Babson Executive and Enterprise Education has established Launch and Grow: The Kenyan Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership Program, a first of its kind high-impact program for women entrepreneurs from the region.
Babson Executive and Enterprise Education is a dynamic learning laboratory, where clients, faculty, staff, and partners work together to address real-world business challenges and create and capitalize on opportunities for their clients.
“We are delighted to have the first Launch and Grow cohort here for this transformative experience” says Eisenman. “These 14 women exemplify the power of entrepreneurship, and we look forward to working with them to accelerate the growth and impact of their businesses as they form bonds that will not only last a lifetime but also form the foundation for creating a network of successful women entrepreneurs who will expand their reach for years to come.” said Susan Duffy, Executive Director, Center for Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership at Babson
The training at Babson was the critical first stage of the program, focused on supporting Kenyan women entrepreneurs as they learned and applied the principles of Entrepreneurial Thought & Action(r), and enhanced their leadership and mentoring skills, therefore fostering success of their businesses.
Coaching and mentoring will continue in collaboration with the University of Nairobi’s Wangari Maathai Institute and will culminate with a closing ceremony and final presentations of business projects in January 2017. Launch and Grow is a three-year initiative, with new cohorts to be selected each year.
In Kenya, women represent more than 50 percent of the business sector in the country; however, women-run businesses are usually smaller, have less access to credit, a lower growth rate, and lower rate of re-investment. Launch and Grow was created at the initiative of The Women for Africa Foundation and Banco Santander to bridge career stage and status for high-potential women entrepreneurs in Kenya to create extraordinary economic and social value.
Source: Babson