A+E Networks' Mentorship Program Guides an Enterprising Employee to a New Career Path

Late last summer when AE debuted the program David Dunlap Senior Director Broadcast and Media Solutions signed up to serve as a mentor while Caitlin MoorePenaskovic Business Analyst Enterprise Media Solutions threw her hat in the ring as a menteeDunlap had some experience with mentorship having worked with the National Center for Women ampamp Information Technology as an advisor The nonprofit organization works to advance innovation by increasing representation in the fields of computing and technologyquotThis was something I was interested in because I would have the ability to mentor someone within AE which I thought was very valuablequot Dunlap said quotI39ve been doing this for a very long time and had experience both good and bad that I thought I could impart to somebody who wanted to be coached and mentoredquotAs part of her application to the program MoorePenaskovic set some specific goals Dunlap was her top choice as a mentor because she felt he was the best fit for what she was looking to achievequotIt wasn39t something I entered with expectationsquot she said quotIt39s not something you can assume will lead to XYZ You have to have luck on your side and opportunities opening up at the right timequotMoorePenaskovic had spent the first decade or so of her career working in and around ad sales She was interested in making a move to Information Technology and she wasn39t entirely sure how to go about doing that While it39s always hard to meet and form relationships with people while working within a big corporation that39s become even more difficult during the pandemic with everyone working from homequotI was making steps towards a move into IT I had joined a coding boot camp for examplequot MoorePenaskovic said quotWhen I saw the notice for this mentorship program I knew it would be a great way to meet people outside of ad salesquotOnce her application was accepted she was introduced to several mentor options Dunlap was her first choice because his experience and current position closely matched the career move she was looking to makeBesides meeting with her regularly Dunlap also set up oneonone conversations between MoorePenaskovic and other executives at AE including some in AE39s IT department He invited her to sit in on department meetings to see what they did and how they operated as well as educated her about AE39s business requirements technical deployments and morequotIt was an evolution based on our conversations and I was very proactive as far as taking David up on every opportunity that he offered mequot MoorePenaskovic explained quotI have had experiences in the past where I didn39t have a clearcut goal but this was a very different experience because I was hungry for something I was looking for something specificquotIn the past few months or so a position opened up in AE39s Enterprise Media Solutions As a result of the mentorship MoorePenaskovic felt qualified to apply After a rigorous interview process which did not include Dunlap she got the job and became a business analyst in AE39s Enterprise Media Solutions department There she operates as a liaison working with producers sales teams and developers as she supports the mediaasset management solution IPV ClipLinkquotIt39s such a gift to have a mentor and I was lucky to be matched with someone who was willing to go the extra mile for mequot she saidWhile MoorePenaskovic now works for one of Dunlap39s direct reports she and Dunlap keep their mentorship relationship separate from her daytoday job She does not plan to reenter the mentorship program this year because she39s busy learning how best to perform her new job but Dunlap does plan to take on a new menteequotWhat I39ve learned is that you39ve got to be prepared because you don39t know when opportunities are going to present themselvesquot Dunlap said quotCaitlin did all the right things and was receptive to my coaching and recommendations She was hungry to change career paths She just didn39t know when or if an opportunity would present itselfquotquotI wish I had a mentor early on in my careerquot Dunlap concluded quotI had to go through a lot of trial and error While that39s valuable I think if you have someone who is not your direct supervisor or a parent who can come in and provide you with guidance that39s also extremely valuablequotAE Networks is launching year two of the program in late AugustClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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A+E Networks' Mentorship Program Guides an Enterprising Employee to a New Career Path

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Paige Albiniak

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