2026-2027 Mentoring

We’re looking for established business owners and professionals in the Wisconsin Rapids area to volunteer as mentors for our M2M program starting in October 2026.
M2M supports early-stage entrepreneurs who are building small businesses – some in the idea stage, others newly operating—often while balancing part-time or full-time jobs.
Participants come from a variety of backgrounds - including temporarily disadvantaged or low-income - and your guidance can help them strengthen their business direction, confidence, and long-term sustainability.

Mentor commitment:
Meet with an entrepreneur about every other week for approximately 1 hour (in person, by phone, or virtually—whatever works best for you both). Mentors typically participate in about eight meetings during the mentoring phase.

What participants bring:
Entrepreneurs enter the mentoring phase after participants complete a training bootcamp that introduces key areas of business—finances, strategic thinking, resourcefulness/bootstrapping, marketing, and operations.

What you’ll help with:
As a mentor, you’ll act as a guide—helping your entrepreneur think through decisions, clarify strategy, and begin implementing practical next steps.
For example:
-marketing
-basic bookkeeping systems
-operations
-pricing/procurement
-cash-flow management
-business set-up/registration
-critical analysis and problem solving
-hiring staff and supervisory guidance

Program pathway:
Mentoring is one phase of a multi-step model designed to help entrepreneurs build financially sustainable businesses. After the mentoring phase, participants receive a follow-up consulting phase with hands-on support (for example, website/social media, bookkeeping set-up, or basic financial modeling). Consultants coordinate with mentors before getting started to ensure continuity.