Effect of Mentoring on the Growth of Selected Small Scale Businesses in Makurdi Metropolis, Benue State-Nigeria

Strategies for developing the capabilities of employees are important part of any organization's overall strategy and source of competitive advantage. This study investigated the effect of mentoring on the growth of selected small scale businesses in Makurdi Metropolis, Benue State. The study specifically examined the effect of career support, psychological support and knowledge transfer on the growth of selected small scale businesses in Makurdi Metropolis. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design and the population of the study was 152 (owners and employees) of small scale businesses within Makurdi Metropolis. A pilot study was carried out to measure validity and reliability of items on the questionnaire. Data collected from respondents through self-administered questionnaire were analysed using Mean, Standard Deviation and Regression Analysis. Formulated hypotheses were tested with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 23) software. The study found that career support has significant effect on the growth of small scale businesses (P.019; β=.349); psychological support has significant effect on the growth of small scale businesses (P.000; β=.734) and knowledge transfer has significant effect on the growth of small scale businesses (P.000; β=.516). It recommended amongst others that government should organize mentorship programmes for entrepreneurs and business men to enable them have knowledge about business mentoring and the importance of transferring knowledge to enhance viability and growth of their businesses.