Introduction
The Hong Kong Asociation of Business and
Professional Women (HKABPW) established
their mentoring program in February 2004,
which is focused on personal and career
development.
Prior to the program launch, the in the
fall of 2003, as part of the evening, sponsors,
a panel of speakers and over 80 attendees
were introduced to an outline of the program.
Being a member of HKABPW is a privilege
as it allows members to join this program.
Participants are matched with other members
according to their preference, by profession,
culture, age or life experience.
The uniqueness of the HKABPW mentoring
program lies in leveraging on member expertise
with a corporate focus. The program carries
an important message on encouraging business
and professional women to give back to the
business community by contributing their
time and effort and sharing their skills
and knowledge to help other women progress
in their lives and careers.
Through monthly activities such as skills
workshops, networking events, corporate
functions, and leisure activities, participants
have ample opportunities to develop important
traits that are critical for their personal
and professional success. These skills include
communications, relationship building, problem-solving,
team-building, networking, conflict management
and resolution, etc.
The mentoring program was established in
order to attract younger members to join
the Association.
The response to the program was encouraging.
In 2004 membership increased by 100 percent.
Several corporate sponsors have offered
advice and financial support to help get
the programme started. They include Exxon
Mobil, Right Management Consultants, Seashell
Publishers (Australia), B & W - Far
East Publicity and Quam Financial Public
Services Group.
Exxon Mobil, Right Management Consultants,
Seashell Publishers (Australia) and B &
W Far East Publicity Limited as part of
their corporate sponsorship assisted HKABPW
in printing a mentoring program brochure
and a membership brochure – both of
which were designed by City University of
Hong Kong students.
Events and Workshops
The mentors and protégés/mentees
can exchange their work and personal experiences
through the monthly mentoring meetings organised
by HKABPW. Some of the past events and workshops
that HKABPW has organised include:
Program Outlook
and Strategy for 2008
To increase overall
membership and come up with ideas on strengthening
program and events to attract more young
women to HKABPW and to the Mentoring Program.
We could possibly consider collaborations
with, and promotion to, various local universities
to continue to allow more students to know
about HKABPW and its initiatives.
July
The Hong Kong University of Science &
Technology (HKUST) Business Students Union
has invited HKABPW members to become mentors
of their mentoring program starting in the
fall of 2007. The students will connect
with HKABPW professionals in the business
sector.
April
Anna Fang, our International Coordinator
attended and represented HKABPW at the Young
BPW Conference and the BPW International
Asia Pacific Conference in Korea. Anna conducted
a mentoring workshop at both events to share
the efforts of the International Mentoring
Taskforce and those of the mentoring programs
within the global BPW network. The aim was
to inspire others towards using the mentoring
concept in their own clubs.
One of our young members from the Mentoring
Program Claire Bay also attended the YBPW
Conference and reported to the member the
diverse initiatives of other global chapters.
February
International Networking – our mentoring
convenor Cecilia Lui met with BPW Canada
delegates (former President Darla Campbell
and others) during a visit to Canada. We
exchanged progress on our clubs. Darla indicated
that they're moving forward with their mentoring
program and wish to have their program model
against ours as they feel it is a good idea
to encourage businesswomen helping other
young female professionals.
January
The Hong Kong University MBA Students “Women
in Business Club” contacted the HKABPW
Mentoring Program wanting to meet successful
female role models in the business community.
“Business Expansion via Personal
Growth”
The guest speaker, Paul Stefansson shared
his strategies and practical tips on generating
business leads through:
- Self-marketing (including getting free
media attention)
- Networking
- Improving Client Service
- Building Solid Client Relationships
A Volunteer Holiday Experience
Inez Ho, Public Relations Director at
CNN, shared with our members her two-week
volunteer experience in South India for
an international volunteer organisation
called Global Crossroad. Inez worked with
the country’s neediest, most destitute
children – teaching conversational
English, as well as educating them on topics
such as personal hygiene and organizing
creative extracurricular activities such
as painting, and art projects.
Getting Organised for Success
The guest speaker - Kristin Lowe has a
background in education with over 15 years
of experience working with people of all
ages. She helps people streamline their
workplaces, homes and schedules, explaining
how to organize the work environment. Her
practical strategies inspired our members
to tackle the most common workplace troubled
areas like:
- De-cluttering Your Desktop and Inbox
- Organizing Your Work to Get It Done
- Conquering Information Overload
- Setting up Your Workspace for Maximum
Efficiency
- Prioritizing and Balancing Your Workload
HKABPW Mentoring Program also organised
“chat and shares” at local restaurants/bars,
barbeques, and dinners for the mentoring
participants to share their thoughts on
mentoring. There were also outdoor activities
such as a hike and a painting session at
a local hobby and crafts store.
Mentoring Program 1st Anniversary –
Women and Diversity
With 29 years of IT experience, the guest
speaker Christine Ng manages two of the
high growth and dynamic emerging business
areas at IBM - wireless pervasive and digital
media. With extensive management experience
at IBM and being the head of the Diversity
Council, an initiative to make IBM a more
women-friendly working environment, Christine
shared with BPW her working experience at
IBM and her knowledge on diversity helped
broaden our understanding and perspective
on the subject.
How to Network
Two BPW mentors described how to network
in the business world of Hong Kong to protégés
of the HKABPW Mentoring Program. They demonstrated
how to give out business cards at a business
function, and how to develop 30-second introduction
about oneself when meeting people.
Professionalism
- Appearance/Image
- Quality of Work
- Communications
- Work Ethics
- Emotions in the Workplace
- Maintaining Professionalism with the
Opposite Sex
Managing Personal Finance
With a financial journalism background,
guest speaker - Cathy Holcombe works as
a stock analyst at Quam Limited covering
the retail and textile sectors and is also
the Editor-in-Chief of the Roland Report.
The following topics were covered in her
talk:
- Financial Needs of the “Modern
Women” – different stages,
different ages
- Feast and Famine – The benefits
of managing assets for the self-employed
- Savings vs.Investing – What’s
the difference?
- Starting and Managing a Portfolio –
How much money and financial knowledge
do you need?
- Take Stock before Taking Action –
How to match your personality to your
financial strategy?
Managing Work/ Life Balance
Mentors and protégés/mentees
shared their strategies on coping with balancing
work and family/personal life.
Creating Partnerships
To commemorate the first anniversary of
the HKABPW Mentoring Program, the following
panelists spoke on these subjects:
What role does partnership play in successful
businesses? What are the pitfalls to look
out for when forming any partnership? How
do partnerships help associations that work
towards the community at large? How does
a mentoring partnership encourage and drive
the protégés/mentees towards
positive changes in the professional and
personal arena? The panel shared their experiences
on how partnerships and associations have
helped towards the growth of their businesses,
their associations, and their professional
and personal lives. The panelists, all HKABPW
members consisted of:
Pauline Cousins, Managing Director, Crown
Asset Management Ltd.: Pauline has been
in the financial sector for 25 years, and
formed Crown Asset Management Ltd. in 1993,
a privately owned financial services company
offering advice and services to expatriates.
Kate Mead, Past President of HKABPW - Kate
has been a Hong Kong resident for 30 years,
born and educated in Australia. She recently
retired from her posts as Senior Lecturer/Assistant
Professor with the English Department at
the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Kate
is a founding member of HKABPW.
Celia Ho, Legal Affairs Manager, Pfizer
Corporation Hong Kong Limited - Celia recently
advanced in her legal career from a solicitor
in a US international firm to the Legal
Affairs Manager at Pfizer.
Moyreen Tilbrook was the moderator for
the panel. Moyreen has lived and worked
in Hong Kong since 1965 and is a founding
member and the second president of HKABPW.
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Launch
of the Mentoring Program (February 2004):
Special Guest Speaker - Dr. Rosann Kao,
HKABPW Member and Former Head of the
Council of Women in Hong Kong |
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Photo
Gallery of the Mentoring Introduction
Night (November 2003) Photos taken by
Stefanie Rehrl of BPW Salzburg |
Awards
In
2005, the HKABPW Mentoring Program
won an Outstanding BPW Medal at the
Third BPW International Competition,
“Beyond 2000: Helping Women
Help Themselves.” The award
was presented at the 25th BPW International
Congress in Luzern, Switzerland, in
June 2005.
HKABPW produced a special mentoring
program poster for the Luzern Congress
for the Asia Pacific Regional Display.
A City University of Hong Kong student
designed the poster for HKABPW.
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Contact: mentoring@hkabpw.org |
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