Now in its second year, the 10xNW Northwest Entrepreneurial Exchange entered phase two recently with the meeting of mentors and mentees under the facilitation of economist Susan Hayes Culleton. Phase one occurred earlier in the year where mentees were taken through a strategic development workshop.
The 10xNW Program, an action from the Regional Enterprise Plan, supports companies ready to scale. It’s a collaborative program comprising Enterprise Ireland, the Local Enterprise Offices of Donegal, Sligo and Leitrim, Údarás na Gaeltachta and the Western Development Commission.
The return of a mentee from last year as a mentor to this year’s cohort speaks to the success of the program. Keith Sleater, of Sleater Solutions, reported a 50% sales growth when he took the advice to “work on the business, not in the business.” He was happy to join the mentor team this year to pass on his seasoned wisdom.
11 companies are now matched with a seasoned entrepreneur that will work with them for the next 6 months, which will mark phase 3. Phase 4, the final phase, will be in September 2026 when companies share their feedback on the program.
