The Legend of the Mentor and 30 Legendary Mentors

WITH A NEW PROGRAM, CEO CONNECT YOUR EXECUTIVE MENTOR, MYTHOLOGY BECOMES REALITY AND 30 GRADUATE STUDENTS WILL MEET THEIR TRUSTED ADVISOR CHOSEN FROM THE SAME NUMBER OF CEOS

Those who have been lucky enough to have a mentor often remember this figure and role in an almost mythical way. And in fact, it is precisely to Greek mythology that we must return to find the traces and origins of Mentor, son of Alcimus. In the Odyssey, Ulysses entrusts the baby Telemachus to him before leaving for the Trojan War. And the goddess Athena (Minerva for the Romans) was to take the form of Mentor to support Telemachus and, during the elimination of the suitors, to instill courage in Ulysses and support him in the battle. The spread, however, of the word mentor to define the figure of the trusted advisor is due to a novel by Fénelon, “Les aventures de Télémaque”, where the mentor is that character who gives precious objects and advice to the hero.

From mythology to reality: thanks to the new CEO Connect - Your Executive Mentor program, 30 Bocconi students enrolled in the second year of an MSc will soon meet their mentors who will help them become more aware of their professional aspirations.
One student for each of the 30 CEOs who joined the program with the spirit of sharing, through discussion, a part of their professional success to guide their mentee on the path to achieve their goals. At their disposal they will have four meetings that each couple can decide how best to plan and use.

"The exceptional nature of this program lies in the quality of the mentors: all CEOs who have chosen, in a true perspective of giving back and generational solidarity, to take on the role of mentor for our students", explains Gianmario Verona, rector of Bocconi . "A feature that unites them is the experience in contemporary companies that look at current issues of digital transformation and sustainability with particular attention. A specific sensitivity of this generation of CEOs but also of generation Z, who look at the world and their professional future with the eyes of true visionaries ".

"The mentorship experiences I have had over time and the great value I have received from them for my professional and personal growth, have led me to be a staunch supporter of all forms of mentoring", says Luca Colombo, Country Director Facebook Italia, who with Bocconi has developed CEO Connect. “For this reason, in recent years, both in Facebook and externally, we have worked to develop and implement programs that favor the transfer of knowledge and experience and that could have a concrete impact on the growth of the people involved. I am therefore excited to be part of this initiative that offers talented students at Bocconi the opportunity to interact with different mentors when entering the world of work and receive valuable suggestions and indications on their career path and professional development."

“Mentorship is one of the most important opportunities for those who are approaching the job market, especially in a time of such important changes”, explains Antonella Carù, director of the Graduate School. "The program we are launching represents a unique opportunity for our students, achievable thanks to the commitment and proximity to Bocconi of a group of extraordinary leaders who have decided to make themselves available to our students. I am sure that for the 30 students who will participate the experience will be extremely enriching, but I am equally sure that it will also inspire the leaders involved"
 
The companies participating in CEO Connect are:
Amplifon
Barclays
Be | Shaping the Future Italy
BNL
Danone
DAZN
Digital Magics
Dynamo Academy
Dyson
Facebook
Fastweb
Ferrero
Henkel Italy
Houlihan Lokey
Jakala
JP Morgan
KIKO
Mars Italia
McKinsey
Mondelēz
Nestlé Italia
Oliver Wyman
René Caovilla
Saint Laurent
SC Johnson
Spotify
UBS Europe SE, Italy Branch
VMLY&R Italy
Vodafone
 

by Barbara Orlando
Translated by Richard Greenslade