Enterprise Singapore has welcomed the second cohort of companies to its Scale-up SG accelerator, with consultancies PwC and McKinsey serving as programme anchor partners.
A fresh batch of18 local enterprises have been selected for the second run of Enterprise Singapore’s Scale-up SG initiative – a business accelerator supported by McKinsey and PwC. Launched in July with an initial intake of 25 mid-sized companies demonstrating high-growth potential, the Scale-up SG programme runs in three phases over a two-and-a-half-year period and is aimed at rapidly scaling ambitious local enterprises.
“We hope that this 2.5-year programme will help them sharpen their strategies, build new capabilities and expand their networks of partners, so that they can grow into highly competitive global companies in their respective fields,” said Enterprise Singapore (ESG) CEO Png Cheong Boon. As per those respective fields, the first round included companies operating in diverse industries such as the lifestyle & consumer, manufacturing, and urban solutions sectors.
According to a press release, these companies have been working with McKinsey and PwC Singapore over the past five months to refine their growth strategies, with around one half of the cohort now having formulated plans that are expected to double their rates of growth from prior to participation. Phase two will see these plans put into action over the next two years, with the ongoing support of ESG and programme’s consultancy partners.
“Our anchor partner has worked with us very closely to analyse our strengths and weaknesses,” said Daniel Wong, general manager of participant Bee Cheng Hiang. “The programme also provided a good platform to learn from other leaders. Apart from this, our management team has benefitted by being more involved and empowered to make good decisions for the company as they participated actively throughout the various discussions and workshops.”
The coming ‘Accelerate’ phase of the programme (which works through a co-funding model, with up to 70 percent of participation costs covered by ESG) will include access to business intelligence, market entry immersion, regular progress reviews, and further workshops and networking opportunities. The programme has been deliberately designed to bring through compatible companies in batches, in an effort to facilitate peer networks and collaboration.
“Scale-up SG is a specially curated programme which aims to groom our high-growth local enterprises into global champions,” said ESG Chairman Peter Ong. “The companies, while vastly diverse in terms of revenue size, sectors, and business models, exhibit the common trait of hunger and the strong ambition to grow. Leaders learn best from leaders; the diversity of the companies will enrich peer learning, spurring each of them towards even greater growth.”
And the latest batch of companies have already been getting to know one other, with 36 of their leaders recently participating in a customised executive programme at the University of Pennsylvania’s famed Wharton School of business. “Subsidies are temporary, and grants just mean transferring some resources from A to B. What is more sustainable is to build capabilities,” concluded Singapore Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing at the launch of the second round.
Sourced from Consultancy.asia