My experience of the Workshop
In the second half of 2008 I had the privilege of completing the NSW Enterprise Workshop which is a 5 month course designed to promote the establishment of new businesses and growth of existing businesses. It achieves this through training sessions on all aspects of running a business including marketing strategies, project management, risk analysis, finance, capital raising, presentation skills, market research, business structure and taxation issues, just to name a few!
One of the main strengths of the program is that the lecturers are leading business executives who talk about the area of business in which they earn their living. These sessions covered the key elements of business practice and the lecturers were able to, in a very practical way, help us understand what works in practice, what doesn't and why! In addition to the lectures, we were all placed in a team of 3 - 5 people and were required to prepare a complete business plan - financial, marketing and operations plan - for a real business project.
Each team was provided with a mentor and our progress was assessed throughout the program through formal review panels. At the end of the program each team had to give a formal presentation to a team of judges and were required to defend their business plan. I was placed with a Medical Device company who wanted to market their urinary incontinence device in the USA and Europe. I now know far more than I need to about urinary incontinence but I also have a good understanding of business in general and an in-depth appreciation of key success factors. An awards night was held in October and our team was thrilled to receive the award for the best operational plan.
I would highly recommend the Enterprise Workshop as it is a very hands-on, practical program that deals with the realities of business. One of the key benefits of the program is that it introduces you to very strong network of successful business people who either attend the course or deliver the course. The 30 people who attend our course came from a wide range of businesses including biotech companies, medical device companies, research institutes, banks and engineering firms. The course is mostly run on weekends with some evening lectures.
The NSW Enterprise Workshop is a not-for-profit Industry-Government body run by volunteer senior business people - set up in 1979 by the Federal Government to provide practical business education. The Government "partner" is the NSW Department of State and Regional Development. ARCS Members are now ebtitled to a 10% discount to participate in the NSW Enterprise Workshop.
Catherine Bourgeois
Director
NSW Clinical Trials Business Development Centre