BUSINESS ACCELERATOR PARTNERSHIPS: Guria – a womens business growth accelerator

Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

business growth accelerator - guria

What was the opportunity?

The Difference Incubator partnered with the Women’s Business Resource Centre (WBRC) in Port Moresby, to run a women’s business growth accelerator program called Guria.

Guria means ‘earthquake’ or ‘shake up’, representing the change that twelve magnificent entrepreneurs have dared to make. The program was funded by the Australian Government through the PNG – Australia Partnership.

Tell us the ‘Nitty Gritty’ details…

Guria has been one of The Difference Incubator’s more ambitious accelerator programs, with a bold vision of helping women-led businesses double their revenue and profit, and unlock their personal and leadership potential.

The program ran over 7 months and included four intensive blocks and several one to one coaching sessions throughout:

 

  • Intensive 1 – Business model assessment: Participants learnt how to use key tools and ask powerful questions of their business. They gained a new perspective on their business and initial actions to improve their model.
  • Intensive 2 – Analysing Growth Options: Participants reviewed their progress and examined options for growth. They analysed their key cost and revenue drivers, named their financial goals and developed a roadmap to get there.
  • Intensive 3 – Mindset: Delivered in partnership with mindset coach Kate Wilson, participants learnt about mindsets and named the real things that were holding them back. They learnt strategies for managing their mindset and emotions, enabling them greater freedom.
  • Intensive 4 – Showcase: Participants developed compelling pitches and showcased their businesses to potential customers, partners and investors. They were celebrated by their peers and the business community and secure valuable leads from the networking opportunity.

The program concluded with a showcase event in Port Moresby, where each entrepreneur pitched their business to a room of prospective partners.

“I have no idea if there are other Isaac’s, Anna’s and Kate’s in the world, and even if on paper they do the same thing, I am not sure I would’ve been so open with others, or so open to learning from others.

Their methods were practical, actually used my business in the examples and we just got down to the things that needed to be talked about.”

– Program Participant

The Outcome

The PNG WBRC Guria Business Accelerator achieved significant business transformation in just seven months.
At the end of the program all participants were expecting to more than double their revenue within 2 years, as a result of the program, bringing in an additional PGK 4.4 million to the PNG economy, annually.

This represents a potential 10-fold return on investment for the Australian government and will significantly benefit PNG through increased employment and growth down the supply chain, as well as growth in valuable services, such as solar lights and digital learning in schools, for example.
All of the Guria business participants say that their business will be better off as a result of the program and two thirds say that their business is already better off.

Guria, also increased participants emotional resilience, which is critical to ongoing business resilience.

Q: To what extent do you agree with this statement? “Guria helped me to increase my emotional resilience” (emotional resilience is usually defined as the ability to adapt to change, cope with stress, handle unpleasant feelings, not get discouraged in the face of adversity & stay focused and think clearly) (n=9)

For most of the participants, Guria has been a life changing experience. We feel lucky to have worked with and alongside these leaders, who are key to PNG’s future.

“I feel lighter, focused and absolutely driven to make this work for me, my family and my country.”

– Program Participant

 

You can read more about the Guria Business Accelerator here.

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