ATHENAPowerLink® Nashville (APL), a program that selects a female business owner each year and pairs her with with a volunteer advisory committee for twelve months of ongoing mentorship, is currently accepting applications through March 1, 2014.

Qualifications for this program for Middle Tennessee businesses include being at least 51 percent owned and managed by a woman or women, in operation a minimum of two years, having a minimum of two full-time employees (including owners), as well as having revenues of at least $250,000 for a retail or manufacturing business or at least $100,000 for service business.

Applicants must have clearly defined company objectives and goals, an up-to-date business plan, a vision for how APL will help, the ability to read and understand financial reports of the business and a willingness to share information about the business, as well as take advice from outsiders. Those applicants under consideration will go through a series of interviews and site visits before the final candidate is selected and voted upon by the governing body.

Once the candidate is chosen, the experts will be uniquely selected for her advisory panel by the governing body in order to meet the needs of her goals. Over the course of the year, they will meet regularly to analyze the factors necessary for the candidate’s company to grow and then recommends actions to get meet those goals.

The program, which began in Pennsylvania, has been helping women-owned businesses grow to the next level since 1999. Launched in Nashville in 2007, the program has served six locally owned businesses so far.

Interested female business owners may visit the website at www.aplnashville.org to fill out the online application form and submit them to the governing body no later than March 1, 2014.