Entrepreneurs' Programme – Strengthening Business Initiative

This program seeks to support businesses in fire-affected communities to rebuild, transform and adapt following the bushfire crisis. It forms part of the Entrepreneurs' Programme, which provide access to tailored advice and networks to help businesses solve problems, rather than focusing on financial assistance.

The objectives of the program are to:
- Work with other government and non-government agencies to provide a complementary, immediate and meaningful service to support bushfire affected SMEs, including determining who provides what help.
- Provide an holistic offering that assists SMEs to remain in business, build resilience and grow into the future.
- Avoid duplication of business support services across the regions and across business types.
- Utilise resources, contacts and intelligence to identify the types of assistance needed, and the specific regions or sectors that require targeted support - in a responsive and flexible way.
- Feed resources, contacts and intelligence back to the department and their companies to make sure that the new facilitators are exactly what the community needs.

There is no grant funding attached to this program, however, facilitators will work one-on-one with businesses to determine what support a business might access to assist it in its recovery.

21 new facilitators will be based in bushfire-affected regions across NSW, South Australia and Victoria. These regions will be determined in collaboration with the National Bushfire Recovery Agency and State governments.

The facilitators will provide tailored assistance to help Australian businesses recover from the effects of bushfire, rebuild their business, support their staff, and work with their customers, suppliers and their community. Businesses will also be helped to access any financial schemes available to them across Commonwealth, State and local governments.

Facilitators will provide business advisory services remotely via phone, skype, teleconference, email and videoconference, until such time as COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.

Eligible applicants include businesses that must:
- Be a bushfire affected SME, that is located in one of the Local Government Areas (LGAs) identified by the National Bushfire Recovery Agency.
- Have a current Australian business number (ABN), and engaged in carrying on the small business at the time of the bushfire in the defined disaster area.

Eligible assistance include:
- An initial business health check.
- Tailored advice and assistance to help the business through the recovery and rebuild phase.
- A detailed business Roadmap, providing a documented plan and strategies to achieve the immediate, medium and long-term goals of the business.
- Facilitation and connections to a range of services, funding, and expert advice.
- Strategies to grow their business and become more resilient against future economic instability or natural disaster.