Business Retention and Expansion Manual Feb 2010

The South African
Business Retention & Expansion
Manual

Version 1.2 February 2010

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This manual draws on experience gained since Trade & Investment KwaZulu-Natal
piloted the first South African Business Retention and Expansion visitation
programmes in 2003. It and the Durban Investment Promotion Agency programmes
that followed from 2005 onwards both relied on an adaptation of the Bank of
I.D.E.A.S. handbook for BR&E facilitators in Australia written and generously made
available by Peter Kenyon. This is turn had origins in North American experience
and particularly the booklets by George Morse and Scott Loveridge published by
Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development at Pennsylvania State University
and used in the Business Retention & Expansion International training programme
for many years.

More recent Business Retention & Expansion International training material together
with advice and suggestions have been made freely available by Henry M Cothran of
IFAS Extension, University of Florida.

Preparation of the manual was generously funded by the GTZ Strengthening Local
Government Programme: Local Economic Development Component
implemented by ICON-Institute Private Sector and Swisscontact.

This Manual was written by Gerry Delany and Claire Patterson.

This manual is the primary resource for the South African BR&E Training Course
approved by Business Retention & Expansion International for certification
purposes for courses conducted in South Africa by BREI recognised trainers.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this document is for guidance and does not take into account every
possible factor that needs to be considered in implementing a BR&E visitation programme. It should
therefore be used in conjunction with appropriate research and specialist advice. The intent of this
statement is to exclude liability for any opinions, advice or information expressed in this document.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 South
Africa License. See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/za/ for details.

The South African
Business Retention & Expansion Manual

HOW TO USE THIS MANUAL

This manual aims to assist anyone directly involved in setting up or running
conducting a locally driven business retention and expansion (BR&E) visitation
programme in South Africa.
It was designed on the basis that the person most closely involved in the
running a local programme, i.e., the local co-ordinator, should attend a
recognised training course based on this manual.
Any BR&E facilitator supporting a local programme should have been similarly
trained and be experienced in the use of this material.
The manual should be used in conjunction with the accompanying Volunteer
Interviewer Guidelines which contains material not included in the manual.
Additional material such as sample surveys and editable resources can be
provided during the training course.
The manual is in seven sections corresponding the stages of a typical BR&E
programme.
The first section, the Introduction is designed for awareness raising – to get
BR&E on the agenda.
The next section, the Overview, aims to brief anyone who might be considering
a programme and provide the key points of what is involved.
The remaining sections provide details of how to conduct a BR&E visitation
programme in five clearly defined stages.
For each stage resource materials such as worksheets, guidelines and
examples are provided at the corresponding section.

3

The South African

CONTENTS

Section 1 Introduction

Section 2 Overview

Section 3 Stage 1: Setting up

Section 4 Stage 2: Planning

Section 5 Stage 3: Visitation

Section 6 Stage 4: Analysis

Section 7 Stage 5: Implementation

The South African

INTRODUCTION

In this section
What is BR&E?
Why is BR&E important?
Approaches to BR&E.
Which approach is best?

THE GOLDEN RULE
Business stays and expands where it is well treated and appreciated

The South African BR&E Manual Introduction

INTRODUCTION
The Labour Force Survey released by Statistics SA in August 2008 revealed that
roughly one in every four South Africans available and willing to work could not find
employment. More specifically it recorded that 4,1 million people were unemployed
and described another 1,1 million as “discouraged work-seekers”. That is amounts to
a total of 5.2 million jobless people.

It was still an improvement on the situation when unemployment peaked in 2004 as
nearly 2 million new jobs had been created since then. Unfortunately while that was
taking place about 200 000 newcomers were entering the job market each year
which meant that the total number of people without work was actually being reduced
at the rate of 300 000 a year. It was progress, but was clearly going to take a long
time to bring unemployment down to a reasonable level.

Now even that progress has been stopped in its tracks by the world economic crisis
and the hard won gains of the last few years are being reversed. That has very
serious implications for the country as unemployment is already responsible for an
enormous amount of poverty and creates the conditions under which crime and other
social ills flourish. To stop or slow job losses and start creating new jobs again will
require a massive national effort. One in which all reasonable options must be
considered.

How can sustainable jobs be created? Reduced to the basics one can grow the
economy by:
- creating new enterprises
- attracting investment and new enterprises from elsewhere
- retaining and growing existing enterprises.

In doing so opportunities for employment are also created in government, the
academic world, NGOs and so on.

Much has been written and said about helping people to start new businesses.
Perhaps even more attention has been given to attracting investment. On the other
hand relatively little mention is made of the possibility of creating jobs by growing
existing businesses or the fact that a job saved is as good as a job created. This
manual will focus on this third, rather neglected possibility, commonly known as
business retention and expansion or BR&E.

What is BR&E?
Any strategy or programme designed to help existing businesses to grow or prevent
them from shutting down falls under the broad definition of business retention and
expansion. Turnaround Solutions implemented by Productivity SA as part of the
Department of Labour’s Social Plan is just such a programme. Through it
enterprises that employ 50 or more people and are in danger of closing down or
shedding jobs may seek technical assistance to regain competitiveness or to reduce
possible job losses.

2


In fact there are many programmes and initiatives that directly or indirectly help
existing businesses to grow. They range from infrastructure improvements like the
Dube Trade Port that will create opportunities for businesses in KwaZulu-Natal to
skills development and learnership programmes, business development centres and
advice and assistance with exports. Since most of these initiatives are equally useful
to new businesses or in helping to attract investment, they would not normally be
described as BR&E.

Business retention and expansion is more usually defined as any local, national or
regional strategy specifically designed to help existing businesses to survive
and to grow. In practice most BR&E initiatives take place in a local or perhaps
regional context and are usually seen as an element of local economic development.

Why is BR&E important?
Actions to retain and expand existing business are important for eight very good
reasons.

1. Top of the list by far is the fact that most new jobs are created by the growth
of existing business. International research shows that 60-80% of all new
jobs are created in this way. 1

In contrast attracting investment from outside accounts for perhaps 10-20% of
new jobs2 while starting new local business makes up the difference –
somewhere between 15-25% of new jobs.

Sources of new jobs

The tendency to focus attention almost exclusively on investment attraction and
creating new businesses is rather like concentrating on the icing and the cherry
while forgetting to actually bake the cake!

2. A job saved as good as a job created. In fact it is usually easier, cheaper and
quicker to save an existing job that to create a new one from scratch. Existing
businesses do not have to be attracted to the community, they are already there.
New start-ups are much more vulnerable to failure than existing firms, especially
in the first year of operation.

3


3. Even when the economy is growing communities lose jobs each year 3 when
businesses close because, for example, they are no longer profitable, the market
changes or the owner retires. It not only affects people directly employed in
such businesses but also has a “knock on“ effect on other jobs. This is much
more pronounced in times of recession and not only will the loss of a key
employer have an impact on their local suppliers but it may also be the last straw
that closes a bank branch, retailer, engineering shop or dentist. In the USA it is
estimated that for every 100 direct jobs lost in this way another 140 to 286 jobs
will be lost in other areas of the economy as a result.4

4. Conversely the growth of existing businesses creates markets and opportunities
to start up and to grow other local businesses. Sometimes the solution to the
problems of one businesses may be to start up or recruit another such as a key
supplier or a particular service.

5. A community that supports and encourages the growth of its businesses is likely
to be attractive to outside investors. Local business people who are positive
about their business environment make the best and most credible
ambassadors.

6. Over 70% of South African small business owners have had a formal sector job
before starting their own business. Only 5% do so without prior work
experience.5 Yet most unemployed people are young and have never had a job.
Where are they to get the experience to start a business of their own if the
growth of existing business is neglected?

7. Existing local business people are a rich source of new business ideas. They
are also the most likely ones to do anything about it to judge by Australian
experience where local businesses account for 70% investment in a region.
According to McKinsey & Co “a region's number one lever for encouraging
growth is its existing people and businesses”.6

8. Locally owned businesses, some of which may have been in the same
community for generations, are more likely to remain in hard times than those
attracted from outside. Firms attracted by incentives may well move on as the
value of the incentives declines or they get a better offer from somewhere else.

Approaches to BR&E
Most formal business retention and expansion programmes are based on the
premise that to help existing businesses to survive and grow, the best way to start is
by listening to the ideas, suggestions and concerns of business people themselves.
There are two broad approaches to how this is done.

In the continuous approach professional staff are employed by an economic
development agency to systematically interview business in their area. .
Interviews are conducted throughout the year and may be face-to face or by
telephone. The staff member is in a position to respond immediately to requests
for information or to act as a broker between the business and various resources
to address particular problems.

4


Although the focus tends to be on individual businesses rather than the
environment in which they operate, there is nothing to prevent the economic
development agency from convening workshops or initiating action to solve
common problems.

In the locally driven or “traditional” approach management and implementation
of the programme is in the hands of the community in which it takes place. The
community is normally defined geographically but it may also mean a community
of interest such as tourism or motor manufacturing. It is also known as the
“volunteer” approach because it uses local volunteers to implement much of the
programme and emerged from programmes pioneered by New Jersey Bell in the
1970s. In 1986 a model was developed in Ohio that combined this approach
with good practice from elsewhere in the USA and eventually became the basis
for a training and certification programme for Business Retention & Expansion
International (BREI), the professional association for BR&E practitioners.7

In this model a BR&E visitation programme is initiated and managed by a task
team of local leaders who recruit businesses to participate in a survey conducted
by a team of volunteers. The results form the basis for an action plan to improve
the local business environment which is then implemented over the next 2-3
years. Outside resources may be used to assist at various stages, e.g.,
preparing the survey, analysing the results or implementing specific proposals.
Although the main focus is on common issues and the local business
environment, the concerns of individual businesses are also addressed.

Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages as follows.

Continuous Locally driven
Conducted by paid professionals Conducted by local volunteers, may be
assisted by professionals
Survey firms throughout the year Visit 50-100 local firms in 2-3 weeks
Shows broad regional trends Snapshot of local issues
Usually targets specific industries Usually targets specific localities
Tends to focus on larger firms Usually visits cross-section of firms
Action plan for individual business Action plan for business environment
Can address common issues over time Can respond to needs of individual firm
Input to regional policies, programmes Input to LED strategies
Can broker resources quickly May have difficulty accessing resources
Does not attempt to build local capacity Builds local capacity and social capital
Little local buy in Local buy in usually much higher
Depends entirely on professionals Robust process, minimises use of
professional
Relatively costly Relatively inexpensive
Indefinite life Limited life, 2-3 years

5


Both are already in use to some extent in South Africa. The Wesgro BR&E
programme in the Western Cape is an example the of the continuous approach but
used on a limited scale. The BR&E programmes supported by Trade & Investment
KwaZulu-Natal and the Durban Investment Promotion Agency programmes have
used the locally driven approach for a number years.

One could perhaps identify a third approach which in South Africa at least is rarely
termed BR&E, but nonetheless aims to assist existing local businesses to survive
and grow. In this case an economic development expert is appointed to survey local
businesses and to develop proposals for action to improve the business environment
or perhaps address the problems of a local sector or even specific firms. The extent
of interaction with local role-players varies considerably, local buy in is often
disappointing and access to resources to implement the recommendations can be a
problem. Despite good intentions all too often the main outcome is little more than a
report.

Although it has many of the disadvantages and few of the advantages of either the
continuous or locally driven approaches, this “expert-driven” approach to BR&E is
probably more widely used in South Africa than either of the other two!

Which approach is best?
For a formal BR&E programme the choice is essentially between the continuous or
locally driven approach. Both have their virtues as can be seen from the table on the
previous page. In certain circumstances, e.g., where it is limited to the clients of an
investment promotion agency like Wesgro, the continuous approach may well be a
viable option. In practice, however, the cost and the scarcity of skilled professionals
would usually rule it out in most South African situations where even the better
resourced metropolitan councils might have difficulty maintaining a continuous
programme.

It means that the locally driven approach is a far more practical option for South
African conditions. It is the most widely used approach internationally and is easily
integrated into a local economic development strategy. The fact that it builds local
social capital is a particularly attractive extra given the low levels of trust and co-
operation that exist in many communities and without which economic development
is very difficult.

For these reasons the locally driven approach is strongly recommended for South
Africa and is the approach employed in this manual.

6


References
1
Study after study has shown that existing businesses are responsible for creating anything
from 40% to as much as 90% of new jobs. See, for example, David Birch, Job Creation in
America, 1987 or David Kraybill, Ohio's Challenge, Retention and Expansion First, 1995.
2
“80-90% of jobs are created from within the community” says Mike Stolte in Tools for
Building Strong Communities, CEIL, 2007.
3
Up to 10% according to Henry M Cothran quoting Kotval in Business Retention and
Expansion (BRE) Programs: Why Existing Businesses Are Important, University of Florida,
IFAS Extension, 2006.
4
Kentucky Economic Expansion Program (KEEP), 1998.
5
Chandra, Moorty, Nganou, Rajaratnam & Schaefer, Constraints to Growth and
Employment in South Africa; Evidence from the SMME Firm Survey, World Bank, 2001.
6
McKinsey & Co, Lead Local Compete Global: Unlocking the Growth potential of Australia’s
Regions, Final Report to the Commonwealth Department of Housing and Regional
Development, 1994.
7
For many years the BREI training programme was based on Implementing Local Business
Retention and Expansion Visitation Programs, by George Morse & Scott Loveridge, North
East Centre for Rural Development, Pennsylvania State University, 1998.

7


Some Abbreviations

BEE Black economic empowerment
BR&E Business retention & expansion
BREI Business Retention & Expansion International
BREV Business retention & expansion visitation (programme)
CCTV Closed circuit television
CI Confidence interval
DCCI Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry
DIPA Durban Investment Promotion Agency
DVD Digital versatile (or video) disc
FET Further education and training
IDP Integrated development plan
Km Kilometres
KZN KwaZulu-Natal
LED Local economic development
NGO Non-governmental organisation
PASTA Popular, affordable, short term, achievable
SA South Africa
SEDA Small Enterprise Development Agency
SETA Sector education and training authority
SMME Small, medium and micro-enterprise
TIKZN Trade and Investment KwaZulu-Natal
USA United States of America
VIP Very important person

8

The South African

OVERVIEW

In this section
Common terminology
Goals and objectives
Role-players
Programme stages
Timescales

The goal of BR&E programs is to stimulate local economic development by helping existing
business increase their sales and employment, through a combination of programs that not only
increase these firms' competitiveness but also improve the community's quality of life.
George Morse

The South African BR&E Manual Overview

COMMON TERMINOLOGY
The following key terms used in this manual are consistent with those used in training
resources accredited by Business Retention and Expansion International (BREI).1

Business Retention and Expansion (BR&E)
Includes all programmes and initiatives aimed at helping local businesses to survive
and grow.

BR&E Visitation Programme (BREV)
A locally driven initiative that uses a structured interview process to learn about the
concerns ideas, and priorities of local business and initiates specific action plans and
local economic development projects to address them.

Local Economic Development (LED)
A sustained effort by community stakeholders working together to make use of local
resources, advantages and opportunities to create sustainable jobs and economic
opportunities and improve the quality of life for all, especially those who are most
disadvantaged.

Sustainable Jobs
Economic and employment opportunities which are not just economically viable but
also satisfy local environmental and social norms. It includes new business and self
employment options.

Community
Community is used in the dictionary sense of "all the people living in a specific
locality".

1 Business Retention & Expansion International (BREI) is a non-profit association of economic
development practitioners formed to promote BR&E, to share knowledge through research,
publications and meetings and to train and accredit practitioners. See www.brei.org

10


OVERVIEW
Goal and Objectives
The goal and objectives of a local business retention and expansion visitation
programme are as follows.

Goal
To stimulate local economic development and create employment opportunities by
retaining and expanding existing business.

Objectives
To identify the ideas, concerns and priorities of local business and the obstacles
that prevent them expanding.
To respond immediately to urgent concerns.
To develop an action plan to assist business to solve problems, improve
performance and explore opportunities.
To enhance the relationship between local business and the wider community.
To establish a partnership of local role-players to implement strategic actions for
sustained economic development.
Where possible to inform provincial and national business development policies
and programmes.

11


Role-players
Implementation of a BR&E programme involves a number of local and external role-
players.
Local host partnership (local sponsors).
Task team.
Local (project) BR&E co-ordinator.
Volunteer interviewers.
Local action teams.
Trained BR&E Facilitator (BR&E professional).
BR&E Programme Manager.

For a local BR&E programme to succeed it is essential that all roleplayers are clear
about the part they are expected to play and fully committed to playing it.

Local host partnership
The local hosts initiate and support the local programme and are ultimately
responsible for its success and ensuring it takes place as it should. For this reason
they may also be referred to as the local sponsors. Their task is to:
Promote the concept and programme locally;
Recruit and participate in the task team;
Secure or provide adequate funding;
Provide administrative support.

Although a single organisation could undertake all of these responsibilities,
experience has shown that a partnership has greater credibility and is much more
likely to succeed. The partnership might be an existing local economic coalition or
LED partnership or could be formed specifically for BR&E by two or more of the
following.
Local and/or district municipalities;
Local business chambers or associations;
Regional or local economic development agencies, investment promotion
agencies or local development companies;
Business Development Centres and SEDAs;
Institutions for tertiary education and research;
Community development organisations and NGOs;
Service clubs or faith based organisations.

Task team
The task team is a group of 6-8 credible local leaders who have the time, enthusiasm
and commitment to take responsibility for promoting and implementing the local

12


programme. Although members do not take part in order to represent any interest
group, the team should nonetheless broadly reflect the main role-players in the local
economy, e.g., municipality, business associations, local tourism body, agriculture,
emerging business, business support organisations and so on. Members should be:
Credible and influential champions for the programme.
Respected for their knowledge of and contribution to the local community.
Able to think and act strategically.
Enthusiastic about the programme and prepared to commit the necessary time to
attend at least six meetings and to take part in the survey as a interviewer.
Able to respect and exercise confidentiality.

The size of the team is determined by its role and responsibilities. The temptation to
convene a large body representing every interest group in the community should be
resisted. It should be small enough to ensure efficient decision making, encourage
commitment and guard confidentiality, yet large enough to generate ideas and
information and to undertake all its responsibilities. The recommended size is
therefore 6-8 people, perhaps 10 at the most.

The task team is responsible for promoting and managing the BR&E visitation
programme and implementing the plan of action that emerges from it. Collectively
the task team is responsible for:
Setting the key dates, determining the overall programme and timing, monitoring
progress.
Selecting a local co-ordinator.
Reviewing key information about the local economy,
Determining the scope of the business survey.
Design of the survey questionnaire.
Recruiting participating businesses and volunteers.
Taking part in the survey as volunteer interviewers.
Reviewing the survey questionnaires between them.
Developing proposals for action based on the survey findings.
Presenting results and proposals to participants and the wider community,
Setting up teams to implement the agreed programme of action.

In addition individual team members will take particular responsibility for one of the
following.
Chairing task team meetings.
Promoting the programme locally and working with the media
Responding to “red flag” issues
Developing a business information kit, responding to requests for information.

13


Preparing and managing the launch and feedback events.

Local co-ordinator
The local co-ordinator provides hands-on capacity for the day to day management
and implementation of the visitation programme. This involves the following.
Providing a secretariat function to the task team, arranging meetings, initial
briefing and results workshop.
Working with the appropriate task team members to develop and disseminate
promotional and publicity material.
Working with the whole task team to identify potential participants and
volunteers.
Arranging launch, volunteer training and feedback events.
Preparing survey forms, information kits and the survey database.
Identifying business to be visited, arranging and managing the interview
schedule.
Collecting and monitoring survey results and entering them in the database.
Initiating responses to “red flag” issues and requests for assistance or
information.
Organising the survey analysis and the preparation of the feedback report.
Facilitating the establishment of teams to implement the agreed action plan.

The task of local co-ordinator is a critical one. It could either be assigned to a staff
member employed by one of the local host partners or someone might be contracted
specifically for this purpose. Either way it is absolutely essential that they are in a
position to devote an average of 2-3 days a week exclusively to the task for the
duration of the BREV programme.

Such a person does not need to be highly qualified but should certainly have the
following skills and qualities.
Excellent interpersonal skills;
Proven organisational skills with a concern for detail and accuracy;
A professional approach with the ability to maintain confidentiality;
Sufficient language skills and understanding of the subject to be able to extract
and summarise survey results for entry into the database;
Reasonably familiar with the area to be covered by the survey.

Volunteer interviewers
The survey interviews are conducted by volunteers all of whom are trained in the use
of the survey questionnaire. Working in pairs they will normally undertake two to four
(and certainly no more than six) interviews which, on average, means recruiting one
volunteer for every two businesses to be interviewed.

14


The primary task of a volunteer is to use the structured questionnaire to obtain
the views, concerns and priorities of local business with regard to the local
business environment.
They also need to be able to recognise and bring to the attention of the task team
any instances where there is a need for urgent action or assistance.
Their responsibility is to listen and record. It is never to defend local institutions
or programmes, offer suggestions or make promises.

Volunteers have an opportunity to make a contribution to the economic development
of their community while taking part in an interesting and stimulating programme. It
offers useful insights, learning and contacts but is not an opportunity to promote a
personal agenda or interest.

Volunteers will typically have the following qualities.
Enthusiasm for the programme.
Good communication and listening skills in the language of those being
interviewed.
The ability to record information clearly and accurately in the language of the
survey form.
Reliability in keeping appointments and sticking to deadlines.
Commitment to maintaining confidentiality.

The programme relies on volunteers treating the information they receive during the
interview in the strictest confidence. It is strongly recommended that all task team
members and volunteers sign a code of practice and confidentiality agreement before
the survey begins.

Why Volunteers?
The use of volunteers is central to this approach to BR&E and plays a key part in its
success. Volunteers by definition are interested in the outcome and have a stake in
the success of the programme. They form an important part of the audience when
the findings and recommendations for action are presented and are potentially
valuable and informed members of action teams.
The involvement of volunteers sends a powerful signal to local business that their
community is genuinely interested in their well-being and what they have to say. In
turn the knowledge and experience that volunteers gain makes them more aware of
local business issues and the part they play in the community.
None of this can be achieved by hiring students or unemployed people to conduct the
survey. This is sometimes proposed in the mistaken belief that volunteers are used
simply to save money and that they may be more difficult to recruit and control.
Most importantly, experience has shown that the use of local volunteers to conduct
the survey makes it more likely that the outcome will be action rather than just
another report gathering dust on a shelf. This is because people believe what they
discover for themselves and are therefore more likely to take action as a result.

15


Local action teams
Local people must take responsibility for initiating action or implementing it directly if
they are to ensure it delivers what they hope to achieve or indeed that it takes place
at all. In a typical BREV programme this involves the formation of small action teams
to address each of the priorities, typically 3-6 people who are passionate about a
particular issue and committed to doing something about it. They often include
business people who have taken part in the survey or volunteer interviewers. They
do not have to be experts in the subject they are dealing with as their task is to
mobilise the necessary resources and expertise to address the problem.

This implies focussing on short term achievable actions in the early stages in order to
develop the skills and confidence to tackle more difficult issues later.

BR&E Facilitator
Although it is important that ownership and control should remain in local hands, it is
helpful to make use of a trained BR&E facilitator for advice and information and to
facilitate certain stages of the programme. This is particularly necessary when the
local co-ordinator and task team are running a BREV programme for the first time.
With time and experience they will rely far less on external resources. An external
BR&E facilitator may assist in the following way.
Briefing the local host partnership and task team on how to run a BREV
programme.
Facilitating decisions on the scope of the survey and the questionnaire.
Acting as a source of advice and information on the running of the programme.
Training volunteer interviewers.
Providing a quality check on the completed surveys and database entries.
Analysing survey results and preparing findings
Conducting a task team workshop to develop recommendations for action.
Facilitating the community feedback event and the formation of action teams.
Advising on monitoring and reviewing progress.

In certain circumstances the BR&E facilitator may be asked to provide additional
assistance such as capturing survey results in a database.

BR&E Programme Manager
BR&E Programme Managers are the organisations that initiate and host the
programme at provincial, regional or metropolitan level. They are responsible for the
following.
Promoting the concept and raising awareness of the potential benefits of running
a BREV programme.
Arranging and possibly subsidising the training of local co-ordinators.
Promoting the development of BR&E practitioners.

16


Providing resources such as BREV programme manuals, sample surveys,
databases and information kits.
Subsidising the cost of local programmes where appropriate.
Facilitating access to resources for implementing action plans.
Monitoring trends in order to recommend improvements to business support
policy and programmes.

A word of caution
BR&E Programme Managers and other champions may be tempted to see a BR&E
visitation programme as the solution to the problems of every ailing local economy.
This is definitely not the case. It is not a just question of how much a community
needs to retain and grow its business. What matters is whether a sufficient number
of local people actually see that need and want to do something about it.

17


Programme stages
The programme may be divided into a number of stages each separated by a key
event or milestone.

Stage 1: Setting up
This typically begins when potential local hosts are briefed about the benefits of a
BREV programme by the BR&E Programme Manager or a BR&E practitioner. If they
decide they want to proceed, the next steps are as follows.
Form the local host partnership,
Identify potential task team members and gain their commitment.
Obtain or provide all the necessary funds and in kind resources.
Recruit and if necessary arrange the training of a local co-ordinator.
Acquire suitable office accommodation and services for the co-ordinator.
Secure the services of a BR&E facilitator to the extent necessary.
Only when all of these are firmly in place can the next stage begin.

Stage 2: Planning
Stage 2 begins when the task team meets for the first time; it includes the following
activities.
Conduct a task team briefing on the BR&E programme and the part they are
expected to play.
Review the main features of the local economy as input to the task team.
Determine the scope and form of the visitation programme.
Agree the programme steps, budgets and timelines.
Promote and publicise the programme.
Identify and contact the businesses to be visited.
Recruit volunteer interviewers.
Launch the programme publicly.

Stage 3: Visitation
Train volunteer interviewers.
Conduct the survey and capture the data.
Respond immediately to “red flag” issues.

Stage 4: Analysis
Analyse the survey results.
Respond to requests for information.
Task team members workshop results and prepare recommendations for action.
Identify potential resources and partners.

18


Present findings and proposals at stakeholder feedback event, set priorities, form
action teams.

Stage 5: Implementation
Convene action teams, initiate action plans.
Monitor progress.
Task team review results after six months
Conduct report back meeting, set new priorities.

Timescales
Timescales can vary significantly but normally it should be possible to set up a
programme from scratch, conduct the survey and start to see tangible results from
the programme of action all in the same year. A diagram of a typical programme is
shown overleaf.
The starting date is very important as once the launch at the end of Stage 2 is held, it
is essential to continue without interruptions – such as the December holidays – until
the action teams have begun their work and Stage 5 is firmly under way.
Stage 1: Setting up the programme rarely takes less than two months and it
frequently takes quite a bit longer to get all role-players on board and secure all
the necessary resources.
Stage 2: While planning and preparation takes a full six weeks, there is rarely
good reason to extend much beyond that.
Stage 3: Volunteer training, interviews and data capture, should be completed in
three to four weeks. Any longer and the programme can suffer a serious loss of
momentum.
Stage 4: In order to maintain stakeholder interest it is important to be able to
feedback results and recommendations as soon as possible after the survey.
Two to three weeks should be quite sufficient.
Stage 5: Action plans should be selected and structured to yield tangible results
within six months in order to build capacity and maintain enthusiasm. The task
team review and report back event at the end of this period is an opportunity to
decide whether to continue the implementation as a BR&E programme or to
integrate action plans into a broader LED programme.

19

Programme Stages and Timelines

All visits Feedback
Resources completed event
secured
Convene task Six month
team Launch Report back

1 Set up 2 Planning 3 Visitation 4 Analysis 5 Implementation

2-3 months 6 weeks 3-4 weeks 2-3 weeks 6 months
(Feb – Mar) (April – May) (May – June) (June) (July – Dec)

20

The South African

STAGE 1: SETTING UP

At the end of Stage 1
 A local host partnership to initiate and support the programme will have been
formed.
 Task team members will have been identified and will have agreed to serve.
 Local and external resources in cash or kind will have been secured.
 A local co-ordinator will have been recruited and trained.
 Office accommodation, equipment and services for the co-ordinator will have
been acquired.
 To the extent necessary, the services of an external facilitator will have been
engaged.
 The host partners will then have taken a final decision to proceed.

The wisdom of the community always exceeds the knowledge of the experts.
Harold Flaming, Ontario BR&E Programme.

The South African BR&E Manual Stage 1: Setting up

STAGE 1: SETTING UP
Bringing local role-players on board and assembling all the resources necessary to
run a local BR&E visitation programme requires patience and persistence. There is
little room for compromise as the difference between getting it right and getting it
nearly right can make or break the programme.

Forming the host partnership
A local programme typically begins when potential host organisations are introduced
to the possibility as a result of a promotional campaign conducted by the BR&E
Programme Manager or perhaps at a briefing session by a BR&E practitioner.

Bear in mind that a BREV programme is not the answer for every community (see
Resource 1.1) and that more than one briefing session may be necessary to enable
potential host organisations to make an informed decision about whether and how to
participate. To do so they need to be clear about the following.
The goals, objectives, benefits and limitations of a local BREV programme.
Why the locally-driven volunteer-based approach is recommended.
The different role-players and their responsibilities.
Programme steps and timing.
The resources required and – where appropriate – available.

Potential host partners could be any of the organisations listed in the Role-players
section of the Overview but to date the most common arrangement is a partnership
between the local municipality and the local business organisation. South African
experience to date suggests that a partnership has important advantages and should
be regarded as the norm in all but the most unusual circumstances.

Obviously partnerships can also have disadvantages such as the possibility that one
partner will find itself doing most of the work or providing most of the resources. The
risk of this happening can be reduced if all partners are quite clear about the
contribution each is expected to make and record this is in a simple agreement or
memorandum. Better still if they then publicise the details!

Advantages of a partnership
Any one of the potential partners could initiate and run a BREV programme
provided it had the resources and capacity but even under these circumstances
there are definite advantages to forming a partnership.
A partnership gives the programme broader credibility and appeal.
Signals joint local action, self reliance and co-operation.
Brings in more resources, skills and contacts.
Mobilises a wider network of businesses participants and volunteers.
Increases local ownership, more people have a stake in its success.

22


Identifying the task team
In identifying possible members of a task team it helps to remember that they are not
being selected to represent any interest group, instead their role is to plan, manage
and take action. Obviously they must have the necessary time, skills and
enthusiasm to do so.

Time commitments?
A task team member should be able to make time to undertake the following.
Participate in about six task team meetings - particularly the initial briefing
meeting and the results workshop.
Help to identify and recruit participating businesses and volunteers.
Take part in the launch and feedback events.
Conduct at least two interviews.
Convene the first meeting of one of the action teams.
Spread over 3-4 months this is not as demanding as it might seem. When Step 5 is
under way task team members may opt to join one of the teams implementing the
action plan. It is also an opportunity for members who wish to drop out to be
replaced by action team representatives. Thereafter task team members will:
Participate in a meeting every 4-6 weeks to monitor progress.
After six months take part in a short workshop to review achievements.
Play a part in a report back event for local stakeholders.

Task team members should have local credibility and influence. Who they are may
be just as important as what they say when it comes to convincing people to support
and participate in the programme.

It follows therefore that task team should reasonably reflect the main interest
groups and role-players in the local economy including the host organisations.
This is important not only for its credibility but to ensure a sufficiently wide range of
skills, knowledge and networks.

For the same reason it is also necessary to be conscious of the gender balance.
However it can a mistake to try and make a team more representative by recruiting
someone who simply does not have enough time or interest to contribute fully.
Indeed by not being up to date or missing critical decisions they can easily become a
hindrance.

The task team should be made up of local people. Augmenting it, for example, with
representatives of government departments and development agencies in the hope
they will offer access to resources is to misunderstand its purpose. Unless they too
are local people they are unlikely to have the necessary local knowledge, contacts or
stake in the development of the local economy.

23


Resources
The cost of a BREV programme depends on the willingness and resourcefulness of
local role-players in begging, borrowing or adapting existing resources in order to
avoid having to pay for them in cash. Indeed the extent to which this happens is
often a useful indicator of how well the rest of the programme will run.

Local resources
Both local and external resources are required. Clearly offer the most scope for local
role-players to find non-cash alternatives.

Local Co-ordinator. This is usually the biggest local expense unless a local
partner can assign or second a competent staff member to the job. The co-
ordinator must be available exclusively to the programme for roughly 50% of a
normal working week throughout Steps 2 to 4.
Where the co-ordinator has to be contracted allow a total of about 12 days a
month for four months, i.e., 48 days. This can be reduced to about 42-44 days
for the three month survey programme shown in Resource 1.2. Further savings
many be possible by assigning specific responsibilities to members of the Task
Team.

Office. The local co-ordinator will need office space as well as access to a
computer, e-mail, telephone, fax and photocopier. In most cases one of the local
host organisations will provide this free of charge and even absorb the cost of
phone calls and stationary. The cash value of these will have to be budgeted for
if the co-ordinator works from his or her own home or business.

Launch and feedback events. Local custom should dictate the timing and
nature of these events. They should be designed to suit the target audience
rather than the sponsors. Typical would be a simple breakfast or an early
evening function at which light snacks are served. Finding a free or low cost
venue is often possible but getting sponsorship for catering may be more difficult.

Volunteer training. Volunteers must attend one of the two a half-day training
sessions conducted by the co-ordinator and/or facilitator - this is non-negotiable!
The venue(s) should be easily accessible, tea/coffee should be provided and
video/DVD equipment is required.

Volunteer expenses. Paying volunteers even a modest stipend can lead to all
sorts of complications and is not recommended. On the other hand they should
be reimbursed for out of pocket expenses such as travel and parking. This
should be borne in mind when determining the scope of the survey and assigning
interviews. In practice relatively few volunteers actually claim such expenses.

External resources
Decisions taken by local role-players also have an influence on the cost of external
resources.

24


Co-ordinator training. The local co-ordinator must complete a BR&E co-
ordinators’ training course before running a BREV programme for the first time.
Currently no more than one or two such course take place each year, usually in
the second quarter. The cost of training may be subsidised but the co-ordinator's
travel and accommodation expenses will have to be covered by the local budget.

Facilitator time. This is generally one of the larger items on the budget and can
vary considerably depending on the skills and experience of the local co-
ordinator and Task Team. A newly trained co-ordinator would typically need
about 14-15 days support. With experience this can be reduced significantly. A
co-ordinator who has completed a couple of successful BREV programmes and
is backed by good Task Team might need only 4-5 days of facilitator’s time to
help with analysis, recommendations and feedback. (See Resource 1.5.)

Facilitator expenses. While the analysis and report writing can be done
electronically, the rest of facilitator's input is generally made during short visits of
a day or less at a time. Travel and accommodation expenses can therefore
become prohibitive if the facilitator is not based within, say, 200-300 km.

Database. A database package such as MS Access or even a spreadsheet can
be adapted to record and analyse findings and it is not necessary to use a
statistical package. The cost of customising costs will depend on the survey
questionnaire being. A database customised for BR&E in Australia has been
used in KZN For a number of years and should be available from the supplier for
about R1 000. Although it is based on a questionnaire that can be used in most
circumstances, the database itself is not easily adapted to other formats.

A sample “first time” budget
A budget for a three month survey with a newly trained co-ordinator might look like the
following (see Resources 1.4 - 1.5 ). NB Facilitator and co-ordinator rates are illustrative!

Local
Co-ordinator R66 000 44 days at R1 500/day
Office R15 000 Phone and consumables only
Launch and feedback events R7 000 Venue (subsidised) and catering
Volunteer training R3 000 Venue, catering, and video
Volunteer expenses R2 000 Re-imbursements
R93 000
External
Co-ordinator training R4 000 Typical, depends on location
Facilitator fee R42 000 15 days at R2 800/day
Facilitator travel and accommodation R10 000 200km radius, 3 overnight stays
Database R1 000 Minor customisation
R 57 000
Total R150 000

The actually cash outlay may be a great deal less especially if the co-ordinator is seconded
to the programme e.g., from one of the local hosts. External costs will be considerably
reduced if the co-ordinator is already trained and experienced.

25


Local Co-ordinator
Selection of the right person for the task is an important early decision (also see
Role-players section of the Overview). For practical reasons it is generally taken by
the local host partnership before the task team meets for the first time but the task
team should be given an opportunity to endorse it and where possible to be involved
in the selection process.

A local co-ordinator might be an employee of one of the host organisation or could be
seconded to the programme by a company, government agency or educational
institution. An intern, familiar with the subject and the area might also be an option or
it may be necessary to engage someone specifically for the programme.

Skills and qualities
A good co-ordinator does not have to be highly qualified but is likely to have a track
record which reveals the following qualities and skills.
Able to organise events and/or short programmes. Gets things done and delivers
on promises.
Methodical and organised. Thinks ahead.
Pays attention to detail and is concerned about “getting it right”.
Maintains confidentiality.
Gets on well with people at all levels.
Communicates well in writing, on the phone and face to face in the language of
the survey.
Understands enough about the business environment to be able to extract and
summarise survey results for entry into the database.
Computer literate – word processing, simple spreadsheets, email.
Reasonably familiar with the area to be surveyed.

Availability
It is absolutely essential that the local co-ordinator is available to work exclusively
on the BR&E programme for approximately 50% of the working week for the duration
of Stages 2-4. There will be peaks which will demand significantly more than 50% of
the working week but these should be offset by quieter periods.

Clearly it is just as important that the local co-ordinator should be enthusiastic about
the BR&E visitation programme and having an opportunity to play a key part in it.

Training
A local co-ordinator without prior experience should have completed the BREI
accredited South African Local BR&E Co-ordinator Certification Course within four
months of the start of the programme. (N.B. This should be planned for well in
advance as courses are held fairly infrequently.) Experienced co-ordinators should
be able to produce evidence of a satisfactory track record; alternatively as BREI
certification of South African co-ordinators becomes more common it should serve a
similar purpose.

26


Office accommodation
The local co-ordinator will clearly need some sort of office accommodation during
Stages 2-4 together with access to computer, internet and email, phone, fax and
photocopying facilities. It should be preferably be located fairly close to the area of
the survey and thus accessible to volunteers during the visitation stage.

Office space is often made available by one of the host organisations and if so the
extent to which they are willing to cover costs such as phone calls, printing and
copying should be clarified and recorded at the outset. Similarly when a local co-
ordinator makes use of a home office or their own business premises it is important
to agree on a budget for such charges as well as how they will be claimed and paid.

Payment should, of course, be made promptly. Failure to do so signals a lack of
commitment to the co-ordinator which is hardly the best way to ensure their
commitment to the BREV programme!

BR&E Facilitator
The BR&E facilitator contributes to the local programme in three ways. The first is to
act as a source of information and guide the task team and local co-ordinator through
the various steps of a BREV programme. The need for this largely falls away when
the co-ordinator is experienced. The second contribution is to facilitate decision
making at key stages, e.g., determining the scope, workshopping results, setting
priorities for action. Even with an experienced co-ordinator there are advantages in
using a skilled outsider for this task. Finally the BR&E facilitator analyses the results
and is a valuable resource in developing proposals for action.

Using a facilitator
The facilitator’s task is not to run the programme but to make it easier for local people
to plan, manage and implement a BREV programme themselves. It. One of the
virtues of this approach to BR&E is that it does not rely unduly on scarce and often
costly expertise. Instead it makes use of the skills and knowledge of local people
who, if they follow the programme, should be able to achieve satisfactory results with
the minimum of outside help.

However, a balance has to be struck. Minimising the facilitator’s contribution in order
to save money may put the programme at risk if the co-ordinator and task team lack
experience. On the other hand the more they ask the facilitator to do for them the
more expensive it becomes and the less ownership, understanding and commitment
they will have. This also puts the success of the programme at risk.

Deciding how much support will be necessary depends very much on how familiar
the task team and co-ordinator are with how to run a BREV programme. The
Resource 1.5 worksheet shows the normal minimum that an experienced team would
call on the assistance of a facilitator. It also recommends a number of additional
activities where a team new to BR&E would need help. Finally, it identifies some
occasions where a facilitator might be considered in certain circumstances.

27


Finding a facilitator
What is a BR&E facilitator? Basically it is someone with an in-depth knowledge of
how to run a BREV programme and who has good facilitation skills coupled with a
sound understanding of local economic development in general and business
retention and expansion strategies in particular.

An initiative is under way to enable South African practitioners to obtain BREI
certification as BR&E Professionals. In the meantime it is a matter of consulting
BR&E Programme Managers and looking at individual track records.

The BR&E facilitator may be contracted directly by one of the host organisations. In
other situations the BR&E Programme Managers may make a facilitator available for
a certain number of days. In either case it is important to agree and record in
advance both the number of days and the tasks to which they will be allocated. Any
variation on this is should also be agreed and recorded by all parties.

Final commitment
Up until this point the preparations have been largely low cost, low profile activities
and a decision to delay or cancel the programme would not involve serious
embarrassment. All this will change from the beginning of Stage 2. It is therefore
recommended that having satisfied themselves that all the preparations have been
made and the necessary resources are in place (see Resource 1.3 Assessing
readiness ) the local partnership ends Stage 1 with a formal decision to proceed with
the BREV programme.

28


RESOURCE 1.1 Do we really want a BREV programme?
A business retention and expansion visitation programme is not the answer for every
community. Clearly if the local economy is booming, the business community will see
little need for a business retention and expansion initiative and will be too busy to
take part in it anyway.

In contrast if the local economy is deeply depressed or has just experienced a
serious shock such as the closure of a major local employer, it may be difficult to
motivate local people. They may well believe that their problems can only be solved
by a major intervention by government or big business. It would be better to
postpone a BR&E programme until at least some of them start to believe that their
own actions can make a difference.

What counts is not the local economic situation but whether local people want to do
something about it themselves. If the answer is even a cautious “yes”, a BREV
programme can be an excellent way to start as it is relatively easy to implement and
helps to build local confidence and capacity.

Assess your community

Status Characteristics Recommendation

Too busy to Local economy is thriving, no NO GO BREV not needed or likely
bother shortage of opportunity, everyone to win support .
doing own thing.
Centre of Big outside interventions or NO GO BREV unlikely to get
attention investments taking place or planned. sufficient attention
Strategic Key stakeholders have a history of GO BREV should be successful
partnership planning and working together.
Amicable Local stakeholders sometimes work GO BREV should build
together confidence and capacity.
Directionless No one takes the lead or seems to GO BREV could provide the
know what to do. framework for action.
Finger pointing Local stakeholders see others as the MAYBE Proceed with caution, get
problem. commitment of key players
first.
Non-co- Key role-players do not work together NO GO Identify and fix the problem
operation before considering a BREV.
Conflict Serious disagreement or antagonism NO GO Get expert help to solve
between key role players conflict!

29

The South African BR&E Manual

RESOURCE 1.2 Typical BR&E Programme (timescale in weeks)
January February March April May June July August September October November December January
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 1 2 3 4

Stage 1: Setting up
Brief potential partners
Partners commit to BREV
Secure local funds -----> Roleplayers ready,
Identify Task Team resources secured
Select and train co-ordinators ----->
Secure extenal funds (if req'd) - - - - - - - ->
Appoint facilitators ----->
Stage 2: Planning
Convene and brief task team
Baseline briefing - -> Public launch of
Agree scope of programme BREV programme
Identify & contact businesses to be visited - ->
Recruit volunteers - ->
Publicity, promotion & launch
Step 3: Visitation Survey
Train & assign volunteers complete
Conduct BR&E Visitation interviews
Prepare database, capture results - ->
Respond to red flags
Step 4: Analysis
Analyse data Action agreed at
Respond to requests for information - - -> feedback event
Task team results workshop
Prepare report Action reviewed at
report back
Prepare and conduct feedback event
Step 5: Implementation
Convene action teams
Implement action Continues - - - ->
Monitor progress
Task team review
Report back event

The South African BR&E Manual RESOURCE 1.3

RESOURCE 1.3 Assessing readiness
The set-up stage ends and you are ready to begin a BR&E visitation programme
when you can answer yes to all the following questions.

1. Has a local host partnership been formed to initiate and support the programme?
Have the contributions each will make been recorded?

Input
Organisation
recorded

2. Have 6-8 credible and capable local people been identified to form the task team?
Have they agreed to serve and to make the time available?

Name Agreed

3. Has a budget been prepared? (Attach budget.)

4. Have firm commitments in cash or kind been obtained for all the local cost items?

5. Have firm commitments in cash or kind been obtained for all the external costs?
(Attach details.)

6. Has a local co-ordinator been recruited and trained? (Attach appointment letter.)

7. Has office accommodation, equipment and access to office services been secured
for the co-ordinator? (Attach details and terms.)

8. Has a trained BR&E facilitator been engaged? (Attach appointment letter and
schedule of days required.)

9. Have all the host partners formally agreed to proceed with the programme?

31


RESOURCE 1.4 Budget working sheet

BR&E Budgeting
Cost Source

Local

Co-ordinator Rate x no of days/weeks

Office cost

Accommodation Rate x weeks/months

Phone and fax Monthly cost x months

Internet and email Monthly cost x months

Photocopying and printing Surveys, info kit, reports

Events

Launch Venue and catering

Volunteer training x 2 Venue, tea/coffee

Feedback event Venue and catering

Volunteer expenses Reimbursements

Other (specify)

External

Co-ordinator training

Course fee

Travel and accommodation Depending on location

Facilitator

Fee See Resource 1.5

Travel and accommodation See Resource 1.5

Database software Software, customisation

32


RESOURCE 1.5 Budget working sheet – facilitator days
Add if Add No of No of
Normal Budget
new to optional return overnight
minimum days
BR&E extras trips stays
Brief local partners ½

Assess readiness ½

Brief task team 1

Baseline briefing ½

Determine scope ½

Identify who to visit ½

Publicity and promotion ½

Launch ½

Volunteer training 1

Check first surveys 1

Database prep 1

Red flag response ½

Data capture 3

Analyse results 3

Results workshop 1

Prepare report 1

Prepare feedback event ½

Feedback event ½

Action planning ½

First follow up ½

Mid term follow up ½

Six month review 1

Report back ½

Other

Min 5½ Add 9 Add 5½

Fees: No of days _____ x R _______ per day = R _________

Travel: No of return trips _____ x distance _____ km = ______ total km

Total km _____ x R _____ per km = R _______

Overnights: No of overnight stays _____ x R _____ allowance per night = R _______

33

The South African

STAGE 2: PLANNING

At the end of Stage 2
 The task team will have been convened and briefed on the programme and the
part they will play.
 The task team will have reviewed the main features of the local economy in a
“baseline briefing” session.
 The scope and form of the survey will have been determined.
 Programme steps, budgets and timelines will have been agreed and recorded.
 A promotion and publicity programme will have been initiated.
 The businesses to be visited will have been identified and invited to participate.
 Volunteer interviewers will have been recruited.
 The programme will have been formally launched.

I always wondered why somebody doesn't do something about that.
Then I realised I was somebody.
Lily Tomlin

The South African BR&E Manual Stage 2: Planning

STAGE 2: PLANNING
This stage encompasses all the activities from the first meeting of the task team to
the formal launch of the programme at which point everything should be in place for
the visitation stage to begin.

Convening and briefing the task team
The local host partnership is responsible for convening and hosting the first meeting
of the task team which should be chaired by an appropriate representative of the
partnership. The purpose of the meeting is to:
- introduce team members to one another and to the local partnership, the co-
ordinator and the facilitator;
- explain why the BREV programme has been initiated and what it might achieve;
- describe the programme steps and possible timing for each;
- explain the responsibilities of each role-player and the task team in particular;
- use a sample survey and mock interviews to illustrate how the survey is
conducted;
- deal with any concerns or misconceptions and ensure all team members are fully
on board;
- agree a draft schedule of future meetings and key events.

After representatives of the host partnership have explained why they have initiated
the programme and what they hope it will achieve, they would normally hand over to
the BR&E facilitator to continue the meeting as a short orientation workshop or
induction programme. See Resource 2.2 Task Team Meeting Plans.

Time should be allowed at the end of the meeting to set tentative dates for future
meetings and key events and to make firm arrangements, including the election of a
chairperson, for the baseline briefing in Meeting 2.

Even an experienced team and co-ordinator will benefit from an orientation
“refresher” at their first meeting but this can be kept appropriately short. It may even
be possible to combine the agendas of Meeting 1 and 2 in a single session by
including an update on the state of the local economy.

Baseline briefing
The purpose of the baseline briefing is to give the task team a broad overview of
what is already known about the local economy including any initiatives and
investments in the pipeline. The purpose of this is to:
- enable the task team make more informed decisions about the scope and nature
of the survey;
- reduce the risk of duplicating previous enquiries;
- provide the background against which the survey results will be examined and
recommendations drafted;
- act as a reference point against which progress might be assessed.

The local municipality and other member of the host partnership will almost certainly
have in their possession a number of reports and analyses containing useful and
relevant information. They may also contain much else and simply giving the task

35


team copies to read is unlikely to be welcome or a sensible use of their limited time.
Instead it is recommended that people familiar with the context and contents of such
documents make short presentations on the key information to the task team.

The presentations would normally draw on documents such as the Integrated
Development Plan (IDP), Spatial Development Framework and related land use
schemes, local economic development strategy as well as analyses and
development strategies for various economic sectors. Previous business, consumer
and visitor attitude surveys could be useful if any are available. Background
information and key features of major economic or infrastructure investments likely to
take place in the next few years should also be included.

Ideally the presenters should also be task team members or at least available to act
as an information resource when key decisions are being made, e.g., when
determining the scope of the survey or when analysing the survey results.

When the presentations are complete the task team should identify what they
consider to be the key issues as well as any obvious information gaps and the
implications this could have for the survey.

Before concluding the task team should prepare for the next meeting at which key
decisions will be taken on the scope of the survey, work-plan and the responsibilities
of individual team members.

Task Team Responsibilities
Responsibilities all task team members have in common:
Review existing information.
Set the direction of the programme, take key decisions such as the scope and
timing of the survey, monitor progress.
Recruit participants and volunteers.
Volunteer!
Review surveys (shared).
Develop proposals for action.
Manage the launch and lead the feedback event.
Convene action teams.
Specific roles for individual members.
Chair: a good facilitator, organised, committed and available.
Publicity: 1-2 people to brief role-players, deal with media, acknowledgements.
Red flags: 2-3 people with a bias for action, able to respond to urgent situations.
Information: 1-2 members to respond to requests for information.
Events: 1-2 people to prepare and manage the launch and feedback events,
mobilise participants.
Also see meeting plans in Resources 2.2 and 2.3.

36


Scope and form of the survey
The first major decision facing the task team is where to conduct the survey and how
many businesses should participate in it. As with any decision is it important to
agree on the objectives or criteria before trying to evaluate the alternatives, otherwise
the task team may get bogged down in futile discussion without a clear means of
resolution. Key considerations in deciding where to conduct the survey are as
follows.

Where
What the businesses to be surveyed have in common, e.g., locality, sector, size,
value chain or cluster. Alternatively they might be emergent or BEE enterprises
or located in a disadvantaged community. Unless participating businesses are
bound together by a shared interest they will be difficult to mobilise. Moreover
the results of a survey of businesses scattered over wide area and in different
sectors would have little meaning and result in few useful conclusions unless
focussed on some particular feature they had in common.
The extent to which a particular business community is likely to respond. This
will be more difficult where there is conflict, a history of failed initiatives or where
businesses are simply too busy to spare the time (also see Resource 1.1).

How many
Whether the business community to be surveyed is big enough for the outcome
to have a significant impact on the local economy.
If the number of businesses being considered is not so large that it difficult to
survey a reasonably representative sample. This will be determined by the
number of volunteers available and the degree of precision required (see
Resource 2.4 Sample size). It will rarely be fewer than 30 or more than 85 in any
one business community.

What degree of precision is required? No more than strictly necessary is the short
answer, bit it does depend on the questions being asked and the use to which the
answers will be out. In general BR&E surveys focus on the broader trends and the
questions are rarely framed so that a variation of a few percent makes much
difference. It is quite good enough to know, for example, that “most” businesses in a
particular area think that parking is a problem - it is far more important is to be able to
identify clearly where that area actually is!

If a particular issue does require a precise answer for some reason, it may be better
to obtain it at a later stage through a separate, more statistically accurate exercise.

How many volunteers?
Volunteers work in pairs. Each volunteer is expected to interview 2-4 businesses
and certainly no more than six. If, on average, each pair of volunteers is to visit
four businesses, then the rule of thumb is simply one volunteer for every two
businesses to be surveyed.

37


Form of survey
Surveys can be conducted in many different ways, e.g., phone, website, focus
groups or mini-workshops, email or postal survey and so on. However a key
objective of a locally driven BR&E programme is to engages the community in a
conversation with its business people. A very direct way of doing this is through face
to face interviews and it is one of the reasons why volunteer interviewers are so
important. For consistency of information and because not many volunteers will have
had experience of interviewing the most practical option is to use a structured
questionnaire.

Survey design
Designing a questionnaire is not a simple matter. Research organisations and
academic institutions will certainly have the capacity to assist but would normally rely
on the task team to brief them on what it needs to know. Unless the task team has
prior experience it may not be in a position to do this.

Another option is to make use of one of several BR&E survey packages that are
available internationally. These would still need to be tailored to local requirements
and are likely to be expensive in rand terms. On the other hand if a provincial or
regional BR&E programme manager purchased a web based package the costs
could be shared by a number of different users.

Often the most practical option will be to adopt – and perhaps adapt – a
questionnaire that has been proved in a similar environment. This is not quite as
limiting as it sounds since many questionnaires follow a broadly similar pattern and
the differences tend to be in the detail. (See Resource 2.11 Survey Questions.)
Changes or additions should always be tested because it is not easy to predict how
interviewees will interpret a question or if it will bring out the required information.

The need to know
A disadvantage of using existing questionnaires is that it can perpetuate bad
practice. An analysis1 of over 50 BR&E questionnaires in the USA revealed that
more than half the questions did no more than confirm information that was already
known or could have been learned without troubling the owner or manager.
The survey should focus on obtaining information such as the following.
Opinions about the local business environment.
Immediate issues and concerns – “red flags”.
Opportunities for growth.
Obstacles to expansion.
Future plans.
Particular needs, e.g., information, skills, services.
Opinions about existing local services and support organisations.

1
Canada and Rendleman, 1996 quoted by Henry M Cothran, BRE Programs: Developing a Business
Retention & Expansion Survey, 2006,

38


Programme steps, budgets & timelines
The broad timelines and budget established by the host partners and at the first
meeting of the task team should be developed into a more detailed action plan in
which responsibility, timing and resources are agreed and assigned. Sub teams
dealing with publicity or events for example will prepare simple action plans and
budgets of their own. All it requires is list of action steps setting out the following.
What will be done, i.e., the action step.
Who is responsible for doing it (and where appropriate who else is involved)?
When will it be done (start and finish)?
What resources are required to do it?

Resource 2.1 provides a programme master checklist which may adapted for this
purpose and for tracking progress.

Visibility
Making the plan and current progress highly visible helps to maintain momentum,
focus and enthusiasm. It is particularly important when working with volunteers like
the task team as they spend a relatively small part of their time thinking about BR&E.
It could be done, for example by a prominent display in the co-ordinator’s office as
well as the room used for task team meetings. This could be supplemented by
regular updates emailed to members of the team.
BR&E Plan and Progress at 22 April
January February March April May June July August September October November December January
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 1

Stage 1: Setting up
Brief potential partners Done
Partners commit to BREV Done
Secure local funds Done
Identify Task Team Done
Select and train co-ordinators Done
Secure extenal funds (if req'd) Done
Appoint facilitators Done
Stage 2: Planning
Convene and brief task team
Baseline briefing - -> Programme
Agree scope of programme launch 15 May
Identify & contact businesses to be visited - ->
Recruit volunteers Bus Vol - ->
Publicity, promotion & launch Target 60 30
Step 3: Visitation
To date 36 11 Survey deadline 6
Train & assign volunteers June
Conduct BR&E Visitation interviews
Prepare database, capture results - ->
Respond to red flags
Step 4: Analysis
Analyse data Feedback event 24
Respond to requests for information - - -> June
Task team results workshop
Prepare report Report back
11 Dec
Prepare and conduct feedback event
Step 5: Implementation
Convene action teams
Implement action Continues - - - ->
Monitor progress
Task team review
Report back event

A bar chart such as the above is a useful means of showing the broad picture. It
should be supplemented by key information on progress against the most important
targets during the planning, visitation and implementation stages.

39


Publicity and promotion
A publicity campaign to inform the local community about the BR&E programme
should begin as early as possible. It could be initiated as soon as the local host
partnership is formed and taken over later by 2-3 members of the task team once the
scope of the survey has been determined.

It should be designed to achieve the following objectives:
- encourage businesses in the survey target area to participate;
- recruit volunteers to conduct the survey interview;
- keep the general public interested and informed.

Local media
An effective campaign can be mounted at little cost. Local newspapers and radio
stations are generally hungry for stories and willing to make use of well written press
releases (see Resource 2.5), offer interviews and even cover the launch or feedback
events. Other ways of communicating include background briefing sessions,
invitations to meetings and events, phone in programmes and letters to the editor.
Use may also be made of electronic and printed newsletters and newsflashes
produced by business associations, business support organisations and local
government, particularly those of the BR&E host partnership. .

Information updates should be released at key points in the programme in order to
stimulate interest in the findings, proposals and subsequent plan of action. However
it is important to make sure it really is news and not a just a rehash of earlier
releases! (See Resource 2.7 Publicity milestones).

A word of warning, however. A locally driven BR&E programme is a still a little out of
the ordinary in South Africa and may not be fully understood by the journalist writing
or editing the story. Any consequent misinformation is difficult to correct and may
have an adverse effect on the programme. Interviews and background briefings
should always be backed by clear, well written press releases or information sheets.
Some journalists will make it possible to check articles for accuracy before
publication, others will not - especially with a deadline looming.

Brochure
A brochure providing basic information about the programme in plain straightforward
language may be used to introduce the programme to the general public. It could be
supplemented by information leaflets designed specifically to recruit volunteers or to
encourage businesses to participate.

Acknowledgements
It pays to acknowledge contributions and achievements right from the beginning –
better still with photos. Good quality pictures with captions of the task team, launch
participants, volunteers in training or in action, feedback event and action teams will
probably be welcomed by local media and will maintain interested and enthusiasm.
This becomes even more important once the excitement of the visitation stage and
feedback event starts to fade and when it is essential to publicise achievements and
milestones reached in the implementation plan.

40


Identifying and recruiting businesses
Compiling a list of businesses in a locality or sector is not as simple as it sounds.
Local directories and the databases of business associations often depend for their
information on businesses subscribing, becoming members or registering in some
way. Obviously those that do not do so will not be listed. Lists of property owners or
telephone subscribers may be more comprehensive but the name recorded may be
quite different from that of the business – and they may not be up to date.

The practical solution to combine two or three different types of lists and then pay a
visit to the area to check for obvious changes and omissions.

A representative sample?
The statistical accuracy described in Resource 2.4 depends on obtaining a
genuinely random sample. This might be done, for example, by making a
numbered list of all the businesses in the target group and using the random
function in a spreadsheet to select the ones to visit. It sounds simple, but – as
described above – the first problem is to get a complete list!
The next problem is how to deal with the wide variety of differences that exist within
a business “community”. It is not up to a random number generator to decide
whether to interview the 2-3 major employers in a small town. Their opinions and
concerns are vital! On the other hand their perspectives may be very different to
those of smaller businesses around them.
One way around this problem is to stratify the sample into, e.g., large,
medium/small and micro enterprises and then taking a random sample from each.
If there are a small number of businesses in one particular group it will, of course,
be necessary to interview them all.
A stratified survey makes it easier to identify important differences within the
business community as well as what they have in common.

Getting them to take part
Once the target businesses have been identified it pays to take time to consider the
best means of inviting each of them to take part in the survey. This requires more
than just sending an invitation – most businesses receive a steady stream of
invitations, promotions, offers and announcements.

It usually means some combination of a personal approach or phone call backed up
by a written invitation. The important point is to decide who is the best person to
make that initial approach or phone call in each case, i.e., someone the business
person will listen to and respects and who understands and supports the BR&E
programme. Task team members will clearly have a major part to play in this regard.

Once a business has agreed to participate they should be sent a confirmation letter
and questionnaire and their details recorded in the survey database. This should be
followed by an invitation to the launch. Afterwards it is important to maintain their
interest by keeping them informed of progress from time to time.

41


Recruiting volunteers
Some task teams are intimidated by the idea of recruiting volunteers and feel that the
culture of volunteering is a thing of the past. Yet the track record of BR&E in South
Africa to date suggests quite the opposite. But for the same reason that it takes
more than a written invitation to get businesses to take part in the survey, it takes
more than advertisements, posters and hand-outs to recruit volunteers. These, in the
language of salespeople, “tell not sell” . It is thus essential to approach people
directly either individually or by speaking at meetings of associations, business
organisations, clubs and educational institutions.

Sources
Volunteers should be recruited from a wide variety of sources, some of which could
include the following:
- the task team,
- staff members of the host organisations,
- businesses participating in the survey,
- members of local business organisations and associations,
- local community organisations such as service clubs or retirement associations,
- university or FET students especially those engaged in business studies,
- business support and development organisations,
- NGOs involved in economic development.

Volunteer profile
A volunteer interviewer should have the following qualities.
Familiarity with the area of the survey.
Competence in the language in which the survey is being conducted.
Good listening skills.
The ability to record information clearly, accurately and concisely.
A reputation for reliability and punctuality.
Enthusiasm for the programme.
Above all, the ability to maintain confidentiality.

Motivation
In speaking to groups or individuals it is useful to remember that people volunteer for
to take part in a BR&E survey for different reasons, e.g.,
- they are keen to play a part in their community and to make a difference,
- it is in their interest to see improvements in the local business environment,
- working with others and being part of something is good fun,
- people enjoy feeling useful and appreciated,
- interested to learn more about local business.

Focussing on just one of these – doing something for the community, for example –
will appeal to some people, but not to others. That means giving potential volunteers
a variety of good reasons to come forward. In doing so it is also important to address
some of the reasons why people do not volunteer. These could include:

42

Business Retention and Expansion Manual Feb 2010

Business Retention and Expansion Manual Feb 2010

Empfohlen

Empfohlen

Weitere ähnliche Inhalte

Was ist angesagt?

Was ist angesagt? (20)

Ähnlich wie Business Retention and Expansion Manual Feb 2010

Ähnlich wie Business Retention and Expansion Manual Feb 2010 (20)

Mehr von led4lgus

Mehr von led4lgus (20)

Kürzlich hochgeladen

Kürzlich hochgeladen (20)

Business Retention and Expansion Manual Feb 2010