Frequently asked questions

Mentova is a curated expert network that connects startups, founders, and growing businesses with retired and senior professionals — for mentorship, advisory support, strategic guidance, consulting, and flexible expert engagement.

We also help experienced professionals — including retired executives, former operators, and senior specialists — find meaningful, paid opportunities to contribute to emerging businesses on their own terms: part-time, project-based, fractional, or longer-term advisory.

Mentova is not a job board, a generic freelancer marketplace, or an automated AI-matching platform. Every request and application goes through a human review process. We prioritise quality, fit, and genuine usefulness over volume and speed.

Mentova serves two distinct groups:

Businesses and founders — early-stage startups, growing SMEs, founders building their first or second venture, small teams that need experienced input without the cost of a full-time senior hire, and established businesses going through a significant transition or challenge.

Experienced professionals — retired executives, former operators, senior specialists, consultants, advisors, and domain experts who want to stay meaningfully active, contribute to new ventures, and be fairly compensated for their time and knowledge.

No. While Mentova was built with retired and semi-retired professionals in mind — particularly those who have stepped back from full-time roles but still have deep expertise to offer — we welcome senior professionals at any career stage who are genuinely experienced and looking for flexible, purposeful engagements.

The common thread is substantial, applied experience: people who have built, led, advised, or operated at a serious level and want to bring that experience to bear for growing businesses.

Mentova is designed to be useful across a wide range of business types and stages. You do not need to be a tech startup or a funded company to work with us.

Suitable requests typically come from: early-stage founders who need experienced guidance, small and mid-sized businesses facing strategic challenges, first-time entrepreneurs who lack access to senior advisors, teams navigating product, operations, or market decisions, and growing companies exploring fractional or part-time senior support without committing to a full-time hire.

If you have a genuine business challenge and believe experienced, practical guidance would help — Mentova is likely a good fit. If you are unsure, you can always reach out to contact@mentova.app to discuss before making a request.

Yes. Mentova supports flexible engagement models. You are not required to commit to a long-term arrangement. Options include:

• A single intro consultation to explore a specific problem or question
• A one-time strategic review or structured session
• A short project-based engagement with a defined scope and timeline
• Ongoing advisory support if the fit is right and both sides agree

The right model depends on your needs, the expert's availability, and the nature of the engagement. This is clarified during the matching and confirmation process.

The Mentova matching process follows a deliberate, human-reviewed sequence:

1. You submit a request — via the contact form or a direct inquiry, describing your business, the challenge you're facing, and the kind of expert input you need.
2. Mentova reviews your request — typically within 1 to 3 business days. We assess fit, clarify any details needed, and determine whether we have or can find a suitable match.
3. We shortlist and introduce — a relevant expert or a small shortlist of candidates is identified. A curated introduction is made, usually within 3 to 7 business days of a confirmed request, depending on scope.
4. You connect and confirm — an initial conversation happens between you and the expert. Scope, timeline, and terms are agreed directly.
5. Engagement begins — ongoing coordination, communication, and any support needs are handled with Mentova's assistance where relevant.

The process is curated, not automated. We do not use algorithm-only matching. Every introduction reflects a considered review.

Mentova aims to respond within the following timeframes:

• General inquiries: 1 to 2 business days
• Startup matching requests: initial review and response within 1 to 3 business days
• First expert introduction or shortlist: typically within 3 to 7 business days, depending on the scope and specificity of the request
• Expert applications: reviewed within 5 to 10 business days

More complex or specialised requests may take longer. Mentova will always communicate clearly if additional time is needed. Business days refer to Monday through Friday, excluding Indian public holidays.

Mentova is open to professionals who bring substantial, applied experience in their domain — and who are genuinely interested in contributing to growing businesses in a meaningful way.

This includes, but is not limited to: retired executives and operators, former founders, senior functional specialists (finance, operations, sales, marketing, HR, technology, product, legal, and others), experienced consultants and advisors, former corporate leaders who want a more flexible second chapter, and domain experts with deep knowledge in a specific industry or field.

There is no minimum age requirement and no requirement to be fully retired. What matters is the depth of your experience, the quality of your judgment, and your genuine interest in helping emerging businesses.

No. Experts on Mentova are independent professionals, not employees of Mentova. Mentova facilitates introductions and supports the coordination of engagements, but the working relationship — including terms, scope, and compensation where applicable — is established directly between the expert and the business.

Mentova does not employ, manage, or supervise experts as a staffing agency would. Our role is to identify the right fit, make a quality introduction, and support the engagement process.

Yes. There is no fee to apply as an expert on Mentova. Applications are reviewed manually and free of charge.

Submitting an application does not guarantee acceptance. Mentova reviews each application individually to assess fit, experience quality, and relevance to the kinds of businesses and requests we work with. You will hear back within 5 to 10 business days of submitting.

Both. Mentova publishes starting prices to give you a clear baseline:

• Intro Consultation: from ₹999
• Expert Matching Request: from ₹4,999
• Ongoing Advisory Support: from ₹14,999 per month

Final pricing may vary depending on the seniority of the expert, the scope and duration of the engagement, the complexity of the request, and the engagement model chosen. Any variation from the base price is clearly communicated and agreed in writing before you are asked to proceed. There are no hidden fees.

Mentova's refund and cancellation policy is designed to be fair and clear:

• Intro consultations can be cancelled or rescheduled with at least 24 hours' notice. Sessions that have been completed are non-refundable.
• Expert matching fees are non-refundable once active sourcing, review, or introduction work has begun. If you cancel before that work starts, a refund may be considered on a case-by-case basis.
• Ongoing advisory plans can be cancelled before the start of the next billing cycle.

All refund and cancellation requests should be sent to support@mentova.app. Mentova aims to review and respond to support requests within 2 business days. Full details are on the Refund & Cancellation Policy page.

You can reach Mentova through the following channels:

• contact@mentova.app — For business inquiries, partnership discussions, and general questions about Mentova.
• support@mentova.app — For customer support, help with an existing engagement, refund requests, and cancellations.
• Contact form — Available on the Contact page for structured inquiries from startups, experts, and partners.

Please note that noreply@mentova.app is used only for automated system notifications. Messages sent to that address are not monitored.

Mentova operates remotely from India. Business days are Monday through Friday, excluding Indian public holidays.