Report reveals surprising trends among future entrepreneurs

The Heavy Chef Foundation has released its Future Entrepreneurs Report, which shows that there is a significant shift happening in South African entrepreneur education. According to the report, advancements in cloud services are set to make many hard skills obsolete, thereby redefining the skills entrepreneurs will need in the future, and making entrepreneurial education more equitable.

The research is based on data from 9 150 entrepreneurs in South Africa, covering 18 demographic segments, with 340 in-depth interviews conducted, 1 020 hours of transcribed data, and 5 100 bytes of data analysed.

The report provides ten valuable insights on how entrepreneurs learn, the role of automation in closing the skills gap, rising start-ups in specific industries, fringe communities and future learning, how they define themselves, long-term trends and critical challenges, increased sophistication of community organizations, shifts in technology, the role of mentors, new business we’ve never seen and why start-ups are the definitive learning school for future entrepreneurs.

Louis Janse van Rensburg, chief executive of the Heavy Chef Foundation, explains, “These learning habits are mapping onto long-expected shifts in technologies that have flown under the radar for some time, but are now speeding their way into the mainstream. This trend is quickly manifesting itself due to disconnected entrepreneurs who experience a lack of access to learning opportunities offered by formal institutions of learning.”

The report reveals that South African entrepreneurs rate their leadership skills as top-class, followed by critical thinking and creative problem-solving abilities. However, financial management, IT, and sales are skills that largely elude them, particularly in developing nations. In addition, entrepreneurs who understand how to navigate niche online communities could find themselves faced with countless new business opportunities.

Millions of tiny online communities populate the internet, and entrepreneurs can leverage them as hotbeds of connection and learning. Future entrepreneurs will seek out intense learning opportunities within these communities using a well-defined culture of engagement. In this way, fringe communities are influencing where and how entrepreneurs of the future will learn.

Research suggests that entrepreneurs’ biggest battle is within – looking after their mental wellbeing. The report points out that long-term trends are pointing to critical challenges entrepreneurs are likely to face, including their relationship with institutions and economic turmoil.

However, techno-optimists believe that ultimately technology will be able to solve any problem the future presents. In this respect, entrepreneurs in general are short-term pessimists but long-term optimists.

Entrepreneurs frequently testify to the immense value the correct mentor has on their personal growth and business. Mentors help more than individuals. Like in the other areas, shifts in technology are putting a fresh new emphasis on the role of mentors.

According to the report, the mainstream mass market is becoming outdated. Niche online communities provide fringe offerings aimed fiercely at loyal customers. This presents entrepreneurs with untold options to offer weird and wonderful things, creating new businesses, the likes we have never seen before.

The Heavy Chef Foundation’s report provides valuable insights into the changing landscape of South African entrepreneur education. Advances in cloud services are set to make many hard skills obsolete, and those who understand how to navigate niche online communities could find themselves faced with countless new business opportunities.

The report highlights the importance of understanding the role of mentors and the critical challenges they are likely to face in the future.

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