With the launch of the CATA WIT Ottawa's Mentorship program this month, we took the opportunity to gather insight from some great mentors.

We caught up with Shauna Gamble, VP, Common Engineering Governance & Operations, and Co-Chair Nortel Women's Business Council of Nortel Networks, in between her frequent business trips around the globe on behalf of the company to get her insights on mentoring.

What is your position/responsibilities at Nortel Networks?
At present my title is: VP, Common Engineering Governance & Operations, Co-Chair Nortel Women's Business Council. My responsibilities encompass the management of the Common Engineering Services team. This team is a centralized organization in the CTO Office that institutionalizes common process, practices, project management and developer tool sets across the Research & Development Organizations within Nortel. Common Engineering Services helps Nortel to reach its business goals through R&D effectiveness and removing barriers to innovation.

What first inspired you to for a technology company?
My first introduction to the Telecommunications industry was through Revenue Canada, Customs and Excise department. I was working for a team that reviewed tariff classifications for imported components for telecom gear. I was intrigued by the growth potential within the industry that was evident by the increasing importation of components, semi-finished goods and finished goods that local companies were purchasing in Ottawa's very quickly expanding telecom industry.

Did you have a mentor at one or more points in your career?
Yes, I have been very fortunate to have had more than one inspirational mentor throughout my career. Both in the Government and in the telecom industry, both men and women.

Have you been a mentor at one point in your career?
I strongly believe in being a mentor. I encourage every person in a leadership role to take the time to share their career experiences, both the good and the bad. You will never have all of the answers and should not define the career path for a fellow employee, but rather share your reasoning behind some of the decisions you made in the past, some of your strengths and weaknesses and what you went through to work on that area. Re-enforce the human factor, because like it or not, we are!

Describe the role/activities of Nortel's Women's Business Council.
I have the great privilege to work with an amazing and talented group of women at Nortel. We all come from very different backgrounds and career experiences but believe in the same thing. I am particularly driven by the work that the Women's Business Council has done to help our new grad students, in particular the women, launch their careers in a manner that recognizes their potential. Nortel is a very large company with a very diverse product and service offering, and this can seem quite daunting for anyone new to the company. Women in Technology irrespective of the role means diversity! Diversity is key to the success of any business and Nortel has recognized this in a big way.

Coralie Lalonde, an angel investor with Katsura Investments, has extensive mentoring experience with both for-profit and non-profit organizations

Why do you give so much of your time to mentoring leaders from both the for-profit and non-profit sectors?
Although sometimes tempting, I don't believe any one of us can claim complete responsibility for our successes. In addition to many moments of just pure luck, I had help from so many people who influenced and guided me in so many ways. Of course my longest mentoring relationship was with my parents who, among everything, taught me that I could do anything in the world. And since they also taught me not to question their wisdom, it never occurred to me to doubt them! Along the way, there was the grade 8 math teacher who would stay after class to feed and nurture my budding love for equations. There's the figure skating coach who went way beyond her job and tolerated very little nonsense to teach me self-discipline. And there were so many people in the Ottawa business community who probably have no idea how much impact that coffee or those many conversations had on me. Now it's my turn.

What do you feel are the characteristics of a good mentor-mentee relationship?
Mutual respect would be number one and that involves listening as much as speaking. It's like baking a cake. The mentee brings the ingredients, the mentor brings the kitchen supplies, and the recipes are created together. Also, it is important to remember that the role of the mentee is to build skills, not solve problems. Baking the cake yourself doesn't help the mentee the next time she needs to bring something to a pot-luck!

Why would you encourage other equally busy women in technology to become mentors and to give back to the community in other ways?
In addition to the fact that it is "pay back time", let me give two other reasons. Firstly, I think mentoring strengthens your own skills. Businesses and people may face similar challenges but the circumstances, tools and options are usually unique. Helping to guide people through different situations will expand your own toolkit of solutions, that is, help you create a bigger cookbook. Learning is a two-way street and you are likely to get as much out of a mentoring relationship as you put in. Secondly, I think mentoring strengthens the community as a whole (both for-profit and non-profit) and a stronger community benefits everyone in the community. Having more and stronger leaders in a shorter amount of time can only be a good thing.

When is the right time to start mentoring?
Now. As soon as you have learned something, it is time to pass it on. When you are in your graduate year of university, you have so much to offer new students. A new business owner can help those who haven't started theirs yet and an experienced business owner can help those less experienced. Or help a non-profit organization gain access to and build the amazing skills that you have developed. Start today.

How does someone get started or find opportunities to be a mentor?
All you have to do is be open to it and the opportunities will become apparent. Say 'Yes' when someone asks for your input over coffee. Or, at your next networking event, talk to some of the new people and offer them a coffee. There are more formal ways such as getting involved in the Tech Venture Challenge, a program that provides an opportunity for technology students to work with business leaders (www.techvc.org). I've been volunteering with them for eight years and I've developed relationships with many former students who kept in touch as they went on to become successful businesspeople. Or sign up as an ENGAGE! member, a program designed to encourage and support entrepreneurs and business leaders in giving back to their community (www.engageottawa.org). They have launched a workshop series that may be of interest. Or visit Volunteer Ottawa's website (www.volunteerottawa.ca) to find a volunteer position in the non-profit community.