BANDUNG, Telkom University – As part of the contribution to a society facing challenges in the new-normal era, Telkom University organizes online business development training for micro, small, and medium-scale businesses. It is believed that most of the MSME players are affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Some businesses have experienced a drastic drop in turnover and have even closed their business.
On the other hand, there is a shift in people’s shopping behavior to online shopping, and this behavior is increasing, especially during this pandemic. Likewise, it is predicted that the development of people’s behavior in online shopping will continue to increase after the pandemic. However, only a small proportion of MSME class business actors have sufficient capacity to adapt to this change. Much of the effort to transform into an online business is constrained by a lack of necessary technical knowledge and skills, as well as the unavailability of costs for the process. Because of that need, the Telkom University lecturer team, from the Information Signal Processing expertise group, chaired by Iwan Iwut Tritoasmoro, initiated the need for training and facilitation for MSMEs in developing businesses in the online realm to adapt to the needs of this new normal era and beyond.
Online business development training for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) is designed according to the needs of business actors. For this reason, the training curriculum is made in stages. The classification of MSMEs is made according to their characteristics and capacities in carrying out their business modes, from business modes that are only offline to being pushed online. Where the categories present online are grouped into basic online, intermediate online, and advanced online. Thus, it is hoped that the training and mentoring will be more effective and have a significant impact.
The implementation of training and mentoring has been rolled out in the target villages, namely the UMKM in Citeureup village, Dayeuhkolot sub-district, Bandung regency. The training was held on April 10, 2021, and then a basic level training was held for two groups of MSMEs. In addition to getting a comprehensive package of materials, participants also received assistance for follow-up online business development. It is also hoped that the establishment of an online business community in the Citeureup village can support the development of business actors.
The training was held in the Citeureup Village Cyber ??Village Hall, opened by the Village Secretary Oom Surachman, and was also attended by Telkom University’s Directorate of Research and Community Service (PPM), Dr. Kemas Muslim Lhaksamana. Training is provided by experienced instructors. Apart from the lecturers of Telkom University, these training instructors are also from e-Commerce practitioners. For this reason, a collaboration was carried out with Bandung Techno Park and PT Sinkronous as the developer of the Magic Order plug-in, an online shop Checkout Order Tool or Plugin that was specially designed based on Indonesian shopping habits, so it is very suitable to be applied to the Indonesian local market. All training participants will also get a free Magic Order license for the next year.
The participants’ responses to this training were very enthusiastic. Based on testimonials, the training material was felt in line with the needs of developing a new BUMDes business. Also, some participants mentioned the need for further training and mentoring.
Telkom University will continue to develop its capacity in assisting business actors, especially in terms of business development needs, technical skills, and technical assistance. It is planned that this training will not only be continued in the target village but will also be expanded so that the impact can be felt by the wider community.