Mentoring
Lin Whitfield provides mentoring support and external supervision for Chief Executives, Chairs of Trustee Boards, senior managers, and senior staff teams. This is usually delivered through regular dedicated sessions held off-site.
Mentoring and external support offers a space for reflection with someone independent who listens, acts as a sounding board, and helps people to understand their work situation and come up with their own strategies for moving forward. It is particularly useful for Chief Executives of charities, who juggle multiple priorities and often have no other support mechanisms available to them.
"I’d been an Advice Worker and Supervisor for 15 years but when I was promoted to Advice Manager I realised the transition from team member to manager would be a significant challenge. Responsibilities now extended to cover two separate projects with which I was less familiar along with more responsibility in the area with which I was familiar. The team’s expectations of me and of the role were also affected because of this. Away from the busy environment of the office, the mentoring sessions I had with Lin helped me to step back and see the bigger picture. I felt I had the time to consider the issues at hand in an unpressured, supportive atmosphere and I was able to define my new role more clearly. I felt immediately at ease with Lin and she was very skilled at asking the right questions to help me identify key issues. She would then reframe or reflect those issues back in a way that enabled me to identify ways forward. Her considerable experience and insight meant that she could also provide examples where strategies would and would not work."
- Manager in a local independent advice centre
Lin often provides mentoring support more informally as part of a larger contract. She knows that developing the understanding, confidence and skills of those she is working with will enhance the capacity of the organisation to move forward after her work is completed.
"Lin proved to be an invaluable source of support throughout the project particularly when there were challenging issues to address. Simply talking things through with her was immensely helpful because she demonstrated excellent understanding of the issues and always gave sound and clear advice which helped me to arrive at the right decisions."
- Emma Cooper, Partnership Development Manager, Wiltshire Council