The CLIMB Mentorship Programme is a structured, six-month initiative designed to support entrepreneurs and start-ups in the digital creative industries in growing and scaling their businesses. Through tailored mentorship, participants gain access to expert guidance, peer learning, and practical tools to help achieve their business goals.
This 6 Month programme includes:
The combination of matched, floating and peer-to-peer group mentorship will allow participants to explore diverse perspectives, address specific business challenges in real time, strengthen their professional networks, and develop the confidence and strategic insight needed to scale sustainably.
By the end of the programme, participants will:
Mentorship is provided by experienced business mentors and creative industry experts, matched to participants based on their business needs and goals. Participants will select their mentors after the first Mentorship Mixer event, which takes place at CREW at the beginning of the mentorship programme. Mentors bring expertise across areas such as creative entrepreneurship, business strategy, marketing, finance, leadership, and scaling operations. Peer-to-peer group mentorship sessions sessions are facilitated by CREW to ensure focused and valuable exchange.
Shirley Halvey is the founder of Halvey & Associates, where she partners with business owners to identify growth barriers and implement practical, lasting solutions. She has 20 years experience in senior management working with Multi-National and SME companies. Her mission is to empower businesses to reach their full potential through clarity, efficiency, and strategic action.
Katelyn brings 15 years of global client-facing experience, including 8 years leading teams in a multinational organisation.
She combines her advanced academic background in Work and Organisational Behaviour
with hands-on leadership experience to help clients build high-performing leaders and teams. Katelyn is an expert in coaching, facilitation, and delivering tailored leadership interventions. She has led large-scale global customer service operations and expanded B2B sales divisions across Europe giving her an
understanding of practical challenges faced in complex organisations.
At OMT Global, Katelyn collaborates with diverse industries to design and
implement solutions that enable sustainable leadership excellence.
Alan O’Rourke has spent 20+ years on both sides of the founder journey, building and selling his own businesses, then helping other founders do the same.
He founded three companies. Toddle, a bootstrapped SaaS platform, grew to 30,000 users across 12 countries before an exit. Before that, he ran Spoiltchild, one of Ireland’s leading digital design and marketing agencies and nominated for a BAFTA award.
Outside business, Alan is an award-winning illustrator, artist and children’s book author, and holds a postgraduate diploma in Digital Fabrication and Making from NCAD.
Alan now runs Wilson & Keys, working with startups and scale-ups on go-to-market strategy and growth. He has mentored founders at Portershed Galway with Dogpatch Labs, has designed business development programmes and workshops for Visual Artists Ireland and the Design & Crafts Council of Ireland, and is a board director of Children’s Books Ireland. He has written a few books on how early-stage companies find and keep customers.
Keith Lawler is a creative director and sonic branding specialist who helps make brands memorable through distinctive sound and advertising.
Across an 18-year international career, Keith has worked with agencies including VML, Saatchi & Saatchi and TBWA Worldwide, creating work for brands such as Heineken, Google, Vodafone, Adidas, An Post, PlayStation, Nissan and The National Lottery.
Today, he runs two independent creative businesses. LAUDHAUS is a specialist sonic branding studio, using strategy, music and sound to build distinctive audio identities for brands. Keith Lawler & Co works across advertising, brand and culture, bringing together bespoke creative teams around each project.
His work has been recognised at Cannes Lions, the New York Clios, D&AD, Eurobest, the Effies, International Sound Awards and the Transform Awards, alongside more than 24 ICAD Awards and six Sharks.
A former touring musician as well as a creative director, Keith’s work sits naturally between music, ideas and commercial creativity.
Cróna Esler is the Owner and Managing Director of Cróna Esler PR & Communications – a bespoke public relations and communications firm, offering a broad range of specialised and client-specific services. Cróna works with clients across diverse sectors to develop compelling messaging, build awareness and credibility, protect reputation, foster trust, and shape perception both internally and externally.
Cróna has spent more than 20 years working across journalism, public relations and communications. She holds a BA (Hons) in English and Sociology from Maynooth University and an MA (Hons) in Journalism from Dublin Institute of Technology. She is also a published author (Unless By Invitation – Crimes That Shocked Ireland, Blackwater Press, October 2014).
Cróna combines newsroom experience with strategic advisory work, supporting clients as they shape their message, protect their reputation, and tell their story in a way that resonates. She is also a mentor with the Local Enterprise Office (LEO) in Galway.
Recently featured on the Irish Independent’s 30 under 30 list – Roscommon native Peter Kilmartin is a multi-award-winning commercial producer and documentary filmmaker. In 2017, he founded Spicy Dog Media, and has since successfully produced hundreds of video campaigns for brands, agencies, and public bodies—including work for notable brands like Amazon Web Services, Mitsubishi Electric Ireland, Sennheiser, and Rockshore. In 2025, Peter launched CHASER, a new creative commercial company working with an international roster of directors. Recent clients include Netflix, Monzo Bank, Tesco and Bus Éireann.
Peter’s work spans commercial, documentary, and large-scale TV campaigns. His films have screened at top festivals including Raindance, DOC NYC, Toronto, Galway, Cork, and the IFI Doc Festival. Most recently, Peter was a part of 6 teams from all over the globe selected for the prestigious Netflix Documentary Talent Academy Fund.
Sarah Flynn is an experienced business development expert and former self-employed professional, currently Head of Business Development (New Services) for Fenero Tax & Accounting. With a background in business growth, client relationships, and commercial strategy, Sarah combines practical entrepreneurial experience with expertise in tax, finance, correct legal structures, and compliance. Passionate about empowering founders and freelancers, she has facilitated trainings and workshops in many corporate and coaching environments, serves as a mentor with the Open Doors Initiative, is a LIFT facilitator and has first hand experience in the start-up ecosystem as a past participant in Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE). For the CLIMB cohort, Sarah offers practical, grounded mentorship spanning commercial strategy, tools for building strong financial and compliance foundations, client acquisition tactics and approaches to help early-stage digital and creative businesses scale securely.
Karen Pappin is an expert brand strategist and storyteller, and is the founder of point zero, a brand strategy and visual storytelling studio based in Kinvara, Co. Galway. Her belief is a simple one: every business already has the story it needs. Most are just too close to it, or too busy running things, to tell it well. That is where she comes in.
She has spent 26 years in the creative industries, working across graphic design, branding, print production and visual communications for everyone from sole traders to national brands, including 13 years with Brown Thomas, building and evolving the brand behind the shop floor. She began her career in design and print, trading for years as Kaz Productions, before rebranding her practice as point zero in 2020, a deliberate return to first principles that gave the studio its name. She holds an MA in Interdisciplinary Design Practice from TUS (LSAD)
William has more than 20 years’ experience in management consultancy working with SME businesses with a keen focus on Turnaround, Systems Implementation, Sustainability, Innovation, Lean and Costing in particular.
William has advised businesses across a wide range of sectors including finance, engineering, manufacturing and professional services. His professional credentials include Fellowship of Chartered Accountants Ireland and the Chartered Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, a distinction in International Financial Reporting Standards, and a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Business & Financial Standards
The cost to participant is €330. The programme is being offered to the SME at 20% of the market rate (the full programme is valued at €1650) with the remaining 80% supported by Enterprise Ireland Smart Region scheme. Payment is due in full before the programme commences. In order to avail of this discounted rate, all applicants are asked to confirm that they have the appropriate De Minimis balance to accept the support.
The programme is aimed at entrepreneurs, start ups and SMEs who:
For queries regarding eligibility, contact Stephanie Ford, Programme Associate: Stephanie.ford@crewdigital.ie
The closing date for applications is Thursday 12 November.
