Promoting entrepreneurship

the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Introduction Starters Centre Regional centre for promoting entrepreneurship

Southern-Limburg
Project
Marcel van Kasteren • Business consultant
Location • Small & Medium Enterprise expert
• Projectmanager
Context ‘Neigbourhood Economy Project Heerlen’
• Freelance external expert SME
Practice for UN project in Southern Sudan (Malakal)

Process design

Legal
framework
Evaluation

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Starters Centre Southern-Limburg

Introduction Mission Foundation to stimulate and promote entrepreneurship
in region Southern-Limburg
Project
Co-funded by Chamber of Commerce Southern-Limburg
Structure
Location and all 19 municipalities in the region (€ 0,38/citizen)

• One access point for ‘entrepreneurship’ in the area

Context Approach • Service ‘free of charge’
• No admission obstacles
Practice • Qualified staff (8 employees)
• Located in three major towns
Process design Maastricht
Heerlen
Legal Sittard-Geleen
framework
Evaluation

Site visit Southern-Limburg IHS - Indonesia delegation

29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Starters Centre Southern-Limburg

Introduction Products & • Distribution of printed & digital material
services on entrepreneurship (Business Plan, Startersmagazine)
Project • Seminar ‘general introduction on entrepreneurship’
• Thematic seminars e.g. fiscal/tax issues, bookkeeping,
Location employment of personnel, company take over, …
• Personal business consultancy (talks)
• Assistance on entrepreneurship education
Context
to middle and higher educational institutes
• Cooperation with network partners (province,
Practice municipalities, banks, other public institutions, …)

Process design • 7,500 magazines distributes

Results • 50 seminars ‘general introduction entrepreneurship’ (1000)
Legal • 60 thematic seminars (1200)
framework • 1,500 personal business talks
Evaluation • 5,000 contact moments
• Annual ‘Entrepreneurship day’ (1200 participants)
• 2,500 new companies!

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
3
 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Introduction Title of the Practice Neigbourhood Economy Project Heerlen

‘project BuurtEconomie Heerlen (BEH)’
Project

Location Main Theme Economic revitalisation of disadvantaged

neigbourhoods (Urban II area) through support to
Context SME’s

Practice

Process design

Legal
framework
Evaluation

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Geographical context Heerlen, Parkstad region,

Introduction Limburg province, the Netherlands

Project Scale & dimension

Urban II area
• in northern part of Heerlen
Location • 45,028 inhabitants (49% of 91,528)
• 1,218 hectares (27 % of 4,524)
• divided in 6 sub-area’s
Context • City-East
• City-North
Practice • Rennemig-Beersdal
• Heerlerheide-Passart
Process design • Vrieheide-De Stack
• Hoensbroek-De Dem
Legal
framework Mixture of
Evaluation Characteristics • upgraded former mine worker houses
• newly developed social housing area’s
• existing urban area’s

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)
Main demographic Since 2003 Parkstad region / Heerlen is
characteristics experiencing a decline in amount of inhabitants
Introduction • Low birth rate
• Higher life expectation (more elderly)
Project • Negative migration balance
2003 2004 2005 2006
Location Amount inhabitants Urban area 46,318 46,027 45,540 45,028
Amount inhabitants Heerlen total 93,989 93,523 92,585 91,528
Context
Main socio-economic Since 2002 Heerlen experienced a strong rise in
Practice characteristics unemployment
• Significantly higher than national level
Process design • Trend break in 2005, decline 2006

Legal 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

framework Unemployed citizens

4,586 4,462 5,341 6,430 6,886
Heerlen total
Evaluation
% of unemployed people
vs. potential professionals - - 8 10 11
Heerlen
% of unemployed people
vs. potential professionals 3.5 4.1 5.4 6.5 6.5
national
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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Target group Potential entrepreneurs as well as existing ones

Introduction (small enterprises with less than 10 employees)

Project Objectives
• To assist potential entrepreneurs with process
of business development and planning
Location • To assist existing entrepreneurs by improving
their business throughout company life cycle
Context

Practice
Three indicators
Process design Expected outcome • 400 potential entrepreneurs under coaching
• 100 start-ups created
Legal • 100 existing entrepreneurs under support
framework
Evaluation • Starting date 1st January 2003
• 4 Years until 31st December 2006
Time scale
• Midterm evaluation after 2 years (BEH part I & II)

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Main elements • ‘One counter concept’ in business consultancy

• Offered by two business consultants
Introduction • Entrepreneurial advise & coaching
• Free of charge
Project • Using network partners

Location • Free consultancy hours

Activities • Intensive coaching in developing business plans
Context • Organize vocational training: entrepreneurial
skills, business plans, bookkeeping, commercial
• Organize thematic events
Practice
• Customer assistance: application for funding,
debt rationalization, housing
Process design
• Lack of notion about entrepreneurship
Legal • Neigbourhoods with lack of or poor businesses
Issues and problems
framework • Physical degradation of area’s
Evaluation • Limited access to investment/finance possibilities
• Poor entrepreneurial skills and competences
• ‘Problem companies’ (sometimes illegal)

Site visit Southern-Limburg IHS - Indonesia delegation

29 November 2006 Maastricht
8
 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)
Decision making 1. City Council & City Management - Heerlen
actors • Initiator
Introduction • Political judgement
• Subsidy approval
Project
2. Department of City Planning – Heerlen
• Policy maker
Location • Project proposal
• Project owner
Context
• Urban II program management – Heerlen
Practice • Overall management
• Subsidies
Process design
4. Starters Centre Southern-Limburg
Legal (public foundation co-funded by Chamber of
framework Commerce and all regional municipalities)
Evaluation • Project execution & organization
• Daily management
• Daily operations

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
9
 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Strategies • Experience used from a similar project in

Maastricht (‘Entrepreneur in the Neigbourhood’)
Introduction • Special attention to administrative procedures
and recordkeeping
Project • Joint initiatives with Maastricht by partial overlay
in operations (2003 – 2005): ‘economy of scale’
Location
• City Council & City Management
Coordination • political & subsidy approval, final responsible
Context
• Urban II steering committee
• project & subsidy approval
Practice
• Starters Centre Southern-Limburg
• daily responsible and operational managem.
Process design
• Start-ups from a social welfare situation phase
Legal long bureaucratic procedures
Conflicts
framework • Find proper commercial estates for start-ups
Evaluation • Limited access to financial resources and
investement opportunities

Site visit Southern-Limburg IHS - Indonesia delegation

29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Legal setting • A public institution (the Starters Centre) is

Introduction responsible for implementation
• On operational level non-profit as well as private
Project organizations are contracted to deliver services
for start-ups and existing entrepreneurs
Location

Context

Practice

Process design • A co-operation agreement between project

Legal instruments owner (municipality of Heerlen and project
Legal executor (Starters Centre)
framework • A biennial communication plan for public
Evaluation relation and communication activities
• An activity plan (yearly)
• Urban II report (quarterly)

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Human resources • 2 business consultants (entrepreneurial advisors)

Introduction • project management: shared responsibility
between 1 consultant & director of Starters Centre
Project • part time administrative (0,2 fte) and financial
(0,1) support by existing staff of Starters Centre
Location
• Total budget € 907,600 for four years (2003-2006)
Financial resources • Co-financing between
Context • community budget (56% or € 508,525)
• and Urban II subsidy (45% or € 399,344)
Practice

Process design Project budget item 2003 / 2004 2005 /2006 Total budget

Personnel costs € 239,000 € 260,000 € 499,000

Legal
framework Housing & facilities € 40,000 € 40,000 € 80,000

Evaluation PR & communications € 80,000 € 40,000 € 120,000

Technical project support € 94,800 € 113,800 € 208,600

Total budget per period € 453,800 € 453,800 € 907,600

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)
Results and
common benefits
Introduction Expected Realization Total
Realization
Indicators output 2005-2006 realization
2003-2004
2003-2006 (until 01/07) 2003-2006
Project
Initial customer
600 342 261 603
contacts
Location Customers under
400 262 203 465
coaching
Context Start-ups created 100 65 45 110

Practice Existing entrepreneurs 100 60 44 104

Process design Lessons learned ‘Intensive entrepreneurial support and coaching

works out!’
Legal
framework
Evaluation

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Introduction

Project

Location
John & Ton Gielen
Context
Alternative health care centre
Practice
Started 2004
Process design

Legal
framework
Evaluation

Site visit Southern-Limburg IHS - Indonesia delegation

29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Introduction
Pera & Hata Bajramovic
Project
Satellite and telephone shop
Location
Started 2004
Context

Practice

Process design

Legal
framework
Evaluation

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29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Introduction

Project

Location Monique Bonné

Context Prenatal care centre

Practice Started 2005

Process design

Legal
framework
Evaluation

Site visit Southern-Limburg IHS - Indonesia delegation

29 November 2006 Maastricht
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 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Introduction

Project

Location

Thanks to EU / Urban II
Context

Practice

Process design

Legal
framework
Evaluation

Site visit Southern-Limburg IHS - Indonesia delegation

29 November 2006 Maastricht
17
 Promoting entrepreneurship
the Southern-Limburg experience (NL)

Introduction

Project 2006
Location

Context
2007
Practice

Process design

Legal
Terima Kasih !
framework
Evaluation

Site visit Southern-Limburg IHS - Indonesia delegation

29 November 2006 Maastricht
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