This case study examines how business planning and mentoring helped the Friends of the Bendigo-Kilmore Rail Trail to operate more efficiently, increase membership, and achieve a major goal.
The challenge of securing funding
The Friends of the Bendigo-Kilmore Rail Trail is a community group committed to securing funds to upgrade and extend a rail trail.
Support through business planning and mentoring
Between November 2011 and June 2013, the former Office for the Community Sector, in partnership with Small Business Victoria and the Small Business Mentoring Service, delivered the Business Planning for Not for Profit Program.
The Program featured ten business planning seminars and individual business mentoring sessions across Victoria to support not for profit community organisations improve business practices. This case study was one of the participants in the program.
In 2012, the group’s President, Garry Long, completed a business plan and four mentoring sessions through Small Business Victoria. Garry says the mentoring process pushed him and the group to reflect on how it could operate better to achieve its goals.
“The mentoring service was brilliant because it gave me the opportunity to look inward at how the group was working. The group still has its vision but in getting to that end point, we were trying to be a bit smarter at the way we were operating. The mentor gave me some ideas about how to improve and have the group become more efficient.” Garry Long, President