According to the director of entrepreneurial education of Endeavor Brazil, Renata Chilvarquer, the realities of business-minded students in the country are harsh. In a country where only 1.5% of businesses are considered high growth, those who wish to break out and start their own businesses or entrepreneurships face harder certainties than others in higher-income countries.
However, Chilvarquer knows of these challenges, and is looked to bring successful businessmen and women into the fold by gathering their knowledge and experience and turning it into opportunities for embattled students. Endeavor has opened free registration for parts of the course, Boot to Do, which aims to assist, inspire and give opportunities to students with big ideas.
Endeavor uses success stories as illustrations, from CEO of Buscape Romeo Rodrigues, to General Atlantic managing director Martin Escobari who is an active member of Endeavor, to encourage and certify students within the program. These students will have chances to chat with people who have success stories to share, and learn from those who have worked their way up the business ladder about how they have turned ideas into reality, and created their own firms.
Brazil Innovative is a similar program, which is under the coordination of the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade. This program offers free training and mentoring of technology-based start-ups with innovative potential. The aim of the program is to place start-ups with direct touch with not only those in the know, but as well as potential customers and clients. In over two years, they have received over 2,500 entries and nearly 200 have reached the final stages of the cycle.
Targeting fledgling entrepreneurs and businesses is a great opportunity not just for those participating, but for Brazil as well. Offering free education to graduate students, post-graduate, teacher and researchers is not just a business-minded effort, but a philanthropic one as well. By teaching their younger generation the tools for success, it can help aim Brazil toward a higher achievement for current and future generations.