Melissa Storey, First Car Rental’s Executive Head of Strategy, Development & Marketing, has been invited to mentor for the prestigious Phakama Women's Academy for the second consecutive year.

First Car Rental is also the official transport sponsor for Academy, and will be driving the graduate students of 2015 to and from their lectures.

Launched in 2014, the Phakama Women's Academy is a VWV initiative aimed at empowering young women studying marketing-related courses by giving them the skills they need to rise up in the corporate world.

This year, 32 women from three tertiary institutions - the University of Johannesburg, AAA and Vega - were selected for the programme. Mentorship forms an integral part of the Academy, with each student spending one-on-one time with her mentor throughout the programme.                         

The programme also concentrates on practical skills training, with students attending modules that cover subjects such as presentation skills, developing your personal brand, CV development, interviewing skills, stress and time management, and personal finance.

This year, Storey will be mentoring Itumeleng Ndaba, a third-year student studying Advertising at the Vega School of Brand Leadership.

Says Storey, “I thoroughly enjoyed mentoring on the pilot programme last year, and look forward to getting to know Itumeleng. This pioneering programme provides talented young women with the skills and experience needed to excel in the workplace, rising to become business leaders of the future.”

Says Koo Govender, CEO of the VWV Group and founder of this industry-first initiative, “Although our first set of students we mentored were inspired and confident, there is something truly special about this year’s young women, and we are looking forward to working with them and mentoring them in the weeks ahead.”