About MicroMentor
MicroMentor is the world's largest online business mentoring program
Our Impact
A global community of mentors and entrepreneurs.
A program of Mercy Corps, MicroMentor's online business mentoring program enables the world's largest community of purpose-driven entrepreneurs and business mentors to create powerful connections, solve problems, and build successful businesses together. We strive to overcome geographical limitations and deliver business resources at scale to under-resourced communities around the globe through mentoring.
Strong mentoring connections lead to better business outcomes.
For entrepreneurs, turning a passion into a business is the ultimate dream. But that dream doesn’t come easily. It’s hard work, and there are challenges around every corner. For mentors, sharing their hard-won knowledge with entrepreneurs who are just starting out is its own reward. MicroMentor is where they meet. It’s an easy-to-use service provided at no-cost that connects entrepreneurs with volunteer mentors so they can solve problems and build businesses together.
Since 2008, MicroMentor has bridged geographical and cultural barriers between Entrepreneurs and Mentors, fostering connections that span the globe.
51%
percent of women-owned small businesses that reported increase in their revenue after they worked with a mentor
$84M
estimated pro-bono dollars in millions donated by mentors last year (based on the Taproot Foundation’s valuation of pro-bono consulting services)
44K
Projected jobs created as a result of entrepreneurs receiving mentoring in 2022
Research & Thought Leadership
MicroMentor engages with research institutions and funders to produce relevant and rigorous studies on the impact of business mentoring.
MicroMentor 2022 Impact Report
Amidst the challenges we've faced around the world over the last few years, the one thing that we could count on was powerful connections. This is the key to successful mentorship. Learn more in our 2022 Impact Report.
MicroMentor Toolkit Series
In 2018 MicroMentor's research team began an expansive, two-year research project. We've translated our findings into actionable recommendations for practitioners and policy makers in the MicroMentor Toolkit series.
MicroMentor Practitioners' Toolkit: Part 1 explores the factors that lead aspiring entrepreneurs and small and growing businesses to find an online mentoring match.
MicroMentor Practitioners' Toolkit: Part 2 aims to share the results of our follow-on study validating the effect of online business mentoring on small and growing businesses' survival, revenue, job creation, and other indicators of business growth.
Our Partners
MicroMentor's partners are committed to amplifying the power of mentoring for small business growth and professional development across the globe. We are grateful for the collaborations and investments our partners have made to scale MicroMentor's impact since launching in 2005.
Why Partner with MM?
Scaling Mentoring Virtually Drives Employee Engagement and Makes a Global Impact
MicroMentor drives employee engagement with its unique virtual volunteering packages, while enabling organizations to make a global economic impact through mentoring. We also deliver a scalable and low-effort alternative to in-person mentoring for organizations that support entrepreneurs. With just the right balance of professional development training, customer service, and white-labeled technology, MicroMentor delivers tailored mentoring programs to corporations, INGOs, and government agencies across the globe, and trains employees in the art of business mentoring.
Want to learn more? Contact partnerships@micromentor.org
Current Partners
Accion Opportunity Fund
Apple
Argidius
Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs
Association for Enterprise Opportunity
Bacardi
Capital One
Center for Disaster Philanthropy
City of Sacramento
Chevron
Emory University
Empire State Development
Enactus Mexico
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Google Ad Grants
JP Morgan Chase & Co.
Kauffman Foundation
Mastercard
Moody's
myWaytoCredit
Old Dominion University
Promotora Social Mexico
S&P Global
TripAdvisor
University of Oregon
US Chamber of Commerce Foundation
Verizon
Anita Ramachandran
Executive Director
As Executive Director of MicroMentor she wears a few different hats, so her day-to-day tends to be a mix of strategic planning, business development, technology for development, partnerships for scale and impact, program design for local, national and regional programs supporting entrepreneurs and team management. She is recognized as a global leader and expert in business mentoring and has presented MicroMentor and the case for business mentoring at various national and international forums.
Anita has over 20 years of combined Non-Profit (NGO) and corporate management experience across a wide spectrum of industries and countries. She’s an entrepreneur, problem-solver, and changemaker, passionate about mentoring and personal growth.
Prior to Mercy Corps, she managed Operations for Xerox’s eCommerce and North American channel marketing and eCommerce business. She is also the co-founder and held a leadership role for 15 years at a local non-profit, SAWERA that assisted South Asian women and children affected by domestic violence. She was the recipient of the Portland Business Journal’s Women of Influence award in 2019 and has recently been named Exceptional Woman for selfless service by the Chetana Foundation in Portland, Oregon. Anita received a bachelor of science in Environmental Science and Economics, Summa Cum Laude, and a MBA, Magna Cum Laude, from Portland State University.
Tatiana Petrone
Global Programs and Innovations Director
Tatiana, define herself as an intrapreneur—passionate about scaling initiatives that powerfully and positively impact the lives of individuals and their communities, as MicroMentor does. She leads the expansion of MicroMentor in Latin America, MENA, Africa, and SE Asia through replication with strategic partnerships and catalytic philanthropic investors.
Tatiana draws on her experience in economic development collaborating with organizations such as Ashoka, Americas Society, and Pathways to Prosperity Innovation Challenge, among others. Tatiana has an MA in Social Community Psychology from the University of Buenos Aires.
Justine Raschio
Director of Operations
Justine is the Director of Operations at MicroMentor. Justine is deeply passionate about MicroMentor's vision, it's equitable and inclusive model, and the transformative growth tools it offers entrepreneurs and mentors alike—both professionally and personally. Justine leads the honing of synergies between MicroMentor's business model, impact journey, and growth trajectory.
Justine brings over a decade of non-profit and social enterprise management experience at the nexus of the private sector and social impact. For the six years prior to joining MicroMentor, Justine managed multi-stakeholder partnerships across government, corporate, and other non-profits at Mercy Corps to raise revenue and profile. Before Mercy Corps, Justine led the resource development team at social enterprise in South Africa. Justine graduated Magna Cum Laude from American University and then stayed in Washington D.C. to begin her career in social impact at Pyxera Global.
Justine currently lives in Oregon with her husband and young son. She practices and teaches yoga, enjoys the eclectic food scene in Portland, and gets outside as often as possible to soak up the beautiful nature of the PNW.
Guillermo Castells
Director of Growth and Technology
Guillermo leads MicroMentor's marketing team in reaching new community members around the world. With more than 12 years of experience in digital marketing, working with multinational companies as well as startups and non-profit organizations in Europe, Africa, and Latin America.
He moved to Ghana in 2014 to work as an independent marketing consultant and understand the market where he built his marketing agency. Later that year, Guillermo launched The Power Station, an Inbound Marketing agency. The company's team grew from 1 to 10 employees in 2 years, working with clients including: Allianz Insurance, Mazda Motors, Bare International, Renault Trucks, andFidelity Asia Bank. Guillermo is based in Mexico City.
Sara Fustolo
Finance Director
Sara is MicroMentor's Finance Director. She manages financial operations and oversees compliance worldwide. She has a background in federal grants accounting, audit preparation, and over 10 years of experience working with a combined earned income and nonprofit revenue model. She is passionate about investing her efforts and talents in a mission-based organization that delivers meaningful impact.