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08 Sep

08 September 2015

Making a difference

A mentor through the Institute of Enterprise & Entrepreneurs Keith Boxley, Relationship Director at Barclays Bank plc quickly stepped forward to join Coventry & Warwickshire First’s mentoring programme.

He is mentoring a young accountant.

He explained: “I can remember how valuable I found support of this sort at the early stages of my career and saw this as good opportunity to give something back.

“We’ve developed a positive, confidential relationship within which my mentee can be straightforward and raise any careers elements that concern her. She can be very honest and I think we’ve made a lot of progress in a short period of time.

“I’ve also learnt a lot. Talking to my mentee has made me think about how I might have approached situations a little differently. My active listening skills have definitely improved, the goal being to help my mentee find her own solutions rather than tell her what I would do.

“I’ve found this an incredibly positive experience. It’s easy to take our own skills and experience for granted but the ability to use that experience and insight to help someone at the earlier stages of their career has a real value and isn’t something we should overlook.”