From Potential to Power: 3 Takeaways from Our Webinar on Mentoring Women into Leadership

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On July 10th, we were proud to host From Potential to Power — a live webinar on how structured mentoring can accelerate women into leadership.

The session featured three extraordinary voices: Dame Sharon White, one of the UK’s most senior business and public service leaders, Valentina Passoni, organisational development expert and mentoring strategist, and our very own Maria Ardila, Growth and Mentoring Consultant at PushFar.

The webinar brought together L&D, DEI and HR professionals from across sectors to explore what’s holding women back - and what we can do about it.

If you missed it, you can watch the recording on demand here.

1. Representation Isn’t Enough — Structure Matters

Dame Sharon White opened the conversation with a powerful reminder that representation at the top is still far from equal — particularly for women of colour.

“I would not have had the opportunities I’ve had without some very key people in my life — particularly my mentor, who I’m still in touch with ten years after our official programme ended.”

But to go further, she said, organisations need more than good intentions.

“A particular programme can’t just come out of outer space… there has to be a conversation about what’s going to make us a really successful, high-performing organisation. And then the mentoring comes from that.”

Valentina Passoni made the case for structured, strategic mentoring that supports women with clarity, confidence and progression — not just connection.

2. Design for Progression, Not Participation

Many mentoring programmes focus on pairing people up — but Valentina urged attendees to go deeper.

“You need structure. You need accountability. It’s really tricky to be ambitious when you're working from an Excel sheet.”

She shared a research-backed six-month framework with checkpoints, prompts, and leadership visibility moments — all designed to help mentees not only set goals but reach them.

She also reframed “impostor syndrome” as a learned response to systemic exclusion, and reminded the audience that mentoring can help dismantle internalised barriers — not just reinforce them.

3. Allyship Isn’t Optional — It’s Organisational

A key theme of the discussion was the importance of designing inclusive programmes — without creating a zero-sum perception.

“A woman’s success shouldn’t feel like a man’s loss,” said Sharon. “We need to move beyond that. It’s not an exclusive club.”

She reflected on how younger generations, particularly boys raised by working mothers, are entering the workforce with different assumptions — and how important it is to bring them into the conversation.

“We need male colleagues to be part of this — not just as allies in principle, but as mentors, sponsors, and leaders who care about equity.”

What’s Next?

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the webinar — and for the brilliant questions we didn’t have time to answer live.

We’ll be following up with a copy of our free downloadable guide: Mentoring for Impact – A Practical Framework.

If you’d like to explore how PushFar can help you build a mentoring culture that supports progression, visibility, and inclusion — we’d love to talk.

👉 Book a 15-minute strategy session with our team