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Tunisia based Imen Bakhouche launched NetConcept, an information technology services company, after catching the dotCom fever while pursuing her MBA in New York.
Her Company grew into a group of 25 team members, with the help of a spiderweb of networks. These networks included families, friends, classmates, sororities, societal congregations and even competitors! In 2007, Ms. Imen Bakhouche was showcased by World Business magazine as one of the 35 successful female entrepreneurs in its Global 35 under 35 report. |
| Name: |
Imen Backhouche |
| Title: |
General Manager |
| Company: |
NetConcept, Tunisia |
| Company Size: |
140,000 Dinars at 2003 |
| Website: |
http://www.netconcept.com.tn |
| Industry: |
Information Technology and Internet Solutions |
| Team size: |
25 persons |
| Education Background: |
| MBA, City University of New York, USA |
| Mission Statement: |
| To help Tunisian-based firms perform at their best in the international arena. |
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Actively Building Trust in Society
Imen Bakhouche lives by the philosophy that business opportunities can be found anywhere. Building trust with a person is a catalyst to sharing experiences, advice and even business contracts. Over the years, NetConcept has built networks with NGOs, sports facilities, gender-based groups, IT companies and community projects. Developing a strong relationship and reputation with the public is part of building a business.
Imen Bakhouche proves that there are no set rules in networking because opportunities can happen in the most obscure places. “I take a singing class, I meet people. I go to a restaurant, I meet people. I enter an elevator, I meet people. Networking is really all about attitude.”
Her networking skills have also revealed insights that have not been supported by statistics, “Statistics in France show that IT and engineering graduates and decision makers are dominated by men,” says Algerian-born Imen Bakhouche, “but through my networking, I have found that this is changing in Muslim countries and in some cases, the tendencies are reversed.”
Networking through Business Experience
“Networking and partnerships are of utmost importance. They provide synergies and benefits that are unattainable if done on your own.” Though Imen Bakhouche started her first internet business while studying, she recommends that aspiring entrepreneurs first find experience by joining the workforce.
A commitment in the corporate world of four to five years “is the cheapest way to learn about business and management.” Besides the low risk of bankruptcy or financial incompetence, a job allows executives to cultivate networks that will eventually benefit their own business models when they decide to look into entrepreneurial ventures.
Teaching and training is an intergral part of her own experiences. She now teaches IT classes at Tunis University to promote the next generation of entrepreneurs. “I just love it. I love training. I believe it changes people and their visions.”
Collaborating with Competitors
It is the norm in business that to obtain maximized profits, one should not mingle nor collaborate with competitors--but this is exactly what Imen did, “Local competitors who are too small to have a critical mass at an international level have banded together. We share a marketing budget and collaborate on the exceptional project.”
The eleven (11) company coalition is 4 years old, and to avoid misunderstandings that are inherent in relationships between competing companies, an independent consultant formulates contracts to align legal and ethical guidelines between the competitors. “It started when the consultant who works with a government export fund contacted me to participate in a trade show with a group of Tunisian IT companies. I immediately said yes.”
The group is called GET’IT and other prominent participating companies include OXIA and Discovery Informatique. GET’IT provides NetConcept the much needed international exposure. “NetConcept’s business strategies have been improved through this experience.”
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