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Ep.6 - Mentoring and sponsorship, Karen Graves, USAA
The Key Learning Points:
1. The importance of networking in career progression and the top tips for professionals on how to take the first ‘plunge’
2. The need for a greater focus on sponsorship in the workplace
3. The important role mentoring plays in encouraging people to ‘sense-check’ themselves
In this week’s episode of the Risky Mix podcast, we speak with Karen Graves, a lady who has had an impressive career in the Lloyd’s and London markets, working in CEO and COO roles, before becoming head of operations for EMEA at SCOR. With 30+ years’ experience in the insurance industry, she’s now a non-executive director at USAA UK and SA and is driving positive change and diversity in the industry as chair of the Independent Women in Insurance Network (iWIN).
In part 2 of our chat with Karen, we speak about mentoring and sponsorship, and the difference between the two. Mentoring, as Karen explains, is a private and trusted relationship built between two people, whether that’s within the business or externally, with the ultimate aim of working together on strategies to help the mentee move forward in their career. Karen, who has experience of being both a mentor and mentee, explains that an arrangement where you can share tips, ideas and guidance with someone else is invaluable, as it provides a platform to “sense-check yourself”.
Sponsorship, as Karen explains, is a situation where a senior exec notices and highlights somebody of talent within an organisation. The sponsor may then decide to take that person to meetings and allows them to showcase their talents to the rest of the organisation. Karen believes that while many organisations have mentorship schemes, few have sponsorship programs, and feels that there’s value in sponsorship, particularly for women who quite often struggle to see a career path within their company. Sponsorship provides visibility at a senior level and an understanding of the bigger picture. In Karen’s words: “Until you know what it looks like and what it feels like, you don’t know if you want to be part of it.”
Karen highlights the importance of networking and encourages people to “take the plunge”. She kindly invites listeners to attend the Turning Rhetoric into Action event which is being run by the Insurance Cultural Awareness Network (iCAN) and iWIN on the 19th November. The event will highlight mentoring success stories and provide practical takeaways to continue to encourage positive action in the insurance industry. The evening is also the official launch of the new iCAN and iWIN Self Service Mentoring Program, which offers a platform to access a pool of mentors and mentees in order to make contact and start a mentoring relationship.
If you’re looking for a mentor or considering becoming one, you can register for the event here:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/turning-rhetoric-into-action-tickets-78331261913
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By Katie and RajThe Key Learning Points:
1. The importance of networking in career progression and the top tips for professionals on how to take the first ‘plunge’
2. The need for a greater focus on sponsorship in the workplace
3. The important role mentoring plays in encouraging people to ‘sense-check’ themselves
In this week’s episode of the Risky Mix podcast, we speak with Karen Graves, a lady who has had an impressive career in the Lloyd’s and London markets, working in CEO and COO roles, before becoming head of operations for EMEA at SCOR. With 30+ years’ experience in the insurance industry, she’s now a non-executive director at USAA UK and SA and is driving positive change and diversity in the industry as chair of the Independent Women in Insurance Network (iWIN).
In part 2 of our chat with Karen, we speak about mentoring and sponsorship, and the difference between the two. Mentoring, as Karen explains, is a private and trusted relationship built between two people, whether that’s within the business or externally, with the ultimate aim of working together on strategies to help the mentee move forward in their career. Karen, who has experience of being both a mentor and mentee, explains that an arrangement where you can share tips, ideas and guidance with someone else is invaluable, as it provides a platform to “sense-check yourself”.
Sponsorship, as Karen explains, is a situation where a senior exec notices and highlights somebody of talent within an organisation. The sponsor may then decide to take that person to meetings and allows them to showcase their talents to the rest of the organisation. Karen believes that while many organisations have mentorship schemes, few have sponsorship programs, and feels that there’s value in sponsorship, particularly for women who quite often struggle to see a career path within their company. Sponsorship provides visibility at a senior level and an understanding of the bigger picture. In Karen’s words: “Until you know what it looks like and what it feels like, you don’t know if you want to be part of it.”
Karen highlights the importance of networking and encourages people to “take the plunge”. She kindly invites listeners to attend the Turning Rhetoric into Action event which is being run by the Insurance Cultural Awareness Network (iCAN) and iWIN on the 19th November. The event will highlight mentoring success stories and provide practical takeaways to continue to encourage positive action in the insurance industry. The evening is also the official launch of the new iCAN and iWIN Self Service Mentoring Program, which offers a platform to access a pool of mentors and mentees in order to make contact and start a mentoring relationship.
If you’re looking for a mentor or considering becoming one, you can register for the event here:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/turning-rhetoric-into-action-tickets-78331261913