The dates of the next Mowgli Mentoring Experience in the South West UK will be Friday 23 to Sunday 25 March 2012. We are now seeking applications for mentors and mentees. Click on the ‘Get involved‘ tab after you’ve read all the information below!

Some of you have already applied to take part in the Mowgli experience- and some of you we know are still considering! The below information is for both groups to give you an idea of what to expect- one for entrepreneurs (mentees) and one for mentors.

Important next steps:

 Please ensure you read all the information carefully before we contact you for the interview stage of the process. A good understanding of the Mowgli ethos, process, and commitment demanded of you, will help your chances in being selected.

• The brand-new LinkedIn group for Mowgli South West is up and running, as a subgroup of the Mowgli Foundation group. Go ahead and join! It is for South West Mowgli participants, Mowgli friends and supporters, and like-minded organisations who wish to share their experiences of mentoring and entrepreneurship. Please use it as a place to post questions to the Mowgli team, discuss topics relevant to the South West business landscape, and network with each other!
• Please join us on our social networks: Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter (@mowgliuk) to connect with like-minded people across the world and keep up to date with all our news. 
• If you are at a very early stage in your business or charitable enterprise, we would like to recommend you look at Outset Bristol- a government-funded programme which is designed to support you in getting the technical skills and knowledge you need to run a business. Visit http://www.outsetbristol.co.uk/

 Mentor/ Entrepreneur Applications Deadline and dates for screening period:

If you have applied already, you will be hearing from us by 9^th March 2012 (at the latest) whether your application has been successful or not. Due to the high quality and high number of applicants, you may not be interviewed for the  March programme, but please be encouraged that we will be running programmes throughout 2012 to accommodate as many suitable applicants as possible.

• Candidates who have not yet applied for the South West Mowgli Mentoring Experience: 23^rd -25^th  March 2012  please note that the deadline for the application is 12pm on the 9^th March 2012.

• If you are accepted on to the Mowgli South West programme in March,  we will aim to notify you by the 9^thMarch.

Video, above, shown at the event: Mowgli mentee Lubna explains how her mentor helped her.

On the evening of 21 February 2012, the Mowgli Foundation, a Bristol-based charity, held an ‘Entrepreneur’s Jam’ event for the local business leaders who took part in Mowgli’s flagship South West business mentoring programme. The event saw an evening of networking, sharing and learning, kindly hosted by the Radisson Blu hotel at Broad Quay, Bristol.

The evening event was held to celebrate the first month of a year-long mentoring programme for 24 participating South West businessmen and women, who took part in the Mowgli pilot programme in January 2012. The Mowgli Foundation CEO, Ian McKay, also announced at the event the dates of the next Mowgli programme in the South West region, which will be from Friday 23 to Sunday 25 March 2012.

Keynote speaker and inspirational Bristol entrepreneur Jon Penn, who chairs two local ACE (Academy for Chief Executives) groups as well as being MD of Caption Data Ltd, entertained attendees with an account of his own journey and challenges as an entrepreneur as the MD of several successful enterprises. The evening continued with informal networking and drinks. Attendees included present and future Mowgli entrepreneurs and mentors, and representatives of other local organisations such as GWE Business West and UWE Ventures.

Ian McKay, CEO of the Mowgli Foundation, opened the event by thanking the 12 mentors for giving their time to the 12 entrepreneurs who were selected to take part in January. He also announced that the Mowgli Foundation is now screening applicants for the next programme in March 2012, both mentors and entrepreneurs, and encouraged attendees to spread the word of the opportunity to be involved. Christopher Peach, General Manager of the Radisson Blu, was also on hand to welcome the guests and lend his support to the Mowgli South West initiative. Ian Lawry, Mowgli mentee and CEO of the Wellspring Health Centre (see photograph below) said, “My mentor is already helping to shape and guide my thinking about how our charity develops. I feel very confident that the time that I spend with my mentor over the next year will enable the charity to grow and become more efficient- now I have someone outside the organisation.”

Jon Penn, keynote speaker, Academy for Chief Executives and MD of Caption Data, said:

“It was a privilege to talk to the Mowgli guests and alumni. Entrepreneurship has such a vital role to play in society and is so very important to the people involved, and yet is such a high risk endeavour. The mentoring partnerships created by Mowgli undoubtedly reduce the risks for the entrepreneurs and increase the probabilities of their success.”

Christopher Peach, General Manager of the Radisson Blu, said:

“We are delighted to help support this exciting event with the Mowgli Foundation at the hotel and are really pleased to be involved with such a great project to support mentors and entrepreneurs in the South West. These people are our future and we should encourage these visions and enthusiasm to succeed, particularly through these difficult times. We wish every success to those chosen to take part with this scheme and to the future of the Mowgli Foundation.”

Ian McKay, Mowgli Foundation CEO said:

“We’re extremely pleased with the high quality of entrepreneurs from Bristol, Bath and Somerset who took the opportunity to take part in the Mowgli Mentoring Experience, and hope that we can get an equally good group of mentors and entrepreneurs together in March. We’d like to thank all our participants for their commitment and enthusiasm for the Mowgli South West project, as well as the Radisson Blu for their generous support for this event.”

Alicja Turner- Mowgli, and Ian Lawry, Wellspring Health Centre and Mowgli mentee

The overall aim was to improve the culture of entrepreneurship by promoting cross-cultural cooperation and sustainable development, and allow entrepreneurs to share success stories. The summit was attended by leading entrepreneurs and innovators, investors, financiers, representatives from NGOs and academics.

Innovations released a special MENA edition of its journal for distribution at the summit and for use as an educational tool in business schools in the region and beyond. It includes reference to Mowgli and our very own Tony Bury. You can have a look here…..Innovations: Special Edition for the Global Entrepreneurship Summit 2011 (opens PDF)

Latest group of Jordanian mentors and mentees

In this issue of Mowgli’s regular update, we look back on the start of what’s so far been a packed 2012 for the Mowgli Foundation.

In both the Middle East and the UK, we’ve been matching pairs of entrepreneurs and mentors, holding events to celebrate our past participants, and making exciting plans for the future- find out more below. Make sure you keep up to date with our daily news via our @mowglitweets and @mowgliuk Twitter feeds! And join our active Facebook and LinkedIn pages to meet others like you who are interested in mentoring and entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurship Quote of the Month

The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it.

-Theodore Roosevelt

Mowgli Community News

First ‘all-Jordanian’ Mowgli MME (see pic at top): We are proud to announce that Mowgli’s first ‘all-Jordanian’ programme ran this January! More about this MME, which was attended by the British Ambassador to Jordan H.E. Peter Millet  is on the Mowgli blog. Our thanks to everyone who took part, and best of luck in your mentoring year!

South West UK flagship programme a success: Mowgli’s very first South West UK programme was launched in January, with an MME bringing together 12 exceptional small business and charity leaders with 12 volunteer mentors. Read more about the 24 South West programme participants, and how to get involved in the next one: click here.

London reception for Mowgli Foundation: 

Clyde and Co, international law firm, hosted a London reception on January 31st to celebrate Mowgli’s UK and Middle East mentoring projects with UK and international supporters and stakeholders.  Kirsten Hemingway gave a great keynote speech, plus Mowgli mentor and mentee Mustapha and Lubna (pictured) told their Mowgli stories. You can watch all the inspirational speeches on the Mowgli Youtube channel).

Mowgli UK Opportunities

• Get involved in our next South West UK programme in March 2012 (dates of the 3 day matching workshop TBC). Visit our website learn more about getting involved as a mentor or mentee in the UK.
• Have you applied for an upcoming South West programme? Come and meet us at our Entrepreneur’s Jam evening event this February! Details on the website.
• In Manchester we are yet to finalise dates for 2012 programmes but have considerable interest from mentors and mentees, so please keep updated via our @MowgliUK twitter feed for news. Please email us for more information on info@mowgli.org.uk if you or your organisation want to be involved in Mowgli North West projects.

Mowgli MENA Opportunities

In Lebanon:

• We are currently planning for upcoming programmes in 2012 but yet to confirm dates- please register your interest by applying as a mentor or mentee here.
• In the meantime why not check out the CISCO Entrepreneur Insitute in Beirut for their regular workshops and events for entrepreneurs.

In Jordan:

• We are currently planning for upcoming programmes in 2012 but yet to confirm dates- please register your interest by applying as a mentor or mentee here.
• Mowgli Jordan supporting volunteers: Our Jordan office always likes to have helpers- volunteer roles range from publicity tasks to events organisation. Please contact Mowgli Jordan Country Manager Thanaa Khasawneh direct. 

Interesting Reads:

• Mowgli Research Briefing: We know that mentors help entrepreneurs learn and become better business managers- but can we prove it? Our latest Mowgli Research briefing summarises the evidence. Free download!
• Businesswomen in Egypt: An interesting article from our partners at WAMDA : Women Entrepreneurs on the rise in Egypt 
• Entrepreneurs toolkits:  Check out our resources on Business Management Skills- all free from the Mowgli Knowledge Centre.

Entrepreneur of the month:

Check out our homepage to read more about Mais Irqsusi, who runs a community enterprise in Amman, Jordan.

Thanks for reading and for your continued support – see you next month!

P.S. Support Mowgli!

The Mowgli Foundation is a charity (UK no. 1127087) . We rely on generous funders to support our work. If you want to help Mowgli run more mentoring programmes where you are, please click here and support the Mowgli Fund- all donations welcome.

You can read all about the mentors and mentees who were matched in our pilot programme by reading the document below (click the fullscreen icon  )

Mowgli South West: Pilot Mentoring Programme

“Mentoring is like holding up a mirror to someone- but it’s a magic mirror that shows them things they didn’t know about themselves. Mentoring is not about judging, it’s about support. [...] Listen with every square inch of your body and you will be a better leader.”

Michael Payton spoke at the event in support of Mowgli’s mission: “I believe very strongly that entrepreneurial spirit is alive in most people and many would love to run a business and need encouragement and – above all – they need to be mentored. In my view the opportunities today for would-be entrepreneurs are as great as ever they have been and certainly the need for them is greater now than ever before. With some exceptions, how to be an entrepreneur – how to undertake or control a business or enterprise – is not something that appears in the curricula of universities or schools. There’s a gap and – vitally – Mowgli seeks to fill it. I’d like to wish them all very the best in their enterprises in this country”.

Mr Payton’s full speech can be seen in the video below.

Our thanks to EcoMedia Collective for their support in filming and photography at this event.

L to R: Andrew Fischer (Mowgli trustee) Michael Payton, Kirsten Hemingway, Tony Bury, Jane Andrewartha

View the Slide Show of the event:

Keynote speaker and inspirational UK businesswoman, Kirsten Hemingway of the Hemingway Corporation spoke passionately of the need for mentoring. Kirsten’s personal story about her route into the world of business (Kirsten stopped full time education aged 11) was funny, touching, entertaining and very engaging.

Lubna Latif speaking in London

The audience were similarly moved by the story of Mowgli Foundation Entrepreneur Lubna Latif, whose business is based in Manchester. Lubna told the audience how her mentor had helped her increase her self-confidence as an entrepreneur. In a moving speech, Lubna detailed how the Mowgli Foundation project had encouraged her to be less afraid to fail; in  the last year, since participating in  the Mowgli Foundation programme in Manchester, Lubna’s mentor had helped her personally come to terms  emotionally with  the many issues that entrepreneurs face and expand her business sustainably.

Michael Payton, Senior Partner at Clyde & Co, said:

“I believe very strongly that entrepreneurial spirit is alive in most people and many would love to run a business and need encouragement and – above all – they need to be mentored. In my view the opportunities today for would-be entrepreneurs are as great as ever they have been and certainly the need for them is greater now than ever before. With some exceptions, how to be an entrepreneur – how to undertake or control a business or enterprise – is not something that appears in the curricula of universities or schools. There’s a gap and – vitally – Mowgli seeks to fill it. I’d like to wish them all very the best in their enterprises in this country”.

The Mowgli Foundation programme fits with, and is complementary to, organisations who currently offer business support or advice to young business start–ups. The difference is that the Mowgli Foundation works with individuals well beyond start-up and mentors can come from any sector. The objective is that both mentor and entrepreneur build a relationship that is beneficial, and sustains both the entrepreneur and their business, as well as impacting on their communities through job creation. The fit with company CSR is acknowledged and companies like IBM have recently come on board to support Mowgli.

Tony Bury, the Mowgli Foundation founder said.

“We are living in very challenging times, through a banking, economic and societal crisis. There is an undoubted requirement for entrepreneurship and the development of more successful entrepreneurs to create wealth, economic regeneration, employment, societal democracy and philanthropic initiatives to meet these challenges. The Mowgli Foundation supports entrepreneurs through a unique mentoring programme. We are delighted that Clyde & Co is hosting this reception in London where there is such huge entrepreneurial flair and to be able to form a collaborative environment with businesses and the community to deliver meaningful results.”

Notes for Editors:

About the Mowgli Foundation:

Established by Tony Bury in 2008 the Mowgli Foundation is now a major power in social change within the Middle East, encouraging and developing entrepreneurs to build successful businesses, from food distribution to ecotourism. Tony Bury is a serial entrepreneur with successful businesses in the Middle East, Africa and Europe. His passion for helping people succeed in business is contagious. The UK base is established in the City of Bristol and the Mowgli Foundation are already working with agencies and companies like IBM to further the programmes and training.

Inspiring Business Mentors:

In January 2012 the Mowgli Foundation ran its first South West programme, well known entrepreneur Tristan Hogg of Pieminister (Bristol and London) has signed up to be a Mowgli Foundation mentor. See Bristol Evening Post coverage.

The Mowgli Foundation in the Middle East:

Since March 2009 the Mowgli Foundation has delivered programs to support over 170 Jordanian, Palestinian, Lebanese, and Syrian entrepreneurs. They have done this by forming productive alliances with local partners and the benefits to the local economy include employment, wealth generation and the creation of infrastructure.

Post reception interviews:

The Mowgli Foundation founder Tony Bury and keynote speakers such as Kirsten Hemingway of the Hemingway Corporation (www.hemingwaycorp.com) will be available for pre-launch live interviews.  There will also be an opportunity to speak with a current mentor and mentee who have done the Mowgli Foundation programme.

Keynote Speaker interviews can be arranged.

Post Launch Press photographs: Photographs will be supplied from the 1^st February. Media Management: Christina Robino, Bud UK Ltd, 07974 093 091   

E: christina@bud.uk.com Mowgli: www.mowgli.org.uk

Our thanks to EcoMedia Collective for their support in filming and photography at this event.

The MME involves 3 days of intensive learning and relationship building, laying the foundations for the year-long relationships between entrepreneurs and their mentors. It was the fourth MME programme in Jordan to be funded by the Arab Partnership Fund; a UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office initiative to strengthen support in the Middle East and North Africa.

His Excellency, Mr Peter Millet, the British Ambassador was in attendance for part of the mentoring experience. Mr Millet joined the MME participants for lunch, to hear discussions of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs in the region, and how mentors can provide much needed support and guidance. Mr. Millett also facilitated the final sharing session of the MME, where he was able to gain first-hand familiarity with the incredible and inspiring experiences that the participants had  on the MME. The Ambassador was extremely impressed with the mentors and mentees, and with the whole event.

The Ambassador said:

“Supporting Mowgli’s work in mentoring Jordanian entrepreneurs has been a priority for the British Embassy this year and for the new Arab Partnership Programme. The focus on the private sector is crucial for Jordan’s economic reform. So I was very happy to discover that all the participants had found that their mentoring was a real inspiration which will help them grow their businesses and employ more staff in future.”

Watheq Saffarini is one of the entrepreneurs taking part in the programme and said: “What is so special about the Mowgli workshop, that it is sustainable,[the work] actually starts after it finishes!”

Dr. Amin Amin, one of our mentors on the programme, also spoke very highly of the experience, saying: “It’s beyond special, the bond we succeeded in creating together as mentors, Mowgli facilitators and mentees. If it shows something, it shows that the (Mowgli) model is effective and can add huge value for Jordan and the whole region.”

Mowgli MENA director, Lynn Brucker said: “This MME was so special, for it was the realisation of Mowgli’s vision. It was our very first ‘all-Jordanian’ MME: coordinated by our new Jordan Country Manager, Thana’a Khasawneh, facilitated by our wonderful Jordanian mentor Mohammed Masadeh, with eleven amazingly  talented and successful Jordanian mentors, who came with an intention to give something of themselves to help to support an entrepreneur in the Kingdom. They also received so much inspiration, hope and joy from the 11 mentees, who represented the very best of the Jordanian private sector. This was truly a magical experience for everyone.  Thanks to the support of Ambassador Millett and the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and also all mentors, entrepreneurs and facilitators for their participation in support of Mowgli’s mission.Following the success of our recent programmes, the Mowgli Foundation is currently planning further programmes for 2012. Check the Mowgli website for details.

We at Mowgli have put together a research briefing summarising some relevant research into mentoring for entrepreneurs and we wanted to share it with you. We hope you find it useful.

Introduction:

A major factor leading to the failure of start-up businesses is the lack of experience and competency on the part of the business owners- entrepreneurs. Small firms and their survival are a critical strategy for most governments around the world concerned with rising unemployment and economic development in communities. Recent research has shown that an overall increase in an entrepreneur’s skills and knowledge within the first years of a company’s life is a determining factor in the firm’s survival; for example, one study found that nearly half of small firm bankruptcies in Canada could be attributed to internal problems of the enterprise, due to managerial inexperience. For anyone concerned with increasing the probability of survival amongst new businesses, encouraging learning and development in entrepreneurs is therefore a worthy topic of discussion. Mentoring is a learning tool which can be used by individuals and through organised programmes, which a growing body of research shows can increase some types of learning and development in entrepreneurs.

Chief Executive Officer of Noor for Financial Investments, Jordan

Mr. Makhamreh is currently a board member and the chief executive officer of Noor for financial Investments, a financial and brokerage services company based in Amman, Jordan.  Before joining Noor Investments, Mr. Makharemh worked for more than two years at Sanabel International Holding for Islamic Investments.

He was the chief executive officer for the investment banking activities of the group.  Mr. Makhamreh was also a founder and a partner of many investment banking companies in Jordan. Among them was Atlas Investment Group (Now the investment banking arm of Arab Bank Group, one of the leading banks in the region).

Mr. Makahmreh holds an MBA in finance from the University of Jordan and has over 18 years’ experience in investment banking.  Mr. Makahmreh is also a regular member of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA and a member and a founder of the Jordan Chapter of Chartered Financial Analysts (CFA Jordan). Mr. Makhamreh is a certified Islamic financial expert, a certified Islamic banker and a certified takaful professional (CTP).

Omar was born in Amman, Jordan. He studied at Amman Baccalaureate School then finished his high school education in the United States where he studied business. His early independence as well as his family’s business drive sharpened his entrepreneurial skills.

Omar is a serial entrepreneur and has founded/partnered businesses in various sectors including restaurants and real estate. Today he puts his skill where his heart is, or rather, where his eye is; the family business.

He is general manager of Shami Eye Centre, a state of the art day hospital providing all kinds of eye care solutions to all sectors. The centre has a special focus on service, another one of Omar’s sincere interests and natural talents.

Omar is a sports fanatic, both as a player and spectator. He loves books and has a passion for learning. He is 36 years old and a father of four.

Founder & CEO of Business Development Center (BDC), Jordan

Nayef founded BDC in 2004, with a vision to help boost the economic development of Jordan through empowering the Jordanian youth and entrepreneurs. An innovator in organisational development, he brings over 22 years’ experience in creating, implementing and managing diverse and ambitious projects. Under his stewardship, BDC has become a regional and national resource, launching business development service initiatives and facilitating multiple-donor economic development projects. Nayef’s deep expertise and entrepreneurial spirit continue to be the driving force behind BDC.

As part of Nayef’s passion to empower youth and entrepreneurs, as well as his firm belief in their value, potential, and ability to change not only the future, but also the present, he created the Maharat Employment and Training Program. This highly successful initiative has two pillars; one is to provide young people with knowledge and practical skills as they enter the workplace, the other to encourage and support entrepreneurship, transforming youth from job seekers to job creators. The programme provides a unique, unprecedented approach to learning in Jordan, through structured interactive training courses, mentoring and real life experiences. Practical learning even covers behavioural techniques that help to turn graduates into confident, attractive employees. Beyond the programme’s economic relevance, Maharat affects the world view and attitudes of its students and entrepreneurs, turning them into positive, proactive and critical thinkers and helping them to fulfil their personal and professional potential.

Notable roles include: Committee member of the Economic Consultative Council to His Majesty King Abdullah II (May 2000 – Jan 2001), consulting committee member for drafting the Cooperative Agreement of the IESC-USAID Fund (which led to establishing the JUSBP Project), member of the Harvard Arab Alumni Association, on the board of directors for Jordan Investment Board, member of Jordan’s Higher Education Council (Oct 2009 – Jul 2010), member of the Ministry of Public Sector Development’s steering committee for development and initiatives, and a trustee for Jordan Higher Academy for Technical Education, member in the Board of Directors of the European Jordanian Management Development Institute (EJABI), member in the Board of Directors of the  Jordan – Canada Business Association (JOCABA).

Chairman of The Jordan Federation Of Tourism Associations Jordan

Mr. Nazzal holds a degree in Hotel Management from Degree Ecole Hotelier, Lausanne, Switzerland. Some of his career highlights  include head of food and catering at Royal Jordanian, founder of the Jordanian Co for Hotel and Tourism Education , vice chairman of Holiday Hotels Co, chairman of the Dead Sea Spa Hotels Co, member of the board of directors of the Amman World Trade Centre, and vice chairman of the board of directors at Jordan Investment & Tourism Transport.

Business Development Consultant

Mr. Shalabi has an outstanding history of success made during the several leading positions he has held in various banks and financial institutions; a success that he considers to be the ripe fruit of progressive specialised experience in Jordan and in the United states.

During his tenure as GM of AMC, Mr. Shalabi adopted a two-pillar development strategy composed of geographical expansion and product/performance development. Moving forward at a steady pace, development was initiated by creating a new slogan and logo, reflecting the spirit of change. New branches opened and existing branches moved to new locations, achieving better public outreach, and team performance was supported with specialised training courses.

Various developments were introduced to loan products, and an innovated incentive system was created, based on the performance/quality of the portfolio, applying best practices to control risk exposure. Mr. Shalabi also eyed CSR through collaboration with NGO’s working with similar social segments. To this end, the company sponsored community-based activities, like “Souq Jara” – a non-profit marketplace where small businesses promoted their products – and social theatre activities.

Moreover, AMC sponsored the ‘Queen Alia Competition for Social Responsibility 2010’ which focused on the environment, and was honoured by HRH Princess Basma bint Talal for its distinguished support.

In numbers, AMC’s market share leapt from 2.5% to 7% in December 2011 in terms of clients. Portfolio growth rate mounted to 25%. In addition, the company was internationally recognized and nominated for the C5 Microfinance Summit Awards as one of the top three firms for ‘Best Performance’.