14.03.25
In light of International Women’s Day earlier this month, we spoke to Women in PR Mentee and Samantha Day to discuss her experience of being mentored, how mentoship helped guide her career, and how the PR industry can better support the women.
Read the full interview below:
I am a mentee within the Women in PR Mentorship Programme. I was delighted to be selected for the programme and to be paired with Emily who as well as having worked as a mentor last year, is an incredible force in the world of comms.
Emily has really helped me to look at the direction of my career and has provided invaluable guidance helping me grow both professionally and personally.
Working with a mentor I have been supported in setting clear career goals and building a roadmap to achieve those goals. Through Emily’s experience and connections in the industry, she has shared insights on different PR career paths, helped me identify my own strengths and introduced me to industry contacts.
With Emily’s support through the mentorship programme I have been able to holistically challenge myself and look at ways to advance my career in PR.
Being a mentee in the Women in PR mentorship programme has been an incredibly rewarding experience.
Through Emily’s knowledge and experience in the industry, I have gained valuable insights, and the support has enabled me to refine my career goals and take actionable steps to reach them. Through my mentor’s connections, I have been able to meet and engage with professionals in the PR industry and travel sector, opening doors to potential job opportunities and collaborations.
I also feel the support of a mentor has given me more confidence in myself, enabling me to step up and to take on new challenges, whether it was leading a project, pitching to clients, or speaking at events.
Emily and I have shared similar personal life experiences so I think having her support and personal understanding has been the greatest benefit. PR can be demanding, but having a mentor provided me with encouragement and perspective during challenging times. It was reassuring to have someone who understood the industry whilst also could appreciate managing personal life struggles alongside the demands of work.
I entered the programme through an opportunity that was shared with me through my role at FINN Partners. This particular collaboration with Women in PR and PR Week is an initiative that really supports women in the workplace and really helps expand opportunities in the industry.
Lots of companies now run mentorship programs. At FINN Partners we have a programme where we work across sectors and match up members of the team. This isn’t just an opportunity for junior team members but also reverse mentoring is definitely something that many of the Senior Team benefit from.
I would urge anybody to look to adopt a career mentor whether it is through an organised programme or just something set up personally. I am not young coming back into a career in PR so the argument may be what can I possibly learn but a mentor can really help gain some perspective and clarity on your career and progression in the industry.
The industry as whole is also doing so much more to support women. The Women in PR Mentorship programme is an excellent initiative which does so much to help women in the PR industry. I work at FINN Partners where we have a strong female leadership team and excellent policies with flexible working options, private healthcare and wellness support.
Flexible working policies are great ways to support women especially helping women transition back into their careers after maternity leave and helping to support the work/life balance. Initiatives like pay equity and providing transparent career progression plans to help women advance to leadership roles should all be offered as standard.
Also, as a women returning to the workplace after having children and after recovering from an illness it would be so beneficial for more training and skill development to be available, with continuous learning programmes focused on leadership, negotiation and strategy. Stronger support networks need to be put in place to provide networking, training and support with senior leaders, and men within the workplace doing more to advocate for women in PR.
–
Inspired by Samantha’s experience and want to get involved with the next Women in PR mentorship program? Email info@womeninpr.org to get in touch.