Mentoring Unlocked

In this episode, Maud sits down with Jeff McKenzie, Sales Director for Australia and New Zealand at Lindt & Sprüngli, to unpack two decades of leadership, transformation, and the power of mentoring. From his early beginnings in HR at Streets Ice Cream to senior commercial roles at Pernod Ricard and now leading Lindt’s sales team, Jeff shares how curiosity and human connection have shaped his career — and his approach to developing others.For Jeff, success starts with relationships — building trust, understanding individuals, and fostering a culture where people feel valued. He credits his HR and psychology background for helping him see beyond transactions to the humans driving them.Jeff reflects on the lessons and people that have impacted his career and made him the leader he is today. 

From Blueprints to Breakthroughs: Mentoring at the Heart of Leadership
What does it take to lead complex projects, unite diverse stakeholders, and grow future leaders, all while staying grounded in human connection?
In this episode of Mentoring Unlocked, Maud Lindley sits down with Mark Tait, Group Executive and Head of Developments at Investa. With over 25 years in property and a legacy that includes iconic projects like 60 Martin Place and the Commonwealth Games Village, Mark reflects on the leadership lessons mentoring has taught him, and how he’s paying it forward.
From site engineer to executive, Mark shares how shifting from binary decision-making to broad, inclusive thinking transformed his leadership style. He opens up about the mentors who shaped him, the conversations that left a mark, and why mentoring isn’t just something he does - it’s a mindset woven into how he leads, listens, and builds trust.
In this conversation Maud and Mark explore:
Why the best leaders fight against making early conclusions and assumptions
How trust and vulnerability unlock meaningful stakeholder relationships
What mentees really need — and why mentoring is always a two-way street
How to give feedback that lands, without losing trust
Whether you’re mentoring others, leading teams, or navigating complex decisions, Mark’s wisdom on people-first leadership is both practical and deeply resonant.

What’s the real future of mentoring tech? 
That’s the bold question at the heart of this Big Picture episode of Mentoring Unlocked, where Maud sits down with Alex Richardson, Advisory Board Member at MentorKey. Alex brings over a decade of experience in the Australian mentoring space, including co-founding one of the country’s earliest mentoring platforms. With deep insights into both tech and human connection, Alex shares what truly drives impact in mentoring and where he believes the future is heading.
The episode dives into:🔹 Why AI won’t replace mentoring — but will enhance it🔹 The critical difference between data and dialogue🔹 What mentoring achieves that leadership programs can’t🔹 How program managers can make mentoring business-critical
This episode will shift how you think about technology, scale and the future of mentoring.

How do you use culture as a lever for performance — not just connection?
That question anchors Maud’s conversation with Amy Wild, Chief Operating Officer Corporate at Investa, who shares stories from her own mentoring journey — both as a mentor and a mentee — and what she’s learned about unlocking human potential in complex organisations.
Amy and Maud explore how mentoring can shift careers at pivotal moments — from quiet encouragement to bold feedback. Amy shares two powerful mentoring moments from her career that reshaped her confidence and leadership style — and the lessons they’ve taught her about how to support others.
The episode dives into:🔹 Why empathy and reflection are game-changers in mentoring🔹 How leaders can influence culture through behaviour, not just intention🔹 The importance of timing and trust when delivering powerful feedback
Whether you’re shaping a mentoring program or simply want to show up better for your people, Amy’s reflections are full of wisdom (and a few laughs).

How do you ignite self-belief in people? Especially when they lack relatable role models.
Exploring the answer to that question serves as the north star for Maud's conversation with Penny Ransom, Chief Investment Officer at LendLease, who mines her own experiences as both a mentee and mentor for insights you won't want to miss.
The pair take on how mentors can guide people to make sound career choices by better understanding their role in the relationship. As Penny observes: a mentor's strength isn't in offering direct advice, but rather encouraging mentees to examine their options and explore what's most important to them. 
Delving more deeply into leadership, Penny and Maud also unpack the misconception that higher-level leadership roles demand more work. They break down how seniority should mean greater flexibility not less, and how effectively delegating to a team creates more space to balance personal and professional commitments.

What if “no” isn’t the end of the conversation, but the beginning of a better question?
 
This powerful question sits at the heart of Maud’s conversation with Cynthia Scott, Group CEO at Zip — a leader whose career spans multiple sectors, and whose leadership story is marked by bold moves, deep reflection, and an unwavering belief in human potential.
 
For Cynthia, the turning point came when a mentor challenged her fear of the word 'no'. Guided purposefully by her mentor, what followed was a profound mindset shift: What if a “no” is simply your chance to ask why?
 
Cynthia reframed her approach to challenge, change, and mentoring. She shares why the best mentors act as mirrors — not handing over answers, but reflecting back your own voice and helping you see what you’ve overlooked. It’s a practice she now brings into every mentoring relationship, particularly when working with those who don’t yet see their own capability.
 
Cynthia’s insights are a timely reminder: mentoring isn’t about being perfect — it’s about being visible, being real, and asking the right questions to help someone else move forward.
 

How can our mentors help us break free from limiting beliefs and see the world in new ways?
This question is the core of Maud’s conversation with Julie Washington, Director of Talent Development at Serendis Leadership, who is "living the dream" with her role in shaping the leaders of tomorrow. 
The impact that a great mentor has on their mentee stems from understanding that the world is not black and white. The "a-ha" moment comes when both can challenge deeply ingrained perspectives that shape our worldviews. How? For one, helping mentees find their own answers means asking yourself, as the mentor: “What makes you think that what you are about to say is more important than what I am about to think?”
Julie also shares her story of going to school with Jamie Oliver - a man who by his own admission had trouble learning but has gone on to change the world, having found mentors that unlocked his talents. We can all learn something from Julie's take on Oliver, and where Julie and Maud ultimately land on the most transformative thing a mentor can do for their mentee. 

Episode 4 - Brett Himbury, Non-Executive Director and Senior Adviser
“Shut up and just ask a question." While this sounds confronting, encouraging a response with the right question might be the biggest lesson that a person can learn from the experience of mentoring? Especially at senior leadership levels.
Maud Lindley deep dives with Brett Himbury, former CEO of IFM Investors, to explore mentor listening, the art of sitting back and relaxing as a mentor, and hash out what "purpose" means in leadership. They look at how a strong sense of mission can shape decisions, even under intense pressure. Brett reveals a critical moment for him when his own mentor, Gary Weaver, inspired him to focus on understanding a person’s motivations as a pathway to understanding them as a whole.
Together, Maud and Brett unpack the power of informal mentoring moments, which can leave a lasting mark on careers. They also explore how mentoring can serve as a vital data source --an excellent opportunity for senior leaders to gain access to ideas they otherwise wouldn't have. They also dig into Brett's personal discovery of unconscious biases present in workplace dynamics, and how he came to understand why advocacy for diversity and inclusion in finance was so critical.

Episode 3 - Ingrid Massey, Head of P&C, CBRE
Does empathy matter for a mentor? Can it be taught? Or is empathy something some people are born with and others are not. 
Maud welcomes Ingrid Massey, Chief People Officer at CBRE Australia, to tackle these questions and more, seeking the answers in Massey’s own career which took her from advertising to being a senior HR executive with a global remit. 
Together they chart out the difference between sympathy and empathy. They explore whether empathy exists on a spectrum, share approaches for building empathy enforcing processes to strengthen the empathic muscle across people and organisations --shaping truly effective programs.
Ingrid discusses how to bridge the gap between generations when mentoring; the challenge of mentoring highly ambitious people whose ultimate goals are still many steps and years away, and the secrets to balancing empathy with business acumen to make it your superpower. 

Is what you think you want, worth wanting? Tough questions like this could revolutionise your life or the life of those you mentor --but they've got to be asked in the right context and by the right person. Luckily there's help aplenty in this episode of Mentoring Unlocked.
Maud sits down with Justin Clark, a legend in the executive coaching and technology space to unpack three decades of experience at the upper echelons of human enablement. Get ready for a master class in the art of mentoring and the joy of giving back and potent lessons like:
the "mini me" mentor trap and how to avoid it
Justin's "departure airport" touchstone for mentor mentee alignment
why its imperative that leaders today must be good mentors
And how trust is the magic wand that opens the feedback loop between mentor and mentee, allowing the kind of insights and growth to flow that will amaze even the most seasoned corporate warrior.