'Calculate it right' workshops kick-off

Muscat: ‘Calculate it right’ workshop series kicked off recently in Al Nahda Resort in Barka and Crowne Plaza Hotel in Sohar.
These series of workshops come as a result of a cooperation agreement signed between National Finance Co (National Finance) and Fund for Development of Youth Projects (Sharakah). These workshops are aimed at making business owners better understand how to calculate project cost, sales assumptions, required resources, operational expenses and the cost of capital.
The workshop in Sohar was presided by Hilal bin Nasser Al Sadrani, Sohar Shura Council Member who handed over the workshop completion certificates to the participants.
Abdullah Al Jufaili, Sharakah, general manager, delivered the workshop where he explained the challenges many startups face when starting a business. He added that in many cases it is related to lack of proper understanding of how to build their financial model and sales assumptions. “Business plans, in general, are built on very optimistic assumptions which are in many cases neither realistic nor directly related to the capacity of the company to produce/provide a service,” he added.
‘Calculate it Right’ is a half-day workshop that takes the participants through a challenging yet informative session of how to plan their business financial model. The ultimate objective of the workshop is to help those who are planning to start a business understand the exact requirements they will need and to project realistic financial (sales & expenses) figures.
Mohammed Al Marzouki, senior manager, National Finance said in appreciation of the cooperation agreement between Sharakah and National Finance, “We are delighted to partner with Sharakah in conducting these workshops. We believe that it highlights very important aspects related to managing a business. Often businesses fail merely for not having a clear financial model for sales projects versus required resources. We hope that the participants will benefit from the valuable information shared in the workshop.”
The workshop was organised with the support of National Finance branch managers in Barka, Suwaiq and Sohar. Commenting at the workshop, Hilal Al Abri said, “More than 40 business owners showed up at the workshop which was both engaging and educating. The level of interaction that we have seen in the workshop was very high. I am sure that the attendees have benefited a great deal from attending the workshop.”
“’Calculate it Right’ workshops series will be held across Oman. The registration form will be available online. The link to the registration form and further instruction will be available on social media account of Sharakah and National Finance. Those who are interested to attend should follow the hashtag #Calculate_it_Right,” he added.