how it works in practice
Activities
Our goal
Connecting research, training and mentoring to move women’s careers forward.
This project is designed to be practical, supportive and easy to follow for women entrepreneurs and the professionals who work with them. It focuses on clear communication, useful tools and ongoing feedback so that the activities really match participants’ needs.
Work Package #1
Staying on track together: clear, coordinated support for women entrepreneurs.
- Coordinates all partners, timelines and events to keep the project on track.
- Ensures quality assurance, evaluation and sustainability are integrated into every activity.
Work Package #2
Listening first: understanding women entrepreneurs’ real skills and needs
- Runs focus groups and interviews with women entrepreneurs and stakeholders in multiple countries.
- Creates a Skills Matrix that shows which skills women need most to start, grow or redirect their careers.
Work Package #3
Learn your way: flexible online upskilling and reskilling for your business
- Develops short, ready‑to‑use upskilling and reskilling modules based on WP2 findings.
- Builds a multilingual Moodle platform where women can learn flexibly and track their progress.
Work Package #4
Grow together: Co‑Creation mentoring for bold women and new business ideas
- Designs a Mentoring Guide and trains mentors across partner countries.
- Implements a six‑month mentoring semester where triple teams (1 mentor + 2 mentees) co‑create at least 12 business plans and present them at a Pitch Party.
VoWoCo combines research, online learning, mentoring and policy recommendation to create real, long‑term change for women entrepreneurs and professionals. The project is structured into four main Work Packages (WPs) that build on each other.
Staying on track together: clear, coordinated support for women entrepreneurs
What this work package does
This work package makes sure the whole project runs smoothly and stays relevant for women entrepreneurs. The project team coordinates timelines, meetings and responsibilities so that trainings, research and mentoring happen on time and in a logical order.
How feedback will be used
Feedback from participants and partners is at the centre of the project. After key activities (trainings, mentoring, online sessions), participants can share what was useful, what was missing and what could be improved. Partner organizations review this feedback together and quickly adjust materials, formats or topics so that future sessions are more targeted and practical.
What partners will actually deliver
From a user point of view, this means you will get access to ready-to-use resources. A research-based overview of the situation of women entrepreneurs, plus a skill matrix that helps identify what skills are most needed. Training modules and an online platform to support upskilling and reskilling in areas like business development, finance or digital skills. A practical Mentoring Guide, a training programme for mentors and online mentoring sessions connecting mentors and mentees across partner countries.
Why this matters for you
All these management and quality processes are there to make the experience better for you. Activities are regularly checked to ensure they are useful, easy to understand and relevant to real-life business challenges faced by women entrepreneurs.
What you can expect as a participant
As a woman entrepreneur, mentor or stakeholder, you can expect:
- Clear information about upcoming trainings, mentoring opportunities and events, and how to join them.
- Opportunities to share your opinion through short surveys or informal feedback, knowing that your input directly shapes the next steps.
- Access to resources and support that are continuously improved, based on the experience and voices of women entrepreneurs like you.
Listening first: understanding women entrepreneurs’ real skills and needs.
This work package helps understand what women entrepreneurs really need so that the next steps of the project can offer the right kind of training and mentoring. It focuses on listening to women, analysing their skills and challenges, and building a strong foundation for meaningful support.
What this work package does
WP2 looks at the current situation of women entrepreneurs in different sectors and countries, using real experiences and data. The aim is to clearly see where the main skill gaps are and what kind of learning and mentoring would make the biggest difference.
How we collect insights
To understand needs in depth, partner organisations organise focus groups with women entrepreneurs in each country:
- In these small group discussions, participants talk about their business skills, daily challenges, and experience with mentoring in a safe, structured environment.
- The conversations are held in the local language, then turned into English summaries and datasets so that results can be compared across all partner countries.
From conversations to a skills map
All focus group results are analysed to identify common patterns and differences between sectors and cultures:
- Based on this, a skill matrix is created: a clear map of the key skills women entrepreneurs need for starting, running and growing a business, aligned with labour market trends.
- Stakeholders such as business organisations, NGOs and ecosystem actors are invited to react to and validate this skills map so that it is practical and usable in real life.
Why this matters for training and mentoring
The findings from WP2 guide the design of future trainings and online learning tools in the project:
- By knowing exactly which skills are missing or need strengthening, partners can build targeted upskilling and reskilling modules instead of generic trainings.
- The cross-cultural analysis ensures that offers are relevant in each country, while still addressing shared challenges faced by women entrepreneurs across Europe.
Building a mentor–mentee community
WP2 also prepares the ground for the mentoring programme.
- In each country, at least 10 mentors and 20 mentees are identified and invited to join a shared pool of motivated entrepreneurs and experts.
- A user-friendly internal database is created to help match mentors and mentees based on their skills, sector and needs, supporting effective and long‑lasting mentoring relationships.
This work package is designed to make your entrepreneurial journey clearer, more confident and better supported. It helps you understand where you are now, what skills you may want to strengthen, and how mentoring and training can support your next steps.
Why this matters for you
- You get a clear picture of your strengths and gaps, so you can focus your time and energy on the skills that really move your business forward.
- Trainings and learning materials will be built around real needs identified by women like you, not around generic “one-size-fits-all” topics.
- You gain access to mentors who understand your sector and challenges, offering personalised guidance, encouragement and networks that are often hard to access alone.
- Cross-country insights show you that you are not alone in your challenges and help bring in examples and solutions that have worked for other women entrepreneurs.
- Your feedback actively shapes the programme, so the more you share your experience, the more relevant and practical the support becomes for you and others.
Learn Your Way: Flexible Online Upskilling and Reskilling for Your Business
WP3 turns the findings from WP2 into concrete, easy-to-use online trainings and a learning platform that support your real business needs as a woman entrepreneur. It focuses on short, practical modules and a user-friendly Moodle space where you can learn, practise and connect at your own pace.
What this work package does
WP3 uses the skill gaps and priorities identified in WP2 to design upskilling and reskilling modules that match what women entrepreneurs actually need in today’s market. The content is shaped together with stakeholders such as companies, SMEs and NGOs, so that what you learn is relevant for current and future business opportunities.
What you will find in the modules
The training is organised into two main modules: one for upskilling and one for reskilling.
- Upskilling modules help you deepen and update skills you already use in your business (for example, improving time management with new digital tools or learning better marketing practices).
- Reskilling modules help you build entirely new competences if you want to change direction, add a new service, or rethink your career path as an entrepreneur (for example, learning new digital or AI-related skills).
Each module is broken down into short learning blocks that may include videos, presentations, interactive activities, quizzes and small assignments you can immediately apply in your work. All materials are created in English and translated into four languages (Hungarian, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish) to make them more inclusive and accessible.
How the online platform supports you
All modules are hosted on a dedicated Moodle online learning platform.
- You can register, access the content anytime and from anywhere, and follow your own pace without needing to attend in‑person classes.
- The platform can also host interactive elements and the internal mentor–mentee database, making it easier to link what you learn with the support you receive from mentors.
The platform is first developed and tested in English, then mirrored in the partner universities’ own Moodle systems in their languages, so entrepreneurs in each country can learn in a familiar environment.
How quality is checked
Before anything goes live, the training modules and activities are tested by project partners and selected mentors and mentees from WP2.
- Test users share feedback on clarity, relevance, workload and user-friendliness of both the materials and the platform.
- This feedback is used to refine the modules, improve navigation and ensure the Moodle environment is as intuitive and practical as possible, resulting in a dedicated testing report and a quality assurance report for WP3.
Why this matters for you
- You get focused learning paths built from real data on women entrepreneurs’ needs.
- You can strengthen existing skills or build new ones through short, flexible online modules that fit around your business and personal life.
- You benefit from a multilingual platform that makes it easier to learn in the language you are most comfortable with, while still connecting to an international community.
- Because materials are co‑created, tested and adjusted with input from entrepreneurs and mentors, what you see on the platform is more likely to feel practical, realistic and directly useful in your own business journey.
Grow together: co‑creation mentoring for bold women and new business ideas
WP4 turns training and skills from the previous work packages into real‑life mentoring support, helping women design and grow concrete business ideas together. It focuses on co‑creation, collaboration and confidence‑building so that you do not have to develop your business plans alone.
What this work package does
WP4 creates a structured mentoring programme where one experienced mentor works with two women entrepreneurs or managers for six months as a small “co‑creation team”. The goal is that each team develops a solid business plan for an innovative product or service that can strengthen or relaunch their business.
How the mentoring works
The mentoring programme follows a clear framework so that everyone knows what to expect.
- A Mentoring Guide explains how mentors are selected, how sessions are organised and how co‑creation between mentees is supported, with practical tools and tips in English and four other languages.
- Mentors first complete an online training programme to prepare for the role, covering topics such as effective communication, inclusive leadership and how to guide co‑creation between two mentees from different backgrounds.
Your journey as a mentee
If you join as a mentee, you become part of a small, focused team.
- Over one mentoring semester, 12 mentors support 24 mentees to shape at least 12 business plans, with regular online and in‑person sessions and a final Pitch Party for selected teams.
- You work on both your entrepreneurial and leadership skills, applying what you learned from the online modules (WP3) directly to your own business idea with your mentor’s guidance.
Why co‑creation is at the centre
Each mentoring team brings together women from different sectors, experiences and backgrounds.
- This mix is designed to spark innovation, new perspectives and creative solutions that are harder to find when working alone.
- Co‑creating a business plan with another woman entrepreneur helps you test ideas, share networks and build confidence in your decisions.
How quality and impact are ensured
Throughout WP4, feedback and evaluation are collected from mentors, mentees and external stakeholders.
- Surveys, self‑assessments and mentor evaluations help track how your skills, confidence and leadership capacities develop over time.
- A final quality and evaluation report, together with policy recommendations on upskilling and reskilling women entrepreneurs, helps improve future programmes and strengthen institutional support for women’s entrepreneurship.
Why this matters for you
WP4 matters because it turns your learning into concrete progress, with a mentor and a peer by your side instead of facing everything alone. Over six months, you work in a small, trusted team to co‑create a real business plan, build confidence, and grow your leadership skills in a structured, supportive environment.
