
Enhancing Managerial Skills of Leather Craft MSMEs in Magetan, Creative Economy Research Group FEB UNS Conducts Simple Bookkeeping Training Using Applications
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) play a vital role in the economic growth of a country, particularly in Indonesia, where their contribution to the national economy is significant, especially in terms of job creation. Hence, the development of these enterprises are of the utmost importance. One of the keys to successful business development includes improving skills, managerial capabilities, and the willingness of MSMEs to maintain production and innovation according to market needs.
The biggest obstacle in achieving this development is often due to the lack of managerial skills among MSME owners in managing their businesses, leading to stagnation or even bankruptcy. This challenge is also faced by the leather craft MSMEs in Mojopurna Village, Magetan, located in RT 3, RW 4, Mojopuro Village, Ngariboyo District, Magetan Regency, East Java. This group consists of 5 (five) MSMEs that process leather into footwear and various souvenirs.
Each business owner employs between 5 (five) to 7 (seven) residents. The MSME owners are members of an extended family, coordinated by UD. Latansa. Established in the 1990s, these MSMEs faced a downturn in 2012 due to the owner’s lack of managerial skills in running the business, leading to errors in profit calculation and poor bookkeeping discipline, resulting in bankruptcy.
The lack of bookkeeping knowledge and skills led to miscalculations, making it impossible for the enterprise to repay bank loans, causing the business to fail and become inactive. To address these issues, the team from the Creative Economy RG, led by Prof. Dr. Hunik Sri Runing Sawitri, S.E., M.Si., along with Prof. Dr. Asri Laksmi Riani, MS., Suryandari Istiqomah, SE., MSc., Dr. Anastasia Riani Suprapti, M.Si., Dr. Intan Novela Qurrotul Aini, S.E., M.Si., and Dr. Mugi Harsono, SE., M.Si., conducted a community service program for this MSME group in late April 2024.
The main training provided aims to improve knowledge and skills in bookkeeping, along with hands-on practice in simple bookkeeping using the LAMIKRO application. Dr. Wahyu Widarjo, M.Si., delivered the materials, emphasizing the importance of bookkeeping in business processes in a simple approach that was well understood by the participants.
The practical training using the LAMIKRO application was conducted by Frank Aligarh, M.Sc., who provided examples of journal records related to the activities carried out by MSMEs, giving a clear picture of future bookkeeping activities. During the training, participants were also asked to install and practice bookkeeping activities on their mobile phones.
In addition to simple bookkeeping training, this community service also provided managerial training related to marketing, specifically focusing on improving product quality and its derivatives including digital marketing.