How the ACORNS programme - and my mentor - helped me flourish

Networking and mentoring are two of the most important ways of progressing your career and building a solid business.

That is why being a participant on the pilot project of the ACORNS programme, which accelerates the creation of rural nascent start-ups, was of so much value to my company and I.

ACORNS is a government-run programme for female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland. Run under the CEDRA 2015 Rural Innovation and Developed Fund, through the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, a total of 48 businesswomen took part in the pilot programme, which ran until last April.

Six groups of eight were led by six female entrepreneurs who have started and successfully grown businesses in rural Ireland. My mentor was Deirdre McGlone who has run Harvey’s Point Hotel in Donegal for the past 20 years and has built it up from a small hotel to a multi-award winning, world-class destination.

Being mentored by Deirdre was a phenomenal experience as her track record in business is unrivalled. My group of eight met at Harvey’s Point once every two months where we discussed our goals and challenges for our enterprises. These meetings were critical in terms of setting goals and sticking to them but also in terms of problem-solving and sparking new ideas within the group. There were also a number of developmental forums where all 48 members and lead mentors got together for more in-depth training, workshops and networking.

Being part of a programme like ACORNS has been an invaluable experience both in terms of the mentoring and networking.

But a special bond was also created between the female entrepreneurs on the programme and it has been a joy watching their ideas and companies flourish.