Miranda Ashby-Wood, Christina Emery & Marios Karouzos, mentors on the 2024 ALPSP Mentorship Scheme

 

 

 

 

 

 

The close of 2024 saw the official wrap up of the 2024 ALPSP Mentorship

Scheme that attracted more than 119 mentees from at least 18 different

countries, mentored by 103 mentors over the course of eight months, from May to

December 2024. The programme provided mentees with a wide network of expertise

and skills to help foster their skill development and career progression. It

also encouraged collaborative learning between mentors and mentees, both

benefitting from the shared dialogue and experience.

 

 

 

Let us take stock of 2024’s mentor/mentee cohort. Most

mentees self-identified as female (80%). While the same was true for mentors,

the gender ratio was slightly less skewed (75% female) - you can see the full

distribution below. Under the assumption that mentors are likelier to be more

senior in their careers than mentees, this difference illustrates the

well-known leaky pipeline effect, where women are less represented in more

senior roles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In terms of regional diversity, perhaps unsurprisingly, most

mentors and mentees were based in Europe and the UK, reflecting the ALPSP

membership. Interestingly, while the geographic distributions of mentors and

mentees broadly matched, we note a clear dearth of mentor representation from

the Asia Pacific region, which includes the Indian sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

 

So, what do these numbers tell us? We

are not as diverse as we would like, especially lacking in male representation

– something which we hope will improve for the 2025 scheme. The numbers may

also imply that certain groups of people within our industry may not feel as

empowered (or welcomed) to step forward as role models and mentors. What can we

do about it? This and other similar mentoring programmes are great tools to

increase skills and senior leadership capacity across the industry with mentees of today becoming the mentors of

 

tomorrow.

 

 

 

This blog post also aims to dispel some myths about what a

mentor can look like and seeks to

empower those of you considering taking up the mentor mantle in the 2025

iteration of ALPSP mentorship scheme.

 

 

 

 

What does a mentor look like?

 

 

 

 

Many people may immediately generate an image of a very

senior professional – perhaps a senior manager or head of department, or even a

CEO – when asked to visualise a mentor, but this is a common misconception.

 

 

 

 

 

Anyone can be a mentor, and in fact having a range of

individuals at different stages of their careers can benefit

a programme such as this. It isn’t necessarily a senior individual

mentoring a more junior individual; you could mentor someone at the same career

level as you or even someone more senior. One example of how this could work is

the scenario where you are perhaps at an earlier stage in your career, but you

may have experience in a particular project or area that someone more senior is

new to, or is looking to move into. Another scenario is where an early career

individual may provide a different perspective to a common problem that is

complementary, thereby providing new insights and diversifying established

views.

 

 

 

 

 

Each mentor-mentee relationship is different, and every individual

will have different goals. The aim of the ALPSP Mentorship Scheme is to pair

individuals together to ensure both meet their goals. If you have been

considering signing up but don’t feel experienced enough or are concerned you

don’t have enough knowledge, fear not. We can guarantee there is a mentee out

there who would love to learn from your experience and would really value your

insight!

 

 

 

 

Embrace the leap: first-time mentorship matters

 

 

 

 

First-time mentors often underestimate the impact they can

have. Some new mentors expressed an initial hesitancy to participate, fearing

that they might not know enough to help their mentee. However, after completing

the programme, they shared positive feedback with ALPSP that everything worked

well and that they felt their contributions were worthwhile.

 

 

 

 

Tips for first timers

 

 

 

 

·       

The mentee sets their own goals and meeting

agendas, so just by having regular meetings you can guide them through their

goals which helps them find motivation and be accountable.

 

 

 

 

 

·       

You’re not expected to know everything, but you

may be able to help your mentee help themselves. You could share useful links,

provide them with training resources, or connect them to others who may be able

to help.

 

 

 

 

 

·       

Just by providing another perspective or asking

provocative questions, you can challenge your mentee to see things in another

light and consider other routes or solutions.

 

 

 

 

 

·       

There is support available to guide you through

the process. The Mentorloop platform has many useful resources on being a

mentor, and there is a group chat where mentors can support each other. This adds a real community feel to the

programme, and some mentors utilise the chat to ask others for advice or to

meet at conferences.

 

 

 

 

 

·       

In addition, the ALPSP team holds check in

sessions at the beginning, during and at the end of the programme to help

prepare you.

 

 

 

 

It’s time to take action

 

 

 

 

So, apart from helping others, why should you sign up? Being

a mentor is extremely rewarding, with benefits including personal growth,

increased confidence, learning from your mentee, and expanding your network.

 

 

 

 

 

To summarise, the ALPSP mentoring programme needs you! We

need diverse perspectives from all regions, genders, backgrounds and levels of

seniority, so consider signing up today. To learn more about the benefits of

participating, we will be releasing a second blog post focusing on the

advantages for mentors.

 

 

 

 

Testimonial quotes:

 

 

 

Miranda:

 

 

 

 

“Being part of the ALPSP Mentorship Scheme was an extremely

rewarding experience. I developed my mentoring skills and gained confidence in

my own abilities and knowledge, and also learnt a lot from my mentee – it was

always refreshing to hear another perspective on many aspects of publishing. It

was great to see my mentee grow in skills and confidence and reach their goals,

and I thank them for their time, commitment and enthusiasm. I encourage anyone

reading this to sign up as a mentor!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marios:

 

 

 

 

 

“Every mentorship is unique in its challenges and rewards.

All of them, however, catalysed growth and development for my mentee and

myself. I am very proud of my mentee’s achievements and their thoughtful

engagement with our mentorship. Sign me up for 2025!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christina:

 

 

 

 

 

“Being a mentor was very fulfilling; after a great

experience being a mentee the prior year, it was rewarding to give something

back by helping someone else in need. It also helped me gain confidence through

appreciating my own knowledge and skill set. Connecting with others in the

industry was a bonus.”

 

 

About the ALPSP International Mentorship Scheme

 

The scheme aims to connect colleagues across the publishing industry and provide a wider network of expertise and skills to help foster development and progression. Open to ALPSP members (as mentees and mentors) as well as non-members (mentors only), the scheme was the winner of a ‘Most Impactful Mentoring Award’ in 2024. For more information and to register visit our website.

 

The ALPSP International Mentorship scheme is sponsored by Publishers' Licensing Services.

 

About the Authors:

 

Miranda Ashby-Wood, Co-Head of Publishing, British Institute of Radiology

 

Miranda is responsible for the

strategic development of the BIR journal portfolio and leading the publishing

department at the BIR. She is also responsible for the commissioning and

development of BIR video courses and content within the BIR journal portfolio,

working with members of the community to deliver relevant and high-quality

material. Miranda is Co-Chair of the ALPSP Education Committee and a Director

on the ALPSP Board.

 

 

Christina Emery, Head of Thought Leadership Programmes, Springer Nature

 

 

 

Christina is Head of Thought

Leadership Programmes at Springer Nature, where she is responsible for both the development and

execution of the organisation's thought leadership strategy. Christina is also

a member of the Editorial Advisory Board for the OAPEN Open Access Books Toolkit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marios Karouzos, Head of Publishing Strategy – Reviews, News

 

& Opinion, Nature Portfolio,
Springer Nature

 

Marios is responsible for the strategy

of the Reviews, News & Opinion content published in the Nature Portfolio.

In addition to his role, Marios is a member of the editorial steering committee

and a judge for the Inspiring Women in Science Nature Awards and co-chairs the

Springer Nature SDG 5 "Gender equality" working group and the

Springer Nature Women Employee Network.