TRANSITION TIMES: The Transition Year mini-company programme is no game - these students are in business, with all the pressure and risks of the real thing, writes Louise Holden.
Taking the leap into self- employment is not for everyone - the rewards may be substantial but the risks are even greater. Those lucky enough to be in Transition Year, however, get the opportunity to experience the thrill of going it alone without putting their livelihoods on the line. The mini-company programme has been running for more than 20 years and has reached a level of sophistication that means students are now able to get an authentic taste of being their own boss.
Nearly every Transition Year student in the country makes use of the mini- company model in some guise or other. Bridie Corkery, Transition Year coordinator at St Mary's Secondary School in Nenagh, Co Tipperary, believes that, in the long run, the programme pays considerable dividends for the local economy.
"We have been running the mini- company at our school for many years and all of our students have gone through the process of setting up, running and winding down their own enterprise," she says. "As a result, many of our past pupils have taken the plunge for real. At one stage, there were three separate companies run by past pupils of St Mary's in one Nenagh retail centre alone."
The mini-company programme takes students from the drawing-board stage, in which ideas for products and services are brainstormed and researched, to a final annual general meeting (agm) where shareholders are (hopefully) rewarded and companies wound up. In between, students go through the process of being interviewed and recruited for all the key positions in the company from CEO to secretary. These interviews are carried out by local businesspeople with experience in the relevant areas of recruitment.
Once the staff are in place, the company is registered and the various personnel begin the process of developing marketing plans, financial strategies, production processes, and so on. They are also obliged to familiarise themselves with employers' legislation, such as the Consumer Information Act, Sale of Goods and Services regulations, the Health and Safety Act and the Employment of Young Persons Act. Once the company is registered all thoughts of play-acting are gone - these are real companies with real responsibilities to their customers and employees.
The pressure can be quite intense, says Catherine Cooke-Harkin, Transition Year coordinator at St Columba's College in Stranorlar, Co Donegal. Her students have chosen to set up a mini-record company this year, as part of the AIB Blastbeat Challenge. As the programme has gathered pace she has noticed a few stressed heads around the school.
"I don't think some of the students were expecting this much work in Transition Year," Cooke-Harkin muses. "The students have put their heart and soul into this company and they really want to make a success of it."
Josephine Moran, of Our Lady's Secondary School, Belmullet, Co Mayo, has overseen the mini-company programme at her school for many years and is often astounded at the ambition and creativity of the students.
"We have had companies selling birdcages hand-crafted in our Construction Studies class, students have produced jewellery, picture-frames, furniture, food products, magazines, calendars," she says. "We even had a company that set up as a market trader and sold shares on behalf of other mini-companies."
While teachers plays a background role in mini-company projects, the responsibility for conceiving, establishing and managing companies lies squarely with the students. One of the more valuable aspects of the initiative is its interdisciplinary nature. Obviously, business students are called into action, but students of other disciplines are crucial too. Construction, woodwork, home economics, art and engineering students are often called upon to design and produce the products for sale.
Students with a flair for English and communications are called upon to head up PR and marketing strategies (in the case of the Blastbeat mini-music companies a journalist-in- residence is required). Accounting skills are prized, as are the people skills that mark out good personnel managers and event organisers. Other roles include quality control, production management, purchasing management and sales - a balanced mix is required.
The project does not end with the agm. Registered mini-companies are invited to participate in regional trade fairs where students from all over the country get together to exhibit their wares and discuss their experiences. These trade fairs are growing in popularity - at least half of all Transition Year classes will participate this May. Prizes are awarded in five categories: originality of idea, best set of accounts, quality of product, stand presentation, and marketing initiative.
Rita Condon, former product development manager with Aer Lingus, has been a judge at the trade fairs for three years and she envies the students involved.
"We had nothing like this when I was in school - it's an inspired programme," she says. "Every year I am astonished at the quality of some of the products - they could be bought off the shop shelf."
The aim of the programme is not to produce shop-quality goods or make astronomical profits. Although these factors are considered in judging the overall winner, the process is the most important element.
"As the students develop their company they also develop their confidence, skills and teamwork," Josephine Moran explains. "For the first time they are handed responsibility for a serious project. They have to be accountable for every step of the process, they have to rely on each other and work together. They learn about their own strengths and skills, whether they go on to be entrepreneurs or not."
