Skip to main content

Original text


Powered by Google TranslateTranslate
Powered by Google TranslateTranslate
SCORE Volunteer Spotlight: Erik Shaw
>
December 19, 2022
Rating

The role of a small business owner is often a lonely one. "During a crisis, this feeling is amplified as your staff, customers, suppliers, and lenders all look to you for answers. Difficult decisions need to be made, often with imperfect information and in an uncertain context." The value of mentoring during a crisis has been emphasized in numerous business articles, including, The Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Insider Media Limited.

Facing the Challenge of the COVID Crisis

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, SCORE Lancaster-Lebanon has received a record number of new mentor requests from individuals seeking support with an existing business, or entrepreneurs beginning the process of establishing one. To meet this demand, we rely on the time and talents of the individuals in our community who are stepping forward to become certified SCORE mentors.

Meet New SCORE Mentor Erik Shaw

Erik Shaw attended Wentworth Institute of Technology, a university in Boston, MA, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in Electro-Mechanical Engineering. Upon graduation, Erik started his career with Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) in their Global Operations Leadership Development (GOLD) program. This program offered Erik the opportunity to work in the pharmaceutical, medical device, and consumer products industries.

Throughout his professional career with JNJ, Erik has worked in various functional areas of the supply chain, including research & development (R&D), manufacturing, quality, and project management. His current role at Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is to launch new products for the Consumer sector, such as the latest formulas of Listerine, Neosporin, Aveeno, Bengay, and a few other common household brands. As a SCORE mentor, this expertise in manufacturing and supply chain can support aspiring entrepreneurs looking to launch an innovative new product

Professional Development Contributes to Community Service

Erick pursues his career at Johnson & Johnson while participating in campaigns that give back to a global community.

"In addition to my day job, I have been volunteering to help grow JNJ's Africa Innovation Challenge. This arm of JNJ provides coaching and funding to entrepreneurs in Africa. We have helped start ten businesses in Africa to date."
    - Erik Shaw, SCORE certified mentor

As a result of his experience with the Africa Innovation Challenge, Erik was invited to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) D-Lab's annual Co-Design Summit. "Co-Design Summits bring together diverse actors to collaboratively prototype solutions to poverty-related challenges." Erik had the privilege of attending two Innovation Challenge Summits.

"During these summits, we traveled to rural communities in Morocco and Uganda. We coached entrepreneurs for a week on how to turn around their businesses. This program was a rewarding experience to interact face-to-face with international entrepreneurs and has helped mold my skills as a mentor."
     - Erik Shaw, SCORE certified mentor

Paying It Forward Locally

As a result of having the benefit of many great mentors in his professional career, Erik Shaw has naturally been drawn to the volunteer role that mentoring offers. He knows firsthand the impact a mentor can have on an individual and their future and hopes to share his own experiences and skills to give back to others. Chapter 16 is fortunate that Erik chose SCORE Lancaster-Lebanon as the vehicle for his volunteer efforts.

"SCORE is a nationally acclaimed network of volunteers and business mentors, and I was immediately drawn to this organization upon moving to Lancaster City. As a transplant to the area, I knew that I wanted to become more involved with the community and loved seeing the local support for small businesses. At the time, I had been coaching entrepreneurs in Africa for the past four years. This prompted me to reach out to SCORE Lancaster – Lebanon with a desire to lend my expertise to support the visions of local entrepreneurs."
      - Erik Shaw, SCORE certified mentor

 

With the help of dedicated new volunteers like Erik Shaw, SCORE Lancaster-Lebanon will continue to face the enormous challenges that the impact of the COVID crisis has had on the small business community.

"Erik is the embodiment of SCORE's future.  He is a millennial, recently moved to Lancaster, and employed full-time at Johnson and Johnson. Erik leads the Johnson and Johnson African Innovation Challenge, among other things. He has mentored several successful startups in Africa, primarily through virtual meetings.  He meshes the emotional intelligence to work with other cultures, with the process required for a startup to survive and scale."
     - Hugh MacMaster, SCORE certified mentor

Erik is eager to serve with co-mentoring opportunities. He is familiar with the following:

Individual Skills

  • Business Operations
  • Business Strategy & Planning
  • Manufacturing & Product Development
  • Supply Chain Management

Individual Expertise

  • Health Care & Social Assistance
  • Manufacturing & Industrial
  • Professional & Business Services

 

 

SHARE THIS ARTICLE
CONNECT
115 East King Street
}
Lancaster, PA 17602
(717) 397-3092

Copyright © 2024 SCORE Association, SCORE.org

Funded, in part, through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. All opinions, and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.

In partnership with
Jump back to top