The Franchise Council of Australia will launch its first official mentoring program at the annual National Franchise Convention on Wednesday, 21 October in an effort to meet a demand for more mentoring from business people at all levels within the industry.  

The mentoring program is referral-based and is an initiative of the FCA’s Women in Franchising Forum.  

WIF committee chair Kate Johnson said WIF believed it was the FCA’s responsibility to provide what is essentially a referral service to assist FCA members in their mentoring needs.  

“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,” she said.  

“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.   

“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.  

“We are generally referring more mature franchise system owners and their senior staff to the in-depth mentoring program Wendy runs.  

“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."

For more information about the FCA’s official mentoring program or for a referral phone 1300 669 030 or visit www.franchise.org.au.