Successful business owner mentors SMEs to realise their growth potential

A successful business owner from Maidstone in Kent is one of more than 5,000 business leaders that have signed up to become part of a national network of voluntary mentors to help SMEs realise opportunities to grow.

Catherine McManus, who dubs herself a marketing one-stop shop for SMEs, has more than 25 years of experience in the field. She first got involved as she wanted to ‘learn how to mentor properly’ after she found herself unofficially mentoring or coaching clients.

Commenting on her role as mentor, she said: “Mentorship is extremely rewarding in a number of ways. Understanding the particularities of each business and industry and seeing how each owner navigates the challenges and ‘wins’ is fascinating. Getting to know the mentee and building a relationship of trust, where both parties share and learn from each other, is a welcome break during the working day.

“Ultimately, it gives small business owners confidence, perspective and some fresh ideas.”

Catherine is founder of the appropriately named Small Business Marketing Consultant, which makes her the perfect person to offer insight to mentees. According to the Office for National Statistics, improving and developing management practices can result in a productivity boost of up to 10 per cent.

The Help to Grow: Management Course offers senior business leaders one-to-one support from an experienced and fully rated business mentor included in 50 hours of leadership and management training across 12 weeks, with the government covering 90 per cent of the costs involved. Training is delivered via a national network of over 50 business schools.

Emma Jones, founder of small business support platform Enterprise Nation, part of the consortium of businesses contracted to recruit volunteer mentors for the course, said: “It’s so important right now for businesses to be able to access high quality support like this. The Help to Grow: Management Course online platform allows businesses to find the perfect mentor so they can start to put what they have learned into practice.”

A digital platform uses data and weighting technology to pair businesses with mentors based on location, sector, and mentoring support required. Mentors sign up on a voluntary basis and offer a commitment of 10 hours, over 12 weeks, plus time to engage in training offered by the Association of Business Mentors.

In exchange for offering their time and experience, voluntary Help to Grow: Management Course mentors receive significant value in the form of industry recognised mentor training, access to qualified content, networking opportunities with other mentors, and the possibility to join a national effort aimed at supporting the growth of the UK economy by increasing small businesses’ productivity.

Led by business support group Newable and including Enterprise Nation and the Association of Business Mentors the consortium has been appointed by the Government to develop a national network of business leaders and experts who will share their skills and experience with firms on the practical management training course.

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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