The Mentorship Mantra: In conversation with the UNFOLD board

The UNFOLD mentorship programme is building the next generation of Corporate Affairs (CA) professionals to unlock the potential of purposeful business. Read on to explore the essence of mentorship with UNFOLD board members Anita van de Velde - Rayat (Founder and Managing Director, DeVelde Leading Talent), Simon Henzell-Thomas (he/his) (Global Director of Climate & Nature, IKEA) and Saskia Kapinga (Vice-President External Relations, Shell).?

What does mentorship mean to you?

Anita: When I look back at the beginning of my career in advertising in 1995, I was one of a handful of women from a minority background – born in England and culturally from an Indian background. The industry was very different from what it is today, and I wish there were more diverse role models who I could have learned from. Mentoring was not something which was available to me in those early years and my younger self would have welcomed input on how best to navigate and build relationships, manage politics, and develop soft skills which are highly influenced by your socialisation and how you have been bought up. I am a staunch proponent of mentorship – it’s a great way to build cross-generational expertise – both ways!

Simon: I’m really passionate about mentorship. In your busy working life, it’s not always that you feel truly looked after. Sure, good managers do it to some degree, but mentors can make you pause, step back from the day-to-day and feel genuinely heard and seen. And that enables you to flourish. I have a number of mentors and whenever we speak, I feel immediately replenished, connected and part of a community that cares.?

Saskia: Mentorship is about helping people to succeed. I feel responsible for supporting others, especially those who may not have the same opportunities or access to this sector. Think about refugees who are new to the country and face all kinds of barriers. Also think about people from minority groups – whether that is based on background, gender, physical or mental abilities, or (lack of) network and access to opportunities and jobs. No matter what career path they choose, helping them to blossom in their roles gives me lots of energy.

How do you ensure that you don’t end up erasing your mentee’s unique identity by (unintentionally) guiding them to conform to your path?

Anita: Mentoring is not supposed to do that at all! It’s about creating a trusted environment where the mentor, drawing from their experience, can offer insights to help contextualise the mentee's thoughts and broaden their perspective. The role of a mentor is to facilitate growth and development, rather than moulding the mentee into someone they are not.

Simon: I totally agree with Anita – mentorship is about enabling the mentee to unearth themselves, not about changing them. It's about helping them build different muscles by uncovering and developing their existing strengths and skills. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to mentoring, just like there’s no perfect CA professional!

Saskia: For me, one of the roles of a mentor is to help a mentee identify their unique strengths and passion. That is important to understand opportunities for further development and growth. Conforming to anyone else’s path, including my own, makes no sense at all – for a mentorship to be successful, it must be tailored to the individual mentee.

The UNFOLD mentorship programme is building the next generation of Corporate Affairs professionals. Anita – what led you to set up this programme?

Anita: Talent is the engine that propels businesses forward, and mentorship powers this engine. As Saskia said, today’s leaders are responsible for nurturing and empowering the next cadre of CA professionals. This was the impetus behind UNFOLD – to shape progressive thinking in CA and prepare a new generation of talent that puts sustainability and diversity at the very heart of the function.

Get involved in the conversation in the comments below – or reach out to learn more about UNFOLD and our work to maximise the potential of purposeful business!