The Hemofarm Foundation mentorship program began with a full-day interactive workshop held by the H.art Development center aimed at getting to know the mentors, Hemofarm Group experts and mentees, the best final-year students at the medical, pharmaceutical, technological, biological, chemical and technical faculties of electrical and mechanical engineering, who are financed from the budget of the Republic of Serbia.

‘Being a mentor is first and foremost a personal satisfaction, because you support a young person without experience to find the right path towards their personal and professional development.’ Participating in the program ia a challenge to invest in my own personal and professional development through the exchange of knowledge and experience with the mentee, Violeta Dolovac, Hemofarm Group Stability Development Manager said.

In order to make a mentorship relationship successful, it is important to plan in advance, agree on the agenda, hold regular meetings with the mentor, regularly evaluate the progress, the experts of the H.art Development center said, noting that some of the topics that can be discussed at meetings with the mentor are: Setting priorities - how to focus energy, attention and action, personal organization, motivation and learning, teamwork, forming and leading teams, delegating, topics related to the specifics of the mentee's profession, planning, starting and managing projects, how to evaluate one's own work, relationship and balance between professional and private life, etc.

Summarizing the impressions from the workshop, Jovan Baljak from the Faculty of Medicine in Novi Sad said that he believed that the program would have a great impact on his personal and professional development, as well as that he would get useful advice on how to direct his further career and improve his leadership skills through conversations with mentors, experts from Hemofarm. ‘I see the program as a unique opportunity to feel the difference between academic and business work,’ Jovan Baljak said.

His colleague from the program Marija Mitrović from the Faculty of Medicine in Belgrade says that every new experience is of great importance for everyone, especially when it comes to their personal and professional development. ‘I am grateful for the opportunity to acquire new knowledge and improve soft skills.’ I am also happy because of the new acquaintances and experience I will gain, which I believe will be an advantage in my further work and career,’ Marija Mitrović concluded.

Hemofarm Foundation launched the Mentorship Program in 2017 as an additional form of support for young people with the aim of personal and professional development, as well as the exchange of knowledge, experiences and contacts between mentors, Hemofarm company experts and mentees, Hemofarm Foundation scholarship holders. The program involves boosting capacities of future experts in the field of healthcare and pharmaceutical industry, creating a positive environment for their employment and motivating them to apply the acquired skills in Serbia. The mentorship program takes place through the independent work of mentoring couples, trainings, ‘speed-dating’ sessions, workshops and open lectures with the aim of improving general and professional knowledge and skills necessary for further personal and professional development of young people.