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Kenya - Skills Venture
Business mentoring in Kenya
The amazing things you'll be doing
Small businesses in Kenya are often run by people with huge drive
but few formally acquired skills. Your experience can help them
to unlock their talent, even in a short time. You will be mentoring,
not doing - think chats over coffee, rather than squinting at a
computer screen.
We can help you to incorporate this into a holiday in Kenya, one
of Africa's most sought-after tourist destinations. We will arrange
accommodation and food, and the fee includes induction training,
matching with entrepreneurs, and access to full support in-country.
As long you have at least five years of experience in business,
we will organise an assignment that makes the most of what you have
to offer. You could be an accountant, consultant, advertiser, lawyer,
project manager or HR specialist. Whatever your background, your
business skills will be in demand, and we know how to help you to
turn those skills to the advantage of clients in Kenya, and to give
you an inspiring and unforgettable experience in the process.
In return for your skills, enthusiasm and commitment, we will offer
you the most challenging and rewarding experience of your life.
You will work closely with a number of small businesses, providing
one-to-one mentoring support to each of them. This experience will
open you up to new challenges in a completely new environment, and
will give you a fascinating range of case studies to learn from
and to draw upon during the rest of your career.
A day in a life of a volunteer
Your days with us start with an early breakfast, followed by a discussion
over coffee with your mentee (who will have commuted to Naivasha
for the day of mentoring). This initial session focuses on the nature
of the issue that he or she wishes to discuss. This is followed
by lunch at your accommodation, and then an afternoon of more in-depth
discussions, during which you explore potential options for resolving
the issue with your mentee and then agree action points to be completed
before the next mentoring day. You might then take part in a group
discussion to round off the day, looking at an issue that is of
interest to all of the mentors and mentees on site that day (such
as the potential of e-commerce, or the best ways to reach international
markets).
You might also choose to visit your mentee at his or her premises,
to get a real insight into what makes their business tick. Your
fee includes a visit to each of your mentees.
The rest of the afternoon is spent relaxing in or around your accommodation,
with local walks and excursions arranged. After a light supper and
the traditional 'sundowner' drink, an evening of socialising around
an open fire can begin in earnest.
At weekends you can choose to relax at your own leisure or to visit
some of the many wildlife reserves in the area, including Kigio
Wildlife Conservancy, Hell's Gate National Park, and Lake Nakuru
National Park. You might also choose to go on a safari in Kenya
before or after your assignment, perhaps in the world-famous Masai
Mara, or to visit Kenya's stunning beaches on the shores of the
Indian Ocean.
Best time to go
Any time - there is no bad time of year to visit Kenya. Mentoring
projects are available all year round, and you can combine your
trip with a safari or a visit to the coast at any time. Peak tourist
seasons are Christmas and New Year, Easter and July / August, but
the weather is equally good at other times, and the country is quieter
off peak!
How this holiday makes a difference
Our mission is to enable skilled business people in the UK and US
to help to lift communities in Africa out of poverty by providing
targeted and effective mentoring support to local entrepreneurs,
and in doing so to create jobs and prosperity.
We specialise in allowing people to have a real impact in a short
time, by ensuring that they are properly inducted and prepared for
their assignment, are well matched to entrepreneurs on the basis
of available and required skills, and are supported throughout their
stay by our local team of Kenyan business experts.
As part of our core ethos, we are committed to operating responsibly
by ensuring that:
- we focus above all on effective mentoring, and only match volunteers
to entrepreneurs where there is both genuine need and a real likelihood
that the mentoring relationship will be productive
- our local staff are paid well and are given real opportunities
for personal development
- we minimise any potential negative cultural impacts by sensitising
our volunteers to local practices and values, and to the two-way
nature of the learning process
- we support the local economy as far as possible by employing local
staff and using local suppliers, in addition to the positive impact
of our core service
- we minimise our impact on the local environment by working with
local suppliers who use sustainable materials and forms of power
as far as possible, including accommodating our volunteers on a
small eco-lodge campus run by a local conservationist.
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