SMEs to benefit from Google training

The brand logo of Alphabet Inc's Google is seen outside its office in Beijing, China August 8, 2018. [Reuters, Thomas Peter]

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurs in Kenya are set for free training to improve their business skills, thanks to Google.

Google has rolled out a training dubbed ‘Hustle Academy’ that seeks to train 5,000 SMEs and entrepreneurs drawn from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.

The newly launched Google Hustle Academy is a boot camp-style training programme to position entrepreneurs and their small businesses for investment opportunities and building viable business models.

Business owners will undergo five days of hands-on training and receive 3,000 hours of training on different aspects of a business to help them navigate the common challenges facing SMEs.

Training areas will include business growth strategies, building digital marketing roadmaps, discovering and evaluating funding routes and how to pitch successfully.

“Hustle Academy’s mission is to assist entrepreneurs to navigate the business challenges they face by providing them with the appropriate tools and knowledge,” said Google SME Head for East and West Africa Rosemary Momanyi-Opiyo. 

“Our hope is that through the Hustle Academy training this year, we will be able to assist 5,000 SMEs and entrepreneurs across Africa take their business to the next level.”

The programme is open to businesses that have been in operation for more than a year, have developed a business strategy and defined their product or service offering, and are aiming to grow.

The businesses must also have made a profit in the previous 12 months or be within one to three months of breaking even.