It’s time to extend support to women by introducing mentorship programme for women in the marketing, media and advertising space. This project is rolled out by the India Chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA). This initiative is the brainchild of IAA, Vice President, Megha Tata and she will be giving this programme a direction.
IAA President Ramesh Narayan said, “I am delighted that we are getting involved in this meaningful initiative. It is the first time that something like this is being planned in the marcom industry and needs the complete support of our colleagues.” He went on to add that since IAA has always been at the forefront of such initiatives, it is a very logical extension for them.
He added, “The immediate endorsement of senior people like Ashish Bhasin (CEO Dentsu Aegis network), Nandini Dais (CEO Lodestar Media), Shalini Kamath (Shalini Kamath & Associates), Neena Dasgupta CEO Zirca Digital Solutions) to name a few, as mentors, has been a great source of satisfaction for us. I believe industry associations owe it to their constituents to plan and implement such initiatives.”
Talking about this project, IAA Vice President and Chairperson Mentorship Committee Megha Tata, said, “There is a great need for such an exercise. Look around and you will see the really small number of women in leadership roles. We have a fairly large percentage of women in our industry who have a working experience of 8-10 years and this is the audience we are addressing. They are experienced, are managing their families and are poised to take on leadership roles. All they need is the right kind of mentoring now.”
The association is looking at inviting applications. To apply, the applicant will have to send them a brief profile of themselves accompanied by an endorsement from someone senior to them in the industry, not necessarily in their own organisation. These applications would be whetted by a core team that has already been set up and after an orientation session with them, the mentorship could begin.
The programme is divided in two phases. In the phase I, there will be four meetings between mentors and mentees in a period of six months. There would be 20 mentees who will be shortlisted in phase I. This will be restricted to Mumbai only. Meanwhile, phase II will roll out after six months. Added Tata, “I am hoping this would be an ongoing effort and we would be contributing to the development of a fine crop of women leaders over a period in time.”
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