Volunteer your expertise
Capacity offers a range of volunteer opportunities to fit your preferences, talents and availability.
Since 2019, Capacity is offering two main entrepreneurship programmes, and we are looking forward to welcoming your volunteer support and expertise. In return, you will receive a wealth of experiences ranging from targeted training on how to mentor/coach a person with refugee or migrant background as well as access to our warm community of radically diverse changemakers and ideas.
Here are your options:
Mentors or PALs (Personal Activator of Leadership)
Support individuals undertaking entrepreneurship or employment activities! Guide talented people from around the world as they negotiate the legal aspects of setting up a company; help them to make life-choices such as whether to undertake further education/professional qualifications; and ensure that important documents such as project proposals, CVs and cover letters, etc. are well-written and likely to succeed.
Workshop Trainers
Are you an expert in a given business topic? We are constantly looking for trainers on the fields marketing, goal-setting, networking, business model development, financial and legal advice and more. For just a few hours of work, supported by the Capacity team, these workshops provide bilingual practical support and training to ensure that our participants have the tools they need to run a successful business or social project.
Talent Coach
You offer one-on-one coaching to one participant of the ACCESS Programmes (Labor Market Integration). By sharing your knowledge, experience and familiarity with the local labor market you can enable this person to navigate the Swiss job market better and develop effective strategies to find employment that matches their qualifications.
Network Ally
You meet several participants of the Access Fast Track (Labor Market Integration) for informational interviews. By sharing the details of your own career, your experience in the Swiss job market, and your area of expertise, you will help participants gain valuable insights into the job market and support their job search process. This volunteer opportunity is suitable for professionals with slightly less availability.
Other Expertise
Our graduates need ongoing business support.
Sharing thoughts on the challenges and opportunities in Switzerland. We are looking to build a community of experts who we can turn to when former and current participants and others ask us for support with specific topics.
Other voluntary opportunities at Capacity
- Event Planning
- Translation
- Social Media Management
- Fundraising
- Public Advocacy
- Admin Work
- Volunteer Management
- Production of a Video about Capacity
- Research
How can I join as a mentor or coach?
Our mentors and coaches are volunteers. We ask our mentors and coaches to fill out this mentor application form and send any questions to engage@capacityzurich.ch
Become a mentor!
– Your time commitment as a mentor is a minimum of 4 hours per month for a total duration of 2 months. However, the more time you dedicate to your mentee, the more your mentee will progress
– Previous knowledge mentoring in intercultural settings is desired but not mandatory. You can learn these skills through our comprehensive train the mentors, coaches and trainers training session
– Interest in the Swiss entrepreneurship and startup ecosystem is key. It helps if you’ve been an entrepreneur yourself, but it is not necessary
– You speak English or German at a B2-C1 level
– You have an open mind and heart, and you will do everything you can to support your respective mentee
What can a mentor do for an entrepreneur?
At Capacity, we focus on supporting individuals to achieve their full personal and profession potential through entrepreneurship. Through the start-up programme, we provide each participant with a mentor who will help them to understand the basic concepts around Lean Start-Up Methods.
Our mentors are individuals with experience in Swiss businesses or start-ups contexts, often both in Switzerland and internationally, and with local networks that they will use to support their mentees.
Typically, a mentor will support a mentee on the following fronts:
- Ideation: mentors will support mentees to shape your idea into a realistic business model
- Administrative: mentors may help mentees understand forms (especially if mentee does not speak German and they do)
- Pitch: mentors typically support their mentees by co-developing a pitch and identify methods to approach potential partners and funders
- Resource allocation: A mentor may support a mentee in finding the necessary resources to test and launch the start-up idea
- Network: A mentor can help a mentee by building connections and a network within Zurich and beyond
- Learn from their mentee: Many of our mentors state that they also learn a lot from their mentees. Mentors will receive a comprehensive training on how to benefit and learn from their mentee’s wealth of experiences
A mentor will NOT:
- Become a business partner unless both parties are happy with this arrangement
- Fund or otherwise financially support their mentee’s project
- Necessarily be an expert in the mentee’s exact same field. Mentees are expected to bring specialist knowledge for their respective fields.
- Necessarily support their mentee after the end of the Programme
Feel like it is something for you? Apply NOW!
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