Volunteer Business Mentors (virtual)

Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA) invites applications for Volunteer Business Mentors to support our dedicated and talented MEDA team in our mission to create business solutions to poverty!

MEDA’s work is built on a foundation of Mennonite business roots and faith-based values, within the global context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. We believe business solutions are effective interventions to address poverty. Through a market-systems approach and strategic partnerships, MEDA enables access to finance and provides business and technical expertise to build transformative agri-food market systems that create decent jobs, allowing traditionally excluded groups to become active participants in a sustainable economy. MEDA welcomes all who share our values and want to join us in our mission. To find out more about MEDA, please visit our website at www.meda.org.

Project Summary

Feminist Entrepreneurs Growing Green Economies (FEGGE) is an economic development project working in the dryland regions of Tanzania. FEGGE has the overall goal of improved prosperity for women- and men-owned small and medium businesses (SMEs) working in the following value chains: horticulture, herbs and spices, dairy, oil seeds, maize (with a focus on nutritious flour), honey, and rice. FEGGE also aims to promote women’s economic empowerment (WEE) and climate-smart farming and business practices.

Position Summary

FEGGE will offer women-owned SMEs the opportunity to be partnered with a volunteer business mentor to help them make technical improvements to their business. Mentors will be business owners or specialists in similar value chains, or possess the generic business skills that SMEs would like to improve in (e.g. marketing, financial management, inventory management, graphic design and labelling, etc.). A full list of the skills or services that SMEs are seeking mentorship in is listed below. Mentors will be responsible for sharing their experiences, offering technical advice, and guiding mentees to implement technical improvements to their businesses.

Mentorship will occur virtually over a period of 8-12 weeks. Together, the mentor and mentee will agree on the goals of the mentorship experience and participate in virtual coaching sessions. Mentors will also be offered the option to undertake a 7- to 10-day trip to work in-person with the SME at their premises in Tanzania. Airfare and accommodation for the visit will be covered by MEDA. The total commitment required by mentors is approximately 15 days of effort (including virtual and in-person if applicable).

SME Mentorship Needs

The women-owned SMEs seeking business mentorship include firms such as:

• Milk-processing firms sourcing raw milk from smallholder farmers and supplying milk products to the local market.
• Rice-processing firms sourcing rice from smallholder farmers and supplying various grades of rice to both local and regional markets.
• Sunflower oil-processing firms sourcing sunflower seed from smallholder farmers and processing crude sunflower oil for the domestic market; aiming to upgrade to refined and fortified sunflower oil.
• Horticultural product aggregators
• Maize flour processing firms, with a focus on fortified flours.
• Honey processing firms supplying domestic and local markets for home and corporate use.
• Herb and spice processing firms

MEDA is seeking mentors who are either (1) business owners, (2) industry experts in same value chains as the SMEs; or (3) industry experts in specifics areas of business management, listed below. This list is not exclusive, and volunteer mentors with relevant skills not mentioned below are also encouraged to apply.

Business needs of FEGGE SMEs include:

• Graphic design and labelling
• Marketing strategy development
• Digital marketing
• Accessing export markets
• Product diversification
• Inventory management, including the design and implementation of inventory management strategies and software
• Appropriate processing equipment and factory operations management
• Financial management and record keeping
• Supply chain management (outgrower and contract farming models)
• Climate-change management strategy development, including managing impacts of climate change on consistency and quantity of smallholder farmer produce.
• Compliance with domestic and international standards and certifications (e.g. HACCP, TBS, OSHA, etc.)

Recruitment & Selection Process

1. Interested applicants must complete and submit their online application
2. Applications are reviewed and assessed based on the relevance of the business to FEGGE client needs and business goals, as well as other eligibility criteria
3. Applicants whose business and experience match the needs and goals of a FEGGE client will be notified and participate in an introductory call with the client.
4. If mentors and clients agree on mutual fit, then relationship will be formalized with an agreement.
5. A volunteer agreement is signed between MEDA and the mentor. The agreement will outline mutually agreed upon goals, activities and schedule for the mentorship relationship.

Mentor Qualifications

This call for volunteer mentors targets business people who are passionate about supporting women entrepreneurs in Tanzania to improve their business practices. MEDA is seeking volunteers who are:

• Industry experts in one or more of the value chains or business management areas listed above.
• Willing to volunteer their time, share their experiences, provide encouragement, and offer technical support and advice to SMEs in Tanzania.
• Willing to work with women entrepreneurs using a gender- and culturally-sensitive approach. Orientation and support on gender and cultural norms will be provided by the MEDA team.
• Connected to professional networks within the agrifood sector and willing to expose their mentee to further learning or business opportunities, as applicable.
• Based inside or outside Tanzania, elsewhere in Africa, or in North America.

What to Expect as a Mentor

Mentors can expect the following from their participation in this activity:

• Participate in an in-person or virtual orientation call (depending on location) lead by MEDA covering the following topics: mentorship skills, business mentorship, and culture, gender and climate issues in the Tanzanian context.
• Participate in a kick-off call with MEDA and the mentee business to mutually agree on:
  • Key needs of the mentee
  • Goals of the mentorship period
  • Meeting schedule and timeline
• Engage in regular mentorship sessions with the mentee at the frequency and duration mutually agreed upon.
• Participate in an optional in-person mentorship trip to the SME premises in Tanzania, sponsored by MEDA.
• Participate in mid- and end-of-activity satisfaction calls and surveys.

Mentor Site Visits

Mentors will have the option to engage in an in-person visit to the mentee’s business premise in order to better understand the mentee’s operations and provide more in-depth advice or technical support. In these cases, airfare and accommodation for the visit will be covered by MEDA. Mentors who opt to participate in the in-person component will be required to undertake a brief security orientation call and adhere to MEDA’s security protocols while in Tanzania.

APPLICATION DEADLINE:  Open-ended - Applicants that match with a FEGGE client will be notified on an ongoing basis.

MEDA is an equal opportunity employer and accommodations are available during all phases of the recruitment process. We ask that any applicants requiring accommodation make their needs known in advance.