Should I close my businesss-Ushauri

[iMind]

Wakati nakuja hapa kuweka ombi langu la ushauri nimekutana na uzi unaoelezea owning a business or being self employed. Mimi ni mmoja ya watu nilioacha ajira na kuamua kujiajiri.

Kumekua na changamoto nyingi katika hili. Ni miaka 2 sasa lakini bado na strugle ingawa fedha ya kula inapatikana. Problem ni kwamba i have to work hard na sina hela za ku hire watu wazuri ambao tunaweza kusaidiana.

miezi miwiili zilizopita amekuja jamaa, ambaye alikuja kama mteja, aka sub contract kazi kwangu. Nikaifanya ile kazi ikakamilika. Bahati nzuri alinilipa pesa zote up front hivyo sikupata shida ya kufanya project hiyo.

Jamaa ana kampuni kubwa na initialy nilishangaa ni kwa vipi ana sub contract kazi kwangu. Kumbe alikuwa ananisoma. Alisikia uwezo wangu na alitaka kuthibitisha. Kwa kipindi chote cha hiyo kazi alikuwa karibu na mimi na kwa kweli tuliongea mengi kuhusu biashara za IT ambazo mimi nafanya pia.

Sasa juzi hapa amekuja akaniambia, unajua wewe iMind unauwezo mkubwa, ila tatizo haujapata watu wazuri wa kufanya nao kazi.

Akaniambia una idea nzuri na unajituma, ila itakuwia ngumu kutoka kwa sababu kazi zinatolewa kwa kuwa na networks. Sasa akanishauri niungane naye, ili tufanye kazi pamoja. Mimi niwe ARCHITEC wake wa biashara na yeye atakua ana finance, kunipa resources na atatafuta masoko.

Ataniweka kwenye payroll yake na tutakubaliana % ya kupata katika revenue yaa kila business ninayo i buni na kuisimamia.

Hatukuongea ni % ngapi nitapata na mshahara ni shs ngapi.

Tayari nina software product ambazo ninazo na yeye amezipenda na kunihakikishia kuwa anaweza kuziuza ndani na nje ya nchi baada ya marekebisho machache.

Sasa swali langu ni je nimkubalie? Na kama nikikubali nita calculate vipi au nitatumia utaratibu gani wa kujua hiyo %? au tutakubaliana tu kwa figure na itakua how much? Na hizi product ambazo nimeshazibuni na kutengeneza working prototype tunazifanyaje? Naombeni ushauri wenu tafadhali

 

[CHASHA FARMING]

MKUU NItarudi muda kuchangia

 

[LAT]

Mkuu

endelea na sub contract, akupe piece work by agreed contract

 

[iMind]

Mkuu
endelea na sub contract, akupe piece work by agreed contract

Piece work ni kama yeye ana requirement tayari. But here we are talking ubunifu. Mimi nikimwambia idea, namwambia resources zinazohitajika, then anatoa tunaanza project. Pia i can not develop a good commercial product on my own. I need to work with a bunch of good developers ambao siwezi kuwalipa na kumaintain support.

This guy ni mmarekani mwafrica kwa maana kwamba ameishi africa muda mrefu. He wants to sell everything under one brand.

Company yake ni kubwa kiasi kwamba i can not even buy 0.5 ya hisa.

 

[LAT]

Piece work ni kama yeye ana requirement tayari. But here we are talking ubunifu. Mimi nikimwambia idea, namwambia resources zinazohitajika, then anatoa tunaanza project. Pia i can not develop a good commercial product on my own. I need to work with a bunch of good developers ambao siwezi kuwalipa na kumaintain support.

This guy ni mmarekani mwafrica kwa maana kwamba ameishi africa muda mrefu. He wants to sell everything under one brand.

Company yake ni kubwa kiasi kwamba i can not even buy 0.5 ya hisa.

hata yeye alianza na kitu kidogo, you need empowerment, finance and angel supporters to excel and take off yourself, don't ever close your establishment for the sake of short-term piece of bread

 

[iMind]

hata yeye alianza na kitu kidogo, you need empowerment, finance and angel supporters to excel and take off yourself, don't ever close your establishment for the sake of short-term piece of bread

You are right, but how can i get finance? I have strugling to get finamces for 2 years now. Tatizo lingine ni trust au sijui niwekeje, our local people, they dont appriciate our local innovators, but if a white man is infront trust me you get the job. I magine in a week ameweza ku close a deal with one big org in TZ and we are going to start implementation of one of my product soon. There are just few formalities we are waiting for.

Nakubaliana na mawazo yako. My thinking is to find a better way of partnering rather than ignoring him.

 

[kotinkarwak]

Don't close your outfit.
The best option you have is to outsource your expertise and downstream, outsource to other developers with agreements that can benefit all concerned. It is not always that the piece of work needs to be paid for in full as would be the case, the main client will put up funds at given milestones and you can also do the same to the team that will be supporting you.

It appears that your benefactor has seen your future prospects and earning a wage on that is not really the best approach. I would think that developing your software portfolio and either selling it as a service to his company (partnership) also allowing you to source your own market would be the best bet.

As you have stated, capital resources are hard to come by, people and hard cash, but if you take time and develop that network, I believe you would be hitting those numbers he must have mentioned to you.
What of if getting on-board with the company is the only alternative? Well just make sure that you gain a good reward for the portfolio you already have, put down what the going concern price you are happy to work with, and since these are your "babies", you would also need to see how they will fit in the bigger scheme of things. For this I mean, if they need to be developed further, then the partner/employer is happy to start talking funding numbers for
these, if they will be cannibalized and left for dead, that will hurt you more than you might think.

One crucial point to keep in mind also is the environment you will find yourself in. Are there like minded people in there? It's all well and good moving in, but are there the techies that will complement your knowledge/expertise or better still people who you will be happy to work with. Will you be swamped with the current and future developments that the company is working on/towards, or are you to develop a line of tools for the company?

All in all this experience must have emphasized your strengths and shown you what might be achieved with a bit more effort in networking and marketing, if for whatever reason you decide to remain a sole operator, what "mikakati" have you set yourself...

All the best and hope you do make the right decision for you in the long run...

KK

 

[CHASHA FARMING]

Mkuu pole sana, ila sijajua kama biashara yako umeiregsta kama kampuni au, na kama ni kampuni

1. Tafuta watu wakuingia nao ubia iwe ni hapa hapa Tanzania au nje ya Nchi,

2. Usikubali kuuza biashara yako na wewe kuajiriwa hapo tena, hii itakuwa kosa kubwa sana mkuu

3. Au huyo jamaa hata kama anakapuni, anaweza nunua part of kampuni yako na yeye akawa moja wa wakurugenzi na si kukulipa wewe mshahara, ulipwe gawio na si mshahara

- Mkuu hutakiwi kushindwa kirahisi hivyo, kumbuka kuna kampuni nyingi sana hapa Duniani zilifikia kufungwa kabisa lakini leo hii ni moja kati ya global vompany ni ziko kwenye top ten ya makampuni makubwa kabisa,

- Inatakiwa upambane mpaka tone la mwisho na usikubali kushindwa, hata kama kuna watakao kucheka wewe pambana one day utakuja kuridi kwenye pic na wa nao kubeza watakuja shangaa

- Kama uwezi kuajiri wafanyakazi unaweza tafuta wa part time ambao sio ghali sana mkuu.

NA KUHUSU FINANCE

1. jaribu kuandaa business planing yako na uipeleke kwenye blog mbalimbali zinazo husu biashara, MFANO AFRICAN REPORT ni moja ya sehemu ambayo wajasirimali wengi sana wanatafuta watu wa kuwafinance, watu wa kuingia nao ubia na kazalika,

2. Komaa katika kutafuta joint venture n tena kwenye IT ni rahisi sana kuwapata make hiyo ndo secta inayo kuwa kwa kasi ya kutisha hapa duniani,



Sometimes by losing a battle, you will find a new way to win the war." – Donald Trump

 

[AshaDii]

It appears that your benefactor has seen your future prospects and earning a wage on that is not really the best approach. I would think that developing your software portfolio and either selling it as a service to his company (partnership) also allowing you to source your own market would be the best bet.[/QUOTE.]

This part is the most crucial part to be considered...

iMind... Jamaa kisha kuona your worth na kwamba you are good... Hivo don't let him lay all the cards on the table... Katika hili hata wewe una maamuzi. Nimependa the way Kortin kaongelea... Usikubali kua on pay roll... Radher iwe partnership ambayo mgawanyiko mwishoni utategemea na kila mmoja ka invest vipi hivo mnaweza msiwe fifty fity lakin, Ukaweka mazingira hata ya wewe kukua....

 

[iMind]

Don't close your outfit.
The best option you have is to outsource your expertise and downstream, outsource to other developers with agreements that can benefit all concerned. It is not always that the piece of work needs to be paid for in full as would be the case, the main client will put up funds at given milestones and you can also do the same to the team that will be supporting you.

It appears that your benefactor has seen your future prospects and earning a wage on that is not really the best approach. I would think that developing your software portfolio and either selling it as a service to his company (partnership) also allowing you to source your own market would be the best bet.

As you have stated, capital resources are hard to come by, people and hard cash, but if you take time and develop that network, I believe you would be hitting those numbers he must have mentioned to you.
What of if getting on-board with the company is the only alternative? Well just make sure that you gain a good reward for the portfolio you already have, put down what the going concern price you are happy to work with, and since these are your "babies", you would also need to see how they will fit in the bigger scheme of things. For this I mean, if they need to be developed further, then the partner/employer is happy to start talking funding numbers for
these, if they will be cannibalized and left for dead, that will hurt you more than you might think.

One crucial point to keep in mind also is the environment you will find yourself in. Are there like minded people in there? It's all well and good moving in, but are there the techies that will complement your knowledge/expertise or better still people who you will be happy to work with. Will you be swamped with the current and future developments that the company is working on/towards, or are you to develop a line of tools for the company?

All in all this experience must have emphasized your strengths and shown you what might be achieved with a bit more effort in networking and marketing, if for whatever reason you decide to remain a sole operator, what "mikakati" have you set yourself...

All the best and hope you do make the right decision for you in the long run...

KK

Thanks...my thinking was to keep my current projects under my company, and initiate one resource intensive project with him. I have already the big picture of this new project. This way i think ill be safe anyway because ill have nothing to lose. Even if i dont do this project with him, i can not do it in next 5 years to come. Now the issue of percentages remains to be my question.

 

[kotinkarwak]

Thanks...my thinking was to keep my current projects under my company, and initiate one resource intensive project with him. I have already the big picture of this new project. This way i think ill be safe anyway because ill have nothing to lose. Even if i dont do this project with him, i can not do it in next 5 years to come. Now the issue of percentages remains to be my question.

In this new project, who is providing the brains?
On winning the contract, what are the supporting arrangements that will be entered into between you and the potential client?
Is your friends company registered locally, and has it got the staffing required to meet the given requirements?

Many questions come to mind (iMind) but the crux is trying to see your leverage on the partnership vs. employment routes you have.

I would volunteer an argument that if you are to be the one providing the service, then it would be best to make in-roads in establishing a partnership on this very project. You might however need to secure this in cash terms by re-investing your take from the project to surround the project with required resources (on-going support). Your partner would still be in show by providing the management aspects of the project while you provide the technical solution. This will be a win-win for you both since there will be proper demarcations of responsibilities and this if well managed can foster better working conditions than would be the employer/employee scenario.

If this frees you up to venture into other markets/product space can also benefit your partner for you will be working as a well oiled machine offering strengths as appropriate.
On nothing to lose, be cautious my friend, you need to be tactful in all this for it can be a start of bigger things, hence a well informed decision is all you need now, be mindful as well that you might be starting from a low of not having adequate resources (people/funds/networks), but all these can be built hence play your cards right!

Now about percentages, don't trip over this, it is easy to pluck figures from the air, you need an informed decision, might need to speak to an independent financial advisor to come up with likely figures, don't just say 10, for what is ten, if the total sum could be 100, 1000, 10,000.....

 

[Who Cares?]

piece work ni kama yeye ana requirement tayari. But here we are talking ubunifu. Mimi nikimwambia idea, namwambia resources zinazohitajika, then anatoa tunaanza project. Pia i can not develop a good commercial product on my own. I need to work with a bunch of good developers ambao siwezi kuwalipa na kumaintain support.

This guy ni mmarekani mwafrica kwa maana kwamba ameishi africa muda mrefu. He wants to sell everything under one brand.

Company yake ni kubwa kiasi kwamba i can not even buy 0.5 ya hisa.

dogo acha utotooo...huyo na ukubwa wake hana ujanja wa kufanya kazi..anakutegemea na wewe na miakili yako yooote huna pesa za kufanya hizo kazi..unamtegemea...kama vipi weka deal mezani muwe partners...ila itabidi akuzidi shares kidogo...umenielewa??? Say mnaenda 60-40

 

[Who Cares?]

Rule 1- hakuna billionaire aliyeajiriwa duniani
rule 2- uliacha kuajiriwa ili uwe self-made billionaire
rule 3- get rich or die trying
rule 4- a man was born to die continuously and start afresh.

 

[iMind]

In this new project, who is providing the brains?

I will be providing the brain. designing both a system and business model as well as overseeing the implimentation.

On winning the contract, what are the supporting arrangements that will be entered into between you and the potential client?

We need to sign contracts with few clients before we embark on this project. Selling idea to the potential clients and lobbying is required. He will be responsible for this.

Is your friends company registered locally, and has it got the staffing required to meet the given requirements?

Yes it is locally registeted with branches in 5 african countries. The hq is currently in Zimbabwe. There are few existing staf however we will need to mobilize some more staff probably outside Tanzania. They dont need to come here but we can work with them through online means.

Many questions come to mind (iMind) but the crux is trying to see your leverage on the partnership vs. employment routes you have.

I would volunteer an argument that if you are to be the one providing the service, then it would be best to make in-roads in establishing a partnership on this very project. You might however need to secure this in cash terms by re-investing your take from the project to surround the project with required resources (on-going support). Your partner would still be in show by providing the management aspects of the project while you provide the technical solution. This will be a win-win for you both since there will be proper demarcations of responsibilities and this if well managed can foster better working conditions than would be the employer/employee scenario.

If this frees you up to venture into other markets/product space can also benefit your partner for you will be working as a well oiled machine offering strengths as appropriate.
On nothing to lose, be cautious my friend, you need to be tactful in all this for it can be a start of bigger things, hence a well informed decision is all you need now, be mindful as well that you might be starting from a low of not having adequate resources (people/funds/networks), but all these can be built hence play your cards right!

Now about percentages, don't trip over this, it is easy to pluck figures from the air, you need an informed decision, might need to speak to an independent financial advisor to come up with likely figures, don't just say 10, for what is ten, if the total sum could be 100, 1000, 10,000.....

Thanks for the advice. I will put them on the table for discusion with him.

 

[Ghost]

iMind reading from all previous contributors, none is in favor of what your planning on doing.
Think twice bro, there's a thin line between failure and success. Huyo jama wants to exploit you, wewe mwenyewe umesha sema ni mmerikani mwafirika. So probably he knows how to use/manipulate us. But act smart since you have already shown him what ur capable of. Don't rush to earn a quick back, 2 yrs is nothing for a person who has his sights on bigger things.

 

[iMind]

Rule 1- hakuna billionaire aliyeajiriwa duniani
rule 2- uliacha kuajiriwa ili uwe self-made billionaire
rule 3- get rich or die trying
rule 4- a man was born to die continuously and start afresh.

Rule 5 - Ili ule lazima uliwe kidogo by Dr. Kikwete
Mergers and acquisitions are common in IT industry. Even the big company like Compaq was acquired by HP, IBM hardware by Lenovo, software companies ndo usiseme.
I think there is a better way of working with people like this. Nadhani hata madogo wa google na facebook, got financial support from big men.

 

[iMind]

iMind reading from all previous contributors, none is in favor of what your planning on doing.
Think twice bro, there's a thin line between failure and success. Huyo jama wants to exploit you, wewe mwenyewe umesha sema ni mmerikani mwafirika. So probably he knows how to use/manipulate us. But act smart since you have already shown him what ur capable of. Don't rush to earn a quick back, 2 yrs is nothing for a person who has his sights on bigger things.

Thanks bro. I hope with the help of you all, i will be able to act smart.

 

[iMind]

dogo acha utotooo...huyo na ukubwa wake hana ujanja wa kufanya kazi..anakutegemea na wewe na miakili yako yooote huna pesa za kufanya hizo kazi..unamtegemea...kama vipi weka deal mezani muwe partners...ila itabidi akuzidi shares kidogo...umenielewa??? Say mnaenda 60-40

Tatizo lake anasema hataki kuanzisha kampuni yoyote nyingine, anataka ku concentrate kwenye kampuni yake hiyo tu. ana local partner already, ambaye alikua anafanya naye kazi kwa muda mrefu huko nje. Alivyoamukua kuja hapa ndo akawa partner wake na ndo country director. Huyu mbongo nafikiri ndo ali ni spot katika mishe mishe zangu. Wanasema tuki work for a while in a positive way, then can give me partnership.

 

[Kang]

Well kama umestrugle kwa miaka mingi bila mafanikio nakushauri uachane na hiyo biashara, you are not actually giving up anything as you have not built up a client base or brand name you can always start again pretty much from where you are now.

Swali linalobaki ni partnership yenu itakuwa ni ya aina gani, nakushauri akupe equity kwenye company so upate some share of the company, kama kampuni ina customers na profits tayari basi utapata share ndogo kama kampuni ndo mtaianzisha kwa pamoja basio nyie wote ni founders na share itakuwa more equal. Likishindikano hilo akuajiri kama employee wa kawaida mwenye mshahara, uzuri wa hili ni kuwa kipato kipo guaranteed, mambo ya share kumbuka share ya zero ni zero.

 

[vivian]

Dadiito. Naomba kasome kitabu cha Napoleon Hill ''Think and grow Rich'' kina kufaa sana Dadiito. read line by line Dadii.