In line with its commitment to empower businesswomen across all sectors with practical strategies and tools to enhance their professional excellence, Sharjah Business Women Council (SBWC), a NAMA Women Advancement affiliate, has launched ‘Mentor Monday’, a new initiative that aims to provide members with expert insights and business advice from well-established entrepreneurs in a wide range of industries.

The initiative builds on SBWC’s holistic sustainable approach in supporting businesswomen at different stages of their careers, and members will benefit from expert-led hands-on guidance to realise their ambitions and grow their business ventures.

‘Mentor Monday’ consists of a series of one-to-one sessions, held on the last Monday of each month in SBWC’s offices. SBWC members will receive personalised advice for their individual queries based on the area of expertise of the chosen mentors of the month. SBWC members can pre-book their preferred time slot for each ‘Mentor Monday’ session lasting for three hours.

SBWC’s registered members can also access more than 20 inspiring and well-established mentors for consulting sessions through chat and video calls via the SBWC App.

The ‘Mentor Monday’ initiative will debut on February 28 with two seasoned business leaders, Peggy Li and Akhilesh Bal, who will share strategies for business and leadership excellence, brainstorm solutions, and offer guidance in their respective areas of expertise.

Peggy Li, Managing Partner at SPS: Affinity, has over two decades of experience working at a senior level, controlling operations, and driving business performance including working in Michelin Star restaurants and the luxury hospitality sector across Europe and Asia. She has a proven track record of successfully managing large-scale projects, identifying efficiencies, creating sales/marketing strategy, developing the brand, and maintaining Key Performance Indicators. Peggy Li is a specialist in China market development and has successfully devised strategies for both inbound and outbound marketing.

Akhilesh Bahl, Founder of Malt & Salt Hospitality, has over two decades of experience in the Middle East market in industries ranging from hospitality, real estate, strategic marketing and knowledge management. He is a specialist in starting, launching,and successfully operating F&B businesses, and in ramping up and streamlining operations and profitability of new and emerging ventures. Holding a master’s degree in Business Administration from Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chausees, Paris, Akhilesh Bahl is adept at understanding new trends, creating unique concepts, and implementing ideas.