In the Caribbean we have a strong entrepreneurial culture and our people pride themselves on being
able to earn a living independently and be their own boss. Our people are creative talented have
specialized skill sets and most importantly are passionate and innovative.

There is a particular kind of mindset that a entrepreneur has and caribbean entrepreneurs are no
exception – being able to see and seize an opportunity, make decisions quickly, and of necessity very
often that mindset, that leadership style is one where control of the business resides within one or at most two individuals.

I know a young entrepreneur let’s call her Lena who is running a luxury beauty products business part
time while holding down a full time job – making the products, designing and putting together the
packaging, doing the accounting, running the marketing campaigns by social media and direct marketing
and so on.

She is not alone there are many many entrepreneurs out there using their skills and talent as
manufacturers, artists, artisans, service providers but with their hands in so many pies are they able to
do they have the time to think about and plan for the next steps in growing the business.
The real question is where do they want to go? Where do they want to take their business? What is the
next level for their business?

Entrepreneurs must ask themselves what is their goal – is it the ambition to pay bills ( not likely ) or is it
something more than that
– building a brand, expanding product lines or service or
-expanding the business itself in a way that can be monetized in the future or
– might it indeed be building a legacy that will live for generations.

Governance is really how the business is run – how it is directed and controlled – what are the systems structures processes by which an organization functions and what are the mechanisms by which the business and its actors – the people, operate and are held to account.
And how the actors in the business access information about the current state of the business and its
prospects.

Businesses don’t exist in a vacuum – a business is an ecosystem with owners of the business, those who manage it, its employees what it products or the services that it provides to customers, with the help and inputs from suppliers, within a community, is subject to laws and regulations and good governance helps the business manage all these relationships. Good governance sures up that ecosystem, creates
the environment for growth and long term sustainability.

Whatever the ambition there are a few things that will promote Sustainable Growth:
– identifying the mission
– identifying priorities that are in line with the mission
– identifying what are the key stakeholders internal and external to achieve the mission
– monitoring execution and ensuring that you have the resources including financial resources to
execute on the plan to achieve the mission
-a list of the initiatives that will not be done – it also sometimes requires entrepreneurs to say No or to defer
-measuring success

This in essence outlines the role that Directors can play and the remit of Board oversight.