by Eleanora Kukuy
Are you looking for a mentoring opportunity? Murray Hill Institute provides a unique, holistic and tailored mentoring program that explores your career and life aspirations from an ethical standpoint. On Wednesday, September 23rd MHI had a virtual mentoring kick-off event. Mentors and former mentees spoke about the value they received from this program and how it can support young professional women.
The women who make up MHI's board and mentoring program come from various professional backgrounds. Stephanie Petrillo, one of the hosts of the session, comes from the information technology background. She works for the City of New York and is one of the MHI mentors. Teresa Carale is the president of MHI and has a doctorate in chemical engineering. She spoke about the mission of the Institute: "MHI is a leadership institute for women that fosters effective, ethical, person-centered leadership...We convert our dreams into reality through hard, honest work." The mentoring program helps to turn participants' theories into "concrete situations in life." The MHI mentoring program will celebrate its 10-year anniversary in January 2021. The first group of mentees started in 2011, and the program was an instant success.
Elzbieta Napierala, the current director of the mentoring program, described how it works. Each mentee is matched with a mentor after their application is reviewed. It usually takes a few weeks to get matched. The pairing is based on professional circumstances and the mentee's goals for the program. For example: Do you want to make a career transition? Do you want to take your current career further? Do you want to establish greater work/life balance? Your entire application is evaluated, not just your career aspirations, to ensure a custom mentoring experience. The program is broken down into 8 monthly meetings between the mentor and mentee. Suggested topics for each meeting are listed on the website, with recommended online reading available to help you prepare for each meeting. You will work on goals, check in on your overall progress, and make changes if necessary. Topics range anywhere from goal setting to leadership, but these are not cast in stone: you are encouraged to discuss anything that relates to your current situations or bring up any questions you may have.
Since the spring of 2020, the program has been run virtually, with mentors and mentees meeting via phone or an online platform such as Zoom. This has made it possible to accept women from outside the NYC area. Applying to the program is simple. Click the link below to read more about the program and access the application.
The program fee of $100 includes mentoring and access to online materials.
The mentors are a group of accomplished women from various fields. Three of them shared their experiences during the mentoring event and spoke about their careers and mentoring experiences:
Grace Perry
One of the founding partners of the program, current mentor and MHI board member.
Her background is in global HR with a specific focus in development, compensation and benefits on a global basis.
She has worked with Fortune 100 companies around the world.
"We are looking into a more virtual world and workplace” and it helps to keep changing and transforming the program to keep it relevant.
Emphasized that the mentoring program is holistic with a focus on ethical, humanistic values and behaviors.
Maria Amelia Salerno
Was a Career counselor in a Barcelona business school for 30 years.
Spoke about her numerous experiences with mentoring her former students at the business program.
Currently with MHI as a mentor.
For her, mentoring means "providing a safe environment for a mentee to express herself very safely and where we as mentors actively listen, and not be judgmental, [one where we are] very empathetic, honest and ethical."
Paula Caravelli
Background in the fine arts and art history.
Currently an architectural interior designer; she spoke about her accomplishments in the industry and the women who supported her along the way.
She had many great mentors and now wants to give back to young women who are considering a career in the arts.
"We are women helping other women."
Former mentees also shared their takeaways from the program:
Alejandra
Her initial goal was to transition from retail to corporate. Her mentor supported her with getting her dream office job.
"This is a strong support system; your mentors are from different industries who will help with [so much.]"
"I learned a lot about myself."
Found great value with her mentor.
Cui Xia
Senior consultant at Ernst and Young.
Joined MHI while transitioning to her current employer.
For her, this was not just a mentorship experience but also the opportunity to meet women from different industries.
Her advice: Voice your concerns and goals at the onset of your career. Be proactive, and be aggressive with networking.
At Ernst and Young, she has been given an opportunity to give back by pairing up with and supporting rising high school seniors with college and SAT questions.
Maddalena
Decorative painter, applicator of wool finishes. Her field encompasses both design and construction.
"MHI chooses carefully the mentor who can match your expectations and needs... who gives you honest advice and feedback."
Related her experience: "My mentor guided me to step back from good quality production that I already had, to present myself and my services to the marketplace in an effective way."
Expresses that there is no other mentoring like this in NYC that's so well done at this price.
Urges prospective mentees: "Let’s go for it!"
To learn more about the Murray Hill Institute mentorship program, follow this link.
To view the kickoff session, click here.