New Online Toolkit for Budding Entrpreneurs in Schools Across Coventry & Warwickshire

Budding Bransons and Bradys of the classroom could benefit from a new entrepreneur’s toolkit that will also help schools meet a new duty to provide all-round careers advice.

The new CW Entrepreneur’s Toolkit provides users with fundamental lessons on running a business and guides them through each stage of the process.

It covers everything from assessing the risks and rewards, development of a business, sales and marketing, pipeline, manufacturing through to exit, if they want to sell the business.

This includes working out whether they really ought to start at all – or find another idea.

As well as helping enterprising students to develop the skills needed to start their own venture the toolkit, once completed, gives users a qualification equivalent to an NVQ Level 4.

Moreover, it will give schools invaluable help to attain new standards for careers advice set out by the Government earlier this year. Under these all maintained schools in England are expected to appoint a Careers Leader to strategically plan careers advice and work towards eight standards of excellence called the Gatsby Benchmarks.

Launched by the CW Growth Hub Business Solutions – an arm of the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP) the toolkit is already being used by established businesses and college students across the region.

Jeremy Moore, head of Business Solutions, said: “This is an incredible tool which could add real value to lessons on business studies at schools. We believe it offers an excellent opportunity for students to get a real taste of what’s needed in the world of business.

“The toolkit is already being used by established businesses and entrepreneurs across the region and we are confident that, once tried, it will be a big hit with schools and could one day form part of the National Curriculum.”

Darin Tudor, author of the CW Entrepreneur’s Toolkit, believes it will also prove invaluable to Career Leaders in schools when drawing up their strategies for ensuring that students are informed about every option for building a successful career – including setting up their own businesses.

A former RAF aeronautical engineer, he has enjoyed a successful business career, rising to Group Managing Director of a venture capital firm which he took into the top 100 fastest growing companies in the UK.

It was while he was ‘Entrepreneur in Residence’ at Coventry University that he first distilled 28 years of knowledge in business into a toolkit for students, staff and external businesses – many of whom are looking to start up their first venture.

He envisages that leading employers will be keen to sponsor the online package in schools because it is comprehensive, structured and rigorous. Sponsorship will in turn forge closer links between schools and businesses which should lead to the opportunities for work placements and insight into labour markets that the new guidelines demand.

Darin Tudor said: “The CW Entrepreneur’s Toolkit leads to a qualification and links learning to the world of work and will help Careers Leaders to work towards the Gatsby benchmarks.

“It has been nicknamed the ‘MBA-Lite’ and takes students through the structured sequence that is critical to successfully launching a new product or business.

“From my time in the RAF I learnt that you cannot service a Harrier Jump Jet if you execute tasks in the wrong order: the sequence is critical.

“In business you must adopt a similarly sophisticated planning mentality right from the start and the CW Entrepreneur’s Toolkit sets out how to do it.”

Coventry and Warwickshire is already one of the most popular start up destinations in the country, with some 24,000 new businesses commencing in 2017. Many are small – three-quarters of businesses in Britain employ only the business owner.

Jeremy added: “There is a wealth of potential to be found in classrooms and we need to ensure that this next generation of businessmen and women have the right tools to assist them as they make their way in the world.

“Although the CW Entrepreneur’s Toolkit can be used by established businesses we are now looking at its benefit to school students."

Find out more here: http://entrepreneurkit.co.uk