Center for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management (Center for ESBM) came into existence at the campus of Maharshi Dayanand Saraswati University on April 24, 2004. This is the first university based Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI). It is housed in Vikramaditya Bhawan.
Maharshi Dayanand Saraswati University at Ajmer is the first university in the country to be supported by the Ministry of Small Scale Industries of Government of India to set up this campus based Entrepreneurship Development Institute.
If self-help is the best help, then self-employment is the best employment and entrepreneurship the most exciting level of self-employment. It provides an opportunity for a person to enter into a process, which leads to realization of their passion for innovation and development. In this career option one has to knock only one door that is one's own self for becoming employed. But the only thing required is that he or she be groomed in an entrepreneurial mould.
Thus, the development of entrepreneur as an alternative career is essential for the over all growth of any economy-national or regional- by way of generating employment opportunities and setting up of micro enterprises using locally available resources to millions of unemployed youth for enhanced productivity. This could be achieved by effecting educational programmes and imaginative planning for implementation of entrepreneurship.
Looking to the socio-economic needs of the region, the University has taken upon the responsibility to create a climate where entrepreneurial activity is recognized, honoured, and looked upon with pride.
It will require intervention at a level where youth/ student see it as a primary employment opportunity rather than an alternative employment. This requires training and educating them where they can take up self-employment with little inhibitions-and that they find themselves prepared for it.
This will require in the first place that a mindset be created where youth passing out of schools and entering higher education have a positive disposition for entrepreneurial activity. This is possible when he is able to associate such activity as a preferred means for livelihood and that his contemporaries associate pride with such an activity. The proposed intervention is thus targeted at two audiences- youth and entrepreneurs. First group includes youth who have just entered colleges; who are about to seek employment; and later expand to include students from high school, about to take up employment or enter higher education. The second group includes small business persons and this centre would provide support in terms of education, training, and consultancy to this group at an affordable cost. Centre also envisages offering them continued assistance and helping them resolve the problems they face.
Objectives
The centre has been established with following objectives:
The centre has been established with following objectives:
To promote entrepreneurship as a socio-cultural value.
To augment valency for entrepreneurial activity- that students see it as an honourable and preferred mechanism for employment.
They are to be groomed in a manner that they are ready to face the challenges of start-ups.
To create an incubator for entrepreneurship.
To serve as an information and resource institute.
To serve as a nodal agency and provide a platform for SMEs and various bodies operative in the locality.
Focus
In the initial years amongst others the centre would focus its efforts on three relatively untouched issues in the region- Service entrepreneurship, women entrepreneurship, and sub-urban and rural entrepreneurship.
Approach
Centre has adopted a five step approach to creating entrepreneurial. Centre would offer intervention at each of these levels. Centre has proposed activities for each of the steps and is open to all creative ideas to further its agenda.
1. Awareness
Create awareness among students by way of education and intervention through curriculum
Organize activities like essay and story writing and case development competition, business quiz, talks etc.
Create and provide centralized support centre for entrepreneurial activities like entrepreneurship camps, fairs, etc.
2. Motivate
Rewarding entrepreneurial activity by students
Recognizing and honouring other entrepreneurial activity in the vicinity.
Organise Entrepreneurship Development Programmes
3. Capability building
Training for teachers of colleges and universities
Promote entrepreneurship as a value through entrepreneurship camps for students
Research on problems of local small business (Create Small Business Research Group)
Curriculum intervention
Short term and long term courses
4. Action
Create a support centre and event management group that will organize infrastructure for student fairs on annual basis both exclusively and alongside local small businesses
Organizing co-curricular activities emphasizing entrepreneurship
Establish an exhibition pavilion for promoting student / small business/ indigenous craft products.
Network with local bodies
5. Continued Support
Training
Consultancy
Information institute
Networking with other agencies