The pensions industry is a great one but, if we’re honest… it can, at times, lack diversity. I loved that NextGen was prepared to give younger individuals a platform from which their voices could be heard. It’s an opportunity for us to bring life into an industry that is going to play an important part in all of our futures here in the UK.

NextGen’s mentoring programme

I signed up to join the 2020 cohort of the mentoring programme. To be honest, I was interested to see who I might meet as a result. During Covid it was hard to meet new people so I thought this was a good step to take. The interesting thing about the mentoring programme is the team take time to match what you are looking for as a mentee to those who are doing the mentoring. It facilitates introductions to industry leaders who are genuinely helpful to you and the conversations that you have are really productive.

I started Zatori 18 months before a pandemic – having a mentor to help me navigate my way through the last 18 months has been invaluable. They’ve helped me completely transition Zatori’s services away from the clunky recruitment services we all can get a bit frustrated with. The launch of a talent acquisition subscription allows us to work a lot closer with clients, delivering even more value to them. I honestly believe the new solution ‘talent’ is absolutely the way forward but my mentor gave me the confidence to go and execute it. To have them on hand to help structure the solution, critique marketing and even provide honest feedback on pricing structures was a game-changer for us.

As a result we’ve developed a genuine, trusting, relationship. They were happy to introduce me to specific individuals within their network to help solve specific challenges Zatori were facing. This is where the benefit of having one mentor compounds. I’m now pleased to say as a result of my mentor, Julian Mund, vouching for me, I have 2 other mentors who I trust, who I know I can go to for advice without judgement… all because NextGen was happy to pair people in the industry. It’s amazing to see what can be achieved when individuals pool their connections.

Connection to a wide, varied network

By working with the mentoring programmes I’ve been introduced to NextGen’s broader initiatives to improve the industry. The PMIxNextGen conference last year was great to be a part of. I felt it shone a spotlight on some really important topics from remote learning to D&I. They pride themselves on not just having the same speakers and it really showed in terms of the content. Individuals really did voice an opinion which was great to see… others can play it a bit safe at times.

There are a couple of initiatives that are in the planning stage which we hope to launch over the next 12 months which is exciting…

NextGen is a pensions melting pot. The individuals are there because they’re passionate about the industry and don’t believe you need to be white and male (with 20+ years’ experience!) to have a seat at the table…

 If you would like to know how you could develop your career, it’s great there are people there to help. If you have something you need help with, their mentoring programme is brilliant. If you’ve got an idea but can’t implement it by yourself, they have a fantastic platform and will help you.

It’s free to join – what have you got to lose?

Martin Wigfield – Partner at Zatori Consulting

Martin is mentored by Julian Mund – Chief Executive of the PLSA via the NextGen mentoring programme

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