A CPA mentor and mentee share three career-changing insights they gained through the CPA Alberta Mentorship Program
Seham Mohamoud was over the moon when she reached her goal to successfully negotiate at work for the first time.
“I felt so empowered,” says Seham. “That’s what working with my mentor, Nadine, has given me.”
Seham is a CPA candidate who works as a Team Accountant at Crescendo Accounting and Consulting in Calgary. As the only junior candidate currently in the firm, and without many CPAs in her personal network, Seham signed up for the mentorship program in hopes to get advice about how she could reach her dreams.
She also hoped that her mentor would be a black woman like herself, but wasn’t sure if it was okay to make this request. She was happy to learn that, as part of CPA Alberta’s commitment to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in the accounting profession, mentorship pairing preferences were expanded last year to include BIPOC, geography/place origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, parental leave/return to work, and ability.
Seham was paired with Nadine Niba CPA who works as a Manager of Risk Assurance, Compliance and Analytics at PwC in Calgary. As a former newcomer to Canada, Nadine feels strongly about supporting others, including black women, to become established in their careers. “The fact that we had a similar background really helped us build trust and see ourselves in each other,” says Nadine.
Through their mentorship relationship, both professionals have experienced valuable career growth. Below are a few of their key learnings from the program training that set them up for success.
1. Learn what mentorship requires from you
Both Nadine and Seham agree the training provided at the start of the program was an enlightening experience that helped them understand mentorship on a deeper level.
For Nadine, the topic of identity helped her make an exciting career transition for herself, and the topic about giving advice was very useful in supporting Seham.
“This really helped me in my approach to mentorship,” says Nadine. “Mentees often have the answer to their question within themselves, but they may not have the confidence to apply that answer. The goal of mentorship is to empower mentees.”
She explains that through the training, she learned to ask questions like, “Why do you think this is important?” and “What were you thinking to do in this situation?” Nadine noticed this helped Seham realize she herself has the answers within her. “In helping her find the solution, it grew her confidence,” says Nadine.
For Seham, the training taught her to come prepared for her meetings with Nadine with topics that she wouldn’t be as comfortable discussing with others.
2. Be open about your career challenges
The opportunity to speak with Nadine, an experienced CPA with a similar background to Seham—but who she doesn’t work with—made Seham feel at ease with asking questions.
“Any career topic that I would I feel uncomfortable discussing with others, I knew I could bring up with Nadine.”
Those questions led to the pair identifying a goal that Seham could work towards with Nadine’s support. In this case, it involved Seham learning how to articulate the value she brings to her work.
“There’s nothing quite like hearing someone, who has a similar background or life story as you, say: I did this and you’re going to be able to do it too.”
Seham Mohamoud, Mentee
Nadine recognizes that speaking openly, both as a mentee and as a mentor, requires trust. “I think when you have a mentor who can really listen and ask you the right questions, it builds trust. It also takes being open about your own experiences and challenges to step into the role of a mentor.”
3. Think about your future self
Through their conversations, Nadine says she often sees herself in Seham and reflects on her own career experiences and challenges.
“I had similar challenges in my career as Seham, but I didn’t handle them the way I would have liked because I didn’t have a mentor to talk to. I wish I had and asked the kind of questions that Seham asks me.”
Looking back on her own experiences helps Nadine to consider how she wants to prepare for her future.
“This is a learning opportunity for me that makes me think ‘what can I do better now,’ so that I won’t look back five years later and say I wish I had done this or that,” she says.
Seham agrees that thinking about your future self can help you understand the goals you need to work on now.
Empowering each other
A guideline of the CPA Alberta Mentorship Program is that mentorship is a mutually beneficial relationship. Both Seham and Nadine say that their experiences in the program have been empowering in their careers.
Seham says, “There’s nothing quite like hearing someone who has a similar background or life story as you say ‘I did this and you’re going to be able to do it too.’”
Nadine sees the opportunity to be a mentor as an honour and looks forward to continuing to mentor Seham and others in the future.
“Being a CPA was a childhood dream for me. I am living my dream, that’s why I am so happy to help others attain that same goal.”
Nadine Niba, CPA and Mentor
“Being a CPA was a childhood dream for me. I am living my dream, that’s why I am so happy to help others attain that same goal.”
Apply to become a mentor or mentee!
The CPA Alberta Mentorship Program is now open for applications. The deadline to apply is August 15.
To learn more about the program, visit https://www.cpaalberta.ca/Services/Career-Centre/Mentorship-Program.
If you have any questions, please email mentorship@cpaalberta.ca.
