Global Links Releases Free Entrepreneurship Handbook to Further Mission Impact

The Global Links India team announced the release of a free business handbook to reach even more female entrepreneurs in India and across the world.

In an effort to disseminate relevant business guidance to as many female entrepreneurs as possible, the Global Links program has announced the release of a new handbook, available for free digitally here.

The Global Links program, a cross-cultural training program sponsoring high-achieving female scholars from emerging countries to foster their social entrepreneurial knowledge and skills, has impacted over 6,000 individuals across three countries.

Released on June 1, on a video call with Global Links supporters from across the globe, the handbook offers every female entrepreneur access to an easily-digestible e-book they can use for reference as they navigate the business landscape.

“While we may not be in India in-person right now due to the global pandemic, our impact and mission can continue through initiatives like this,” said Dr. Mary Conway Dato-on, Global Links faculty director.

While there is an endless library of business handbooks out there, few are relatable to the entrepreneur who doesn’t have business training.

“Most entrepreneurship books in India cater to those who already have an MBA or a business background,” said Dr. Sharmistha Banerjee, Global Links’ first scholar in India. “This handbook had a niche user segment in mind; the entrepreneur without the formal business background.”

Dr. Banerjee and former student Changemakers, like Surabhi Mishra and Sanchari Chatterjee, and Anisha Pandey worked to produce the book. Even though their official Global Links cycle ended, this program empowered these women to continue making change in their home country of India.

Mishra says this handbook is a great resource for female entrepreneurs to use to help them solve business issues on their own.

“We don’t want to have to solve all their problems for them, we want to empower these female entrepreneurs to be able to solve problems for themselves,” said Mishra. “This handbook is a small step to help making them self-reliant.”

Chatterjee says important business strategies like customer relations and digital marketing are taught in the business classroom, but many female entrepreneurs in India don’t know about these strategies.

“We are taught these concepts in the classroom, but the female entrepreneur who really needs them doesn’t know about them,” said Chatterjee. “This handbook is a collective effort to provide guidance to small scale women entrepreneurs to progress ahead in their business journeys.”

Soma Ghosh Gupta, of Econorm Handicrafts, is a female entrepreneur in India who has received guidance from Global Links in her small business. The handbook will be a great resource to her moving forward as she becomes a fully self-reliant female business owner.

“This handbook is a wonderful initiative to help guide all entrepreneurs, especially those who are new to business,” said Soma Ghosh Gupta.

Some of the biggest challenges businesses like Soma Ghosh Gupta’s face in India are things like proper documentation. Without that, many of these businesses cannot accomplish basic tasks such as applying for a loan.

The handbook will take the entrepreneurs through a step-by-step process on how to submit a loan application, manage their cash flow, improve their customer relations, and much more.

“This book will be of tremendous value to women entrepreneurs and startups across the board because the biggest challenge businesses face when they start up is how to get their resources right,” said Perminder Kaur, Director of the East India Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India. “It is wonderful such a lovely book has been thought of and created in order to give startups a clear guideline on how to start, where to get necessary permissions, and how to move forward as they face challenges.”

Looking Ahead

Going forward, the Rick and Susan Goings Foundation will be the primary financial sponsor for Global Links.

With their investment in the program, Global Links will look to continue their expansion into Latin America, while still having a tremendous impact in India.

Global Links is currently recruiting their second Global Links Scholar from Brazil, and has plans to recruit three scholars from Mexico and Colombia as well over the next six years.

“The very humble work we do, really does impact people here in the United States, there in India, and now we are moving that impact across Latin America,” said Dr. Conway Dato-on. “I want to continue to thank our sponsors: the Rick and Susan Goings Foundation, the Crummer Graduate School of Business at Rollins College, as well as the U.S. Consulate in Kolkata, India.”