She Leads Change supports and develops changemakers to amplify and accelerate the positive social impact they are making in the world. Our 300+ alumni are keen and willing to give back by supporting other changemakers.

In March 2020 we launched a mentoring programme with Bootstrap. The charity supports 150 social entrepreneurs and creative businesses in Hackney by offering a business support package, as well as affordable work and event space through their Bootstrap Business School.   

Through the partnership, She Leads Change alumni mentor Bootstrap businesses leaders and entrepreneurs to help them develop and grow their effectiveness, as people and changemakers.

The programme takes place over the course of 6-9 months with meetings taking place virtually for now. 

Mentoring conversations will be agreed between the mentor and mentee and might cover the following areas and more:

• knowing yourself as a leader
• how to delegate effectively
• aligning teams around a culture or strategy
• building a high performing team
• how to grow your business sustainably

There are no special skills needed to be a mentor – it’s more a case of:

• Listening – both mentor and mentee must listen and be comfortable that their voice has been heard
• Curiosity to understand the other’s perspective, motivation and experience
• Courage to step out of their comfort zone and be creative

We are looking forward to the feedback from this first cohort, and we welcome any alumni interested in joining our next cohort to make a difference in other people’s lives.

Our thanks go to Gunther Jancke at Bootstrap for his vision and support in making this programme a reality, and to our initial mentor cohort:

• Varsha Venugopal
• Gaye Russell
• Elaine McGinty
• Carina Schneider
• Sarah Caton

We will be running a second cohort of the programme later this year. If you’re interested in becoming a mentor, or want to find out more about the programme, please email Sarah on community@sheleadschange.org