Rising together: Empowering future leaders through mentorship

In parallel, the program aims to enhance the coaching and leadership skills of our mentors as they contribute to the development of others. We have gained valuable insights from both mentors and mentees, which will help us further enhance our support of the career journeys of our women leaders at Amcor. Our Leadership Mentorship Program is complemented by Business Group Mentoring programs, which are open to colleagues in all business groups.

Brian Carvill, Vice President of Research and Development at Amcor Flexibles North America, and Federica Bonichi, Commercial Operations Director, each participated independently in the mentorship program this year and have shared some of their reflections and learnings from the program.

Brian Carvill (Mentor)

As I approach an advanced stage of my career, I find myself contemplating how to best support and empower individuals who are on the same journey I embarked on years ago. I am a proud father of four, and with a daughter pursuing a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) career, I’ve witnessed firsthand the career challenges many women face. Although progress has been made over my lifetime, there is still much more to be done to provide equal opportunities. I know from experience that for organizations to lead in R&D and innovation, having a diversity of ideas, experiences and identities isn’t only important – it's essential. As engineers, we need every possible perspective to view challenges in new ways and to identify creative solutions together.

That’s why I was excited for the opportunity to participate in Amcor’s Leadership Mentorship Program this year. Programs like this are so important to show our colleagues that we’re serious about their development, and I believe the structure of the program and the training we receive as mentors will help us continue to foster an inclusive, collaborative culture.

Through the program, I’ve learned so much about myself, my mentee and my team, but perhaps my biggest takeaway was that we’re often more similar than we are different. We each wrestle with the same types of challenges – meeting deadlines, communicating with others, balancing competing priorities – and the more we talk about them together, the more we can learn from each other. That recognition has given me a deeper sense of camaraderie with my teammates.

I’ve also come away with a few distinct learnings on mentorship that will continue to ground me as I work with my teams. First, your mentee, direct report or teammate often knows the challenge better than you do. Your job as a mentor is to give them the space and time to talk through it and to be an accountability partner. Second, treat it as your responsibility to unlock the potential within another person. You can only be successful if your mentee or teammate is successful. And, lastly, I’d encourage others to be curious and treat every challenge as an opportunity to learn something new. It can be easy to focus solely on the accomplishment or end goal, but don’t forget about the relationships you can form and the lessons you can learn along the way.

Federica Bonichi (Mentee)

Throughout my career, I have often questioned what companies and industries could be doing differently to better represent and uplift women. I think an important place to start to foster greater diversity and inclusion is supporting underrepresented individuals during periods of challenge and growth.

I was given the opportunity to participate in our Leadership Mentorship Program earlier this year as I was preparing for some big life changes, including accepting a new position, getting married and moving from Switzerland to the U.S.

When starting the program, I was immediately surprised by the personal connection I was able to develop with my mentor. The program leaders were very careful and intentional about how they paired mentees with mentors, allowing us to speak with different candidates and choose our own mentor. Through that process, I met someone with whom I was comfortable discussing challenges and career goals and changes in my personal and professional life.

I was most struck by my mentor’s encouragement for me to be my full, authentic self. I’ve come away with a new resolve to be candid, to speak my mind more openly and to express how I feel more often. My empathy makes me an even stronger leader and team member, and now I recognize that to be my best self at work, I also need to take care of myself outside of work. We also discussed how I can redefine communication to be more effective, like using the “Three Ps” (Purpose, Process, Product) to get aligned with my team about the purpose of a meeting, our end goal and how we’ll get there.

I’m encouraged by the program and am excited to see the continued improvement of our representation of women in leadership positions. Outside of the formal program, I’d encourage everyone to not be shy about proactively seeking a mentor. Find someone who you admire and who you think could help you navigate your career path at Amcor and talk to them. Make sure you can build a strong connection with them, that they listen well, and that they’re willing to dedicate some time to mentoring you. It’s made a big difference in my career experience, and I make a point of keeping in touch with my mentor even now that the program has ended. Lastly, please feel free to reach out to me directly. I would be more than happy to meet and support you on your journey.