Aspire: Enriching careers and fulfilling potential

Aspire is an initiative we have developed to help maximise opportunities for talented minority ethnic professionals to enrich their careers and take on roles that fulfil their potential. Across nearly all sectors, the proportion of minority ethnic staff diminishes considerably in proportion to seniority and is almost nowhere representative of the overall community. A number of factors are believed to contribute to this, ranging from selection bias in appointment panels to specific cultural constraints within top team cultures and to challenges in individual confidence. Aspire, a Minerva initiative run in partnership with the British Council, is a cross-sector career support and guidance programme targeted at those who have their sights set on reaching a senior leadership position.

The programme has been co-developed and is co-delivered with Fiona Bartels-Ellis, Global Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at the British Council. The programme (a) gives participants career-building tips and advice, such as how to build a personal brand, write a strong CV and engaging cover letter, use social media effectively, and perform well at interview; and (b) also explores minority ethnic identities, social capital, critical race theory, code switching, (un)conscious bias and imposter syndrome, etc.

The programme is offered through a mix of face-to-face engagement in the Minerva offices in London and online participation. It comprises contributions from external speakers alongside insights which we, as headhunters, are able to give on what it takes to be successful in a recruitment process for either executive or non-executive appointments. Each participant will also be offered the chance to have an individual session with a member of the Minerva team, allowing the time and space for more personalised career support. To ensure equity of access, Aspire is entirely pro-bono.

We have run the programme each year since we launched in 2019. Participants have given incredibly positive feedback. Several have now gone on to more senior roles in their own or other organisations, citing Aspire as having plated a critical role in prompting their motivation to progress and giving them the tools, ambition and confidence to succeed.

We’ll be running the next programme in Spring 2024. If you are interested in participating in Aspire or would like to recommend someone to us, please contact us.

The dates are as follows:

Session One : Thursday (18^th April 2024 – in person), location details are provided below

Session Two : Thursday (2^nd May 2024 – on-line)

Session Three: Thursday (23^rd May 2024 – on-line)

All three sessions will run from (16:00-18:00)

Location for Session One:

Minerva Office

4^th Floor, 4 Snow Hill

London, EC1A 2DJ

Networking Event : Thursday (27^th June – 17:30 – 19:30 – in person), location to be confirmed