Become a Mentor
Why are Mentors so Valuable?
We are always looking for knowledgeable professionals to join our pool of potential mentors to help guide our early-stage business incubator participants by providing mentorship, and workshop training, and providing input our program and its foundation.
Whether you are interested in being one of our official mentors or can instead offer one-off mentoring sessions here and there, we are thankful for every guiding opportunity our participants receive. Mentors at the Innovation Quarters are financially compensated for their time.
Our official mentorship requirements
Ability to facilitate approximately 8 in -person group workshops twice per year with pre-organized topics on the following:
- Business goals
- Business strategy
- Target market
- Marketing and sales
- Websites and social platforms
- Pricing structures
- Business finance
- Business pitching
Ability to book one-on-one mentoring meetings with our participants either virtually or in person at the IQ.
- These private meetings can cover any topics including business structure, finance, hiring and staffing, grant writing, business strategy, best practices, decision making, and general questions/brainstorming.
Ability to attend some of our networking events including our orientation evening and business pitch event.
- There are a few networking opportunities that our mentors can attend while providing support to our participants.
Ability to coordinate and communicate with other mentors and with the program coordinator.
- At the IQ we use both email and instant messaging to discuss business progress. Because our participants may be working on a specific goal with one mentor or the coordinator, it’s best to keep everyone informed on their progress so as to not give conflicting or repetitive advice.
Visit our Incubator Program page for more details about what it offers along with a draft program schedule.
One-time mentorship
If you can’t commit to being one of our official mentors but are still interested in providing support, we are also interested in working with business professionals who can offer limited mentorship when there’s a good fit. These would be arranged on a case-by-case basis when applicable.
What the IQ is looking for in a mentor
We are looking for individuals with entrepreneurship experience, or professional business knowledge. Our mentors need to be patient, compassionate, and ready to guide new startups who may just be in the ideation stage of their business. Mentors can provide valuable guidance, and advice, helping entrepreneurs navigate potential roadblocks while making informed decisions.
We encourage our mentors to also share their contacts and connections with our participants connecting them with potential clients, and investors, opening the doors to valuable collaborations.