Why did you decide to become a mentor?
The STEM industry is always getting more competitive in terms of job searches and growth within a company. I had a mentor who massively helped me kick off my career, leading me to work in corporate environments (Microsoft) and startups. Of course, personal and direct experience matters, an experience which I have maturated thanks to failing and making mistakes. But, thanks to my knowledge, I am confident I can help others achieve more in less time but with the same effort.
In any environment, our expectations, company organisation, personal organisation, branding and growth rate have a massive impact on your career and image. Being a mentor enabled me to grow my network, meet new outstanding people and, at the same time, helps other to overgrow and avoid common mistakes that will slow down your growth, obstacle your following promotions or, worst, lead you to burnout.
How did you get your career start?
I started my career as a product manager in a UK-based company during my second year of university. I managed the product building, release and maintenance for both startups and companies. At the same time, I was assigning myself learning-driven tasks for implementing Web Applications and mobile apps, also improving my technical skills a part the managerial and communication once. After this role, I interned at Microsoft as a software engineer.
With a return offer as a Full-Time Software Engineer at Microsoft, I returned to complete my fourth and last year of university (graduating in Computing Science). Here, I met Faisal, who introduced me GetBuzz, asking me to work as a Product manager. Also, I actively participated in the design and implementation of backend and Cloud infrastructure, learning a lot about Amazon Web Services, Azure, Django, caching systems and metrics building for product monitoring. I have completed my degree, collecting three years of working experience, and am now a Software Engineer at Microsoft.
None of this would have been possible without my mentor, who helped me achieve what a life dream, work in big tech at the time was.
How do you usually set up mentorships?
I first schedule an introduction call to get to know each other and our stories, focus on mentee goals and make an action plan. If the mentee is looking for a job or applying for jobs, I also ask to see CV, LinkedIn profile and any professional profile used or indicated to apply. Once feedback is given, mentee updates are verified and tested during the application process. After that, mentorship progresses according to mentee proprieties.
What’s been your favourite mentorship story so far?
My first ever mentee at MentorCruise was a Master student who flew to the United Kingdom to do a Master, without financial and affective support from family. This mentee knew what was best for him in terms of career progress and decided to prioritize study anyway. Unfortunately, he was not getting any interviews until he applied for a mentorship program with me. I always say: it is harder getting an interview than passing one. After reviewing his CV and LinkedIn profile, he started getting many interview requests and is now practising interview preparation by having a mock interview with me. Companies like Amazon are already contacting him, and I am sure that with the proper support and effort, he will have his payback soon.
What are you getting out of being a mentor?
Sure, as a mentor, I am building up new personal relationships, getting to know others, and at the same time being more motivated to know and learn more in order and inspire others, and at the same time avoid that they would do the same mistakes I did, putting at the base of everything knowledge transfer. At the same time, sharing small details about my mentorship stories and approaches is helping me to gain feedback, and increase experience after experience.