Youth Business International...Youth Business International (YBI) is the only global network dedicated exclusively to supporting under-served young entrepreneurs. We are proud of our

www.youthbusiness.org

StrategicPlan

2014-17

Youth BusinessInternational

YBI 2014-17

PRIORITIES AND ENABLERS

2 YBI - STRATEGIC PLAN 2014-17 YBI - STRATEGIC PLAN 2014-17 3

Tech

nolo

gyQuality assurance

Data

IMPROVE & SCALE financial and non-financial support services to under-servedyoung entrepreneurs Build an

EVIDENCE-basednetwork

Strengthen network COMMUNITIES of

practice

Increase and better coordinate investment through PARTNERSHIPS

for under-served young entrepreneurs

Be the global VOICEof under-served young entrepreneurs and position YBI as a leader in the field

Youth Business International (YBI) is the only global network dedicated exclusively to supporting under-served young entrepreneurs.

We are proud of our history and ambitious for our future.

The YBI network aspiresto achieve economic andsocial impact by supporting

100,000 under-served young entrepreneurs to start and grow sustainable businesses every year by 2020.

Over the next three yearsby 2017 we will increasejob creation in communities and personal empowermentfor individuals by supporting

40,000 under-served young entrepreneurs to start and grow sustainable businesses per year in a minimum

of 60 countries.

Our solutionMobilise a

global networkto support the

next generationof under-served

young entrepreneurs

Escalating unemployment and underemployment

Young people hit hardest

Growing social unrest

Rising youth populations

Lack of decent jobsBarriers to work and to business start up

Uncoordinated support for youth in need

Weak evidence of what works

The challenge

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YBI is a global network of independent not-for-profit initiatives that each supports under-served young entrepreneurs to start and grow sustainable businesses.

Youth is typically defined by members as aged 18-35, and under-served means: unable to access the financial, knowledge or human capital needed to start and grow a business.

Members provide services relevant to the needs and gaps in their local market, from expanding awareness of entrepreneurship to helping sustainable businesses grow, based on a shared network belief that supporting under-served young entrepreneurs through integrated financial and non-financial support is central to driving economic and social development.

All YBI members subscribe to core network principles, and we are growing our network to reach increasing numbers of potential young entrepreneurs across the world.

Our network approach is critical to how we achieve impact. Working collaboratively through locally-based and locally-owned in-country initiatives enhances the legitimacy, relevance and effectiveness of our work. Facilitated by a London-based team, the network helps drive the scale and quality of support provided to under-served young entrepreneurs.

THE AMERICAS

1 Argentina Fundacion Impulsar www.fundacionimpulsar.org.ar

2 Barbados Barbados Youth Business Trust www.youthbusiness.bb

3 Belize Youth Business Trust Belize

4 Brazil Aliança Empreendedora www.aliancaempreendedora.org.br

5 Canada Canadian Youth Business Foundation www.cybf.ca

6 Chile Accion Emprendedora www.accionemprendedora.cl

7 Colombia Corporacion El Minuto de Dios www.minutodedios.org

8 Dominica Dominica Youth Business Trust

9 Jamaica Jamaica Youth Business Trust

10 Paraguay Emprendimientos Juveniles www.fundacionparaguaya.org.py

11 Peru Colectivo Integral de Desarrollo www.cid.org.pe

12 Trinidad and Tobago Youth Business Trinidad and Tobago www.ybtt.org

13 Uruguay Emprecrea www.kolping.org.uy

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

14 Kenya (Mombasa and Nairobi) Kenya Youth Business Trust www.kybt.org www.kybtmombasa.org

15 Nigeria Fate Foundation www.fatefoundation.com

16 Uganda Enterprise Uganda www.enterprise.co.ug

ASIA & OCEANIA

17 Australia Enterprise Network of Young Australians (ENYA) www.enya.org.au

18 Bangladesh Bangladesh Youth Enterprise Advice and Helpcentre (B’Yeah)

19 Bhutan The Loden Entrepreneurship Programme www.loden.org

20 China Youth Business China www.ybc.org.cn

21 Hong Kong Youth Business Hong Kong http://ybhk.hkfyg.org.hk

22 India Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust www.bystonline.org

23 Mongolia Youth Business Mongolia (Development Solutions) www.ybmongolia.org

24 Singapore Youth Business Singapore www.youthbizsg.org

25 Sri Lanka Youth Business Sri Lanka www.ybsl.lk

MIDDLE EAST & NORTH AFRICA

26 Jordan Tamweelcom www.tamweelcom.org

27 Syria BIDAYA www.bidaya.org.sy

28 Saudi Arabia The Centennial Fund www.tcf.org.sa

29 Tunisia Enda Inter-Arabe www.endarabe.org.tn EUROPE

30 United Kingdom Startup Direct www.startupdirect.org

Virgin StartUp www.virginstartup.org

31 France Entreprendre en Banlieue www.planetfinancegroup.org

32 Israel Keren Shemesh Foundation www.ksh.org.il

33 Italy PerMicroLab www.permicrolab.it

34 Netherlands Qredits www.qredits.com

35 Poland Youth Business Poland www.fit.org.pl

36 Russia Youth Business Russia www.iblfrussia.org

37 Serbia Youth Business Serbia (Smart Kolektiv) www.smartkolektiv.org

38 Spain Youth Business Spain www.youthbusiness.es

39 Sweden Swedish Jobs & Society Forum www.nyforetagarcentrum.com

40 Ukraine Youth Business Ukraine www.sesp.org.ua


Where we work

Countries and members

The network team has its offices in the United Kingdom.

6 YBI - STRATEGIC PLAN 2014-17

About this Strategic Plan

This is the YBI three year Strategic Plan. The goals and plans are designed and will be delivered collaboratively by the members of YBI and the YBI network team, working with partners.

YBI members are independent, and they each have their own organisational strategy, business plans, expert staff and volunteers. The value of the network strategy lies in the increased impact we can achieve by working together,

based on the alignment between members’ local priorities and our shared global ambitions.

YBI’s Network Team

The YBI network is facilitated by a growing team of specialists based in London, the network team.

The purpose of the network team is to maximise the value of YBI membership, including through knowledge, services and funding opportunities that improve members’ capability and impact. The network team is committed to increasing the growth rates of the network in service of this Strategic Plan 2014-17 to help increasing numbers of members improve impact for increasing numbers of under-served young entrepreneurs.

The network team will respond to the level of ambition set out in this Strategic Plan through a relentless drive for efficiency and effectiveness, and a restless pursuit of innovation in our approach. The network team will therefore strive for higher performance in all activities, and to increase continuously stakeholder confidence in the integrity and accountability of our operations.

Working with members, key areas of focus for the network team are:

• Building partnerships to invest in the YBI network

• Expanding the YBI network into new countries

• Designing and delivering capacity building offerings

• Mobilising communities of practice

• Leading research, evaluation and learning

• Influencing through policy and advocacy

• Strengthening the YBI network brand

• Managing members’ relationships with the network

• Leveraging technology

• Measuring and reporting network performance

Andrew Devenport

YBI, CEO

I believe the opportunities for YBI over the next three years are immense. I am proud of what we have achieved as a network and excited about our potential. We are determined to build a network team that enables members to grow their impact so that together we can improve the lives of ever more under-served young entrepreneurs around the world.

YBI - STRATEGIC PLAN 2014-17 7

Edson da Maia Steinheuserwas able to start up his internet cafe with the support of Aliança

Empreendedora in Brazil.

Evolving in our environment

As we embark on the next three years of strategic growth, we are also evolving in response to key trends in our operating environment that will affect our work:

Challenges and opportunities for the next generation of entrepreneurs

Today’s young people face unrivalled opportunities. Although variable by context, increasing access to education improves future prospects; high growth rates in productive sectors create business and employment opportunities; and advancements in technology make borderless communications and enterprise a reality for growing segments of the population.

Yet the challenge young people face is unprecedented – and in many parts of the world, the greatest challenge is job creation.

Development happens through jobs.

Growth in many markets is not inclusive, leading to frustration and disenfranchisement for vulnerable populations including young people. The number of jobs being created is not keeping pace with the growing numbers of young people entering the labour market. By 2018, on current global trends, around 40 million net new jobs would be created every year, which is less than the 42.6 million

people that are expected to enter the labour market every year. In some regions the gap is much greater.

Young people are disproportionality affected by the risk of a jobless recovery from the global financial crisis. The youth unemployment rate is almost three times as high as the adult unemployment rate. The proportion of young people neither in employment, nor in education or training (NEET) has continued the steep upward trend recorded since the start of the crisis. Among the employed young, the proportion of work in informality is significantly higher than that of adults.

621 million young people neither working nor studying

Young entrepreneurs are increasingly being recognised as drivers of inclusive and sustainable economic growth and social progress. Yet young people continue to face specific barriers to start and grow sustainable businesses, in particular lack of access to finance, lack of appropriate skills, lack of infrastructure, and lack of adequate and coordinated support structures.

Nearly half of the jobs in the developing world are outside the labour market

A changing partnership landscape

Demographic and societal trends have led to a surge in the level of

priority given to youth employment as a policy issue. Emerging market governments are increasingly engaged in the leadership of international development interventions, in their own countries and in the poorest regions.

The role of the private sector is being mainstreamed in international development, with more corporations intervening in economic and social development through their core business model. In particular the power of cross-sector collaboration is being increasingly realised in delivering effective interventions at scale.

There is growing expectation and investment in research and learning to understand what drives impact, in particular in the youth employment field which is recognised as constrained by a lack of rigorous evidence.

The youth livelihood field is characterized by a severe lack of sound evidence.

There is also growing interest in the potential of network models to deliver scale with local accountability, as International NGOs seek to improve efficiencies in their operating model.

The three years ahead present significant potential for catalytic efforts to expand opportunities to under-served young entrepreneurs.


The information presented on this page is taken from the following sources: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EXTNWDR2013/Resources/8258024-1320950747192/8260293-1322665883147/WDR_2013_Report.pdf http://www.ilo.org/global/research/global-reports/global-employment-trends/2014/WCMS_234107/lang--en/index.htm http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTDEC/EXTRESEARCH/EXTWDRS/0,,contentMDK:23062361~pagePK:478093~piPK:477627~theSitePK:477624,00.html http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/yen/downloads/eval/meguide/gpye-me-report.pdf http://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1870/Youth_in_Development_Policy.pdf http://www.oecd.org/eco/outlook/economicoutlook.htm http://gemconsortium.org/docs/download/2835

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Learning lessons 2011-14

Reflecting on achievements and challenges in delivering against our previous Strategic Plan 2011-14 has provided important learning to guide the development of our priorities and plans for the next three years. Advancements and learning in five key areas are particularly significant:

Strengthening our network value proposition

Developments in designing new products and services for members, increasing sharing across members, and delivering multi-member resourcing partnerships have demonstrated in practice ways to maximise the value of network membership and have provided important insights into the respective delivery roles of members and network team. Defining and realising network value underpins effective delivery over the next three years.

Expanding and diversifying our membership

Through YBI’s increasingly rigorous approach to expanding into new markets, we have learnt more about diverse and innovative in-country delivery models that are best adapted to supporting young entrepreneurs at national scale, including approaches such as microfranchising and creating enterprise opportunities across value chains. Growing the YBI membership, whilst innovating and strengthening network cohesiveness and impact, will define our next three years.

Focusing on outcomes

YBI has traditionally been defined in terms of the support services members provide to under-served young entrepreneurs. However, in line with greater diversity in member delivery models, and a more rigorous analysis of the impact we want to achieve, we have learnt how to shift our measurement processes to focus more on achieving shared outcomes rather than inputs. This will be the basis of our sustainability and accountability.

Unleashing the power of communities

The progress we have made in network products and services and in our online infrastructure has shown us how mobilising communities of practice can drive network innovation and knowledge exchange.

In particular, bringing together communities of network specialists at the Global Youth Entrepreneurship Summit organised by YBI in 2013 was catalytic in this area.

Convening the youth entrepreneurship sector

We have developed significant insights about how to build multi-year, multi-stakeholder partnerships and broker collaborative sector initiatives, leveraging the collective insight and experience from across our membership and helping develop shareable solutions for resourcing, policy and practice. Working in shared value partnerships will remain central to achieving our impact.

YBI - STRATEGIC PLAN 2014-17 11

YBI network approach

YBI’s global network structure is core to our approach. Below we set out how a global network enables increasing numbers of under-served young entrepreneurs to be reached with quality support at scale. Making positive change

happen for under-served young entrepreneurs in different contexts is a complex process, and we are building a network culture of learning and adaptation to ensure the ongoing value and relevance of our work. YBI’s Research &

Learning agenda for 2014-17 is designed to test the assumptions and address the knowledge gaps in our pathway to change in order to help innovate and learn about how network models provide maximum impact to beneficiaries.

10 YBI - STRATEGIC PLAN 2014-17

A global communityof practitioners with

a shared mission and approach generates additional collective

influence and impact.

Collaboration across contexts enables local

practitioners to improvethe scale and quality of

support and improve outcomes for underserved

young entrepreneurs.

Network pathway to change

YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS LOCAL MEMBERS GLOBAL NETWORK

The challenges of youth un- and under-employment and

social disenfranchisement and exclusion are escalating.

Young people need economic and social opportunities to

fulfil their potential.

Entrepreneurship generates sustainable economic and

social impact.

Young people face additional constraints to start and grow

a business.

Young people’s needs and motivations vary by context –

they need tailored interventions.

Locally embedded service delivery responds best to

context – to the specific needs of target beneficiaries.

Entrepreneurship support should integrate financial and

non-financial services.

Collaboration within and across sectors increases reach

and impact of support.

An enabling environment (institutional and cultural)

needs to be in place for effective service delivery.

The value of network collaboration

YBI theory of change

YBI’s theory of change sets out how we work as a network to achieve maximum impact for under-served young entrepreneurs around the world.

We have derived our five strategic priorities for 2014-17 from our theory of change and identified three strategic enablers.

These are mutually reinforcing and provide a comprehensive network strategy for improving and increasing support to growing numbers of under-served young entrepreneurs.

Our VISION is that youth entrepreneurship is recognised for driving sustainable economic development,and that all young people who want to set up a business are able to fulfil their potential.

Our MISSION is to enable more under-served young entrepreneurs to access the support they need to start and grow their business, helping them to create jobs, build communities and transform lives.

Under-served young entrepreneursare more empowered,

with increased confidenceand capabilities/skills

Sustainable businesses are established that create new, quality jobs

A thriving global network drives scalability, sustainability, efficiency

and effectiveness of support to under-served young entrepreneurs

SUPER IMPACT: More under-served young entrepreneurs start sustainable businesses

CHALLENGE: Escalating youth un- and under-employment and social disenfranchisement and exclusion

IMPACTS

YBI Network:Members & Network Team

Under-served Young Entrepreneurs

YBIStakeholders

INPUTS

Financial and non-financial services are expanded and improved for under-served young

entrepreneurs

More under-served young entrepreneurs are more efficiently and effectively

supported though evidence

More global knowledge and experience is captured,

shared and applied through communities of practice to

support under-served young entrepreneurs

Global investment for under-served young

entrepreneurs is increased and more co-ordinated through partnerships

More influencers understand the caseand act to support

under-served young entrepreneurs

The YBI network is regarded as a global

leader in youth entrepreneurship

OUTCOMES

PRIORITIES

Improve and scale financial and

non-financial support

Build an evidence-based

network

Strengthennetwork communities

of practice

Quality assuranceTechnology Data

Increase and better coordinate investment through partnerships

Be the global voiceof under-served

young entrepreneurs

#1 #2 #3 #4 #5

ENABLERS

1. Under-served means: unable to access the financial, knowledge or human capital needed to start and grow a business

By 2017 we will develop at least three new capacity building offerings, based on network needs and priorities and building on existing assets in: entrepreneur mentoring and training; technology; and monitoring, evaluation and learning. The first new programme will be in access to finance, working collaboratively with financial institutions.

We will seek to scale up innovations in the delivery of services to under-served young entrepreneurs where network collaboration has the potential to spread knowledge, leverage partnerships and bring economies of scale. Potential areas for innovation are: peer-to-peer finance and e-mentoring, working collaboratively with sector experts.

CASE STUDY

Supporting Youth Business Spain to build a volunteer business mentoring programme

Part of the value of Fundación Tomillo and C’PAC founding a partnership to launch Youth Business Spain (YBS) and joining the YBI network was the opportunity to expand their services from training, technical support and access to finance to include a high quality volunteer business mentoring programme.

Key results and learning

YBI’s support enabled YBS to build an end-to-end mentoring programme, drawing on proven methodologies and international best practices. The value of learning training techniques for mentors was considered particularly valuable. Over 100 volunteer business mentors

have been recruited, and over 75 entrepreneurs report the benefits of their new mentoring relationships in Barcelona and Madrid. Satisfaction rates are high among the entrepreneurs, and they feel confident about receiving support from their mentors. The real value is the opportunity of growing not only their business but also personally and professionally.

YBS is also expanding as a network with the support of YBI, and different organisations and public administrations are interested in adopting the mentoring programme. YBS is providing significant value to the YBI network by translating key mentoring materials into Spanish, benefiting members across Latin America, and a member of YBS staff has been trained as a YBI mentoring consultant to expand access to YBI’s support.

OUTCOME

Financial and non-financial support services areexpanded and improvedfor under-served young entrepreneurs

Building a balanced global presence

Over the next three years, we aim to build and balance our global footprint. At the start of this strategic period, the YBI network is operating in 40 countries in all regions of the world. We will continue to expand and scale services in all regions of the world, but in particular recognise the priority of increasing our coverage to maintain global network representation, for example in the United States, Sub Saharan Africa and in South and South East Asia.

Entrepreneurship is more viable in countries with a certain level of political, social and economic stability. As we expand our operations, we will seek to identify the critical success factors, and target priority countries accordingly.

By 2017 the YBI network will operate in a minimum of 60 countries, with a relentless commitment to the integrity and strength of our network community as we grow. We will ensure that the balance between developed and developing countries stays within 15% of the global balance, based on OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) criteria.

Member initiatives in-country will provide the most appropriate combination of financial and non-financial services to the under-served young entrepreneurs in their communities, who in turn will develop enterprises relevant for their market, including social businesses. Through growing our network, we will test and identify which service delivery models work best where, and why. In large countries in particular, where reaching national scale is a challenge, more than one YBI member per country might be most appropriate, working collaboratively.

Targeting sustainable impact

By 2017 we will increase job creation in communities and personal empowerment for individuals by growing the YBI network to support 40,000 under-served young entrepreneurs to start and grow sustainable businesses and provide enterprise training to 400,000 each year. On average three jobs will be created per business started, and 70% of the businesses created will continue trading for a minimum of three years.

We will aim for gender equity: 40-60% of young entrepreneurs supported globally by the YBI network will be female.

Delivering quality services at scale

Working collaboratively as a network helps members increase the scale and quality of support provided to under-served young entrepreneurs. Through sharing experiences, tools and evidence, as well as through specific capacity building programmes (“offerings”), members will increase the range of services they deliver and/or improve programmatic quality. We will develop new processes to ensure that network products and services address member needs and shared priorities.


Priority #1Improve and scale financial and non-financial support services to under-served young entrepreneurs

With support from the newly created Youth Business Spain,

Helga Marugán Patino launched her domestic services business,

providing employmentto people in situations

of social exclusion.

OUTCOME

More under-servedyoung entrepreneurs are more efficiently and effectively supported though evidence

Building a global evidence base

The global YBI network of expert practitioners is a unique asset to develop a sector-leading evidence base in understanding what works in supporting under-served young entrepreneurs. We are committed to investing in strengthening our culture and capabilities to deliver on this potential. By applying learning we will improve outcomes for the entrepreneurs we support, scaling up proven practices and driving innovation.

By 2017 our goal is to develop and host for the network and for the sector the most comprehensive evidence base in what works in supporting under-served young entrepreneurs.

Through our global network, we will generate new and transferable evidence about the efficiency and effectiveness of different types of entrepreneur support for different profiles of under-served young entrepreneurs in different contexts. We will also analyse the value of operating as a network to deliver quality support at scale.

We will focus on three key areas in generating the evidence:

• Building the case for youth entrepreneurship

• Understanding what works for under-served young entrepreneurs

• Demonstrating the value of a network approach

As the only network with a dedicated focus on youth entrepreneurship and global reach, we will strengthen our role as an international convener for research and learning, working collaboratively with other leading practitioners and research institutions. In order to develop our comprehensive evidence base, we will systematically aggregate relevant evidence and learning from across the sector.

Embedding research and learning

Alongside this Strategic Plan, we will implement a strategic approach to network research and learning, set out in more detail in the YBI Research and Learning Agenda 2014-17 (published separately and available on YBI’s website).

This Agenda has been developed based on learning to date, and through analysis of the knowledge gaps and assumptions in our theory of change and in the delivery of the Priorities and Enablers set out in this Strategic Plan.

We will deliver this Agenda through:

• Sector research: collaborative initiatives to address key knowledge gaps in youth entrepreneurship

• Network research: coordinated initiatives across multiple members to generate comparative and transferable learning


Priority #2 Build an evidence-based network

• Member research: specific studies in-country to assess the impact of member services for under-served young entrepreneurs

Understanding the effect of context

A major commitment in this Agenda is to understand the effect of context on what works. During 2014-17 YBI will take forward our leadership position on the question of ‘how does context affect impact?’

By 2017 we will publish a diagnostic of context endorsed by the sector and the results of at least 10 evaluations by context using a variety of methodologies.

We are committed to sharing the knowledge and evidence we generate as a network widely with the sector to enable others to target investments more efficiently and effectively and to facilitate collaborative working in the field. See Priority 5 for more about this commitment.

CASE STUDY

Measuring the effectiveness of supporting under-served young entrepreneurs in Northern Uganda

In conflict-affected northern Uganda, YBI is working with local member Enterprise Uganda on a two-year Department for International Development (DFID)-funded programme (2013-15) that provides enterprise training and tailored support, including mentoring and business counselling targeting 10,500 youth.

Core to the programme is the design and implementation of a full monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) system at each stage of the project lifecycle that combines YBI’s MEL tools and skills with the network’s technology platform. A range of tools and templates have been created, readily adaptable for other projects.


The programme operates at scale in a post-conflict context, and learning and results are being captured, shared and applied for decision-making, continuous improvement and sector knowledge.

Learning from the programme has demonstrated the importance of designing the MEL system at planning stage based on a theory of change approach, making underlying assumptions and key learning questions explicit. Further, it has shown the value of local market research, when adapting services for a new area or target group. For example, through a market research study led by local, trained youth, unexpected findings, such as a strong savings culture among the youth, extremely positive attitudes towards entrepreneurship, and variance in education levels have been applied to programme design. The close integration of appropriate supporting technology is equally proving essential when dealing with large quantities of data required for such programmes.

Nyaga Jenet, 28, was supported as part of YBI and Enterprise Uganda’s programme in Northern Uganda.

OUTCOME

More global knowledge and experience is captured, shared and applied through communities of practiceto improve support forunder-served young entrepreneurs

Enabling sharing and innovation

Communities are essential for realising the value of a network. Developing vibrant communities of practice will enable valuable exchange of knowledge and experiences, as well as the flow of innovations and ideas from outside our network. YBI communities will grow to convene leading expertise and knowledge in different areas of youth entrepreneurship support and strengthen the community dynamic of the YBI network.

Many YBI members have experience managing communities of practice in their country of operation, connecting

young entrepreneurs, mentors, trainers, staff and volunteers. As a network, our emergent communities in key programmatic and organisational topics (entrepreneur mentoring and training; technology and systems; and monitoring evaluation & learning) demonstrate the significant benefits of developing communities across borders in areas of shared interest. Strengthening our capabilities to design and manage effective communities of practice is an important focus for the next three years.

Building needs-based communities

By 2017 we will develop the systems and behaviours to support active needs-based communities of practice for YBI member staff to create and sustain an open culture of sharing, innovation and learning across priority areas of knowledge and operations.

Communities will enable members to share and experiment with innovative ways to deliver quality services to their entrepreneurs, including peer-to-peer finance and e-mentoring, guiding focus areas for global development. The design and management of communities will be responsive to members’ areas of expertise,

with specialist exchange in programmatic topics such as social enterprise and young women entrepreneurship and organisational topics such as good governance and resource-raising.

We also recognise the potential of our global network for connecting YBI entrepreneurs and mentors in different countries. We will assess the value and feasibility of approaches to online communities for international trade, ideas exchange and knowledge sharing for YBI entrepreneurs and mentors, learning from successful platforms already in existence.

Developing community systems and behaviours

The exchange of knowledge is a central community activity. Having made significant progress over the past three years in developing our network capabilities to generate and share learning, knowledge management will increasingly be a focus.

By 2017, in line with Priority #2, we will develop a knowledge management system for the network that enables members to access relevant knowledge from other contexts. We will base our development in best practice in this area and seek relevant partnerships.


Priority #3Strengthen network communities of practice

Communities also facilitate important personal interactions across borders, sharing experiences and events, enabling close relationships built on trust that strengthen network cohesion and value.

In developing our communities over the next three years, we will identify and roll out effective practices to incentivise and reward community behaviours across our network. We will actively seek to test and understand the best performing approaches, learning also from external successes, so that we can evolve our network operating model for maximum value. In particular we will seek to understand better the role of the central network team and the extent of member-led activity in communities, and the balance of offline and online activity, recognising the challenges of language in a global network.

CASE STUDY

CYBF wins inaugural YBI Network Citizen award

At the 2013 YBI Global Youth Entrepreneurship Summit in London, Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) was awarded the inaugural Network Citizen award. The award is decided by popular vote among YBI members for the member who has contributed the most to foster a spirit of community and collaboration among the global YBI network.

With a view to further deepening network relationships, the prize for CYBF was a trip to other YBI network members of their choice. The entire CYBF family of staff voted, and elected to visit the Netherlands and Sweden to connect with new YBI members Qredits and Swedish Jobs & Society (NyföretagarCentrum) respectively.


YBI is only as effective as the strength of the connections between members, and this award gives recognition to CYBF for their open and proactive approach to sharing their considerable knowledge and experience with other members.

Accepting the award, CYBF CEO Julia Deans said: “We are deeply honoured to be recognised by our global peers and to represent Canada in an international setting. We share this recognition with our CYBF entrepreneurs and with the many partners, volunteers, and government and private sector funders who work with us to expand entrepreneurship in Canada.”

The design and value of this inaugural award provided important learning for the YBI network to take forward about the role of incentives in fostering a collaborative and open culture of sharing and exchanging.

Julia Deans receiving the Network Citizen award from

Mark Strudwick, former CEO of the Prince’s Scottish Youth

Business Trust.

OUTCOME

Global investment for under-served young entrepreneurs is increased and more co-ordinated through partnerships

Building a collaboration culture

Collaboration is core to YBI’s culture. Through partnerships we will bring together relevant experience and resource to leverage YBI’s global scale and reach our goals. We will design our approaches to enable others to use entrepreneurship to help address the escalating challenge of creating decent job opportunities for rising youth populations around the world.

At this time of urgent need, we are ambitious to take forward our growing track record in attracting resource to youth entrepreneurship, and to YBI specifically, working with partners aligned to our strategic goals, including the long-term sustainability of joint investments.

As a global network, YBI has the expertise and the infrastructure to broker strategic partnerships that blend international and in-country investments and activities for shared value.

As demonstrated through successful partnership-building over the past three years, our network approach enables partnerships with a dual agenda of practice and knowledge: partnering to reach under-served young entrepreneurs at scale in a diverse range of geographies, whilst partnering to generate shared learning about the most efficient and effective ways to deliver impact.

Delivering sharedvalue partnerships

By 2017 we will mobilise an additional USD 100 million in the value of network partnerships for YBI, through expanding existing partnerships and initiating and brokering new opportunities.

We will continue to broaden our partnership base to develop a balanced international portfolio of partners.

Over the next three years, we will collectively prioritise multinational cross-sector partnerships designed to deliver systemic change.

Building on our experience, we will continue to build regional partnerships that enable a supportive ecosystem for under-served young entrepreneurs and transfer learning to and from other regions. Over the next three years, assessing the most effective structures at regional level to strengthen YBI’s global community will be an important focus.

Maximising return on investment

By 2017, through defining partner selection criteria, developing effective practices and sharing lessons learned, we also aim to be widely recognised in the sector as a partner of choice for youth entrepreneurship support, and for our value in building partnerships in support of under-served young entrepreneurs.

Our work in this area will also be designed to help strengthen members’ capabilities in partnership-building at local and national levels.

Increasingly as we grow our evidence base, we will apply it to drive our resource-allocation and decision-making, targeting priority areas and maximising return on investment.


Priority #4Increase and better coordinate investment through partnerships for under-served young entrepreneurs

“Accenture created Skills to Succeed, our corporate citizenship initiative aiming to equip 700,000 people by 2015 with the skills to get a job or build a business. YBI is a great example of an organisation that is critical to our ability to achieve our goal and multiply our impact.”

Jill Huntley,Managing Director,Global Corporate Citizenship, Accenture

“Barclays is delighted to partner with YBI as part of our commitment to help five million disadvantaged young people across the globe enhance their enterprise, employability and financial skills. Together, we are supporting the next generation in starting and growing their own businesses, giving them access to the knowledge and resources they need to fulfil their potential.”

Kathleen Britain,Head of UK Community Investment, Barclays

“Youth unemployment is a key issue in many countries where BG Group operates. We are excited about the future impact of our new partnership with YBI and the potential for us both to develop a better understanding of what works to support young entrepreneurs in different contexts around the world.”

Ramanie Kunanayagam,Group Head, Social Performance,BG Group

“YBI is a model partner for the MIF - both are deeply committed to understanding what works and why in successful entrepreneurship for disadvantaged youth. YBI’s global network brings new models and fresh perspectives to Latin America and the Caribbean. Our joint program provides exciting opportunities to bring our shared knowledge and experience to the region on a larger scale.”

Maritza Vela,MIF Specialist,Inter-American Development Bank

“We are committed to helping our Foundation customers further their social mission and deepen their impact through technology. As an entrepreneurial organisation, we are especially delighted to be partnering with YBI to help the next generation of young entrepreneurs start in business, and are excited to continue working together on YBI’s ambitious technology roadmap.”

Isabel Kelly,International Director,Salesforce.com Foundation

During 2011-14, through partnerships with a range of leading corporate, bilateral and multilateral organisations, we increased opportunities and addressed challenges for increasing numbers of under-served young entrepreneurs, and we learned together about how to maximise the efficiency and effectiveness of our joint work.

To deliver our strategic growth over the next three years, we are ambitious to scale and innovate new and existing partnerships to help more young people around the world take advantage of the opportunities of enterprise – join us!

Primary supporters:

OUTCOMES

More influencers understand the caseand act to supportunder-served young entrepreneurs

The YBI network isregarded as a globalleader in youth entrepreneurship

Being the global voice

As the only dedicated global youth entrepreneurship network, YBI is uniquely placed to understand and respond to the needs of aspiring young entrepreneurs who cannot access the support they need to start and grow a business.

We are committed to deploying our unique insights and assets for the benefit of the wider sector. Amplifying the knowledge and influence of our community of experts, and drawing on our expanding evidence base, YBI aspires to become the global voice of under-served young entrepreneurs.

Through our focus on the most effective support solutions for under-served young entrepreneurs, we will aim to facilitate positive change by increasing our contribution to the sector’s understanding of the factors that most affect the enabling environment in different contexts: such as entrepreneurship culture, regulation and taxation, education and training, and cross-sector collaboration.

By 2017, we will communicate systematically the results and learning of our work to represent the needs and priorities of under-served young entrepreneurs. We aim to help ensure that the barriers and the opportunities they face are understood and acted upon by policymakers, media, academia and the business community, internationally, regionally, nationally and locally.

Building our global identity

Over the next three years we will invest in strengthening our global identity to become increasingly established as a trusted and recognised source of insight and expertise on youth entrepreneurship around the world.

We will increase the number of YBI ambassadors from both within and outside the network, including young entrepreneurs, so that our identity and voice is representative both of our global reach and of the people we exist to support.

We believe in celebrating the successes of the young entrepreneurs supported by the YBI network, and we will continue to develop our Young Entrepreneur Awards programme to engage new audiences around the world.


Convening and collaborating

We strongly believe that by working with other sector specialists, we can achieve more. We will convene and partner with other leading sector stakeholders to strengthen the case for investing in supporting under-served young entrepreneurs and sharing what works.

We will continue to play a leading role in relevant sector platforms, including Global Entrepreneurship Week to promote the opportunities of enterprise at the grassroots, and the G20 Young Entrepreneur Alliance to influence pro-enterprise policy and regulation.

CASE STUDY

Celebrating the achievements ofunder-served young entrepreneurs

In YBI’s 2013 Young Entrepreneur Awards, Nimali Gunawardana from Sri Lanka won Start-Up Entrepreneur of the Year 2013 for her environmentally friendly business producing and exporting materials from coconuts. Nimali was able to launch her business through support from Youth Business Sri Lanka, including a loan of USD 800.


Nimali’s success enabled YBI to generate attention among key stakeholders to what under-served young entrepreneurs can achieve

if given the right kind of support, including media coverage across Sri Lanka and on BBC online.

Running a global competition is an effective way to create role models who can inspire many more young people about entrepreneurship. Recognising successful entrepreneurs is a key means to raise awareness, particularly through media coverage, about the importance of investing in under-served young entrepreneurs and the impact of effective support at an individual level.

Putting successful young entrepreneurs at the heart of external network communications is vital to conveying credentials as a global network that delivers practical support to thousands of beneficiaries.

Priority #5Be the global voice of under-served young entrepreneurs and position YBI as a leader in the field

Nimali Gunawardanafrom Sri Lanka, working with the

coconut husks that she turnsinto useful materials.

Enablers

Enabler #1 - Technology

The borderless world enabled through technology has significant potential for strengthening YBI’s network approach.

Building on our investment in Salesforce.com, we will continue to improve the systems we have designed for YBI members to use in their daily operations to improve efficiency, learning, and capacity for growth. We are committed to maximising the role of technology in delivering our goals.

We will invest in technologies to improve the YBI network experience for all members, such as through gathering and benchmarking performance data online, facilitating communities of practice and sharing and managing knowledge.

We will monitor, research and introduce innovations that will enhance the support experience that the under-served young entrepreneurs receive from members, and build upon our existing investments in technologies for network efficiency and scalability.

Combined with stronger relationships with industry experts and a culture of technology stewardship, we aspire to become a leader in the use of technology for youth entrepreneurship support.

CASE STUDY

Achieving efficiencies through technology in supporting under-served young entrepreneurs in Israel

In 2010 YBI’s member in Israel, Keren Shemesh, participated in a pilot of YBI’s Operations Management System (OMS), built on Salesforce.com. It adopted the system fully towards the end of 2012, to record and analyse their client relationships. The leadership of Keren Shemesh has provided an important contribution to the global development of OMS, which is present in 12 YBI member countries and in 5 languages at the start of this strategic period.


Keren Shemesh attributes their growth capacity to OMS adoption. Ortal Goldfarb, Keren Shemesh’s Community Relations Manager and YBI OMS Super User, said: “The OMS is what allowed us to switch from

servicing 100 entrepreneurs to providing services to 300 entrepreneurs per year.”

Entrepreneur and mentor application forms are integrated online, reducing paperwork, a standard process has been implemented both for approving and assigning entrepreneurs to services and for tracking mentor relationships, which increases control, and key performance indicators are automated, saving time and providing visual insights.

Keren Shemesh is exploring e-learning and its relationship to OMS, and a set of Quality of Service indicators are in development to measure the efficiency of processes that will likely be applicable to other members. This initiative demonstrates the success of network activities when members show leadership in delivery, combined with ongoing and flexible support to ensure sustainability against evolving needs.

Enabler #2 - Quality Assurance

YBI has a track record of success in designing and delivering a robust accreditation process for membership, ensuring that the network maintains high standards of quality and that the YBI brand is a respected hallmark.

Over the next three years, learning from our experience of welcoming a growing number of large-scale members into the network, and shifting to an increasingly outcomes-led approach, it is through our quality assurance framework that we will protect the integrity and strategic alignment of our network. Alongside this Strategic Plan, we will develop an end-to-end quality assurance system that identifies, selects and supports high-performing members based on a set of shared principles and standards.

As we build our evidence base in what works, where and why, we will strengthen our quality assurance tools and processes, recognising that to an extent the application of standards for practitioners needs to be context-sensitive.

Enabler #3 - Data

Relevant and transferable data is critical to global insight for our network. We are committed to developing consistent and accurate datasets across the network that enable benchmarking and inform planning and decision-making.

We recognise that this is an area for improvement for YBI, and over the next three years, we will strengthen our network approach to performance and accountability through more rigorous measurement and reporting focused on outcomes.

The strength of a network is shared value in diversity, within boundaries, and it is important that our data definitions respect and reflect the variance in the local operating and measurement approaches that YBI members each have in their country.

These global datasets are complemented by our Research and Learning Agenda for rigorous, context-specific evaluation of impact.

Performanceand accountability

Under an enhanced approach to Performance and Accountability for 2014-17, metrics are defined across the commitments set out in this Strategic Plan. In order to measure and improve performance, and to be accountable to stakeholders, we will embed an integrated planning, measurement and reporting process that shifts YBI to a stronger focus on outcomes than on inputs and activities, and enables increasingly rigorous reporting of network impact to key audiences.

A key pillar in our network Performance and Accountability framework is a mid-term review of our Strategic Plan in order to asses and learn from progress, and adjust priorities and plans where appropriate, informed by results, evidence and feedback.

Drawn from the impact level of our theory of change, the following four output and outcome metrics will be our leading network performance indicators:


Enabler #2Quality assurance

Enabler #1 - Technology Enabler #3Data





# Businesses started and grown by under-served

young entrepreneurs

# Young people provided with

enterprise training

Average# jobs createdper business

% Businesses continuing to

trade after 3 years or more since

set up

Idan Leibowitz and Adi Almagor,founders of Music Home – a place where

children and adults learn how to play musical instruments. They were able to start up their business with the support of Keren Shemesh.

Our vision is that youth

entrepreneurship is recognised

for driving sustainable economic

development, and that all

young people who want to

set up a business are able

to fulfil their potential.

Our mission is to enable

more under-served young

entrepreneurs to access the support

they need to start and grow their

business, helping them to create

jobs, build communities and

transform lives.

www.youthbusiness.org @youthbizint /youthbusiness

Cover pictures, from top left:

Ho Chi-pin started up her Chocolate Patisserie business with the support of Youth Business Hong Kong.

Xida Xie founded a company specialising in environmental engineering and waste water treatment with the backing of Youth Business China.

Charles Kaindi, owner of an entertainment business, was supported by the Kenya Youth Business Trust.

Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust in India gave assistance to Panchamirtham Elumalai to help her grow her manufacturing business.

Faiza Netto is a mentor for The Centennial Fund in Saudi Arabia, and providing valuable support to her mentee Manal Al-Azoori.

Edson da Maia Steinheuser was able to start up his internet cafe with the support of Aliança Empreendedora in Brazil.

Youth Business International...Youth Business International (YBI) is the only global network dedicated exclusively to supporting under-served young entrepreneurs. We are proud of our

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