ENTREPRENEURSHIP 301 [100] Read the case study thereafter answer the questions that follows: Question One [60] Depending on the extent of the damage across the different businesses affected during the recent protests, it could take up to 18 months to reconstruct the malls and for businesses to become fully operational again. This means that many of the small businesses might have to temporarily change their business location or relocate completely. The major problem with this strategy is the risk of paying double rent, both to the damaged mall as well as at the new location. The law does not provide for these SMEs to stop paying rent to the damaged mall, regardless of whether they want to relocate. In addition, most of the assets that these businesses had, such as furniture, equipment, inventory, and debtors, were destroyed. This is a double negative, which implies that they have lost almost all of the assets they could use as collateral to obtain loans from financial institutions, as well as having to replace these assets. Many of these small businesses that were not insured and have very little or no cash reserves may not be able to reopen their businesses, unless they receive assistance from the government. The South Africa government and the entire civil society have come out to condemn these barbaric actions, and have put in place some measures to redress the situation and bring stability to the country. As part of the recovery strategies, the government funds allocated to small businesses through its different departments, such as provincial development corporations, the IDC, and national youth funds, should be used to provide interest-free loans to those small businesses that were profitable before the looting crisis. Government should also consider paying business rentals to the damaged malls until these malls reopen. Tax incentives for some of these businesses for a certain period of time is another option to be explored. Likewise, unemployment funds should be made available to pay their employees until they are fully operational again. Within the context of entrepreneurship, resilience which is viewed as the capacity of the business to recover, survive, or grow quickly following a crisis is one of the capabilities that small businesses can deploy. While small businesses are often regarded as less resilient because of their limited resources, this liability makes them more flexible and adaptable in the BACHELOR OF COMMERCE YEAR 3 ACADEMIC AND ASSESSMENT CALENDAR - DISTANCE 16 REGENT BUSINESS SCHOOL (RBS) JANUARY 2022 face of adversity. Small businesses can become more resilient and less vulnerable to crises by developing an anticipated and containment mindset. An anticipated mindset entails continuous identification of all possible problems and emergencies, while a containment mindset is about embracing flexibility and adapting when responding to crises (conceptual slack), developing capabilities to deal with losses, and making a commitment to resilience. Small businesses can achieve these mindsets by undertaking training in metacognitive awareness, which entails developing coping strategies to respond to uncertain events, developing adaptive thinking to identify and recognise opportunities in an uncertain and dynamic context, and changing responses and strategies according to changes in the environment. Small businesses can also develop resilience by investing in and building resources. These resources can range from social resources (e.g., support from networks of family and friends, business partners); economic resources (e.g., personal savings, stokvels, and financial institutions); and personal resources (e.g., self-determination, inner strength, adopting a problem-solving mentality, emotion regulation, and self-confidence). As a short- to medium-term strategy, the South African government through its Ministry of Small Business Development should partner with higher education institutions and private organisations to create nationwide workshops and seminars on how to develop resilience and overcome liabilities of newness, smallness, and poorness. Small businesses should also foster cooperative relationships, as these have proven to help entrepreneurs overcome the lack of resources by sharing business resources (equipment, business space, and funds). This ultimately transforms competitive differences into potential growth opportunities for businesses. This is one of the most important business practices adopted by many immigrant businesses for survival. Those who need to start from scratch are encouraged to develop their businesses, using what they can create with the set of resources (computer, land, skills, money, car) at their disposal, no matter how small. Given that the future is unpredictable, instead of defining a specific plan to reach a goal/objective, such entrepreneurs should focus on what means are available to them now. Most successful entrepreneurs around the world and particularly in Africa, where entrepreneurs are usually constrained by limited resources and support structures will tell you that they started their businesses with very limited or only one resource that they had at their disposal. It might be quite difficult and painful to undergo the cycle again, so entrepreneurs should tap into their BACHELOR OF COMMERCE YEAR 3 ACADEMIC AND ASSESSMENT CALENDAR - DISTANCE 17 REGENT BUSINESS SCHOOL (RBS) JANUARY 2022 inner grit and remember that although they are starting from scratch, this time around they are wiser and more experienced, which will ultimately translate to higher achievements.

Question3

The business plan should serve as a road map to coordinate and lead the business towards a clearly identified objective. This applies to both existing and new businesses. To create a strategic document for an existing or a new business, the Clicks Group, has sold all the Musca outlets to you and you are required to draft a business plan that should contain specific criteria. Identify and discuss those criteria of a business plan based on the statement.