Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 212: To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the numbers of business mentors under schemes operated by him available in County Meath and nationally; the number of businesses or persons in County Meath and nationally they have interacted with; the frequency with which they met them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24982/11]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The Enterprise Ireland Mentor Network was established to help companies identify and overcome obstacles to growth and provide tailored advice, guidance and support, to help accelerate growth and build management capability. Mentors are senior executives, drawn from the private sector, with a proven track record in business. They act as a confidential sounding board, advising companies on key operational and strategic issues. The Network is regularly refreshed with CEOs and senior executives with high levels of achievement and with proven skills in a range of areas. Every effort is made to match the Mentor to the specific needs of a company.

· A mentoring assignment consists of 10 visits from a Mentor over a 12 month period.

· Companies choose a Mentor from a short-list of Mentors with the experience to meet their stated needs.

· The goals and objectives are established by the client in agreement with the Mentor at the start of the assignment.

· All Mentors sign a strict confidentiality agreement with Enterprise Ireland.

Enterprise Ireland has 291 active mentors on its Mentor Network nationally. Six of these mentors are located in County Meath.

Since 2005, EI mentors have been appointed to 33 assignments with EI and County Enterprise Board clients located in County Meath. 23 of these assignments have been completed over a course of 133 visits and 10 are in progress with 36 visits instigated so far.

Mentors from the Network were appointed to companies across the country in the following years: · 2009 - 365 assignments set up · 2010 – 327 assignments set up · 2011 – To date 259 assignments have been set up, and 420 assignments are currently in progress.

Meath County Enterprise Board and the County and City Enterprise Board (CEB) network across the country provide support for micro-enterprises in the start-up and expansion phases. The assistance provided includes a wide range of one-to-one mentoring, business advice and information services.

Meath CEB's mentoring services are complemented by business advice sessions and 'Start Your Own Business' (SYOB) training. In 2010, there were 228 business advice sessions and 193 SYOB provisions. Meath CEB has an available panel of 151 mentors across a variety of business specialisations. Mentoring sessions in 2010 to Meath CEB clients totalled 26 individual project promoters with 66 sessions carried out.