Have you been furloughed or made redundant due to the Covid crisis? Perhaps you’ve lost contract work? If you could do with some help figuring out the next chapter of your career story, you are not alone.
Prospect, the global talent resource consultancy for the public relations and communications industry, is running a new mentoring scheme from this October, designed to support your professional development and boost your career success.
The PR and communications industry, along with many others, has taken a battering from Covid-19, compelling this recruiter to seek to drive a positive impact on what has been a bleak situation for many.
An impressive suite of mentors
Prospect’s Mentoring Scheme is geared towards industry professionals in the UK, Hong Kong and Singapore, who have been adversely affected by the global pandemic. It has an impressive suite of mentors comprising more than 70 industry leaders from both agencies and corporations.
Colette Brown, co-founder and UK managing director at Prospect, explains: “As with so many industries, we have been struck by the impact Covid-19 has had on the PR and communications sector. We wanted to use our platform of clients and candidates across all our offices, in London, Hong Kong and Singapore, to do something proactive and foster industry collaboration during these challenging times.”
For the mentors, Prospect wanted people from across the board, spanning agency and in-house professionals from around senior associate level and above. They wanted people who run businesses or teams who had faced challenges in their own careers and who were committed to giving back a little bit. The recruiter went out to a number of its clients to ask for their thoughts initially and to see if they would be willing to help. Having a diverse representation of mentors was absolutely key, so they sought a mix of gender, race and experience where possible.
Emma Dale, co-founder and Asia managing director, Prospect, adds: “Our 18-year partnership with the PR and communications industry places us in a unique position to help build relationships between industry leaders and up-and-comers. The benefits of mentors in supporting professional development is well documented and we are excited to support the industry in this way.”
How the mentoring scheme works
The relationship is between the mentor and mentee, and it is down to them as to the agenda and the issues they discuss. Prospect makes no stipulations other than to apply, and that mentees must have been adversely affected by the pandemic. A period of six months is a reasonable commitment from both sides and they will be asked to feedback and evaluate at all stages. If the parties wish to continue beyond the six-month time frame, they are welcome to do so.
Applications to become a mentee are open to people with a minimum of two years’ experience in public relations, corporate communications or public affairs. Participants must currently be based in the UK, Hong Kong or Singapore, and be committed to continuing their career in the industry.
Prospect is profiling the mentors on its LinkedIn page every day.
Matching the best talent with its clients is business as usual for Prospect. However, this time it’s using its expertise and networks to help people with some personal development and input from top industry professionals who can advise and empathise, while enabling mentees to think outside the box to work out the next chapter of their story.
