Conor Morrison on Mentoring: “Being a Mentor Is a Two-Way Learning Experience”

Interview with Conor Morrison, Principal Consultant and UK lead Pride@Capco at Capco

Hi Conor – thanks for chatting to us! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

My name is Conor Morrison, I am the UK lead for our LGBT+ network – Pride@Capco. I am a Principal Consultant within our Banking and Capital Markets practice. I work with our clients to help them solve a wide range of technical and non-technical problems, particularly within the Risk and Regulatory Change areas.

What do you think the role of a mentor is?

In general terms, I think of the role of a mentor as being one that offers insight and guidance from one’s own experiences as well as fostering a relationship that encourages open dialogue and support. Sometimes this can involve very structured conversations around career progression and navigating the corporate environment or it can be much more fluid in helping to solve issues or problems the individual may be facing.

I believe that it is a holistic role involving all aspects which contribute to maximizing potential and contribution such as wellbeing, breaking down our own misconceptions and networking.

A good mentor should be able to demonstrate the values they are encouraging their mentee to aspire to and be accessible as and when support may be needed.

How long have you been a mentor?

I have been a mentor for around 6 years in several organisations. I have been encouraged by the value that those organisations have placed on mentoring schemes. I first got involved when I was a mentee and acted as a ‘reverse mentor’ within a pilot scheme at the time. As my career progressed, I became more interested in coaching and developing my teams so it felt like a logical step to advance from mentee to mentor!

In your opinion, why is being a mentor important and what are the personal benefits?

I believe that in an LGBTQ+ context we have all experienced barriers and hostility at times. Even today while it isn’t acceptable in professional services organisations to be hostile towards LGBTQ+ employees, there can often be an unconscious bias.

My own belief is that education and open dialogue around experiences can help to address issues that sometimes may arise. As a mentor, having mentees who are not from the community can be a great way of letting others hear a different perspective and breaking down barriers.

I genuinely believe that being a mentor is a two-way learning experience. I find that it is a great way of challenging my own beliefs and understanding which can be very thought-provoking. I find that it also widens my own knowledge base across different areas of the firm hearing about my mentee roles. It has greatly increased my network within the organisations I have worked in and given me good job satisfaction at times knowing I have made a difference.

Do you think it is important for LGBTQ+ mentors to be out to their mentees?

Authenticity and the concept of ‘Being yourself at work’ are two principles that are highly valued here at Capco. While I think it is perfectly feasible not to be out to mentees, I believe it provides for a much richer experience on both sides. I would strongly recommend being out to mentees as I believe it fosters more open dialogue and allows direction and guidance to be put in context.

If one aspires to be a role model I think it helps to be transparent and form grounds for dialogue that is built on honesty and openness. Being that way has been shown to provide a range of benefits both for us in the way that we work and ultimately the benefit received by our clients.

What are your goals as a mentor?

For me, it’s about making a difference to someone which is something that will look different for every mentee. There is not a ‘one size fits all’ approach and I think the skill is really in putting yourself in someone else’s shoes. As a mentor, I aim to work with the individual to help them identify and break down the barriers they experience for them to progress and add value to themselves and the organisation.

I get great satisfaction when my mentee is able to work through a problem with me and we can identify a solution that neither of us on our own would necessarily have thought of. The power of changing small things is greatly underrated and my goal is to work with my mentees to really understand their situations and address their key problems in the workplace.