A minute with a mentor: Julie Brotherton

As part of promoting the valuable mentoring support delivered through Boost’s Growth Mentoring programme, we highlight some of the mentors behind the scenes that work with Lancashire businesses. So take a break for a minute and read about business mentor Julie Brotherton, who specialises in effective leadership.

Why did you choose to become a mentor?

It’s an ideal opportunity to use my own experience to help and support local businesses. I’m particularly keen to work with female-led businesses and throughout my career I have tried to encourage women in leadership. I’m born and bred in Lancashire and have lived here all my life, although I travelled a lot during my career, so I’m passionate about growing Lancashire businesses.

How do you make a real difference to Lancashire businesses?

By bringing the lessons I have learned in large corporations to help local business leaders. I work with business leaders by listening to them and really understanding their challenges, in order to give them different perspectives and maybe more clarity and insight. Sometimes they are so close to the problem, they don’t actually see it!

What is your area of expertise and why is it an important area to for business leaders to address?

My area of expertise is in effective leadership (and why it’s different to ‘management’) – and building effective relationships both within the business and with clients. As businesses grow, what has worked for them in the past may not work for them in the future, so it’s important they can delegate appropriately, communicate effectively, and can set a clear direction for the business.

What has been your most inspirational moment as a mentor?

There have been several, and it’s when I can see I’ve made a difference.. It’s when the business leader sees the real and positive impact of the changes they have made as a result of our mentoring sessions. It‘s seeing their confidence grow. It’s seeing them realise that they can take that all-important step back from the day-to-day operation without everything falling apart. It’s seeing them recognise that when they empower their team, the sky is the limit.

What are the key challenges for Lancashire businesses at the moment?

As with every business at the moment, the biggest challenge will be how they engage with the post-pandemic business environment. For some, there will be opportunities they could not have imagined 12 months ago. For others, it will continue to be extremely difficult.

As a mentor, what are your three business growth tips?

1. As your business grows, you can’t (and shouldn’t!) do everything yourself. To grow the business you need to become less operational, and more strategic. 2. Empower your teams by letting them know clearly what you expect from them, and then let them get on with it, but be there if they need you. 3. Build trust into every single relationship and work to maintain that trust. Boost Growth Mentor - Julie Brotherton Julie Brotherton is now semi-retired after a successful career across a variety of leadership roles in a large multi-national IT company. She has also run her own executive leadership and coaching business.