Woman-Owned Business Mentoring
The Chamber, in partnership with ATHENAPowerLink®, is proud to present WE Link, a year-long business mentoring program for women business owners.
Program
WE Link, based on the national ATHENAPowerLink® program, connects selected women business owners with a skilled advisory panel. The advisory panel, which is made up of lawyers, bankers, accountants and other business professionals, provides free business consultation for one year. The panel consults to help the business owner achieve networking, capital, operational and strategic goals. The program also helps enhance the business owner's leadership and management skills for future business endeavors.
Candidates
Women business owners seeking mentoring support must meet the following criteria:
- 51% of business is owned and actively managed by a woman or women
- At least two years in operation
- At least two full-time employees, including applicant
- At least $250,000 in annual gross revenues for a manufacturing or retail business; or at least $100,000 in annual gross revenues for a service business
- Clearly defined business objectives and specific reasons for seeking an Advisory Panel
Responsibilities
Once a business owner is accepted and an advisory panel is assigned, there is a nominal $250 fee to ensure the long-term viability of the program. In addition, she must:
- Be willing to openly discuss with the advisory panel the goals for the business and the issues she’s facing
- Provide a suitable meeting place
- Provide a meeting agenda and appropriate materials for review, such as financial statements, business plan, etc.
- Identify specific company difficulties requiring advice of the advisory panel
- Accept or reject panel members’ advice
Why should a business get involved with this program?
Look at these powerful statistics from ATHENA International (www.athenainternational.org ). According to ATHENA International, on average, women business owners participating in the this mentoring program see the following results:
- 88.5% increase in sales
- 37.6% increase in business net income
- 56.6% increase in personal income
- 36.3% increase full-time employees
- 75.0% increase in part-time employees
Apply
Download application now. Deadline is April 5, 2013.
2012/2013 WE Link/ATHENAPowerLink® Recipient
Denise Flickner of HealthWorks
Healthworks was chosen from a number of applicants based upon the company's track record of success and potential for growth. Over the next year, Flickner will work closely with her panel to develop her business through open discussions on her goals for the business and the issues she's facing. All of this is done with the ultimate goal in mind: to strengthen her business and come out even stronger after she graduates the program.
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WE Link Governing Body
Chair, Governing Body:
Julie Coyne, Vice President, PNC Bank
Governing Body:
Bonnie Deer, Business Development Specialist, U.S. Small Business Administration
Peter Landesman, Director, Marketing & Membership Dev., Employers Resource Association, Inc.
Patrick Longo, Vice President/Director, Hamilton County Business Center
Debbie Simpson, President, Multi-Craft
Rea Waldon, Senior Vice President, Urban League of Greater Cincinnati
Jill A. Weller, Partner, Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL
Advisory Panel Co-coordinators 2012/2013:
Jill A. Weller, Partner, Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL
Panel Members:
Jill A. Weller, Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL
Patrick Clements, Pinnacle Solutions Group, Inc.
Mary Egloff, I T S
Patti Massey, MYCA
Sheila A. Mixon, Ohio SBDC at Urban League of Greater Cincinnati
Mary J. Myers, Hamilton County Development Company
Lori S. Moser, Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL
Evie Poe, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
WE Link Success Stories
MYCA Multimedia & Training Solutions, a provider of online training and e-learning solutions, was the first company to take part in the Chamber's WE Link program. Read more about how WE Link helped Myca tranform their business model and increase sales. More information.
For more information contact Diana Long at 513.686.2946 or dlong@cincinnatichamber.com