Summary
Mentoring for Growth program
About Mentoring for Growth
Register your interest in the Mentoring for Growth Program (M4G), or volunteer to become a business mentor.
Mentoring for Growth (M4G) offers eligible businesses free access to volunteer business experts who provide insights, options and suggestions relating to challenges and opportunities you are experiencing in your business.
The M4G program assists Queensland businesses to grow and succeed in the current business environment.
The M4G program includes:
- Mentoring for Growth sessions
- Mentoring for Investment
- Mentoring for Pitch
- Mentoring for Export
- Mentoring for Recovery.
When you participate in the M4G program, the Queensland Government matches its mentors' expertise and experience with the business challenge or opportunity you have identified.
Mentors are drawn from a Queensland-wide pool of more than 300 registered mentors. All mentors have expertise and experience in coaching and/or developing businesses.
Mentoring for Growth is currently being delivered predominantly online. The program is available to businesses across Queensland.
Register your business for a Mentoring for Growth session
Mentoring for Growth (M4G) is a mentoring program which helps you to engage with experienced business mentors through a free mentoring session. Our experienced mentors volunteer their time to help business owners and build stronger small businesses across Queensland.
M4G offers insights, options and suggestions relating to challenges and opportunities that you may be facing in your business.
Eligible businesses
To register for a M4G session, your business must have:
- an Australian business number (ABN)
- Queensland headquarters or significant Queensland operations
- a business plan in place
- commenced business operations
- a specific business opportunity or challenge to discuss.
How our mentors can assist you
M4G business mentors can help you with a range of business challenges or issues you may be facing. Your mentors have a broad range of experience, knowledge and expertise to offer. Some common discussion topics include these business basics:
- cash flow
- growth strategies
- marketing and sales
- business development
- finance
- human resources
- export and investment.
We will use the information provided on your registration form to identify the best available mentor with the most relevant skills, experience and knowledge for your business needs.
Depending on the stage of your business, we have mentors who have connections in the investment community, however we cannot guarantee that mentors will provide this information.
Note: Mentors cannot provide you with any kind of professional advice, including legal, financial or human resources (HR) assistance.
How M4G sessions are delivered
M4G is available to businesses across Queensland and sessions are currently being delivered predominantly online.
There are 2 types of sessions:
Mentor chats
Mentor chats are available for businesses requiring one-on-one assistance to address a particular business challenge or opportunity. The sessions generally run for 45 minutes with 2 mentors attending.
Mentor panels
Mentor panels are run for established businesses with a significant financial turnover. The sessions generally run for 90 minutes with around 4 mentors, including a chairperson.
How to register for M4G
Complete our registration form and provide as much information as you can about the challenges you are experiencing. This information will help us to select the best mentor(s) for you, and to schedule a free session without delay. Our mentors also rely on your registration information to prepare for your mentoring session.
Note: As part of the registration form you will be asked to agree to our terms and conditions for mentees.
Preparing for your M4G session
Remember to bring along any relevant documents or financial information you think will help with your mentoring session.
We strongly encourage you to take notes during your session and you may also wish to record your session to refer back to afterwards.
After your M4G session
The M4G team will email you a summary of the main points mentioned during your mentoring session, along with links to any relevant information and contact details for your mentors should you wish to establish a business relationship with them after your session.
While mentors are unable to tout for business or promote their own business before or during your session, they may contact you after your session to offer their services. You are under no obligation to accept their offer.
Most mentors are happy for you to send a follow up email should you wish to clarify any suggestions made during the session.
Booking another session
You may book multiple sessions but not on a regular basis. We recommend that you book a follow-up session in 6 months' time, however, we cannot guarantee you will have the same mentor(s) at your next session.
Check your cyber fitness in a mentoring session
As a business owner, regularly checking your technology for unusual activity is one way to improve your cyber safety. Otherwise it could be many months before an issue is detected, making recovery much harder. By taking steps, such as using the Australian Government's free Cyber security assessment tool, creating an asset register, installing tech updates and up to date antivirus software, you can start to protect your assets and information.
When you register for a M4G session, your mentor can help you check your business's cyber fitness by using the new Cyber security self-help toolkit for mentors to reduce your risks when working online.
The toolkit helps M4G mentors and businesses work together to better manage the cyber security elements associated with running a business. The toolkit was developed in partnership with Cynch, specialists in cyber security for small business, and the Queensland Cyber Security Innovation Node.
More information
The Ask a mentor article series provides information and tips from our M4G mentors on different topics, plus the opportunity to join our mentors in free panel webinars.
If your business is currently not operating, we have useful tools and information to help you start your business. This includes business planning tools and a business readiness health check which, when completed, provides you with a personalised action plan of information and resources to help you start and run your business.
Contact us
Email the M4G team at m4g@desbt.qld.gov.au for more information about the program.
