A Note From Our Head of WISP Tandems
by Anna Reucker, Women in Security and Privacy
Dear WISP Community,
As the Head of WISP Tandems, I am happy to share the story of our Tandem Program, the vision behind it, and exciting news about the future of Tandems.
The idea: peer-to-peer mentoring
Our peer-to-peer mentoring program connects security and privacy professionals who have different backgrounds, expertise, and different networks. Why? We believe that you bring unique value to your women peers, no matter which career stage you’re at.
Why it works
We believe in the Tandem Program because of a real life example: the start of WISP. We started off two years ago as a group of seven women who met regularly to share and learn from our different professional expertise. With varying backgrounds and experience levels, we all contributed to and benefited from this partnership. We focus on bringing the same value to members of our WISP Tandems program.
How it works
When you sign up as a Tandem partner, we ask you to list your areas of expertise and areas of interest. Why? Peer-to-peer mentoring relationships work best if each partner has different areas of experience. Ideal Tandem partners complement each other’s knowledge and skills. To further this goal, we do our best to match you with a Tandem partner who can help you deepen your expertise or provide you with a new perspective.
How to get started
Sign up to be a Tandem and to read our Tandem Principles. You are free to manage your Tandem relationship according to your schedule and needs. Our Tandem Principles are designed to help you with establishing and maintaining a fruitful partnership.
News
So far, the Tandem program has focused on the 1:1 relationship between Tandem partners. Now, you can stay in touch with all Tandems and discover who else could be a great match for you:
- All current Tandems can join our WISP Tandems LinkedIn Group, to exchange mentoring tips and ideas, and to make new Tandem connections.
- We invite you to join regular events to learn about mentoring and network with other Tandems. We will have Tandem meetups at WISP events and dedicated Tandem events for everyone who is part of the program, or interested. Stay tuned for announcements!
We love to hear how we are doing. If you have any suggestions or positive experiences to share, please fill out our Tandems Survey or contact me to share your feedback and ideas.