Mentorship often does more than teach new skills. It also helps you recognise the value of the experience you already possess. Drawing from her experience as a mentee in Batch Nine of the Comms Mentoring Programme (CMP), Wilbient Chepng’etich Cheruiyot reflects on three lessons that brought greater clarity to her career journey. Read on to learn more about Chepng’etich’s mentorship experience on the CMP programme.
When I joined the Comms Mentoring Programme, I was looking for clarity.
Having worked in communications coordination, stakeholder engagement, project visibility, and graphic design support within international development projects, I had developed a broad range of skills. However, I often found myself asking an important question: How do these experiences fit into the broader strategic communications landscape?
One month into the programme, I had gained valuable insights that are helped me better understand the communications profession, identify my strengths, and chart a clearer path for my career growth. Through mentor-mentee sessions and workshops facilitated by experienced communications practitioners, three key lessons stood out to me:
1. Strategic Communication Is About More Than Communicating
One of the most eye-opening lessons from the programme was understanding that strategic communication goes far beyond creating content, managing visibility, or disseminating information.
During our mentor-mentee discussions and the workshop on the behaviours and mindset of a strategic communicator, I began to appreciate that communication professionals are expected to contribute to organisational goals, influence decision-making, and build meaningful relationships with stakeholders.
This shift in perspective challenged me to think differently about communication. Instead of focusing solely on outputs such as reports, social media posts, publications, or visibility materials, I started asking broader questions:
- What is the objective behind this communication effort?
- Who are the key stakeholders?
- What behavioural or organisational change are we trying to achieve?
- How can communication contribute to the overall strategy?
For me, that was an important mindset shift. It reinforced the idea that effective communicators do not simply share information; they help organisations achieve impact.
2. Understanding Communications Roles Helps You Define Your Own Path
Another valuable learning experience was exploring the different roles within the communications profession.
Communications is a diverse field that includes strategic communications, public relations, corporate communications, internal communications, digital communications, stakeholder engagement, media relations, advocacy communications, brand management, and development communications, among others.
Through discussions with my mentor, I realised that many professionals enter the field with transferable skills acquired through different experiences. However, career growth often requires a clear understanding of where one’s strengths and interests align within the profession.
One particularly useful exercise was the skill-mapping exercise. By assessing my existing skills, experiences, and areas for development, I was able to identify strengths that I had previously underestimated. I realised that much of my experience involved competencies that are directly relevant to strategic communications. Before the exercise, I had viewed these responsibilities primarily as coordination tasks rather than strategic communication skills.
For example, coordinating communications processes across multiple countries, supporting stakeholder engagement activities, managing visibility outputs, and working with diverse project teams are all experiences that contribute to strategic communications practice.
The exercise also highlighted areas where I need to continue building my expertise, particularly in communications strategy development, strategic planning, and positioning.
Most importantly, it helped me understand that career transitions are not always about starting over. Often, they involve recognising the value of existing experience and intentionally building on it.
3. Positioning Yourself Is Just as Important as Building Skills
One of the most practical lessons from the mentorship programme is the importance of professional positioning.
Many professionals possess valuable skills and experience but struggle to articulate their value clearly. Through the positioning statement exercise, I learnt how important it is to communicate who you are, what you do, and the value you bring.
Developing a positioning statement required me to reflect deeply on my professional journey, identify recurring themes in my experience, and define how I would like to be perceived within the communications field.
The process was not easy. It required moving beyond job titles and focusing on the unique combination of skills, experiences, and strengths that differentiate me.
This lesson was reinforced during the CV writing workshop, where we explored how to present our experiences strategically rather than simply listing responsibilities. A strong professional profile should tell a coherent story about where you have been, what you have achieved, and where you are headed.
In today’s competitive communications landscape, visibility and positioning matter. Developing technical skills is important, but being able to communicate your professional value is equally critical.
Looking Ahead
Although only the first month into the Comms Mentoring Programme, the experience had already broadened my understanding of the communications profession.
One surprising realisation was that I had been focusing heavily on gaining new qualifications while overlooking the value of the experience I had already accumulated. The mentorship sessions encouraged me to look at my existing skills through a different lens.
The mentor-mentee sessions encouraged self-reflection and career planning, while the workshops on strategic communication behaviours, communication strategy and planning, and CV writing provided practical tools that I can immediately apply in my professional development journey.
Perhaps the most important lesson is that becoming a strategic communicator is not just about acquiring new skills. It is also about developing the right mindset, understanding where your strengths fit within the profession, and intentionally positioning yourself for growth and impact.
For anyone considering mentorship, I would encourage you to embrace the process with curiosity and openness. Sometimes, the greatest value lies not only in learning something new but also in discovering the strengths you already possess.
