Jana Harp Dean, Regent's March 2011 World Changer

Jana Harp Dean ’97 (Psychology & Counseling) is using her Master’s in Community Counseling from Regent University to change the lives of impoverished women in Central Asia, China, India, and elsewhere. Her nonprofit organization, OneMaker, provides jewelry-making training and literacy courses so women can earn a fair wage in a safe working environment. Jana also uses what she’s learned from working in a hostile, war-torn country to offer coaching and consulting services to other groups seeking to help women in developing countries.

Read Jana's blog

"Eat Mor Chiken" :)

Class was fun tonight. Students responded well to Gordon and Dan (Chick-fil-A operators) and had lots of questions. Many signed up for one-on-ones with them throughout the week. Dan had taken pictures of billboards and other signs around Kigali. This provided some interesting discussion on advertising messages and look and feel. When they understood the message of Chick fil A’s ads “Eat Mor Chiken”, they laughed loudly.

Dan O’Bryan and Gordon Schrank, Chick fil A operators visiting the BDC to teach, advise, consult

MTN is Rwanda's bigest cell phone company. 

Other notes:

1. Had a relaxing Sunday with Gordon and Dan. Nice brunch by the pool at the hotel next to the guest house where we are staying. Then I took them to the Telecom House—we teach in the boardroom and have a small suite of offices on the 4th floor. They took several pictures from the decks on the sixth floor. Good 360 degree views of Kigali.

2. Monday morning started with a meeting at Rwanda Development Board (RDB) to discuss our agreement and their provision of a facility. Difficult meeting. They don’t have a facility that can accommodate our planned growth. They will present a written proposal on Thursday describing what they can provide.

3. Dona picked us up at Telecom House and we drove to UTC (center of town) so Gordon and Dan could change money. Then on to Mille Collines Hotel. Wanted to check on their quote for graduation venue and talk with HR about their customer service training needs. Instead, they had us speak the General Manager, who is from Netherlands. Quite an interesting, intense discussion. We told him that we wanted to discuss his training needs. He said he would never send his people out for training. He does it in house. He said he was hired to turn around a disorganized, poorly run hotel. His management philosophy is quite different from ours, so we didn’t pursue the training opportunity with him.

4. Met with Olivier Kamanzi, the deputy head of the Capital Markets Advisory Commission. Fascinating to hear him describe the opening of their capital market. The first public Rwandan company was listed Jan 31, 2011. He showed us the stock exchange trading floor, which consisted of two whiteboards—one for stocks and one for bonds. Black and red markers showed the trades that occurred today in the one stock. It was interesting to see the start of a financial market. They are already working on putting together the hardware, software and systems they will need for an electronic version of their manual system.

Update

(by Skye Ganbaatar)

Thankfully, the water is back on at the Mulford home in Suffolk, VA. After the water situation was fixed, the heat went out, but that's back on too. Never a dull moment!

Here's a picture of Dr Mulford teaching the first cohort of students in the Entrepreneurship Training course. We'll have another update from Kigali soon!

Saturday

by Dr John Mulford, Kigali, Rwanda

1. Had nice breakfast meeting with six Rwandans to help them with a company they are forming. I already knew four of them. It was fun hearing their vision and helping them think through a strategy.

2. Met with graduates from the class that graduated in December in order to organize peer mentoring groups. We formed three groups of 11-12 per group. We have three excellent group leaders—volunteers who graduated with the first class. (pictures show 2 of our graduates)

The purpose of the groups is to help each other succeed in business and in life. Members encourage, affirm, exhort and hold each other accountable as they launch and grow their businesses. They share knowledge, expertise and contacts. For example, a few people in each group have considerable expertise in information technology. Others are good marketers. They all have their own networks of contacts that they can share. For example, Dona got help determining the medical equipment he needs for his clinic from a doctor who is Ntare’s uncle.

It was so good to see everyone again. We have a special bond with the first graduating class. They were excited to see the beautiful classroom and our offices in such a high quality building.

3. Dona took me to Nakumatt (Rwanda’s Wal-Mart, but one hundredth the size) to buy groceries so I’d have something on hand for our visiting execs, who arrive tonight. One of them has severe food allergies—dairy, gluten, wheat, several spices, and some fruits and vegetables. I got a supply of fruits, nuts and apple juice so he would have something to snack on.

As I was leaving the store, a man approached me asking for help. This is quite common here, even more so with children. I usually ignore such requests, because many of the stories are untrue—just scams to get money. This time I felt I should help the man, so I reached into my bag of groceries and gave him some items. He was probably expecting money, but since he said he needed food for his child, I thought I would provide directly for the need he expressed. I had bought a small jar of mayonnaise for myself, but the man at the register said it was buy one, get one free. At first, I said I had no need for the second, but then I said OK, I’ll give it away. I gave it away (along with yogurt, juice, etc.) to the man who asked for help.

4. I was planning for an afternoon of rest when my phone rang. It was Naizaire, from Burundi. He as in Kigali overnight on his way to Goma (in Congo) for a business meeting. He is the President of the ICCC chapter in Burundi and on the international board of ICCC, so he is very interested in our progress in Rwanda for two reasons. First, from his international role, and second, because we are supposed to start a BDC in Burundi soon. He came by my apartment at the guest house for a long chat. It was interesting to hear about his work with a Development bank for Rwanda, Burundi and Congo. He also gave me some insights on the issues dealing with government officials—proper protocol, etc.

5. Dona picked me up to go to the airport for the arrival of two Chick fil A operators from Texas and New Mexico. Busiest I have seen the airport. They arrived on time. Dan was quite hungry, because he couldn’t eat the airline food. We had a nice dinner at Bourbon Coffee shop. They checked in and unpacked. We share a suite of 3-bedrooms and a living room. I was surprised that they had the energy to talk until almost midnight. Hope they sleep well. We have a busy week ahead.

A "situation" back at home in Suffolk, VA: no water...

by Dr. John Mulford 

 Meanwhile, in Rwanda... (Thursday March 3)

The students are making good progress on their business strategies and positioning. I pushed them to get evidence to back up their ideas. They aren’t used to finding major data sources that report on whole markets or industries, but they have been very good at talking with potential customers and businesses in their industry. We talked about analyzing direct competitors tonight, and many knew exactly who their competitors are.

I continue to walk the tightrope between being sensitive and encouraging (not my strongest suit) and asking challenging questions to make sure that the students have solid plans (I have no trouble doing this). I was concerned that I came down too hard on Mathilde the other night. Her business is home delivery of groceries. I told her that the concept was a huge failure in the U.S., costing the investors millions of dollars. I said she better triple check her assumptions and numbers, or look for another idea (Pretty low on the sensitivity meter).

Fortunately, Mathilde is an entrepreneur who isn’t easily discouraged.

Up with the sun again

by Dr John Mulford in Kigali, Rwanda

Wednesday 2 March

Drove to town so I could get my Tigo modem repaired. The Tigo rep was very tactful and helpful. He said I had inserted the Sim card in a way he had never seen.  It wasn’t easy to remove, but he did it, reinserted it correctly, and had me on my way in five minutes. Dona had gone to the bank, so I walked to Blues Café for the buffet. Two women sat at my table. When I told them what I was doing in Rwanda, one said “that is exactly the program for me.” She works at a bank. I invited her to our open house. She e-mailed me later to say she would come. I think I could recruit at least one [new student] a day just having lunch at Blues Café. It is close to many banks and office buildings.

Other items:
1. Up with the sun again—6:20. Two young Babson College grads came on their motorbikes for breakfast at Solace [guest house]. Ben just finished undergrad and Chris just finished a masters in Int’l business. Their undergrad dean chose them for a 2-yr post-grad fellowship funded with a $100K grant from a donor. They are the program managers of the Babson-Rwanda Entrepreneurship Center, sponsored by PSF (private sector federation), and headed by the undergrad dean back in the States. Seeing all these young, recent grads (Babson and Bridge2Rwanda) spending a year or two in Rwanda makes me think we are missing out—on manpower and enthusiasm—by not attracting Regent grads to do something similar.

From Rwanda: All in a Day's Work

by Dr John Mulford

Kigali, Rwanda

Another interesting and blessed day in Kigali. Everyone should have a chance to experience the adventure and joys of cross-cultural living, especially in such a beautiful and friendly place. One of my many laughs of the day was Marshall’s e-mail response to my request for his flight details. Referring to my Monday blog, he asked “shall we bring chairs?” He arrives with the Chick fil A team next week.

More from today:
 
 1. Nothing like a long day to ensure sleep—slept deeply but not long enough. Up at 6:30 a.m. with the sun. Found my phone is dead. Charger not working. Put it on the To Do list for today. Later, in town, took three stores to find one. Man at Kiosk hooked my phone up to show me it was charging. When I asked how much, he said free. He thought I only wanted a charge, not the charger. Still, his price was less than half what I paid for one that broke in three months of usage in the Fall.

2. Working with Chrystel, made several long To Do lists for her. I don’t know where she’ll find the time to do all of them, especially since she became my chauffeur today.

3. Chrystel and I met with marketing managers of two hotels—Lemigo and Mille Collines—looking for graduation venue. Asked each of them to consider donating part of the bill as a sponsorship. I told them we would have press, top government officials, and key business leaders which would be great publicity for them. Got very different responses. Lemigo manager said they had plenty of business and attracted all the top business and government leaders already. Said they hadn’t done any sponsorships (only opened in Sep) and weren’t interested in starting. Mille Collines manager said no problem. They would probably donate the hors d’oeuvres.

I mention the difference because it reminded me of the responses we got when I asked vendors to sponsor the Business Plan Competition. The accountant said sure, a good idea. The lawyer said he couldn’t see the benefit, but did it out of duty as an ICCC member. The interesting similarity is that the ones who saw the benefit were both Kenyans, while those who didn’t see a benefit were Rwandans. Dangerous to generalize from a sample of two, but Kenyans are known throughout East Africa as top business people. It is difficult to negotiate a win-win when the other party doesn’t see the win for his side.

4. Communicating in Rwanda. I have avoided texting on my cell phone in the U.S. without noticeable problems. Not so in Rwanda. People don’t answer their phones and they don’t have voicemail. I tried phoning someone to set up a meeting. No answer. I texted him (too cryptic a message because of my slow fingers and the old style keyboard). He immediately texted back suggesting that I meet with someone else in his organization. I really needed to see him. May have to be a two-step process.

Next, I couldn’t find a phone number that worked for the American ambassador’s office or for USAID. So, Chrystel drove me to the embassy. Good thing she was with me. She was able to explain why we were there to the guards. Then a comedy as guards called various offices and either had an easy time communicating if the person who answered was Rwandese or a hard time if American. Got an appointment with economic development officer.

5. Weather has been quite hot for Kigali. Everyone complaining of the heat. I like it after a cold winter at home. The nights are cool, so good sleeping weather.

6. Several students arrived for class 10-30 minutes early. More than half there by official start time. Unheard of with our first cohort. Had fun playing the name game, where everyone chooses a nickname beginning with same letter as first name. They had already done this with Jason. I did it so I could learn names. Mathilda changed her nickname from “mature” to “magnificent”. She said her husband didn’t like the first nickname she chose. Several in the group teased her by using both nicknames. Much laughter and playfulness in this group.

Whenever I asked for examples from Rwanda, students used their own business ideas. Shows they are really focusing. That’s good. This group really follows the material and is visibly engaged in the discussion. Many good comments and questions.

Had quite the juggling act during class. Dona came up at break and said his daughter is applying to Regent Undergrad. Application deadline is today and requires $50 application fee. Could he give me cash and I pay Regent. I couldn’t leave class and our Internet was down, so I gave him my credit card to use upstairs where Internet was working. He reappeared in the middle of my presentation with a note: Home address and telephone number needed. I nonchalantly filled it out and gave it back to him without stopping my presentation. You may wonder why I would accommodate this request in the middle of class. You wouldn’t wonder if you knew all that Dona has sacrificed for our program. Once when our wired funds were a few days late, Dona deposited $170 of his personal funds so we could pay our taxes.

7. Rushed back to Solace after class to skype with Gerhard in Germany only to find that Solace wireless was down to “very low” signal. After 4 or 5 dropped calls, we gave up. I tried to install a Tigo cell modem, but this technologically and manually challenged user messed something up (sim card now stuck in modem and probably in backwards), so Tigo is no go until I get help tomorrow.

Research Experience: Orphanage Models

by Hanisha Besant

The current project that I am working on for RCE is on researching orphanage models that provide tools to help orphans survive the “after life” of being in an orphanage as a child. The project was inspired by a partnering organization that facilitates orphanages over-seas. Several disheartening reports from devoted employees at the orphanages were enough to indicate that the orphans seldom fare well when faced with the freedom of adulthood. In this case, the lack of emotional attachment and family support into adulthood seemed to be the root cause of the problem. So, plans are being made to develop an orphanage model which will help overcome these issues.
My journey into cyberspace with the intent of researching this subject was an interesting one. I came across a document which revealed the different types of orphanages that have existed throughout history. To my amusement, I discovered that the original use of the word asylum was for “a place of refuge” founded by hospitals to rear infants who were orphans. By the 19th and 20th centuries, an asylum became known as a place for the mentally challenged.

My readings then led me to an article about the Magdalene Sisters. These “orphanages” were designed for young girls who were promiscuous or had perceived character flaws and were an object of shame to their family. It seemed that the people in authority were given a mandate to break the spirit of the girls because of their perceived innate wickedness. The horror stories of the residents of these orphanages, and their survivors, were disturbing and left me sad for the rest of the day (no exaggeration). This was not the first time I had come across stories of the shameful ways in which orphans were treated throughout history, but the fact that these orphanages were designed on distorted religious doctrines grieved me deeply.

On a more relevant note, as my research became more fine-tuned, I discovered that there were orphanages scattered across Africa which focused on helping orphans become self-sufficient. This was a breath of fresh air to my soul! These orphanages focused of providing skill sets and lifelong mentors/care givers to the orphans. I have not yet discovered the recorded success of these orphanages. My research thus continues…