The Importance of Mentoring
A mentor is invaluable in getting you to the next level in your career and enhancing your prospects of success. Building a strong relationship with a mentor can pay huge dividends in the long run, as your mentors can play a key role in your network, connecting you to others and helping you to achieve your short and long term goals.
The Leaders of Tech mentorship initiative has been designed to give future tech leaders access to the best minds in technology today and to create an awareness of the power mentorship can have on your career and the careers of others in your organisation and community.
“Education is our overriding theme and we believe we have designed a mentorship initiative that is going to be the first step in creating awareness and exciting opportunities for many people, helping them forge a successful career in technology” – James Bowles, Co Founder Leaders of Tech
What is the feedback from our first mentorship initiative?
"I would highly recommend the Leaders of Tech mentorship initiative. I applied to take part as I wanted to learn from someone with experience in the industry and saw it as a great opportunity to expand my network. My mentor had C-level experience at a global scale up and led it through an IPO. She provided valuable insight into her career path and helped me to apply these to my own journey. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and we’ve agreed to continue working together beyond the duration of the programme." – Brian Colivet, Mentee
“Mentorship is really key in anyone’s career and having people you trust to help you navigate some of the key parts of your career can make a huge difference. Often we underestimate our ability to mentor people however if you have already created a path of knowledge there is most certainly someone out there who can benefit from that knowledge. The more we play mentorship forward the more we help each other grow and learn. I always encourage people to think about how they can apply mentorship day to day in their roles in both a formal and informal way.” – Olivia Leonard, Mentor
"I was delighted to be asked to help out with the Leaders of Tech mentoring program. My entire career was founded on the basis of mentors - whether formal or not - providing insight and helping to open doors along the way. I've always felt that it's incredibly important to help the next generation rise up and, no matter who I'm speaking with or what level of experience they have, always take something valuable away from the interaction myself.
The team at Mason Alexander did a great job in lining up the mentoring pairings. I came away from the experience with a new appreciation for some of the learnings I was able to share, as well as greatly expanding my own network through follow up conversations. I would recommend this program to anyone who wants to broaden their thinking or has something to share!" – Heather Morris, Mentor
"I want to applaud you and MA for the mentorship programme, it is a really fantastic initiative which I really enjoyed being part of.
I was linked in with John Riordan, Director of Support in Shopify, who is a truly fantastic leader and mentor. We met on two occasions over Zoom and went over questions I had pre prepared.
I had done my homework on his background so I tailored the questions to cover items in his career history that I too have faced, or feel I may face in the future.
We covered some difficult topics such as sexism and glass ceilings, as well as items that many would shy away from. I found John's candour refreshing and really helpful in the format of mentorship we had lined up.
I gave a good overview of my career, challenges, goals and some situations I had experienced in the workplace to explain some of the questions I had provided.
John, while answering the questions, also got me thinking and digging a little deeper , instead of just giving an answer and moving on to the next item.
After completing the mentorship I joined VMware in a role that was quite different to where I had expected my career to go, but working with John gave me the confidence and reassurance that taking a slightly different path was the right move for me." – Bernadette McDonnell, Mentee
How do I apply?
The initiative is aimed at people who are at a stage in their career where they are in a position to bring through the next wave of technology talent, but have not yet had the advantage of a strong mentor or mentorship program. We are particularly interested in people who are at manager or head of level as the sessions will give them access to senior executives. To apply please click the relevant link below. Or for further information check out our Mentorship Page.
