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Liberty Holdings Enterprise Supplier Development
Posted by Daniel Makhura on 28 June 2017 2:00 PM SAST
The programme exists to develop the small businesses.
Liberty's commitment to increase the pace and impact of our transformation journey for our communities, suppliers and potential suppliers was demonstrated through the launch of the Liberty Blue Skies programme. The programme aims to develop and grow emerging entrepreneurs and enterprises throughout their business growth life-cycle by removing barriers to growth. More than R63 million was invested in enterprise and supplier development during 2016.
How does Liberty provide support to these SMEs?
Despite only being half way through the business development phase of the programme (9 of 18 months), there have already been significant achievements realised on the programme. As we continue the SME’s business development journey the programme is expected to create more jobs, increase focus on supply chain benefit, demonstrate impressive revenue and profitability growth numbers and generate internal and external brand value for Liberty Group through effective communications.
Overall achievements are based on support provided to programme SMEs for a period of 9 out of 18 months.
How the Blue Skies Enterprise and Supplier Development Programme works
The “new” Enterprise and Supplier Development programme (ESD) mandated in the DTIs 2015 updates to the BBBEE code actually incorporates two existing pillars of good practise:
● Enterprise Development, and
● Preferential Procurement.
Supplier Development has been introduced as the third pillar – the support strut that has been missing from previous adjustments to the code.
Based on this solid foundation, qualifying businesses become preferred suppliers to big corporates. Enterprises are developed to their full potential. And the suppliers providing big corporates with the necessities of their daily work are, in turn, developed to grow into businesses that do justice to the corporates that have invested in their success.
This is pure BBBEE gold. Together, these three subcategories now hold the highest value on the balanced BBBEE scorecard – 40 of the total 105 points available. This effectively establishes ESD as the most significant pillar in the B BBEE mix.
The missing ingredient.
Critical to the success of this programme is participation. This programme can’t work as a top-down ideology. Each and every employee at Liberty has a directive to commit to proactive and preferential procurement from black owned SMEs. This practice needs to form part of everyday business. It is only together that we can bring about the transformation to which we aspire.
How do we achieve this?
Liberty’s Blue Skies ESD programme encompasses a toolkit that will effectively move SMEs measurably closer to their goals and potential.
The Blue Skies programme takes the form of a one-year training and coaching programme, incorporating:
● Financial investment
● Financial coaching
● Marketing coaching and development
● Networking
● Preferred supplier programme
