NWU Resources

At the NWU Business School, we are deeply committed to fostering a vibrant and thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem in Africa. Recognizing the immense potential of our continent's innovators, we have designed and implemented a variety of initiatives tailored to support and nurture the growth of African start-ups.

Our NWU-specific list of initiatives focuses on three key areas: education, mentorship, and networking. These are the cornerstones of any successful entrepreneurial journey, and we have made it our mission to provide an unparalleled experience that empowers African entrepreneurs to achieve their goals.

• innovateHER
• Technology Transfer and Innovation Support Office
• bhive Incubator
• Small Business Advisory Bureau
• NWU Business School

Starting & Funding your business

Embarking on an entrepreneurial journey and securing funding for your business can be a daunting experience. To help you navigate this process, we have handpicked a selection of exceptional online courses from world-renowned institutions that you can complete free of charge in auditing mode on Coursera. These courses provide valuable insights and practical guidance on starting and funding your business, covering a range of topics from business models and startup financing to innovative entrepreneurship and social businesses.

1. Michigan State University - Start Your Own Business
2. London Business School - Startup Financing Without VC
3. University of Maryland - Startup Funding
4. Wharton Business School, UniPenn - Launching a Startup
5. Wharton Business School, UniPenn - Crowdfunding
6. University of Colorado Boulder - Launching a Technology Startup Company
7. Copenhagen Business School - A Model for Social Businesses
8. University of Maryland - The Innovative Entrepreneur

With these courses at your fingertips, you'll gain the knowledge and confidence to build a strong foundation for your venture and secure the necessary funding to fuel its growth. Learn from esteemed faculty and industry experts and kick-start your entrepreneurial journey today!

The Innovation Canvas

In the competitive world of entrepreneurship, innovative ideas can make all the difference. To help you develop and refine your concepts, we present the "Innovation Canvas" course by Innovate UK KTN. This practical online course offers a structured framework that will guide you through the process of building, evaluating, and refining your innovation ideas, ensuring they have the greatest potential for success.

1. Innovate UK KTN - Build Your Innovation Idea

The Business Model Canvas

Creating a solid business model is crucial to the success of any start-up. To assist you in this critical step, we have curated a list of outstanding online courses and tools focused on the Business Model Canvas and lean start-up business modeling. These resources will help you develop, analyze, and refine your business model, providing a clear roadmap for your venture's growth and profitability.

Courses and Tools:

1. University System of Georgia - Business Model Canvas
2. University of Virginia - Business Model Canvas
3. The Business Channel - Business Model Canvas
4. Lean Canvas - Lean Startup Business Modeling
5. Canvanizer - Canvanizer https:https://canvanizer.com/new/lean-canvas//canvanizer.com/new/lean-canvas
6. Strategyzer - Business Model Canvas and Value Proposition Design

Budgets & Financial Planning

Managing budgets and financial planning is an essential aspect of running a successful start-up. To help you navigate this crucial area, we have compiled a list of valuable online tools and resources designed to simplify and streamline financial management for your business. With these tools, you can create and manage budgets, plan cash flow, and access best practices for financial modeling.

Tools and Resources:

1. FNB Business Coach - Fundaba Suite of Tools
2. Runway - Cash Planning
3. Standard Bank - Bizconnect Suite of Tools
4. ABSA  
5. Nedbank
6. Nedbank 2
7. Business Partners SA - SME Toolkit
8. Ramp - Startup Finance Management
9. Brex - Startup Finance Management
10. Foresight - Best Practices and Resources for Financial Modeling
11. Rho - Startup Finance Management
12. Causal - Financial Modeling

Business & Start-up Planning

Effective business and start-up planning requires innovative thinking and a structured approach to brainstorming. To assist you in this essential process, we have curated a selection of online tools designed to inspire creativity and facilitate innovation. These platforms and tools will help you generate and organize your ideas, enabling you to develop a comprehensive plan for your startup's success.

Tools:

1. Ideator - Innovation Platform
2. XMind  - Brainstorming Tool
3. Mindjet - Brainstorming and Innovation Tool

Developing a Pitch Deck

A compelling pitch deck is crucial in capturing the interest of potential investors and partners. To help you create impactful presentations that showcase your start-up's value and potential, we have curated a list of online tools designed to simplify the process of creating pitch decks. These tools will allow you to design visually appealing and persuasive presentations that effectively communicate your business idea and strategy.

Tools:

1. Slidebean
2. Visme
3. Pitch.com
4. Pitch Deck Hunt
5. Examples of Successful Pitch decks

Craft a Winning Business Plan

While pitch decks are often the initial step in attracting venture capital and angel investors, a comprehensive business plan is crucial to showcase your start-up's strategy, operations, and financial projections in greater detail. To help you craft an impressive and effective business plan, we have compiled a list of online resources, templates, and guidelines tailored to meet the needs of aspiring entrepreneurs.

Resources and Templates:

1. Old Mutual - Free Template
2. Business Partners SA - Writing A Business Plan (SME Toolkit)
3. Entrepreneur.com - Free Template
4. SME South Africa
5. Industrial Development Corporation SA - Guidelines for Funding Applications
6. Shopify - Free Templates
7. US Small Business Administration - Handy Guidelines

Find the Perfect Name for Your Business and Website

Choosing a unique and memorable name for your business and securing the corresponding domain name are essential steps in establishing your online presence. A great name can help you stand out in a crowded market, while a custom domain name and email addresses can project a professional image to potential customers. To assist you in finding the perfect name and domain, we've compiled a list of tools and resources that can help you generate ideas, search for available names, and register your chosen domain.

Tools and Resources:

1. Domains - Domain Name Generation and Search
2. GoDaddy - Domain Name Generation and Search
3. Google - Domain Name Generation and Search
4. Afrihost - Domain Name Generation and Search
5. Domai.nr - Domain Name Generation and Search
6. Nameboy - Domain Name Generation and Search
7. NameStation - Domain Name Generation and Search
8. Lean Domain Search - Domain Name Generation and Search
9. Sedo - Domains for Sale
10. NameCheap - Domain Registrar

Tools to Elevate Your Brand

Establish Your Start-up in South Africa

Establishing a company in South Africa involves navigating the registration process and ensuring that your business complies with legal and regulatory requirements. While you can register your new company on your own, it's often helpful to seek assistance from accountants or law firms to ensure a smooth process. To guide you in setting up your start-up, we have compiled a list of resources, services, and tools that can help you get started.

1. CIPC - South African Registration Authorities
2. Kisch-IP - Commercial and IP Lawyers (Commercialdept@kisch-ip.com)
3. Bezuidenhout & Steyn (Potchefstroom, South Africa) - admin@bsing.co.za
4. Find an Accountant (South Africa)
5. Find a Lawyer (South Africa)
6. Find a Lawyer 2 (South Africa)
7. Tools for Equity Distribution  - Startup Equity Calculator
8. Co-founder Equity Split

Resources for Protecting Your Start-Up

Starting a business requires legal documents and agreements to protect your start-up and its assets. While there are many templates and examples available online, it's important to ensure that the legal documents comply with the laws of the country where you are launching. Consider seeking legal advice from a qualified law firm to ensure that you have the necessary agreements in place to protect your start-up.

Legal Forms and Agreements Resources:

1. Kisch-IP (Commercialdept@kisch-ip.com) – South African law firm
2. Agreements Online (South Africa)
3. Netlaw Man (South Africa)
4. Contract Zone (South Africa)
5. Law Live (South Africa)
6. Cooley LLP (Privacy Policy Generator)
7. TermsFeed (Privacy Policy, Terms and Conditions, etc.)
8. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe (Free startup forms and agreements)
9. iubenda (Privacy Policy, Terms and Conditions, etc.)

By utilizing these resources, you can protect your start-up and its assets, including intellectual property, confidential information, and business relationships. Don't overlook the importance of legal agreements in safeguarding your start-up's interests. Consider seeking legal advice to ensure that your legal documents are comprehensive and comply with local laws.

Resources to Help You Finance and Manage Your Start-up

Financing your start-up and managing your equity can be a complex process. To help you navigate these challenges, we have compiled a list of resources, tools, and platforms focused on bootstrapping, fundraising, investor relations, and equity management. These resources will assist you in securing funding, connecting with investors, and managing your equity, allowing you to focus on growing your business.

Bootstrapping Resources:

1. Entrepreneur.com
2. Corporate Finance Institute
3. Pathway Lending

Fundraising, Investor & Equity Management Tools: 4. Dazzle Angels (Angel Funding)

5. Jozi Angels (Angel Funding)
6. Angel Investment Network (Angel Funding)
7. Gust (Angel Funding)
8. AngelList (Investor Matching)
9. The Funded (Investor & Deal Info)
10. Term Sheet Generator (from Wilson Sonsini)
11. PitchBook (Investor & Deal Info)
12. Signal (Fundraising CRM/Database)
13. LA/OC Venture Capital and Angel Fund Directory
14. Foundersuite (Investor CRM)
15. LA Tech Investor List
16. LA-based Incubators & Accelerators
17. Runway (Cash Planning Tool from Eric Ries)
18. LTSE Equity (Cap Table Management Tool from Eric Ries)
19. Carta (Cap Table Management)
20. PitchPages (Fundraising)
21. Diligent Equity (Cap Table Management)
22. Shareworks (Stock Options Management and Expensing)

Protect Your Intellectual Property with Expert Legal Advice

Protecting your intellectual property (IP) is crucial to the success and growth of your start-up. Whether it's a novel invention, design, software, or trademark, securing your IP rights can provide a competitive advantage and increase your business's value. To ensure proper protection and registration, it's essential to consult with an IP law firm. We've compiled a list of reputable South African-based IP law firms that can assist you with both local and international IP registrations.

South African-based IP Law Firms:

1. Kisch-IP - ip@kisch-ip.com
2. Adams & Adams
3. Spoor and Fischer
4. Von Seidels
5. Tshaya Mashabela Attorneys

Don't forget to mention that we sent you!

Housekeeping and Communicating as a Start-up

Effective communication, organization, and document management are critical for start-ups to succeed in today's fast-paced business environment. To help you streamline your operations, we've compiled a list of essential tools and services to manage email, calendars, scheduling, conference calls, web meetings, and document management. These tools will enable you to stay organized, collaborate seamlessly with your team, and securely store and share important documents.

Email, Calendars & Scheduling:

1. Google Workspace (formerly G Suite)
2. Microsoft 365
3. Doodle (Scheduling Meetings)
4. Calendly (Appointment Scheduling)

Conference Calls & Web Meetings:

1. Zoom (Conference/Video Calls and Screen Sharing)
2. Microsoft Teams (Conference/Video Calls and Screen Sharing)
3. GoToWebinar (for Hosting Webinars)
4. Demio (for Hosting Webinars)
5. TeamViewer (Remote Access)

Document Management, Cloud Storage & E-Signatures:

1. Box (Cloud Document Management and File Sharing)
2. Dropbox (Cloud File Syncing)
3. Google Drive (Part of Google Workspace)
4. Onehub (Cloud File Storage)
5. DocuSign (E-Signatures)
6. EchoSign (E-Signatures)
7. SignNow (E-Signatures)
8. HelloSign (E-Signatures)
9. DeliverySlip (Secure/Encrypted Email)
10. DocHub (PDF Tools)
11. DocSend (Secure Document Sharing)

Dedicated Resources for Tech-Based Start-Ups

Expand Your Start-up Knowledge and Stay Informed