This is a great initiative by the FWA to support the professional advancement of women in finance. The programme is well organised and structured. The considered pairing of mentor and mentee ensures participants get the most out of the programme. I have thoroughly enjoyed the open conversations with my mentee, and taken away learnings that will help me be a more effective leader and coach. I highly recommend this programme to mid-career professionals who are seeking to advance their careers, and expand their network in the financial services industry.

My best decision last year has been to invest in myself via FWA Mentoring Programme.  The programme is designed for mid-career women in the banking and finance industry, who seek guidance in professional and personal development from senior industry executives outside their organisations. We are bound by an NDA which helps us Trust the confidentiality of our mentors and peers when voicing our thoughts, fears and plans.

The truly invaluable gift is the camaraderie and generosity to help each other from the get-go. It is amazing to meet accomplished industry leaders whom I probably would never be connected with otherwise. My mentor and I shared challenges, stories and ideas via WhatsApp, over dinners and on a nature walk.

As an FWA Champion, I’m very proud to have been a mentor in 2021, having the opportunity to discuss leadership, tackling unconscious bias and accelerating gender inclusion in the workplace with some amazing future talent. Speaking to the next generation of leaders is a two-way learning process that helps me do my job better as much as, I hope, it adds value to the FWA mentees on their own professional and personal journeys.  
 
Our industry is transforming, and we need a mixture of great people skills, world class digital and data capabilities and a passion to innovate if we are to serve our clients more effectively and contribute maximum value to the communities where we operate. The Financial Women’s Association Singapore epitomises the determination to ensure that this momentum is sustained across our industry, and I’m proud to be a part of that effort.
 

I have truly enjoyed the mentorship programme so far. 
It has been really well organized and carefully crafted to ensure maximum benefit to those joining. 
From the pre-selection rounds, kick-off event, actual mentoring sessions as well as mentee monthly sharing. 
I have been able to connect with like-minded women virtually, and I have managed to meet one in person.
Would recommend it to anyone looking for support/guidance/growing their network in the broader finance community in Singapore. 

I have enjoyed my virtual mentoring sessions very much with the mentee. Besides sharing my career journey and work experiences with her, I have also learnt a lot from her, about how she thinks and what drives her. This to me is invaluable as I can then use this to help me better manage my own team.

This mentorship journey is akin growing a plant with some pruning and multiple fertilising phases. I am grateful to have a career coach to help steer my thought process into the right direction and to provide the timely advisory when I had to do my first telephone and virtual interviews during this pandemic period. This program also gives me the exposure to network with many dynamic, intelligent and authentic people who are more than willing to share their success stories with one another. It is my great pleasure to be part of the FWA community and in return, i hope to contribute meaningfully back to the community.

The FWA mentorship Programme provides a much‐needed platform bringing together talented females and leaders from Singapore’s financial services industry. I was privileged to mentor two extremely bright and ambitious mentees and was humbled by the trust they put in me; sharing their journeys, dreams and struggles. Acting as a sounding board for their ideas, we discussed different approaches and developed real, actionable plans to support their continued growth. And it was not all one way – I learnt a lot from these discussions too! Whilst most organisations are making strides in the D&I agenda, we must continue to work harder to advocate and support each other.