The Blue Nile African Australian Business Masterclass Program is a heavily subsidised program designed for African Australian entrepreneurs and leaders of not-for-profit organisations.

The program has been developed by the University of Melbourne in collaboration with the African Australian community to respond to the specific challenges faced by African Australian entrepreneurs in the Australian business landscape.

Participants engage with entrepreneurs, world-class staff executives, managers and community leaders, who will share tools for growing businesses and developing economic opportunities for the community at large.

The program is hosted by the Melbourne Social Equity Institute and supported by the Scanlon Foundation.

Applications for the 2022 program closed on Friday 19 August.

All the Modules in the Blue Nile program were really insightful and rich in knowledge. I have also been able to broaden my network with fellow start-up entrepreneurs, business partners and friendly networks. After undertaking the program, I feel equipped to grow my business that culturally serves my community but also bring the wider Australian community on board in partnerships. It’s definitely a mini-MBA with practical industry expertise and a whole community that supports your entrepreneurial journey!

There have been several benefits of undertaking the Blue Nile program, including the content and knowledge shared from different lecturers and guest speakers, working together with other Blue Nilers and listening to different business experiences and finally breaking into small break-out rooms over Zoom to do exercises. It has made me rethink the whole idea of doing it all on my own and entertain the idea of bringing in others to join my business because accountability breeds success. I appreciate and really enjoyed the program

I joined the Blue Nile program because I was interested in developing my business skills and adding value to my work. What drew me to the program initially was the diverse range of professionals conducting the course who are highly successful in their respective fields and the opportunity to learn from them, and most importantly, who were African Australians. One of the main benefits of the program and the conversations that took place was improving my real-world experience through other people. The other students in the class were from various fields and I got the opportunity to learn from each of these people, and this enabled me to have a greater understanding for their different walks of life. One of the main takeaways that I was able to implement right away was in my pricing and improving my margins, which was something I picked up in one of the very first lessons. I could not speak highly enough of the overall program, and I hope that I can be involved in the program moving forward.

I heard about the Blue Nile Program through the Victorian Government’s African Community Action Plan. I was advised to have a look at the program and was fortunate enough to be accepted into it. The highlights for me were the Business Negotiation and the Sales and Marketing lessons, which I have applied to my own business. I found that the subject matter experts were highly skilled and readily willing to share this knowledge, which was really important. I also got to meet and network with a lot of other people of African background who run their own businesses and that has created a network for us to access in the future. If anyone wants to apply to this program, I would highly recommend the Blue Nile Masterclass Program.

The program opened our eyes and equipped us with skills and information which we were able to implement as we learnt it, and which we continue to use. I realised through the course, that we should not limit ourselves as African entrepreneurs. The program opened its doors to many successful entrepreneurs who we were able to learn from. I also connected well with my mentor, and I am extremely happy with the program.

This is the first year we are trialling an intensive format for the program. We would like to ensure equitable access to the program and are able to provide supports to those with caring responsibilities to participate in the program.

The program is delivered over 6 days, with a different subject area covered each day.

These sessions have been designed to strengthen the capacity of participants in the following areas:

• Business Strategy: Formulate effective growth-oriented business strategies
• Accounting and Finance: Develop sound financial management tools for your enterprises
• Marketing: Craft unique market value propositions
• Leadership and Social Impact: Develop your leadership skills and empower your community
• Managing People: Develop and lead effective workforces
• Australian Business Culture: Effectively negotiate deals and manage business relations in the Australian business context

Program Dates 2022

Monday 19 September
Tuesday 20 September
Wednesday 21 September
Thursday 22 September
Friday 23 September
Saturday 24 September

Location: Online and/or at the University of Melbourne, Parkville Campus

• 
  Haileluel Gebre-selassie

  Community Program Director

• 
  Ben Neville

  Academic Program Director

• 
  Samuelson Appau

  Program Coordinator

• 
  Precious Rametsana

  Program Administrator

Blue Nile Program Participants 2022

Blue Nile Program Participants 2020

If you have any questions or would like to learn more about the Blue Nile African Australian Business Masterclass Program please contact:

Dr Samuelson Appau
blue-nile@unimelb.edu.au
socialequity.unimelb.edu.au
+61 406 816 081