News & Blog

Read the latest business news, blogs and thought leadership articles from our members, as well as updates on the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce's work in the city.

News & Blog

Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce looking for 1000th business mentee 950 businesses helped to date under Business Mentoring Scotland initiative

Posted: 11th December 2014

Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce is on the hunt for the 1000th business mentee in the capital as part of Business Mentoring Scotland. Since inception in 2006 Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce has matched 950 capital based businesses with mentees across Scotland with numbers increasing rapidly in the last few years.

Business Mentoring Scotland is delivered through Scottish Chambers of Commerce and its local network of Chambers, in partnership with Scottish Enterprise. Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce delivers the mentoring services for the City of Edinburgh and has matched up 500 companies with mentors in the last three years alone.

With 2015 approaching, an ambitious target has been set to break the 1000 mentee barrier by the end of January.

Project co-ordinator Jimmy O’Connell explained:

“Demand in the last few years has been extraordinary as businesses in the capital look for growth and long term sustainability. We want to build on that success and break the 1000 barrier by the end of January. As the New Year comes in, businesses are thinking about their strategy in the run up to a new financial year in April and against a background of what is likely to be another year of change with a UK general election scheduled.

“We have over 850 mentors to choose from across Scotland, 250 of those in Edinburgh. While their role is not to provide all the answers, they can certainly steer a CEO, owner or Managing Director in the right direction. We have had numerous success stories and companies who have returned for further mentoring as they have approached their next growth phase because it was such a helpful process previously.”

Mentoring takes place for a 12 month period with mentors handpicked and matched to potential mentees by The Chamber. Mentors are chosen on a number of criteria, including personality but most importantly they are matched based on the strategic aims of the business which has requested the support and the experience that mentor can provide. This means mentors may come from disparate industries but have been through the exact quandary the mentee is currently facing.

Existing mentee Ewan Morton, director, Morton Ward an Edinburgh based design agency said: “As a family-owned SME, the support I received through Business Mentoring Scotland helped improve my business and has contributed to the growth we are now seeing defining a clear strategy for the future. I cannot recommend their service highly enough.”

The mentee scheme is fully funded by Scottish Enterprise and is open to businesses which have a turnover in excess of £100k per annum, have been trading for a minimum of one year and have strong aspirations for growth. Further information is available from the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce website www.edinburghchamber.co.uk

Business Comment

Business Comment is the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce’s bi-monthly magazine. It provides insight on Edinburgh’s vibrant business community, with features on the city’s key sectors, interviews with leading figures and news on new business developments in the capital.
Read more here