Meet Christopher Smith....

​Looking to excel my career and broaden my network, I started attending Aberdeen Young Professional events in 2015. I enjoyed the discussions and presentations offered during the events but I was unsure of the networking aspects surrounding them (I was quite cynical of their benefits and success). Having enjoyed previous events, I decided to attend the 2016 AYP Meet the Mentors event where I met and spoke with a range of the mentors (and others) throughout the night.
 
I was lucky enough to be chosen by Neil Smyth, construction director for Morrison construction, as I am looking to create a similar career path to what Neil has created for himself. I hope to draw on his experience and knowledge from within the industry to begin better shaping my career. Similarly to Neil, I am willing to learn and progress by covering any field that is required, often learning by the mistakes you make along the way.
 
Following the selection/pairing process our interactions have been limited due to an array of personal and work commitments we have been unable to truly begin the mentoring process. Committing to the AYP mentor scheme in May, I didn’t expect to find difficulties to commit to an hour or so every fortnight/month to meet over a coffee. While we have not been able to meet my mentor, I have been critically analysing my progress on weekly and monthly basis. While I discuss these to a certain degree with my manager, I am looking forward to extending these discussions with my mentor.
 
We have been able to set a date in the calendar in the coming weeks and I am looking forward to meeting him. In preparation for meeting my mentor I have been setting goals and expectations for the scheme to agree a programme to set some benchmarks against. I am sure when we meet these will be refined to a mutual agreement to map a progression plan for the remaining 9 months or so (hopefully our relationship can extend beyond the limits of the AYP mentor scheme).

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