Metier Peoples was delighted to partner with the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors – Women in Internal Audit Committee to host in partnership with Deloitte an evening session focused on mentoring and networking. We had the opportunity to hear from Sarah Morris, Head of Audit, Modulr, Arleen McGichen, Chief Audit Officer, Royal London and Marc McNulty, Director, Deloitte who shared their thoughts on mentoring, and the best advice they have received throughout their career.
Firstly, it is important to understand what is mentoring and how does it differ from coaching or sponsorship?
A mentor is defined as an experienced and trusted advisor. They listen, provide insight, and will share formal or informal career advice. Key topics that mentees often will discuss with a mentor include: specific work problems requiring an impartial opinion on a specific situation, a career move, how to approach a salary increase request, how to upskill capabilities or how to position yourself for a promotion. Throughout your career you may have more than one mentor at to help with different development points. In the session, our speakers were clear that you should not shy away from moving on from a particular mentoring relationship. A mentor will be happy to know they have helped you achieve your goals, and you are now at the next stage in your career.
Coaching in the workplace is continuous two-way feedback between the coach and the employee where there is a combined intention to focus on and develop areas for improvement of the employee’s performance, often this will be carried out by your line manager or a senior member in your team. Sponsorship differs again and can be a professional in any sector or organisation who is an advocate for you, they are your own personal cheerleader and will recommend you to others.
What to consider when looking for a mentor?
It is important to first decide exactly what you are looking to gain from a mentor and then think about who in your network, has those attributes or has gone through a similar experience you are looking for advice on. You cannot develop every capability at once, think logically about what will serve you best to work on and then pair that with individuals who may have gone through a similar experience or those who have a particularly strong skill set in that area.
Always remember the chemistry test. Sometimes you may have conversations with answers you won’t always like or potentially want to hear about yourself, so it is fundamental to have a solid professional relationship with your mentor. A mentor / mentee conversation is confidential, and it is important that your mentor feels they can be honest with you.
Some will question if they are at the right stage in their career for a mentor. There is no right stage, you can be in your first professional role or at Executive level – people work with mentors at all stages across their career. You can always develop and build on your skills no matter where you are in your career.
Finally, it is also important to think of mentors who will share opinions and not just facts. Whilst a mentor won’t solve all your problems, they can share their opinions and help you work through difficult scenarios to find positive outcomes.
Where to find a mentor?
A common misconception is that you need to find a mentor who also works at your current workplace or even in your current team, however often it can be more beneficial to consider mentors outside of your organisation and even your industry, as they can offer a different perspective and insight on different operating models or ways of working. What’s more you may be looking for advice on professional relationships within your team.
Building your network will help tremendously. You can attend specific networking events for your profession or industry, partner with a recruiter who specialises in your sector and has a good understanding of the market or reach out to a professional body. A great example of this is the Chartered Institute for Internal Auditors, they offer mentor support and can help you to match up with a mentor.
Once you have decided on who you think may make a good mentor, don’t be afraid to reach out and ask the question. Most people will be flattered to be asked and if they don’t have the capacity to take on a mentee, often they will point you in the direction of someone who could also be beneficial to you or suggest a later time frame where they may be able to offer you support.
How to set up your mentor meetings for success
It is on you as a mentee to outline how you would like your mentor meetings to run. Always approach each meeting as you would a meeting at work. Set an agenda and make it clear what you are aiming to gain from the interaction. Without structure mentor relationships can drift apart and can become frustrating if there is not a clear expectation around what you are hoping to achieve.
Some people do opt for more of an informal approach or ad hoc relationship, however it is still best to structure these infrequent meetings to ensure you are coming away with the support, knowledge, hints and tips or strategies you were hoping for.
The best advice
We ended the discussion with Sarah, Arleen and Marc sharing the best pieces of advice they have received by their mentors throughout their careers:
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Be yourself and always revert to who you are. Especially when first starting a career, it is easy to make the mistake of thinking you need to act in a certain way to “get ahead” or even just to work in a professional or corporate environment but you don’t. It creates inauthentic relationships and you just won’t be able to keep it up forever. Be yourself, be authentic and build meaningful, productive relationships with stakeholders.
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You are good enough – never underestimate yourself. A lot of people do suffer from imposter syndrome, but you are in the position you are in because other people believe you have the skills and ability to successfully carry out the role or you have the capability to learn the role so believe in yourself. If you never suffer from imposter syndrome, it could be argued that you are not stretching yourself. Imposter Syndrome could be a good thing!
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Take a chance. Executives, entrepreneurs and those deemed to be “successful” professionally in many peoples eyes will always say you need to take a chance, if you don’t there is never going to be the opportunity for a big ticket win.
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Play your own field and don’t worry about anyone else. Too often we compare ourselves to our peers or people from our past. Focus on you, your goals and ambitions and do what makes you happy.
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What is for you won’t go by you – when it feels as though you missed out on the best opportunity out there, something else is always around the corner. Be positive, don’t dwell on the disappointment and try to build on the reasons why you may have missed out this time round.
Use challenges as a learning experience. A challenging role, whether it is technically challenging, working with challenging stakeholders or requires constant problem solving can be frustrating but it does allow you to develop your skill set far more than any role that you can do with your eyes closed.
To conclude, it doesn’t matter what stage you are at in your career a mentor can provide, honest, insightful advice and guidance to help you develop and reach your career goals. Remember to keep in mind what you are aiming to achieve from any session, make sure you structure your time and above all do not be afraid to reach out and ask the question!
Metier Peoples is a specialist finance search firm and solely focuses on the Scottish market. If you are looking to be matched up with a mentor and would like to arrange a call to discuss how we can help you, please get in touch – [email protected]
