghandour, founder of the logistics firm Aramex and Osman Sultan, chief executive of the telecoms firm du.
The first UAE entrepreneur to benefit from Endeavor has been Michael Layhani, the chief executive of propertyfinder.ae.
“We focus every day on growing the business and growing revenues and running after money, but being part of something that is a little bit bigger and greater than just making money and making your financial targets is very inspiring,” said Mr Layhani.
Endeavor, which started in South America in 1997, has helped to create more than 400,000 jobs globally between 1997 and 2013.
The companies it has supported collectively generated revenue of $6.8 billion in 2013. These firms have grown on average 68 per cent annually two years after being selected.
“We are in a part of the world where youth unemployment is quite high and we know from the statistics that employment actually is generated a lot by small and medium enterprises,” said Alejandro Carbon, a mentor at Endeavor UAE and executive director at Majid Al Futtaim Finance.
“We also live in a world where there are a lot of family conglomerates that have been there for decades running businesses, and I think we need to start looking at the next generation of those conglomerates of the future, companies that come with innovation in different industries.”
dalsaadi@thenational.ae
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