Behind closed doors (BCD), a leading national membership for businesswomen and board-ready women, will this year expand its membership after receiving a $102,300 grant from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s Office for Women under the Women’s Leadership and Development Strategy (WLDS).

The Supporting Businesswomen to Success Scholarship provides opportunities for female managers aspiring to leadership roles to further expand their leadership, business and networking skills.

BCD will utilise the Australian Government funding to provide 14 full scholarships to female leaders in SA, WA, NSW and VIC to join a BCD membership for 12-months of professional development, networking and peer to peer mentoring to prepare them to accept greater professional challenges.

Scholarships will be offered to female executive not-for-profit and Indigenous leaders into BCD Executive memberships, female leaders into BCD Luminaries (managers), female business owners/entrepreneurs into BCD Entrepreneurs.

BCD Founder and Managing Director, Donny Walford, said the initiative will allow successful women seeking access to insights, knowledge, support and high level networks in their journey to Executive and Board positions to join the national community of businesswomen that the BCD membership provides.

“The WLDS priority of promoting and supporting greater representation of Australian women in leadership and decision making roles is the exact reason BCD was formed almost a decade ago.” Ms Walford said. “We have an enviable record of success with 57% of our Executive members having attained one or more Board Directorship positions, 56% of these women have also received promotions.”

The first of the scholarship recipients’ will be announced on April 27 in Perth when a scholarship is awarded to two businesswomen at Manager level aspiring to executive roles.  The recipients will be provided the opportunity to further their leadership and management skills through a yearlong membership to BCD Luminaries, valued at more than $5,500 each.

BCD Luminaries was created in response to an identified need for motivated businesswomen to have a professional sounding board and support network where they can discuss professional and personal issues, challenges and strategies in a totally confidential environment while, at the same time, encouraging each other to extend themselves to achieve and succeed in new environments.

Members meet for three hours, ten times a year, for peer to peer mentoring, professional development and networking with like-minded businesswomen. Outside of this further professional development, networking and mentorship opportunities are provided to members amongst the wider BCD community at a national level.

Scholarship applications and nominations will roll out across the country in the coming months with all 14 recipients placed into a memberships by August.

BCD has been providing scholarship opportunities for women to enter their memberships since 2012. To date BCD has offered 21 scholarships and will continue in 2017 to match the Australian Government funding.

For further details about BCD scholarship opportunities visit www.behindcloseddoors.com/scholarships

To apply for the Adelaide Luminaries Scholarship Now Open visit behindcloseddoors.com/bcd-luminaries-scholarships-adelaide/

To apply for the Adelaide Not For Profit Executive Scholarship Now Open visit behindcloseddoors.com/bcd-not-for-profit-scholarship-adelaide/

To find out how your business can offer your own successful Internal scholarships to your female leaders visit behindcloseddoors.com/internal-company-scholarships/

For further details of the Australian Government WLDS visit https://www.dpmc.gov.au/office-women/grants-and-funding