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Mentorship: the power of Manchester Gold for technical staff

27 Apr 2023

Cassandra Hodgkinson, Technical Operations Manager, FBMH, gives an overview of why technical staff in particular could benefit from our Manchester Gold programme

Manchester Gold

Writing in a blog post, Cassandra says: "I personally participated in the programme for the first time last year as both mentor and mentee. I found it very rewarding, and am now wondering why it took me so long to get involved in the first place.

"As a mentor, it was great to be able to pass on my insights to my mentee, see them making their own decisions on how to move things forward, and observing their confidence grow. This had a positive impact on me as well, knowing that I helped someone in some way.

"As a mentee, I really benefitted from having insight from someone outside of my immediate sphere, helping to challenge and /or support ideas, as well as encourage the development of my strengths. This relationship helped me to build my confidence and develop a self-assurance."

And Cassandra is just one of our many technical staff who have seen first-hand the benefits of our Manchester Gold programme.

Emma Enston, Senior Technician (Mass Spectrometry and Separations), adds: “The Manchester Gold staff career mentoring programme opportunity came at a time where I felt I could use some support, and some inspiration and direction for my career. I had some ideas that I wanted to explore and put them in my application, and I was successfully matched with someone who was closely associated with the area I wanted to go into.

"I had a very good relationship with my mentor, she was very supportive, and we got on very well. Whilst on this programme, the Technical Review was well underway, and a new position came up in my department through the restructure, which I was able to apply for.

"Having a mentor at this time was really beneficial for me as I was able to gain immediate support for applying for this position."

Cassandra recommends that each technical member of staff should consider the role mentoring could play in their professional development - it's  applicable to anyone, at any grade, and at any stage of their career - either as a mentor or a mentee.

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