Industrious

OEN’s new Coaching Program is an opportunity for entrepreneurs to share their goals, challenges, insights, and advice in an intimate and confidential setting. Limited to 15 participants, this Program is supported by a certified Coach and a network of mentors with expertise in various topics. Participants will meet monthly for a period of six months, though we expect the connections you make will endure long after the program ends.

Coaching and leadership development can often be inaccessible for entrepreneurs at this stage, which is why OEN is partnering with Geffen Mesher, one of Portland’s local accounting firms, and Industrious, Portland’s newest co-working space, to pilot this coaching experience. Participants will be assigned a small group of partners within their cohort to connect with between sessions to tackle pressing and emerging issues. All participants will be able to contact everyone in the cohort and all the mentors on an ongoing basis.

Entrepreneurship is hard, but it’s much harder if you try to go it alone. You need the support of other founders and startup executives who can “feel your pain” and help you solve real-life problems in real time. You also need experienced mentors who can help guide you on your path.

Eligibility: Founders and/or leaders of companies currently experiencing significant growth who want to learn how to scale up their business from an experienced coach, a peer cohort, and a network of mentors/experts in various fields. This is the perfect “next step” after our Startup Series.

Program: This six-month pilot program will kick off with a half-day session with subsequent sessions running for three hours. Participants will be also be matched up with a small Pod cohort to discuss emerging issues, homework, and other matters as they arise in between monthly meetings.

Given that many startups face similar challenges, we have curated a group of mentors, each with expertise on topics relevant to leaders of companies at this stage, including legal, accounting, sales, marketing, leadership, finance/fundraising, and more. These mentors have agreed to provide advice and support to the participants for the duration of the program. They will attend the first and last session and may appear as guest speakers when appropriate.

Prior to the first session, participants will be invited to take the Clifton Strengthsfinder Assessment to identify their Top 5 Strengths so that over the course of the Program, participants can expand their effectiveness, learn to leverage others’ strengths, and extend the collective strengths of their team.

The format of the monthly meeting will have one mentor present for the first 1-1.5 hours with a facilitated group discussion to follow. The discussion will be customized to the specific needs of the participants.

Topics: Topics will focus on issues the group identifies, but we expect to include:

Developing a Sales Pipeline Marketing Accounting/Finance/Fundraising Legal: IP, entity issues, HR, raising capital Teaming Leadership Presence and Culture Outcomes: Participants should expect the following outcomes:

Accelerate the growth of their companies Build a winning culture Collaborate with and build lasting relationships with trusted peers Connect with expert resources Become a better leader Dates Jan 18 Feb 8 March 8 April 12 May 10 June 14