2. MENTORSHIP and NETWORKS PILLAR
SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
takes place
One Successful ENTERPRISE after another
Effective and Efficient ENTREPRENEURS
drive successful ENTERPRISES
MENTORSHIP of ENTREPRENEURS
mitigates the risk of business failure
NETWORKS among ENTREPRENEURS build new business
relationships and generate business opportunities

3. BARBADOS YOUTH BUSINESS TRUST
15 YEARS EXPERIENCE
Change
Interest
Partners
Slow development
CURRENT – NEW WAVE
New breed of producers
Different types of mentoring/mentors
Strong benefits / established culture
Volunteerism
Social corporate responsibility
Trust /community development
Young entrepreneurs -75% - significant progress with business
mentors

4. BARBADOS YOUTH BUSINESS TRUST
THE FUTURE
 Bright, bright, brilliant
 High interest – all levels
 Recognize type of mentoring/benefits
 Knowledgeable individuals
 key stakeholders
THINGS TO CONSIDER
 What do you want to achieve
 How to achieve it
 How do you know when you have achieved it
 Does it make sense, or do you just like the idea
 Is it feasible?

5. BABSON COLLEGE
Building an
Entrepreneurship
Ecosystem
Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship
www.babson.edu/eship

6. BABSON COLLEGE
• Babson view
– Identifying the opportunity, acquiring
the resources and providing the
leadership to create something of
value
• Economic and societal value
• Variety of contexts

7. BABSON COLLEGE
Mentorship
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

8. BABSON COLLEGE
What is the state of Barbados
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem now?

9. BABSON COLLEGE
Focus on People, Programs,
Partnerships
Inspire Others to
Take Action
Invest for the Long Term

10. IDEAS FROM DISCUSSION (1 of 4)
• Establish links with other BEF Pillars in the interest of completeness
• Enhance networking activity between enterprises for mutual
benefit from the interactive dialogue
• Develop Smart Partnerships between BEF/UWI/CHSB/BCC and
Babson College to benefit for mutual benefit from state-of-the-art
practices
• Introduce the concept of virtual mentoring to allow greater access
of enterprises
• Develop a range of BEF goal related performance measures wider
than financial – the triple bottom line (people, planet, profit) - to
obtain a more realistic assessment of business sustainability
• Continue the monthly BEF Fora to stimulate the networking
experience
• Invite business development officers at commercial banks
to register as mentors to the mutual benefit of the
entrepreneurs and the bank

11. IDEAS FROM DISCUSSION (2 of 4)
• Monitor the failure rate of enterprises in the future to assess the
effectiveness of the mentorship programme
• Determine why failures take place so as to avoid making the same
mistake again
• Showcase success as a motivational strategy
• The Mentorship database should include business function, sector
and special needs specific mentors to meet the needs of the
enterprise
• The enterprise’s first contact with a mentor should be an individual
who is registered as a mentor under the generalist category to
protect the enterprise against any error in judgment in the selection
of a mentor category
• The generalist mentor should, after assessment of the specific
needs of the enterprise, select other mentors in response to these
needs.

12. IDEAS FROM DISCUSSION (3 of 3)
• Establish online chat groups on E/MMMIS or on existing social
media platforms to allow enterprises to share information
• Pay special attention to the mentoring and networking needs
of the creative industries to facilitate creative industry
enterprises
• Identify sources of market research information to facilitate
the needs of enterprises
• Ensure that access to the E/MMMIS is user friendly to
facilitate the needs of enterprises
• Consider the virtual teaching of basic business functions for
the uninitiated

13. IDEAS FROM DISCUSSION (4 of 4)
• Virtual mentors’ training programme to be established and
should include perspectives of the future economy of
Barbados
• Education pillar should access E/MMMIS Mentorship pillar to
identify mentors for the schools programmes
• Mentors must be approved before they are allowed to
register in the E/MMMIS

14. MENTORSHIP PILLAR MISSION (2012)
To officially launch an automated online Information System
which will register and match mentors and
enterprises, monitor the performance of enterprises and
report on the progress of the enterprises

15. Mission Team ‘Mentor’

16. Measures of Success (2012)
• Automated BEF Enterprise/Mentor Matching & Monitoring online
Information System (E/MMMIS) to be officially launched - 1 February
2012
• Mentors trained in the use of E/MMMIS
• Enterprises will be invited to register and be virtually trained in the use of
E/MMMIS
• BCCI, BIM Ventures, BSBA, BYBT, YES, BCSI, CICMC (Barbados)
, Commercial Banks et al will be approached as sources for mentors
• BCCI, BEF’s $20 Challenge, BIM
Ventures, BREA, BSBA, BYBT, CAIPO, NCF, YES,BCSI et al as sources of
enterprises in need of mentoring services
• E/MMMIS will be enhanced to monitoring the performance of
enterprises, who have entered into an enterprise/mentor agreement
• 300 enterprises will be monitored after the information system is
launched

17. Mentoring Pillar Team
Resource Allocation
Tasks Time Resource
Launch of E/MMMIS Feb 01 Mentoring Pillar Team
Mentors and Enterprises registered and trained Ongoing Mentoring Pillar Team
virtually
Matching, initiated by the enterprise, takes Ongoing Mentoring Pillar Team
place
Monitoring Quarterly Mentoring Pillar Team
Venture Capital (estimated at BB$500,000) Ongoing Finance Availability Pillar Team
needed to invest in enterprises