Żabka promotes entrepreneurship education
In 2022, Żabka initiated the “Entrepreneurship Study” program. The project is primarily aimed at young people, including university students and governmental and non-governmental organizations that promote non-formal education. Within this framework, the chain has established cooperation with several universities in the country, academic and local Incubators of Entrepreneurship, as well as NGOs. The study includes classes taught by Żabka experts from different areas of entrepreneurship. The meetings aim to improve the competencies of the participants and to build knowledge about their activities.
– Entrepreneurship is an extremely important area that is worth developing from an early age. As various studies or analyses show, a large part of society is perceived as not very entrepreneurial, while at the same time dreaming of running their own business. In fact, this is an attribute that many have, but you need to help them discover and strengthen it. It not only determines the functioning of companies but also has a huge impact on the career development of young people. That is why education is so important. We are keen to engage in our projects and will continue to actively develop them and participate in external initiatives in this area –emphasizes Przemysław Kijewski, COO at Żabka Polska.
In 2022, the chain carried out cooperation with 14 universities and one post-secondary school, among them the University of Economics in Poznań, the Pomeranian Academy in Słupsk, the Higher School of Entrepreneurship and Administration in Lublin, the Vistula Academy of Finance and Business in Warsaw, the University of Technology and Humanities in Radom, the University of Bialystok, the University of Economics in Wrocław, the Old Polish Academy of Applied Sciences in Kielce and the Koszalin University of Technology. The classroom and online classes were conducted by specialists from the Development Training Department of Żabka, mainly in the field of soft skills, as well as building knowledge about the franchise business model.
The cooperation took the form of various events. Representatives of the chain were present at nationwide meetings supporting entrepreneurship and talent development, including Game for Career, National Career Week – “Take the controls for your career” or Global Entrepreneurship Week.
Both at universities and in cooperation with other entities, there was an initiative in the form of Open Days with Żabka with special stands, where everyone interested in the franchise system and the activities of the chain could obtain more information on this subject.
Entrepreneurship education in 2023
This year, Żabka plans to continue cooperation with Career Offices and organizations that are guided by the idea of developing entrepreneurship in Poland, including in the student community. The chain is engaged in the 2nd edition of the Incubator of Entrepreneurship, which began in January and will take place at the Academy of Business in Wrocław and the Faculty of Applied Sciences in Wrocław. In March, the Incubator of Entrepreneurship was launched at the Poznań University of Economics, and at the end of the month will start a course within the Incubator of Entrepreneurship at the Higher School of Entrepreneurship and Administration in Lublin.
Żabka expands franchisee competence
The chain also attaches great importance to the business education of its franchisees and the development of their managerial competencies. This year, it launched the “Academy of Entrepreneurship”, whose goal is to improve the skills of entrepreneurs cooperating with the chain in the scope of running a store, managing a team, commercial competencies, and entrepreneurship as such. The initiative is implemented as part of a Strategic Partnership with the Faculty of Management of the Warsaw University of Technology and Monika Ferreira, author of the Franczyza 2.0 project and methodology for building network systems, Founding Partner in the practice of strategic consulting I’GS In Good Strategy. Completion of the project will entail obtaining a special certificate by franchisees. The program is currently aimed at franchisee candidates and current franchisees cooperating with Żabka.
Each new entrepreneur joining the chain, as part of the recruitment process, undergoes several days of training in the coaching shop, tailored to the individual needs and knowledge of the candidate. It covers the areas of finance, management, sales, customer service, IT, and HR. Throughout the cooperation, franchisees use a special development platform containing a set of training courses and webinars to expand their knowledge and business skills and to keep up with the changes implemented in the chain.
