Evaluating a new venture start-up e-coaching programme

Ph.D.Abstract: Orientation: Emerging economies, such as that of South Africa, require entrepreneurial activity to reduce unemployment and poverty. Various reasons for low entrepreneurial activity and business failure have been presented by researchers, such as unavailability of credible coaches, external environmental risks, lack of business experience and knowledge, as well as a lack of funding. Total entrepreneurial activity (TEA) in South Africa is relatively low (6.9%), and various governmental programmes have attempted to develop entrepreneurs, with a disappointing impact on the TEA. Statistics indicating the gross domestic product, the TEA trajectory, and rising unemployment provide sufficient evidence that these programmes have proven to be unsuccessful. One of the major reasons for this is the lack of available coaches with the necessary business skills and experience. Research purpose: The purpose of this study was to establish whether coaching of entrepreneurs, who start a business by making their first sale, without capital or any other type of funding, could be coached through a new venture e-coaching programme (NVEP) delivered in an online environment, and to outline any possible gaps in the NVEP, coaching process, and mode of delivery. What made this NVEP of interest was that it aimed to equip the prospective entrepreneur with appropriate entrepreneurial skills to steer around the unique environmental risks and challenges present within his or her context. Motivation for the study: This study supports the notion that it is possible that a larger complement of Protégés can be reached and as such the limited available prominent coaches with the necessary business skills and experience could be leveraged. It is argued that even if one successful entrepreneur out of one small cohort is supported it may levitate employment figures. Research design, approach, and method: A pragmatic mixed-methods approach was followed, utilising both quantitative and qualitative data. A cohort consisting of 37 protégés were analysed by means of thematic and trajectory analysis, based on their weekly reflective journals. Protégé’s were grouped as starters and non-starters based on whether they could make their first successful sale of any size. Quantitative data were extracted from the Learning Management System (LMS) and triangulated with the..