BMO Mentorship : Program Updates

The BMO Mentorship program at the Haskayne School of Business has been a flagship extracurricular enrichment initiative for over twenty years. Supported by the BMO Financial Group, the program provides opportunities to build connections and develop leadership skills. Mentors come from a wide variety of companies around Calgary and include many University of Calgary and Haskayne alumni, while mentees are University of Calgary students enrolled in the Haskayne School of Business. Directions for enrolling in the program can be found here.

In addition to the dialogue created between mentors and mentees, all participants have the opportunity to participate in three annual events: the Mentorship Kick Off, Mentor Connection, and Mentorship Wrap-up. The following were the events held over the 2024-25 academic year. 

The Mentorship Kick-off breakfast event featured a keynote and workshop led by Christine Dagenais, Founder and CEO of Bright Wire Leadership The event focused on the importance of mentorship, communication, and curiosity. Many participants highlighted the value of asking open-ended or “high-gain” questions to deepen understanding, with several mentioning the importance of curiosity in building strong mentor-mentee relationships. 

Held in January of 2025, the Mentor Connection event was opened to include community volunteers from other Haskayne Centres programs, and led by facilitators from Bright Wire Leadership, Ed Temple and Heather McMillan. The event then provided focused programming for volunteers and mentees, with separate workshops led by Ed Temple for community members and Heather McMillan leading the session for mentees. The objectives of both workshops were to enhance coaching and active listening skills, to engage Haskayne Centres' industry volunteers in a community-building event, to allow networking time for all participants, and finally to express appreciation for the time and dedication of participants in supporting the development of well-rounded, well-educated Haskayne students.

The final event was held on April 3 in the Mathison Hall Event Centre on the University of Calgary campus. The Mentorship Wrap Up event featured a panel discussion moderated by Haskayne School of Business Associate Dean Dr. Ari Pandes. Panel guests featured Celeste Mancina, mentor and CPA, Pembina Pipeline Corporation, Colby Delorme, mentor and President, Imagination Group, Danielle Bernier, mentee and MBA student, and Kiara Semeniuk, mentee and BComm student. The panelists discussed various aspects of their mentorship journey, including developing meaningful mentoring relationships, the role of mentorship in developing future leaders, and how the mentorship experience influenced overall understanding of networking and building professional relationships.

A successful mentorship relationship depends on the amount of time and effort invested by both mentors and mentees in creating a rewarding experience. The BMO Mentorship program is proud to be a part in creating experiential opportunities for Haskayne students.