TORONTO, Feb. 23, 2022 /CNW/ - The Scotiabank Women Initiative® (SWI) in collaboration with The Forum, a Canadian charity that empowers women entrepreneurs across Canada, is pleased to announce the launch of a comprehensive 12-month mentorship program for women entrepreneur participants of the SWI program.

The Scotiabank Women Initiative® Mentor Program, Powered by The Forum pairs early-stage and established women entrepreneurs with business leaders and experienced entrepreneurs for one-to-one mentorship. Mentors provide first-hand insight into business practices along with support and community to help women entrepreneurs build and scale their businesses.

The Scotiabank Women Initiative Mentor Program offers several benefits such as:

• Personalized Support & Guidance through strategic pairing of business owners to provide relevant, actionable steps and advice to mentees.
• Comprehensive Virtual Planning & Resources through the Mentor Program Platform which provides in-depth guides and videos, suggested agendas, feedback forms and templates all needed to succeed in a virtual setting.
• Accountability & Motivation through careful time management, progress and goal-tracking planners.

"One of the goals of The Scotiabank Women Initiative is to empower women entrepreneurs by providing access to mentorship," said Sloane Muldoon, Senior Vice President, Retail Performance and Co-Chair of The Scotiabank Women Initiative. "By strategically partnering with The Forum and pairing women entrepreneurs, we're enabling them to share and gain first-hand insight into experienced business practice. This information exchange helps women business leaders gain the confidence and guidance needed to kickstart and grow their business."

The Forum, a Canadian charity and partner of The Scotiabank Women Initiative, has been thoughtfully pairing early-stage and established women entrepreneurs with mentors for the past 20 years and understands what makes for a perfect mentor match. Through this collaboration, The Scotiabank Women Initiative is expanding its reach to better target and serve women entrepreneurs.

"For 20 years, The Forum has been dedicated to ensuring Canadian women entrepreneurs thrive. Our partnership with The Scotiabank Women Initiative will help more entrepreneurs access the mentorship, resources, and community they need to be successful," said Paulina Cameron, CEO of The Forum. "We are proud to collaborate with them to expand the Mentor Program and bring even more opportunities to women entrepreneurs."

The Scotiabank Women Initiative is a comprehensive program designed to increase economic opportunities for all women and non-binary people so that they can achieve long-term financial success.

If you are interested in taking part in The Scotiabank Women Initiative Mentor program, contact a program expert in your region to learn more about The Scotiabank Women Initiative.

For more information on the program, visit www.scotiabankwomeninitiative.com.

About The Scotiabank Women Initiative

The Scotiabank Women Initiative is a signature program designed to increase economic and professional opportunities for our clients who identify as women or non-binary to be successful, now and in the future. This globally expanding, unique offering helps thousands of women pursue their best professional and financial futures by providing unbiased access to capital and tailored solutions, bespoke specialized education, holistic advisory services and mentorship. Whether supporting women to take their careers and businesses further, collaborating with inclusion-focused leaders and companies, providing women-owned and women-led businesses with equitable access to funding or helping women take charge of their finances, The Scotiabank Women Initiative breaks down barriers to empower women to succeed on their own terms. For more information, visit scotiabankwomeninitiative.com.

About Scotiabank

Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our purpose: "for every future," we help our customers, their families and their communities achieve success through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of approximately 90,000 employees and assets of approximately $1.2 trillion (as at October 31, 2021), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit http://www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankViews.

About the Forum

The Forum is a Canadian-based charity that energizes, educates, mentors, and connects self-identified women entrepreneurs across Canada — promoting strengthened economies and thriving communities. Our programs and events are designed to empower women entrepreneurs to overcome barriers and challenges that women face in today's economy. From learning about raising capital, to developing a pitch, growing one's HR, sales, leadership skills and more, we support women entrepreneurs leading business at any stage, of any size and industry, anywhere in Canada.

SOURCE Scotiabank