Training of Trainers and Company Directors in Corporate Governance Board Leadership
Our team and affiliates are trained to train potential trainers and directors in Corporate Governance. The training programme, using the Corporate Governance Board Leadership Training Resources Tool Kit, emphasises an interactive approach to adult learning and leadership. A unique feature of this approach is the appreciation of directors’ diverse abilities and experiences. The tools and activities prepare participants to assess directors’ interests and enhance their capacities for corporate board leadership, governance, and collaborative problem-solving.
Investment Readiness Training
Many of the applications for funding received by FirstAngelsJA are interesting and some may, no doubt, may be profitable and viable in the long run, but most are not “investable” in the short term. Investors are interested in businesses that have great potential for growth and are able to scale. Many of the Founders will have to re-look at their business models, do more market research and more importantly, pay greater attention to their financial modelling, accounting and general record keeping so that they will have realistic forecasts that are built on measurable data. These are some of the elements that will make their businesses attractive to investors.
Most Founders who have applied for equity funding have not paid enough attention to their financials. If they have historical financial statements, they are usually unaudited. Their businesses generally lack adequate systems for record keeping and most Founders express a fear of “numbers”. Most had little or no knowledge of how to prepare or read financial statements and so their projections were either very lacking or absent altogether.
To address these issues, FirstAngelsJA has made it a mandatory requirement for Founders who may wish to pitch their business ideas to the Network, to go through an Investment Readiness Programme before getting a chance to pitch. The Programme is delivered face-to-face or online and from each group of participants, the most promising may receive up to 4 hours of one-on-one coaching before they pitch to the Angels.
Family Business Governance
In today’s competitive business environment, family businesses must be as well-managed as the best of their competitors. Because of the peculiar dynamics of a family business, the need for a professional approach to the business is in fact greater than in a non-family firm. By building on their innate strengths, family businesses must ensure sustainability and growth by establishing logical organisational and governance structures.
Incorporation of family governance structures can enhance the management of family issues and, hence, the family/business dynamic. The relationships existing between family members and the business are realities that should be dealt with cautiously to avoid conflicts and tensions in the family business. Depending on the size of the family, its stage of development and the complexity of the business and family relations, each family business should select the family structures necessary or advantageous to the Company.
We work with family businesses to identify and implement the most appropriate structures, and formalise these in a Family Constitution.
Training Needs Assessments
We undertake training needs assessments on behalf of companies or organisations. We are essentially determining whether a training need exists and if so, what is the most appropriate training to develop to fill the gap. We utilise focus groups, surveys, observations and secondary data to identify the need for training. Our recommendations are structured to close the identified gaps in the most cost efficient way.