JEDDAH, 10 November 2006 — Women entrepreneurs need to develop a growth-oriented attitude and marketing abilities in order to succeed in the dynamic and fast paced world of entrepreneurship, speakers at the three-day conference entitled “Women Entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia,” stressed.

The conference, an executive education program for businesswomen, was organized by Effat College and the Spanish Instituto De Empresa at the Jeddah Westin Hotel. It was sponsored by the National Commercial Bank.

In the first day of the conference that ended on Wednesday, 48 women entrepreneurs from various business and academic backgrounds attended the program together with college staff members and students. Students from Dar Al-Hekma and the College of Business Administration and executive employees from companies like DHL, Xenel Group HR & Training Center, Jeddah United Sports, Abdul Latif Jameel Vocational Training Center, La Woman, and Optics Company were also present.

Professor Igancio de la Vega, director and founder of the International Center for Entrepreneurship and Ventures Development and professor of Entrepreneurship and Stratigic Management at Instituto de Empresa in Madrid, Spain, and Professor Pazam Brosy from the same school of business presented sessions on the first and the second day.

“A successful entrepreneur must develop a growth-oriented attitude and constantly change the way that she thinks in order to succeed in the dynamic and fast paced world of entrepreneurship,” said de la Vega.

In the first day, the group discussed fundamental skills in entrepreneurship including how to develop a business plan and the basic skills in making a business successful. Those skills included entrepreneurial motivation and drive, business knowledge of finance and operations, the fundamentals of strategy, the skills necessary to design a business plan, market study, identification of clients, competitors, suppliers and other agents, analysis of barriers to entry, competitive advantages and necessary skills to analyze organizational models and study existing success stories of innovation and entrepreneurial drive, such as Siemens, Dupont, Zara, Dell and others.

During the second day, the group spoke about issues that tackled communication and marketing abilities. The sessions that day were about marketing fundamentals, marketing plan in a business venture, competitive advantage, use of technology in marketing, and communication and presentation skills.

A discussion of the issues that affect local people when doing business attracted attendees to the third and last day of the program.