One unintended effect of the COVID-19 pandemic was the massive growth in global entrepreneurship. While larger businesses were losing employees, many more small businesses were being set up by individual proprietors during the crisis. Thankfully, Singapore’s entrepreneurship initiatives helped many of these nascent businesses survive and thrive in rapidly shifting markets. One such initiative is SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG), a state-sponsored continuing education programme that is designed to help Singaporeans develop to their fullest potential and to teach them practical skills no matter what stage they are in life. The knowledge earned from these courses has allowed thousands of former employees to start their own businesses, often becoming employers themselves. If you’re a Singaporean citizen or a permanent resident and are interested in becoming an entrepreneur, SkillsFuture Singapore offers several courses that can maximise your chances of success. Below are some courses that may give your business a head start. Be sure to check out the full list of SkillsFuture courses to find more classes that fit your entrepreneurial goals. 1.) Career Portfolio Preparations (Enhancing Professional Digital Presence) Whether you’re interested in climbing the professional ladder or are looking for investors to help grow your enterprise, your digital presence matters. This class will help you develop your digital presence in a way that more closely aligns with your goals as an entrepreneur. Build authority, credibility, and authenticity through tried and tested methods with this SSG course. 2.) Entrepreneurship 101 (Customer Engagement with Chatbot) Using properly configured chatbots on your social media pages and websites can save you time, improve user engagement, and create better overall customer experiences. This course will help you to configure chatbots in a way that is useful for customers and helps drive sales to your business. You will also learn how to identify locations, implement selling mechanics, and facilitate reservations through chatbots. 3.) Entrepreneurship 101 (Marketing Campaign with Augmented Reality) Interactive platforms are likely going to become an omnipresent part of everyone’s lives over the next decade. This course will teach you how to run marketing campaigns in these new and exciting virtual spaces. Course takers will be expected to build a marketing campaign that utilises the potential of augmented reality environments. 4.) Entrepreneurship 101 (Target Market with Data Analytics) This introductory course will teach you how to use data analytics in the context of online marketing. Take this course to explore concepts such as keywords, numbers analytics, and target marketing. Instruction on the basics of using analytics tools will also be covered. 5.) Flexipreneur for a Gig Economy: Win That Client Freelancers and flexipreneurs have the difficult task of constantly pitching themselves and their work to new clients. This course will cover strategies on how to win over and keep clients in today’s volatile gig economy. You’ll learn how to understand different client types as well as the appropriate ways to handle your pitches. 6.) Website Development For Better Customer Engagement Keeping customers engaged is an important part of developing a loyal customer base. This course will help you understand how website design and development can affect engagement and the wider customer experience. You will learn how to build a compelling business website with useful content, appropriate visual design elements, and the proper tone and voice for communicating with your intended customers. 7.) Systems Thinking for Problem Solving Tackling complex problems in any field can be made much easier through a better understanding of systems science. This course will teach you the fundamentals of taking on multifaceted problems in a sustainable way that also reduces your risk exposure. You will be taught how to use systems science techniques as well as the software used to facilitate this approach. 8.) Live Streaming for E-Commerce & Retail Live streaming is now one of the most popular sales channels today. Take this course to learn how to build your personal brand and learn other concepts surrounding the practice. You will also learn key aspects related to the production of live streams, such as scripts, visual design, and live-selling skills. 9.) IoT Applications The Internet of Things (IoT) has already changed the way everyday Singaporeans do business. This course will teach you how to deploy the remote sensors that internet-capable objects need to send data to a cloud server. This is useful for a wide array of product and service development applications. Additionally, this course will teach you how to configure these sensors to send and receive data, and it will also provide instruction on how to set conditions for automation.

Make Your Home Business Succeed with SkillsFuture

SkillsFuture courses aren’t just meant for individuals who want to build their careers as employees. The programme also offers courses meant to help locals succeed at starting their own businesses, especially in key areas and sectors that the government has identified as important for the country’s future economic growth. While the suggested courses above should give you a solid foundation for building your business, you may want to check out other SSG courses as well. To learn more about SkillsFuture classes and other education options, check out the SSG website.