CalPoly Group Helps Women Entrepreneurs

By Tamara L. Cravit

In the business world, entrepreneurial endeavor is traditionally highly regarded. But for women entrepreneurs, there have historically been few resources to give the kind of support, networking and mentoring which the “good old boy’s network” provides. Dr. Colette Frayne and her colleagues at CalPoly aim to change that.

On May 24, the Orfalea College of Business at CalPoly held a reception to inaugurate its new Women Entrepreneurs Mentor program. The program’s main aim is to help young women become successful entrepreneurs through a combination of networking, skills enhancement and mentoring.

According to William R. Pendergast, dean of the Orfalea College of Business, the college’s overall mission is to build community involvement, to develop a program of entrepreneurial education and to foster diversity.

“The WE Mentor program is precisely tailored to advance each of these objectives,” Pendergast said.

“(The program) is designed to answer some of the questions that surface when one starts to understand...women in entrepreneurial activities,” said Colette Frayne, one of the organizers of the group. WE Mentor plans to start providing opportunities for students this fall, including a speaking series and mentoring and networking opportunities.

The 11-member advisory board coordinating WE Mentor’s activities consists of both professors from Cal Poly and women from the tri-county business community. The group has several task forces working to prepare the fall programs, all made up of both people from within and outside the Cal Poly community.

Including successful entrepreneurial women from the community is a critical part of the success of the program, Frayne said. Women in the community, she said, provide “terrific role models and a broad base of experience” from which students can learn.

The students who stand to benefit from WE Mentor’s efforts are just as excited.

“Many women are looked at as incapable of succeeding...and receive little or no help,” said Jessica Butterfield, a Cal Poly senior and president of the Cal Poly Entrepreneurship Club. Butterfield looks forward to participating in the programs WE Mentor plans to offer.

Starting a group with such ambitious goals is not an easy task, however.

“Our biggest concern is how to generate resources to build and sustain our program,” Frayne said. She and others in the program feel that community involvement is critical to developing the resources, and ultimately to making the program a success.

Silicon 2.0 has risen to that challenge, offering to host a Web portal for the group. The portal, at http://portal.silicontwo.com/wementor/ , was launched at the end of May, and is already proving a valued resource for the group. “Visiting our Web site will be a great way to stay informed,” Frayne noted.

Talking to the founders of WE Mentor, what is most clear is that the current vision of WE Mentor is just the tip of the iceberg.

“Our long-term dream,” Frayne said, “would be to link with international organizations who sponsor women entrepreneurs around the globe.”

Pendergast also believes the scope of WE Mentor will grow over time.

“With the dynamic and energetic leadership...it is impossible to foresee all of the initiatives that will result,” he said.

Given the seemingly boundless enthusiasm of WE Mentor’s founders and members, it’s not hard to see the truth behind this statement.

For more information about WE Mentor and how you can participate, contact Dr. Colette Frayne, cfrayne@calpoly.edu ; Dr. Terri Lituchy, tlituchy@calpoly.edu ; or Dr. Lynn Metcalf, lmetcalf@calpoly.edu .

Tamara L. Cravit is a partner of Taylored Software, a Buellton firm providing custom Web and business software development services. She can be reached by e-mail at tcravit@taylored-software.com , or on the Web at www.taylored-software.com/ .