VMSA - Telling It Like It Is
Jade Alberts host of Telling It Like It Is brought in Kaila Hoar, a VMSA mentee and co-founder of Grid Group, and Chris Doble, Program Manager of Venture Mentoring Service of Alberta (VMSA) to dive into what VMSA is and the value of it for participants.
VMSA is a mentorship program aimed at developing leadership skills, within entrepreneurs running scaling companies.
Conversation Highlights:
The Value of Mentorship - Highlighted the immense value of mentorship in the entrepreneurial journey, especially in providing guidance and offering different perspectives. Kaila emphasized the importance of mentorship in steering through challenges and making more informed decisions.
“I call it like my subconscious board of directors right; just throw it out at them and see what happens, and I know wholeheartedly they are there to support me, and that makes a huge, huge difference.”
Structure and Coaching Approach of VMSA - VMSA employs a team mentorship model, involving three mentors for each mentee, offering a diverse range of perspectives and experiences. The program focuses on leadership development not business advisory, preferring to keep to ownership of decision making with the Mentee. Mentors encourage reflection, growth, and accountability among mentees.
Benefits and Evolution of Mentorship - Discussed the evolutionary journey of mentees, their businesses, and the benefits derived from mentorship. Specifically highlighted the valuable shift in perspective that mentorship provides and its role in refining leadership skills.
“Asking for help is not a sign of weakness, and people have to go out there and say, 'I need help, I'm willing to do it, I'm going to put myself out there.' You become a better person for it and a better leader because of it.” - Kaila
VMSA’s Frequency and Time Commitment - Recommended a 90-minute mentorship session every four to six weeks, allowing time for reflection and action on feedback. The program emphasizes the importance of setting agendas and actively participating in the sessions.
Adapting Mentorship to Changing Business Needs - Team mentorship model allows Mentor rotations as Mentees go through different growth stages. The program acknowledges the evolving needs of mentees as their businesses scale or change direction, necessitating potential changes in the mentorship team.
Kaila discussing her Mentor rotation 18 months into the program,
“Chris not only interviewed myself of what would work really well for the group but he also interviewed the two remaining mentors what they they thought would really like work well for me and where where I needed what my business needed at this point in time and I think we hit the nail on the head for where we are as a business and our next stage of growth. When you come into the program you know kind of where you're at but we had such a different perspective and definition this time and to cherry pick the right person was really exciting!”
VMSA's Future Goals and Needs - VMSA aims to extend its mentorship program to more entrepreneurs, focusing on developing leadership capacity and upskilling potential mentors.
"If we can help more people grow as Leaders, that's truely the goal for us." - Chris, expressing VMSA's goal of nurturing leadership skills in entrepreneurs.
Mentee Advice from Kaila- Entrepreneurs seeking mentorship should proactively identify their challenges and needs, reaching out to the community for appropriate mentorship program recommendations.
"Asking for help isn't a sign of weakness. Get out there." - Kaila
Mentor Advice from Chris - Prospective mentors should have a genuine desire to give back and help others succeed, understanding how they want to contribute to the mentoring process.
"Understanding how it is that you want to give back [through business advising or coaching] is important." - Chris, underlining the need for mentors to discern their motivations and approach to mentorship.
