Today’s entrepreneur has to be bold, self motivated, have sound business knowledge and a passion for the development of sustainable solutions.

Experts in Human Capital Management (HCM) and HR resource development believe entrepreneurs now operate in an evolving environment that is consistently influenced and driven by technology, including mobility and the Cloud.

Although these and other challenges, including the exponential growth in information, abound, the number of individuals and groups hoping to breathe life into ideas and turn concepts into profit are increasing.

James McKerrell, CEO of CRS Technologies, says the HCM and HR space is where many entrepreneurs are tripped up. It is an area of the market defined by regulation and compliance, with new laws directing businesses on the management of information, of taxes and of personnel.

He describes the industry as a “minefield of regulation and legislation” that can easily stifle an entrepreneur’s progress if they are not up to date on the latest solutions or have knowledge of systems that can help them.

“It is for this reason that service providers focused on HCM and HR practices continue to position themselves to assist businesses to access solutions and apply these to optimise operations,” says McKerrell.

Value added tech

The most important considerations for businesses looking for direction on technology procurement and application are that whatever is integrated should streamline business processes and procedures, should facilitate and nurture productivity and be cost effective.

Technology aside, the development of entrepreneurial skill sets and the availability of tools are also key factors.

McKerrell believes there are enough people and HR development programs in place, but the benefit of these is somewhat limited as a result of bureaucracy that blocks access.

“I believe there are a sufficient number of development programs and level of infrastructure available, but, again, the red tape involved in getting to these is unproductive and there is not enough awareness of the facilities available,” he explains.

It is here where government plays an increasingly important role, according to CRS Technologies.

Local, regional and provincial authorities have initiated programs to help support the establishment and growth of businesses, especially small businesses.

“However, while there has been some progress, there is also a degree of frustration,” McKerrell continues. “This is mainly due to the complexity of registration, licensing and other somewhat unnecessary red tape.”

Given that commodities like venture capital and angel investment is becoming more difficult to secure, entrepreneurs are under more pressure to stake their claim and hold on to their share on their own steam.

Experienced service providers like CRS Technologies can certainly add value by guiding entrepreneurs and offering insight into what are often unclear and seemingly complex concepts, sets of rules and issues concerning governance.