In-gin Business Accelerator

In-gin Business Accelerator created by Ingenuity Business Development (IBD)

After ten years of business consulting, coaching and mentorship, Randall Douglas and Rawle Rollocks saw a gap in the business growth network.

“We had seen many entrepreneurs with great ideas, drive and tenacity, but lacking practical, real world guidance and mentoring and lacking access. We wrestled with fleshing out of this concept, creating the In-gin solution for entrepreneurs."

In-gin focuses on ten cornerstones every entrepreneur needs to do in order to succeed:

1. Have a Vision
2. Have a Mission
3. Evaluate the Market
4. Have a Plan
5. Map the process to create and deliver your product or service
6. Choose the right team
7. Get the right financing
8. Have a Marketing, Sales and Customer Service Plan
9. Follow-up with and listen to your customer
10. Have a Plan B

We focus on commercialization of the idea, product or service, ensuring that it's impact leads to sustainability.

We are trying to answer and minimize the question - "Why do businesses fail?" by Leveling the playing field and giving the disadvantaged access:

Lack of Access

• Lack of access to expertise and guidance
• Lack of time due to other commitments, existing jobs that they are working, family demands
• Lack of access to finance due to lack of collateral, and existing

Lack of Market Validation

• Over 90% of business’ fail (YBTT strat plan data)

• Most entrepreneurs do not put in the right work

• There is a fear of failure syndrome

Poor Customer Understanding

• Entrepreneurs fail to understand their customers needs

• Failure to understand how to reach their customer

• Failure to sell the idea to the customer

Poor Operational Execution

• Poor Costing and cashflow prep

• Poor phasing

• Lack of Plan B or MVP

4.1% of adults reported that they had “quit, sold or closed their business.
Only 17.4% of the early-stage entrepreneurs in 2013 considered that their products or services would be perceived vs. avg of 40% for LAC countries.

Source: GEM Study 2013

In-gin aims to level the playing field by enabling access through the current easiest access method - the internet.

In-gin serves individuals, SME's, corporations by addressing the gaps in understanding, process, planning or execution. Most individual entrepreneurs go thru the following Business Stages:

1. Proof of Concept
2. Proof of "Commerciability"
3. Incubation
4. Commercialize

In-gin's primary goal is to assist in the Commercializing phase (thereby avoiding duplication) but having a secondary goal of providing support for the first three phases, if necessary. In-gin's support will take the form of these key business activities:

1. Operationalize the idea
2. Market to the right target
3. Sell using best practice closing principles
4. Analyse the KPI's, results and feedback
5. Adapt to necessary internal and external environmental changes
6. Augment by adding the relevant resources including training
7. Grow through ambitious goals designed for sustainability

In-gin is also providing a platform for other business educators and consultants for them to reach and interactively train and/or develop specific skills in their target cohorts. 

How does In-gin's structure work? We use a three tier engagement structure:

MENTORS

Enable coaching and teaching

OPERATIONS

Efficient, tech based

ADVISORY BOARD

Guided by experts

Many entrepreneurship platforms are one dimensional – only mentorship or only design. In-gin's takes the participant through the stages of  validation to execution, leaving no doubt about what needs to be done.

Solution Synopsis:

In-gin is an online learning management system built on a Wordpress Platform for easy of maintenance and flexibility of expansion/addition of new tools. The platform will have a mobile portal component allowing access cellphone apps.

Suitable for all categories of business and personal entrepreneurship, our set of tools are:

Online Training Materials

Webinars, online courses, interactive forums, reading materials & templates

Private and Secure

Results & information shared are private and google secure logins are utilised

Fiscal Focus

Financial Responsibility and Sustainability are In-gin's goals for participants

Some materials and introductory content will be free of charge, as a service to the LAC region and to attract persons to the platform and encourage use.

Unique selling proposition:

Our solution on a combination of theoretical and practical experience and approaches, which enables us to walk participants through ideas to execution. Our approaches include:

People Centric

Delivering people oriented solutions - All content and approaches use people first as a base.

Comprehensive

Covers all business areas - Any success must be holistic in order to be sustainable.

Self-Motivational

Teaching to fish - Giving templates and solutions must be accompanied by contextual learning and proficiency.

Value Proposition:

1. Free access to first level content in all key business areas.
2. Messaging and email access for six months, along with a monthly face to face meeting.
3. Monthly progress review of solutions implementation. Advanced participants can be selected for the high growth programme.

How does In-gin sustain itself?

1. Members Fees  – Annual membership fee gives you access to high level services or flat course costs.
2. Participant Fees - Participating in In-gin Expo (Physical and Virtual), workshops
3. Sponsors - Annual In-gin Expo Sponsors
4. Fees for coaches and associates
5. White label and special business group packages
6. Equity sharing and objective achievement commissions for mentors
7. Admin support fees for support services

In-gin Key Expenses

1. Hosting fees for high traffic servers
2. Marketing & Graphic Design
3. Online advertising costs
4. Webmaster maintenance costs
5. Site communication (with participants) and admin costs

Ownership and IP:

• In-gin itself is the property of Ingenuity Business Development
• MOU's will will be signed by between any corporate participant, sponsors.
• Each main mentor/contributor get the majority of commission for work on the programme, but will also be compensated for any one-one work done with clients (training, mentoring etc).
• Net Profits from the In-gin programme will be split between IBD and In-gin for re-investment.

In-gin's innovation lies in the interactive use of the technology to create spaced repetition and multi-level, progressive learning tiers. In addition, our curated, experienced mentors allow participants to enjoy a practical learning interaction whether by courses, reading or video/live sessions. Some innovative elements include:

•Live handholding to get the business off the ground - using chat and other tools

•Real business mentors with real experience

•Real Market Interaction and Intervention – not just theory - through simulated and live market assignments.

•Real ongoing feedback and adjustment - documented for ease of participant review and In-gin self-learning.

In the current environment, LAC entrepreneurs are heavily reliant and open to learning via mobile and online tools. In-gin uses these tools to reach participants:

• where they are
• when they need it

using elements of "on-demand" resources and other virtual tools.

Courses can contain multiple choice, single answer, true or false or sorting content.

Courses can also form part of prerequisites or modules leading to higher level awards such as full certificates.

Participants receive automatic progress for courses, and when the specified pass rate is achieved, an automatic certificate is emailed.

Participants can also be added into e-newsletters to receive general or industry specific tips.

There is also an integrated forum allowing communication to participant or mentor/instructor.

Built in sharing tools allow participants and mentors/creators to share content to the popular social media networks.

Overall, the platform is tightly integrated, allowing for participants and mentors alike to receive maximum benefits through an interactive environment.

A Theory of Change is used to define outcomes, and to identify outputs and inputs. Using a simplified version of this change model:

Activities/Inputs

In-gin will utilize its experience in the field to allow the platform to progress through three types of entrepreneur need:

Advise

•We listen and then advise – you complete. Using this methodology we create the "teach to fish" environment that we believe is fundamentally important to creating impact in individuals and communities.

Guide

•We listen and then help you to do - Active Listening and integrated improvement is critical to ensuring that the solution works for the participant.

Perform

•We listen and then do it for you - If the action required is beyond the entrepreneur, we don't just leave them in inaction. We actively work with the individual to teach the missing link and close the gap.

Additionally, the In-gin Brain Trust will guide the platform in terms of it reach and development and is comprised of:

•Advisory Board

•Experienced Coaches

•Competent Admin Staff

•Technical Know How and easy entrepreneur reach

Outputs

Short term outcomes

• Educated Insight and Empathy
• Business Operational Insight
• Industry and Impact Context

Long term outcomes

• Entrepreneur development
• Community prosperity
• Cycle of continuous improvement

In this BBC piece:

BBC Click - The Secrets Behind AI - How do you teach artificial intelligence?

We can see the positive impact, healthy entrepreneurial activity on impoverished and challenged communities. This is how In-gin will carve out its own theory of change.

The In-gin platform is capable of serving thousands of participants based on the level of hosting package that is selected and the scalable nature of the platform, allowing ease of adding new participants.

Potential instructors can be easily added, after a vetting process and signing to agreements concerning: standards of conduct, confidentiality agreements, IP usage and sharing and content creation guidelines. Content can also be easily uploaded.

Currently, In-gin is not serving anyone as the platform is in prototype. (Note for MIT: Please remember when viewing the site)

One Year Projection

We are projecting 200 persons. This will largely come from local social media advertising, direct contact in communities and liaising with entities that assist local entrepreneurs, including current IBD clients such as Agricultural Development Bank and the Caribbean Fisheries Training and Development Institute.

Five Year Projection

We are projecting 5,000 persons or more in the wider Caribbean area. Using local and similar bodies such as the Youth Training and Enterprise Academy (YTEPP), Youth Business Trinidad and Tobago (YBTT), Ministry of Education, Business Chambers, local entrepreneurship assistance bodies etc, In-gin will be able to build it's participant levels.

Based on the large number of entrepreneurs in Trinidad and Tobago and LAC, In-gin sees a continuous demand for the platform. In the Paper "Latin American Entrepreneurs - Many Firms but Little Innovation" by WORLD BANK 2013, a compounded issue of little innovation and low exports by LAC entrepreneurs. In-gin can help to improve weak areas and close gaps with on-demand support.

In the next year, In-gin will complete its testing in two to three months and conduct a hard launch, post Covid-19 lockdowns in the region. This testing period includes a soft launch in Trinidad and Tobago serving up mostly free content to capitalise on the larger than usual at home audience and work out the teething problems.

We also hope to add at least one - and by the end of the year - five corporate clients through a group sign-up or a white label solution.

In the next five years, In-gin hopes to have the following:

• A widescale offering of courses and content in all business areas.

• A range of interactive tools to deliver an interactive and effective learning experience, particularly for literacy challenged participants.

• A well-known annual virtual expo where attendees and exhibitors can host and explore products and services, including offerings by individuals and SME's.
• Additional add on services available through the platform to assist entrepreneurs, such as graphic design and web design.

• The final key element will be a self-sustaining influx of mentors and contributors and the laying of an expansion into a global model.

Any benefits that can be gained by interfacing with regional organisations such as the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) and the International Development Bank (IDB), will be explored, as far as access to target markets and uses of their platforms for visibility.

First Year Barriers

Financial

• Cost of Hosting fees for high bandwidth sites

• Cost of admin support and webmaster support

• Cost of Advertising Support

Technical

• Curated content examination and reloading of updated content

• Content creation and attracting mentors/contributors

• Internet Access in rural or impoverished areas.

• Cellphone/Tablet device procurement

Cultural

• "Laisez-faire" nature of Caribbean and Latin American target clients
• Literacy rate challenges amongst target market

Legal

• IP Content issues enforce-ability despite signed agreement

• Differences in business frameworks across the region

• Competition as opposed to complimentary behaviour by existing local entities.

Next Five Years

Financial

• Cost of Hosting fees for high bandwidth sites

• Cost of admin support and webmaster support

• Cost of Advertising Support

Technical

• Curated content examination and reloading

• Content creation and attracting mentors/contributors

• Internet Access in rural or impoverished areas.

• Cellphone/Tablet device procurement

Cultural

• Laisez-faire nature of Millennials

• Language barriers across the region/globally

Legal

• IP Content issues enforce-ability despite signed agreement

• Differences in business frameworks across the region/globally

Market Barriers

• High competition from existing similar platforms

Financial

• Sponsor Advertising will assist in revenue generation to offset overheads

• Corporate group packages and white labeling - This is high margin and high long term revenue that can play a critical role in cash flow generation.

Technical

• Specialised team of "editors" reviewing content basic on a created "rubric"

• Advertise the availability of a "creator favorable" commission structure.

• Sponsored Internet Access/Device partnership with local cell/ISP providers such as B-Mobile and Digicel.

Cultural

• Focus on buy-in and careful selection process for advanced levels to counteract cultural biases.

• Platform is multiple language ready including right to left languages to facilitate wide range of communication.

Legal

• IP Content to be advised by lawyer and requisite pre-documents/steps to be created.

• Document differences in business frameworks and recruit local mentors/instructors to modify existing content or create new content.

Not Applicable.

The In-gin opportunity builds upon the similarity of needs by the target market. Entrepreneurs display similar characteristics and face almost the same issues as seen by the data in the report "Micro-Small Medium Enterprise Development in the Caribbean - Towards a New Frontier" by the Caribbean Development Bank, 2016.

It is important to recognize that the platform can be easily translated to other languages.

Additionally, mobile usage and penetration in the LAC markets is high even among middle to low income and growing. Therefore, there is the opportunity to provide access to LAC entrepreneurs after carefully planning the expansion, procuring mentors and content creators. It is also important to link with private and public entities in these LAC markets to allow understanding and enable reach to the potential entrepreneurial "pools".

Not Applicable.

Ingin's team includes both Full Time, Part Time and Contractors

Full-Time

2 persons - Roles: Content Administrator, Web Design and Marketing

Part Time

3 persons - Administrative Assistant, Participant liaison

Contractors

9 persons - Contractors hired based on need for IT, Accounting or HR needs.

These positions are scalable and can also be outsourced if necessary.

The platform allows for remote work and therefore can enable mentors and/or content creators to work from wherever they are.

Randall Douglas, Bsc. In Industrial Management 

Chief Consultant at IBD. Has 14 years of strong corporate experience in Sales, Marketing, Trade Marketing and General Management.

Work Experience at Global Best Practice companies: Unilever Caribbean, Coca—Cola and Nestle

Local companies: Trinidad Publishing Company Limited (media and special publications) Alstons Marketing Company Limited (AMCO) a distribution company.

Has formal training in Customer Management Best Practice, Change Management, Traditional Trade Management, and Advanced Brand Communication.  

Rawle Rollocks, BSc. Tourism Management 

Business Consultant with over 20 years of organizational development, market expansion and sales leadership experience with a genuine passion for developing high performance teams.    

Has also led sales efforts at major regional financial institutions including Clico and Sagicor. Also organisational development UWI-Institute of Business (now the Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business).

A Certified Trainer for 10+ yrs, covering new business development, programme management and management consulting, Business Planning, Strategic Planning, Business Proposal Writing, Project Management, Marketing and Sales, Team building and Customer Service, with Leadership Development as his Life’s Passion.

Beverly Gittens

Passionate and gifted Sales Professional and Trainer with over 15 years of experience in direct sales and sales management.      

Has worked for major regional insurance companies including Clico, Sagicor and Guardian Group, conducting Sales Training and Coaching for front-line staff, Sales and Self Mastery Training, Customer Service and Communication Skills.  

Has conducted seminars on Income Protection Planning, Strategies for Effective Wealth Accumulation, Risk Management for Business, Business Continuity Solutions, Business Expansion Solutions, Employee Performance Risk Solutions.

 

The In-gin Team consists of individuals with a strong history of entrepreneurial mentorship, corporate training and education programme development.

Randall Douglas is also a past facilitator with CARIRI’s Centre for Enterprise
Development’s Business Incubator and Hatchery Programmes; currently sits
on the AMCHAM Business Incubation Committee and has worked with many
clients via exporTT; and NEDCO's IBIS mentorship programme as a workshop
facilitator and mentor. He is also a Director of Youth Business Trinidad
and Tobago( (YBTT).

Rawle Rollocks has worked with organisations such as NEDCO as a facilitator, Elders and Associates as a counselor for EAP programmes, as well as Madonna Doyle and Associates, a Leadership and Communications, consulting group.

Ms. Gittens has also worked with major organizations such as NEDCO
as a facilitator and conducted training programmes in Human Resource
Management for Small Businesses, Developing Business Plans and Cash
Management and Record Keeping for Small Businesses.

With that range of experience, the team can deliver:

•Live handholding to get your business off the ground

•Real business coaches with real experience

•Real Market Interaction and Intervention – not just theory

•Real ongoing feedback and adjustment

Key Resources

Which Key Resources are we acquiring from partners?

• In-gin.net platform
• IBD brand and practical experience
• Sponsors

Key Partners & Stakeholders

Who are our Key Partners, stakeholders & suppliers? 

• Financial Institutions, Governments, NGO’s, Corporate
• ISP's
• Mentors/Content Creators

Value Propositions

Which one of our customer’s problems and needs are we helping to solve and satisfy? 

Create market driven, sustainable, entrepreneurial operations through relevant best practice tools that deliver continuous innovation and stability.

Key Activities

What Key Activities do our Value Propositions require?

• Content Creation and Encoding
• Mentor/Creator Pool Development
• Trend Tracking and Innovative Tech
• Participant Funneling
• Tech/Platform Simplicity through innovation
• Sponsor/Corporate Group and customized solutions

Impact Measures

• # of participants
• # of completed courses over a % pass rate
• # of Participants Progression to higher learning levels

Customer Value Proposition

What value do we deliver to the customer and what do they want to get out of this initiative?

“To move from subsistence to innovative sustainability”

• Subsistence Stabilisation
• Sustainable Operations Innovation
• Growth and Development

Channels

How are we reaching them now? How are our Channels integrated?

• In-gin.net
• Partnerships: NGO’s, Government Entities, Chambers, Schools, Corporate

Customer Segments

For whom are we creating value?

• Individuals and Entrepreneurs, Micro and SME’s, Corporate groups, Schools
• Sponsors who receive advertising exposure
• Development entities requiring Participant Demographical & Needs Data,

Cost Structure

• Web Platform
• Hardware for platform/participant maintenance
• Staff and Contractors for Admin

Surplus

• Marketing and Platform Development
• Mentor/Content Creator Development

Revenue Streams

• Participant Fees for Higher Level Content
• Sponsor revenue
• Trend and Demographic Insight Sharing

In-gin plans to achieve financial sustainability through the following means:

1. Members Fees  – Per course and Annual membership fee gives participant access to high level services/courses or flat course costs.
2. Participant Fees - Participating in In-gin Expo (Physical and Virtual), and online workshops
3. Sponsors - Annual In-gin Expo Sponsors. Different packages will be created for levels of sponsorship. In return, sponsors can receive advertising placement and special access via newsletter and other platform mediums to participants.
4. Commissions from coaches and associates - These are commissions for courses sold on the platform with a share (est. 20% going back to In-gin).
5. White label and special business group packages - Special packages for customised content for corporate clients, or special rates for existing content.
6. Equity sharing and objective achievement commissions for mentors - This relates to additional work assigned to mentors outside of the platforms content.
7. Admin support fees for support services - A key element will be the provision of support services for entrepreneurs such as: photography, videography, graphic design, admin processing, accounting and so on.

Coupled with the expansion of participant reach and sign up, In-gin will be able to deliver sustainable revenue within one year of its initial launch.

Additionally, a key driver is content and relevant content. At the base of the sustainability pyramid, In-gin will actively recruit based on trend and needs data, as well as ensuring young new blood is introduced to the pool, vetted and guided by the Advisory Board.

IBD is applying to the MIT challenge as we are confident it fits the solution needed for the LAC region to move entrepreneurs from sometimes successful subsistence to confidently sustainable growth and resilience.

 

The In-gin platform takes many parts and pieces of other solutions and merges them together in a comprehensive platform that is easy to access and understand. We aim to move the Trinidad and Tobago entrepreneur and eventually the LAC entrepreneur to a confident, informed and educated position. This is so as to “teach to fish” and enable them to continuously improve their organizations from the inside. They can return to In-gin to keep moving up the business education ladder.

 

Together with the financial and technical support from the MIT challenge, we feel that we can circumvent of obstacles and barriers. This will enable strong launch with minimal teething problems that may normally be caused by inadequate resources such as slow server speed due to a low hosting plan.

 

We are confident that the platform can and will have an enormous impact on the Trinidad and Tobago entrepreneur and in five years, the LAC entrepreneur as well.

 

We hope that our submission meets with the MIT criteria, and we thank you for the consideration.

In-gin sees the platform partnering with two types of entities:

 

Assistive – Those who can help the platform grow e.g. MIT, Microsoft, Apple, Facebook and other enabling bodies. They can help through advice or access to technical resources to make the platform better in its current form or in using technologies such as AR on Apple’s and Microsoft’s platforms. For example, we have some personal links to Maxine Williams, Head of Diversity for Facebook.

 

Visibility – Those individuals and companies that can deliver needed connections and PR to the platform. These would include global names such as Richard Branson who is active in similar ways in the Caribbean; former President Obama who has his Obama Foundation; as well as local (in each territory) and regional celebrities to drive interest to the platform.