Inspiring Women - Mentor Competition       

The Mentor Competition

The Mentor Competition will give women across London the opportunity to have some of the UK's most high profile and successful businesswomen work with them to help them achieve their goals.  If you'd like to win a mentor, read on for details.

Ten women will be chosen and matched to one of the ten mentors who will spend six months helping them achieve their goals.  Entry is now closed.  We have had a huge response to the competition and entries are currently being assessed.  Shortlisted entrants are being notified end October and early the first week in November.

The first meeting of mentors and mentees will take place at a winner's announcement event hosted by BT Business in the BT Tower on Friday 7 November 2008 from 6.30pm.  

If you have entered the competition, please take note of this date and keep it free in your diary.

The competition is supported by Business Link in London, HSBC, BT Business and London Business School.

How do I enter?

To enter you must submit a short summary about your career, your business or business idea and outline how a mentor could contribute to your success.

Include information on:

1. Your current position, your business or business idea

2. Progress you would expect to see in your business or career in 6 months if you had a mentor

3. Indicate your preference for a mentor (however we can’t guarantee you will be matched with a mentor you request)

4. Indicate if you would be prepared to blog about your experience with a mentor.

Download an application form here  

Closing date for entries was Saturday morning 18 October 11am.  Completed entries should be emailed to info@freshideasevents.com 

Any supporting evidence you believe will enhance your entry is also welcome e.g. press reviews, photos, promotional materials and can be attached to your email entry.  
(To be considered for the competition, total email size must not exceed 1mg).

Winners will be chosen based on those whose business or career the judges believe will have the most potential for success with the help of a mentor.


What happens if I win?

You will be notified that you have been matched to a mentor and winners will be published on our website.  All winners will be invited to attend an event in the BT Tower on Friday 7th November from 6.30pm where they will meet their mentors.  

Later in November you will have an initial meeting with your own mentor to get an overview of your business or career objectives.  Thereafter, ideally there will be at least one meeting per month to discuss and review your objectives.  

Meetings will be arranged to fit in with you and your mentors schedules and flexibility will be important.  There may also be occasional phone or email contact and this will be decided by each individual mentor.

Mentoring will run for 6 months and end in April 2009.



We look forward to seeing some great progress in businesses and careers with the help of the Mentors!  A number of the mentees will be offered the opportunity to blog about their mentoring experiences.  

An interim gathering for all mentors and mentees will also take place in January and finally we have a FreshIdeas Event in May which mentees are invited to attend and update us on their progress.





Competition guidelines

You must be over 18 and London based to enter.

The competition is open to female entrepreneurs or corporate women in business i.e.

- those working in a company;
- with a new business idea;
- just started their own business;
- growing or already well-established in their own business.

Winners will be chosen by a panel appointed by FreshIdeas Events.  In the event of a large number of entries, winners may be shortlisted and interviewed before a final decision is made.  Judges decisions will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.

Unless otherwise arranged you will be required to travel to meetings with your mentor.

Entries will be acknowledged on receipt.

The winners will be invited to take part and assist with promotional activities and PR around the competition.

All information you provide is private and confidential.  Your privacy is important to us, for more information read our privacy policy.

If you have any queries, please contact info@freshideasevents.com