Guiding lights

May 2005

A new program is providing Monash alumni with advice and support to enhance their personal and professional growth.

Report: Natasha Whalley
Photography: Heath Missen

When Sarah Franklyn started work after graduating from Monash in 1994 with a business marketing degree, she found the support and guidance she needed in her new role was difficult to come by.

Career change: mentor Ms Sarah Franklyn, left, provided Ms Liz Perrone with an objective opinion.

More than a decade later and now business development manager of Wishlist Holdings -- the owner of some of Australia's leading internet retailers -- Ms Franklyn wants to ensure that professional guidance is available to new graduates trying to make their way in the workforce.

"When I first started work, I felt there was an absence of a support network," Ms Franklyn said. "There were no professionals in my family, and I found there was a big generation gap between myself and my colleagues. I think I would have benefited greatly from having a mentor -- someone who could provide guidance and advice from a different perspective."

The Alumni Mentoring Program, which was established by the Monash Alumni Association in 2002 and which Ms Franklyn has been part of since its inception, gave her the opportunity to make a practical contribution by becoming a mentor to other Monash graduates.

Liz Perrone, her first mentee, graduated from Monash in 2001 with a Bachelor of Business (Management). She was already well established in the workforce when she joined the program but was looking for career advice and an objective opinion -- something she found difficult with several family members working in the same organisation.

"Liz wanted a career change but wasn't sure what she wanted to do," Ms Franklyn said. "We discussed the various aspects of her role and I asked her lots of questions.

"I then suggested types of roles that matched what she enjoyed doing, and she has now decided she wants to focus on customer-oriented commercial roles."

Another of Ms Franklyn's mentees, Ms Sabrina Fang, was an international student who had never worked in Australia. After completing a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Marketing at Monash in 2004, Ms Fang joined the mentoring program to get advice from a local perspective.

To help Ms Fang gain an understanding of and insight into the Australian workplace, Ms Franklyn arranged for her to undertake three weeks' work experience at Wishlist. She recommends that mentors offer their mentees work experience if they are able to, as it provides them with practical, on-the-job experience.

"Work experience allows them to learn so much more than any amount of explaining can provide. I am now also more comfortable acting as a referee for Sabrina because I have seen her in a working environment," Ms Franklyn said.

The success of the Alumni Mentoring Program has prompted the introduction of a new program for final-year students at Monash. Mentor program convenor Ms Margaret Kelly said the new Student Mentoring Program aimed to assist final-year students in their transition from study to work, even before they entered the workforce.

"Mentors assist students in defining their career paths, provide strategies on how to develop their careers, assist with strategic networking and teach them more about the workplace," Ms Kelly said.

After completing an honours year in commerce (management) at Monash in 2004, Ms Lin Chen felt she was at a crossroads. She believed a mentor with marketing experience would help in determining the best career path to pursue.

Through the Student Mentoring Program, Ms Chen was matched with Mr John Mortimore, who had 35 years' marketing and management experience.

Ms Lin Chen with mentor Mr John Mortimore: "The experience is one I will never forget."

"John provided me with invaluable advice," Ms Chen said. "His extensive experience in the industry meant he was able to provide me with new ideas and new ways of looking at things.

"He was also very good at listening, which helped me work through my problems. In particular, I discussed moving to Sydney at great length with him."

During their regular meetings, Mr Mortimore helped Ms Chen work through the advantages and disadvantages of working in both cities, allowing her to make her own, informed choice.

"The experience is one I will never forget," Ms Chen said. "The advice, knowledge and experience John shared has greatly assisted with my career planning and development."

Ms Kelly said the mentoring programs, which have 70 skilled mentors registered and more than 80 mentees, were attracting significant interest from all Monash's faculties, Monash Alumni Association members and other alumni groups.

Action: For further information about the mentoring programs, contact Ms Margaret Kelly on +61 3 9844 2933, email margaret@monashalumni.com or visit the Monash Alumni Association website.