West Sussex business mentor wins national award double for outstanding impact on business

Entrepreneur Justine Upton received the Best Mentor Award for the impact she’s had on the businesses she has mentored and the Outstanding Contribution Award – a double in a set of very prestigious awards.

Justine launched and ran her own recruitment business for 25 years before exiting in 2021. Since then she has gained her introductory and Level 5 qualifications in Mentoring and Coaching and has set up her own mentoring and coaching business called Justine Upton Business Mentor and Coach to share her knowledge with entrepreneurs who are often at a crossroads with their company and need a helping hand to navigate their way forward. She joined the Help to Grow: Management course in 2023 and has already mentored eight business leaders on the course.

Her work was recognised earlier this month, at national awards where she was one of seven mentors rewarded for their contribution to UK growth.

Justine said: “As a mentor it’s all about other people and never about accolades for you. I genuinely get so much joy watching people and companies transform. Being nominated was a total surprise, let alone being shortlisted. When it was announced I had won both awards, I have to say I got a little emotional and it made me think I might just be ok at this, perhaps I'm right where I should be.”

Asked about her style of mentoring, Justine said: “I remember someone once saying a mentoring session with me was like being cocooned in a big warm duvet! But seriously, I have been a business owner, I know the value first hand of a good mentor. It is a lonely place running a company even if you have a co-director or a whole board. I do not judge, I listen, I am on their side. I think I look at things with fresh a perspective.

“I help navigate peer relationships, think creatively and specialise in high performing teams. I am usually able to see the misalignments, help join the dots and ultimately my job is to help my mentees realise their own potential, their employee's potential and their company's vision.”

Emma Jones, CBE, founder of small business support platform Enterprise Nation, said: “It’s brilliant and so important to see the outstanding contribution that dedicated mentors like Justine have on the economy, helping businesses to grow and thrive.

“Since the launch of the voluntary mentoring scheme, we’ve recruited thousands of experienced mentors who give up their time and energy to support the next generation of ambitious, growing businesses that go on the Help to Grow: Management course.

“The course and its mentors have become an important stepping stone to business success s playing a critical role by increasing resilience.”

The Help to Grow: Management course offers senior business leaders 50 hours of leadership and management training across 12 weeks, with the government covering 90% of the costs involved. They each receive one-to-one support from an experienced and rated business mentor. Training is delivered via a national network of over 50 business schools.

Each participant is matched with a voluntary business mentor via the online Help to Grow: Management Course platform. A consortium delivers the mentoring element of the course. Led by business support group Newable and including Enterprise Nation and the Association of Business Mentors, the consortium was appointed by the Government to develop a national network of business leaders and experts who will share their skills and experience with firms on the practical management training course.