Request for Expression of Interest
IFC BUSINESS EDGE Franchise
SME MANAGEMENT TRAINING SOLUTION.
The International Finance Corporation, through the IFC Advisory Services in Africa, is seeking applications from suitably qualified Management/Training Consultancy firms, educational institutions, Business Associations, Public Institutes and individual consultants to become franchises for the IFC Business Edge (BE) SME training solution.
Project Background and Description
BE is an IFC flagship suite of management training products and services, specially designed for owners and managers of Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs). BE was developed and rolled out in Vietnam in 2001, where it was very successful and has been deployed in China, Middle East & Northern Africa, Latin America, and introduced in Nigeria since 2009.
Business Edge includes 51 management topics/modules covering the broad topics area of Marketing, Human Resources, Production & Operations, Finance & Accounting, Tourism and Personal Productivity Skills, IFC uses local consulting and training firms, under a franchise arrangement, to roll out BE to the final SME beneficiaries. Benefits of t e franchise include access to:
- First-rate international materials (trainer manuals, presentation slides and cases) that can be easily customized for clients;
- Training skills and tools for needs assessment, workshop planning & facilitation, and a robust monitoring & Evaluation framework to assess the output, outcomes and impact of training to objectively measure the Return on Training Investment (ROTI);
- Opportunity to train and mentor SMEs allied to IFC clients;
- Opportunity to learn from IFC’s global industry experience and network of practitioner
Criteria For Participation
To qualify, interested firms will nominate trainers/consultants for a 5-day Business Edge Training of Trainers (ToT) and post-training assessment workshop facilitated by accredited Master Trainers and planned for September 26th October 1, 2011 in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Ideal trainers should possess a track record for SME consulting/training in any of the key functional specializations of:
- Financial Management & capital raising
- Marketing sales, customer service
- Management & Operations (including quality processes)
- Human resources management & soft skills
Firms, whose nominees excel-scoring at least 3.5 on a 5point scale- during the ToT will be considered as a possible IFC Business Edge Franchise. Preference will be given to trainers who possess at least 10years of industry and training experience. To participate in the ToT workshop, a participation fee of N65, 000 per individual applies, subsidized to cover workshop materials refreshments and certificates.
How to Apply
Interested firms/consultants should download a BE Business Plan Form the “join our network” page of the Business Edge website- www.businessedge-africa.com Completed forms should be forwarded to IFC through the following email addresses: RNworka@ifc.org or Fiyawa@ifc.org on or before August 14th, 2011. All inquiries should be directed to Chijioke (+234 1 2799 408), Florence (+234 1 279 9400).
ABOUT IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries. We create opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We do so by providing financing to help businesses employ more people and supply essential services by mobilizing capital from others, and by delivering and advisory services to ensure sustainable development. In a time of global economic uncertainty, our new investment climbed to a record $18billion in fiscal 2010. For more information, visit www.ifc.org
