Aug. 1, 2022
The NBAA Mentoring Network continues its important mission, with sign-up for the 2022 season starting Aug. 22.
The network was launched in 2018 to provide students and young professionals insights into the many benefits of a business aviation career, and promote the industry’s commitment to inclusion and diversity in a highly competitive labor market.
Now in its fifth year, the program has connected hundreds of mentees with professionals from across the business aviation community. The 2022 season, which is expected to exceed the more than 600 participants who participated in the 2021 season, will begin Sept. 26 and run through to May 2023.
“I can honestly say that the NBAA Mentorship Network truly was a life changing experience,” said NBAA Manager, Marketing Ashley Granada, “My mentor, Lyndse Costabile, took me under her wing, and she still provides real insights and guidance through the friendship that grew out of this experience. It’s an amazing program and I hope that other young professionals have the opportunity to experience this.
The success of the Mentoring Network has prompted a new approach to connecting mentors with mentees, with NBAA introducing an online portal that allows participants to make more informed and nuanced decisions about their mentorship partner.
This year’s mentors represent more than a dozen career paths within the business aviation industry, including pilots, technicians, senior executives, flight department managers, directors of safety and sales and marketing. Mentees are typically students and young professionals, although previous seasons have proven that people with more established careers, including senior executives, can also use the program to deepen their industry knowledge and gain new perspectives.
“The NBAA Mentoring Network has been an outstanding success, and we continue to evolve the program to ensure it produces the best results for all participants,” said NBAA Manager, Operations Noah Yarborough, who coordinates the initiative. “Our new user interface encapsulates our commitment to continuous improvement by giving mentees a more detailed understanding of the expertise of our mentors and ensuring that we connect them with the industry professional most appropriate to their needs.
“Our Mentoring Network has also had a powerful impact on the business aviation community, with many of our mentors returning year after year,” he added. “This is a great opportunity for experienced professionals to collaborate with our next generation of business aviation professionals at the beginning of their career to provide the guidance and insight that will help our future leaders build on our industry’s current successes.”