For Sola Oluwole, supporting women entrepreneurs has been a career-long commitment. Today, as co-founder of 3G Action Consulting, she is putting that commitment into practice by helping entrepreneurs turn good businesses into businesses that are ready to grow, access funding and pursue new opportunities.
Founded in 2020 by Sola and her partner, Tom Oluwole, 3G Action Consulting provides business and management consulting, grant advisory services and programs including Launch with Confidence and Fundable CEO. The firm helps founders strengthen their business models, understand their numbers, build the systems they need to grow and prepare for their next source of capital.
“I know firsthand that entrepreneurship takes courage, clarity and a willingness to keep learning.”
Turning experience into action
Before launching 3G Action Consulting, Sola spent several years with the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), working to address and reduce the funding barriers faced by women entrepreneurs.
That experience gave her a close-up view of the challenges women business owners encounter when they are seeking capital and planning for growth. It also showed her an opportunity to support entrepreneurs more directly — particularly at the moments when they are making decisions about pricing, cash flow, growth and their next source of financing.
Building a women-owned business of her own has given Sola another perspective: the opportunity to put into practice what she spent much of her career advocating for.
“Being on both sides of the table has been incredibly valuable,” You see the business differently when you are the one making the decisions, managing the risks and building the systems.”
Despite progress, Sola continues to see three recurring barriers for women entrepreneurs.
The first is the relationship many women have with capital. Women entrepreneurs can be cautious about taking on debt, sometimes borrowing less than they need — or not borrowing at all — and then prioritizing paying it back as quickly as possible.
Sola believes capital can be viewed differently: not simply as a last resort, but as a tool that can help a business invest, grow and pursue opportunities.
The second is subtle bias in funding conversations. Rather than having the opportunity to focus on the market opportunity and their ability to execute, women entrepreneurs may find themselves spending more time addressing potential risks.
Risk deserves careful attention, Sola notes, but so does potential.
The third barrier is access to relationships.
Founders who already have relationships with funders and corporate buyers can have an advantage when it comes to identifying opportunities, understanding requirements and getting into the right conversations. For entrepreneurs who do not have access to those networks, the disadvantage can begin before the conversation even starts.
“This is one area where WBE Canada is doing important work, building that network and breaking down the walls between institutions, corporate buyers, and women entrepreneurs.”
For women entrepreneurs looking to pursue corporate contracts, Sola’s advice is practical: understand how buyers actually buy.
An opportunity can be missed simply because a business has not registered on the right supplier portal or heard about an opportunity too late. Entrepreneurs should also be realistic about their capacity to deliver and start the necessary conversations before submitting a bid — not after winning the contract.
And perhaps most importantly, Sola encourages women entrepreneurs to be clear about the value they bring.
“Don’t count yourself out before the buyer does.”
A founder’s lived experience, perspective and networks can all be differentiators. Smaller contracts can help businesses establish a track record and demonstrate their capabilities. When an opportunity is too large for one business to pursue independently, teaming up with other women-owned businesses can create a path forward.
Sola also encourages entrepreneurs to explore certifications and supplier inclusion programs that help buyers identify women-owned suppliers.
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Earlier in 2026, Sola and Tom certified 3G Action Consulting with WBE Canada.
For Sola, certification has opened the door to organizations that are intentionally looking for women-owned suppliers — and to conversations and relationships they might not otherwise have had.
“We still have to show the value of our work, and deliver well, but getting in the room matters.”
WBE Canada’s Certification process also had an unexpected benefit: it challenged 3G to strengthen its own documentation, systems and capacity.
That experience has given the team an even more practical understanding of what it takes to prepare for larger procurement opportunities. When 3G advises women entrepreneurs on becoming procurement-ready, they can now draw on their own experience as a certified business.
Perhaps the biggest difference, however, is what Sola has learned from moving from the funding side of the table to working alongside business owners day to day.
“In a funding meeting, entrepreneurs naturally put their best foot forward,” she explains. “Now, I get to see the work behind the presentation.”
A founder may know their craft inside and out, but building a business around that expertise requires a different set of skills. That is where 3G Action Consulting comes in.
For Sola and the 3G team, one of the most rewarding moments is seeing a woman entrepreneur become more confident in her numbers — and in the value she brings to the conversation.
Sola has spent years advocating for women entrepreneurs, from both sides of the table: first as someone working within the funding ecosystem and now as a founder herself.
Women make up about half of Canada's population, yet fewer than one in five small and medium-sized businesses are majority women-owned. At the same time, women-owned businesses generate more than $90 billion in annual revenue and employ close to one million people.
For Sola, these numbers point to the opportunity that exists when women entrepreneurs have a fair chance to compete for larger contracts and access the capital they need to grow.
“When corporations and public-sector organizations intentionally include women-owned businesses in their supply chains, they give capable suppliers a chance to compete and gain from the value they bring. The talent is there. Let’s make sure it has a seat at the table.”
Building a firm as the pandemic took hold took faith, grit and a willingness to adapt quickly. Sola and Tom didn’t just survive the uncertainty during that time, they emerged stronger and clearer about who they serve. Today, 3G Action is proudly partnering with entrepreneurship hubs, working one-on-one with their clients and serving international and multinational clients.
This summer Sola received an award for Financial Innovation from the Canada Legacy Honours and she is proud to be a partner of the 2026 Capital Elle Business Impact Award presented by The Elleiance Network. But one of the most meaningful moments has been as a mentor for young entrepreneurs between the ages of 15 and 29 through the Ontario government’s Summer Company program. Helping shape the next generation of entrepreneurs is impact that keeps giving long after the summer ends.
Sola’s vision for 3G Action Consulting extends beyond helping individual businesses become funding- and procurement-ready. In the short term, the focus is on scaling their core service lines across management consulting, business consulting, and leadership coaching. The goal: helping 100 women entrepreneurs access funding by 2028
Over the long term Sola wants the firm to become a premier global advisory partner that bridges institutional strategy with entrepreneurs’ access to capital. She also hopes to contribute to shaping policies and programs that make funding easier to reach and help direct more capital toward women founders.
Ultimately, however, the mission remains straightforward.
“Whether we are working with large organizations or a solo founder, the goal is the same: taking people from ideas to action to results.”
— Sola Oluwole, 3G Action Consulting
