AWEC Mentor-Mentee Spotlight: Frank Linnehan & Eyiyemi Olivia Rogbinyin
Frank Linnehan & Eyiyemi Olivia Rogbinyin
Mentoring is a cornerstone of AWEC’s core programming, providing Fellows with the opportunity to engage with senior business professionals to discuss specific business challenges and continue their professional development. This piece is the first in a series of spotlights on Cohort 3 Mentor-Mentee relationships. Frank Linnehan is a third-year AWEC Mentor based in the United States. With a background in financial services and higher education, he brings years of experience and insight to his mentoring relationships. Eyiyemi Olivia Rogbinyin is a Year 3 Fellow and the Creative Designer of Eyiyemi Olivia Nigeria Limited, a dressmaking and apparel company with pieces tailored to fit into the work, leisure, and lifestyles of African women.
When you ask Frank Linnehan about his approach to mentoring, he will tell you that he is “establishing relationships to last.” His mentees over the years have always referenced how generous he is with his time. Eyiyemi Olivia Rogbinyin is certainly not the first, nor the last AWEC Fellow to exclaim, “He always reaches out!” Mentor-mentee relationships like theirs have continued to develop despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuing lockdowns, and economic fall out. It harkens back to a lesson Eyiyemi learned from a past mentor: “This is a two-way street, so I need to pull my weight as well.”
As a former university professor and dean, Frank considers mentoring to be a natural extension of teaching and his background working with students has informed his socratic style of mentorship. He finds that mentoring is not only something that he finds personally rewarding, but also provides him with opportunities to learn from his mentees. Eyiyemi explains, “What he knows he knows and when he doesn’t know, he will tell you ‘I will think about it and come back to you’ and he comes back to you.”
As an entrepreneur, Eyiyemi found financials to continue being a struggle. Earlier this year, she sat down with Frank for over an hour to review, rework, and fine tune her financial statements, empowering her to confidently put together her projections for 2021-2024. More recently, she has been working to nail down the inherent value she is able to provide to customers through her clothing business. With Frank’s guidance, she has been reaching out to clients to gain a clarity on her unique value proposition. He has also been keeping Eyiyemi accountable during their check-ins; as she says, “I don’t want to fail Frank!”
Frank’s Advice for Mentors:
Listen and don’t judge.
Don't assume you have to know everything.
Use your network to make connections.
Eyiyemi’s Advice for Mentees:
Value your mentors’ time.
Know what you are bringing to the table. It’s a two-way street.
Be strategic and clear about what it is you want to gain and to give.