October 15, 2009
The Franchise Council of Australia (FCA) will launch its first official mentoring program at the annual National Franchise Convention next week to meet a demand for more support from business people within the industry.
The referral-based mentoring program is an initiative of the FCA’s Women in Franchising (WIF) Forum.
Speaking from her Brisbane-based office, WIF Committee Chair Kate Johnson says it is the FCA’s responsibility to provide what is essentially a referral service to assist members in their mentoring needs.
She says mentors needed to pass their knowledge on to others so they can learn from their experience.
“With WIF’s help the FCA has aligned itself with a number of state and territory government-funded mentoring programs developed by State Governments which have recognised the need for mentoring programs tailored specifically for the franchise sector,” Johnson says.
“The State Government mentoring programs are perfect for start-up franchises looking for the guidance of an experienced franchisor or franchisee. It is also the forum for start-up franchisors wanting specific assistance in the areas of marketing, strategy, finance or personal development for themselves or their staff members.”
Queensland-based ‘start-up’ business members will be referred to Small Business Solutions, which is a program run by the State Government.
“The FCA has also aligned itself with an in-depth mentoring service run by Wendy McCarthy who heads up corporate advisory practice McCarthy Management to assist FCA members in all areas of their business and personal development,” Johnson says.
“Wendy’s practice specialises in providing mentors to major corporations and the public sector such as Citigroup, National Australia Bank, Qantas, Oroton Group, The Australia Council for the Arts and the University of New South Wales.”
The FCA is the peak body for the $130 billion franchise sector in Australia, representing franchisees, franchisors and service providers to the sector.
Membership is voluntary, and is open to any organisation or individual involved in the franchise sector, including franchisees, franchisors, lawyers, accountants, banks, consultants, academics, and publishers.
For more information about the FCA’s official mentoring program phone 1300 669 030 or visit www.franchise.org.au.
The program will be officially launched in Perth next Wednesday, October 21.