CFA Society Atlanta has recently developed a mentorship program aimed at providing a mechanism for members early in their careers to tap into the wisdom and perspective of more seasoned professionals. It also allows seasoned professionals to become acquainted with the next generation of professionals in the investment industry.
Cathy Ford, Executive Director, CFA Society Atlanta, explained: “Launching our program was in response to a survey we conducted seeking feedback from members and non-members on a variety of topics. Both groups were interested in a mentorship program. We reviewed survey data in August 2019 and launched the program in April 2020. As of July 2020, we were excited to have 30 pairings. The pairings cover many career areas including asset allocation, quantitative analysis, wealth management, portfolio management, fixed income, and global equity.”
The program is managed by Cathy Ford and a small committee. The committee supported the launch of the program, including creating the sign-up forms, communications, and advertisements, and provides ongoing strategic advice. Cathy manages the mentor/mentee pairings and associated follow up. The local society has calculated that the mentors in the program have 276 combined years of work experience or 18 years on average, and mentees have 203 combined years or work experience or six years on average. CFA Society Atlanta believes a program of this nature takes around 10-20 hours to set up and 3-5 hours per month to manage.
Thus far, both mentors and mentees have provided positive feedback. One mentor said: “I think it is going really well. My mentee and I talk once a month and she has taken the lead on setting up the calls. I expect this relationship to last well past our initial CFA Society Atlanta term. I look forward to the time when we can sit together at a Society event. Thanks for the pairing!” And a mentee told the CFA Society Atlanta team: “My mentor and I have been meeting every other week, and I have personally found his mentorship to be valuable as I have navigated some very challenging situations. I appreciate the work that CFA Society Atlanta does and especially for this mentorship program.”
The success of the program will be measured by member engagement, participant satisfaction, increased engagement, and program referrals. The local society plans to run this as an annual program.
For more details, please visit: https://cfaatlanta.org/Mentorship
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