DMA Talent Mentoring Scheme

The 8^th round of the DMA Talent Mentoring event took place at DMA House last night which saw a cohort of 10 mentors and 10 mentees take to the floor in a speed-dating set up.

The night kicked off with a mini-mentor coaching session held by Emma Shelton-Smith. This gave mentors advice on what’s expected of them, how best to support their mentee as well as the opportunity for a bit of networking. There was a range of mentoring experience in the room with some having a few rounds under their belt, and others taking to the stage for the first time. Claire Wood, C&I Operations Director at Deloitte commented, 'It's a great opportunity for me to meet new people; to give something back to the marketing community and for me to learn too!'

The burning question of the session: what piece of advice would you give to your younger self? Some of the answers included:

• Learn to say no
• Get to know yourself and understand what you like
• Don’t be desperate to progress

After some nostalgic reflection and flashbacks to questionable fashion choices, the mentees then arrived and the speed matching began.

Each pair had 10 minutes together before moving onto the next. Ahead of the evening, everyone was asked to fill in a profile that gave information on why they wanted to take part and what they hoped to achieve. Both sides were given access to each other’s profiles ahead of the evening to prep ahead of the evening as those 10 minutes really do fly by.

At the end of the session and before the networking began, everyone wrote their top 3 choices to be partnered with alongside a short explanation of why they felt they would work well together. The papers were submitted and then the mingling took full force; over some haribo and kettle chips no less.

Now, DMA Talent will work their magic in matching pairs up to begin their mentoring journey. Once matched, pairs are asked to commit to 3 months working together; they establish the frequency and type of contact they would like to have. DMA Talent are there to support along the way, and there is no obligation to continue the partnership past the 3 months.

If you’re interested in getting involved in our next round which will be taking place in spring 2019, you can apply to be a mentor here or be a mentee here.