Guiding the next generation: An ARITA Mentoring Program profile
11/08/2025
The 2025 ARITA Mentoring Program facilitated in partnership with This Friday has fostered a mutually beneficial growth experience for mentee Richard Smee and mentor Michael Brennan, with Richard seeking an external perspective to broaden his thinking and clarify his professional purpose, while Michael aimed to contribute back to the profession through sharing his learning experiences. The program's external design was key, allowing honest, holistic conversations free from internal politics and power imbalances. A key takeaway from the program for Michael is the importance of effective communication and active listening, recognising that explaining the ‘why’ behind decision-making ultimately empowers younger staff.
The modern insolvency profession, dynamic and highly technical, demands continuous development and a broad, strategic perspective. The 2025 ARITA Mentoring Program, run in partnership with This Friday, offers a structured yet flexible framework for achieving such professional and personal development for both mentee and mentor. Richard Smee, Senior Manager at Merchants Advisory, and Michael Brennan RITF, Director at SV Partners, exemplify how their engagement with the external mentorship program has enhanced understanding, refined purpose, and reshaped professional interactions.
The transformative power of external mentoring and mutual growth
For Richard, the desire to broaden his perspective and learn from someone who had navigated the ups-and-downs of a constantly evolving field was a significant draw to participating in the program. While admitting his current firm had quite capable mentors, the specific appeal of the ARITA mentorship lay in connecting with someone with a different perspective from outside his firm, who could help him take the next step in his career.
“I just wanted to connect with someone in the industry who has walked the path that I'm on at the moment, that could guide me in achieving those goals that I've already set for myself in doing this job,” Richard said.
“And given it's a highly technical line of work and constantly evolving, it's really been a drawcard to see someone else look at it from a different perspective as well.”
Motivated by a symbiotic desire to "give something back to the profession", Michael meanwhile saw the program as an opportunity to help others learn from his own experiences.
“I've reached that point in my life and career where I can see that I probably would have made some different life choices if I'd had some different feedback … so, helping people learn from other’s mistakes is a great way to avoid them yourself,” he states.
Their initial interactions quickly established a strong rapport. Richard describes Michael as a "salt of the earth person,” and reveals their open engagement allowed for "honest conversations about a whole range of things, from the technical side of the industry to career progression... to leadership of junior staff, providing guidance to creditors, [and] shifting stigma".
For both Michael and Richard, the external nature of the mentoring relationship was pivotal to such open dialogue. Reflecting on the difference between external and internal mentoring programs, Michael noted:
"One of the really enjoyable aspects to dealing with someone that's not in my firm is being able to talk more on a holistic basis about the profession, and about things that don't get into the granular side of what we do."
"I have no agenda on how Richard deals with his files on a day-to-day basis. It's really just about him, and so it completely changes the dynamic of the discussion".
Learning from experience: Michael Brennan's guiding philosophy
A cornerstone of Michael’s approach as a mentor is leveraging his own career and life experiences to guide his mentee. He articulates how this approach is rooted in self-reflection that hopefully builds a deeper sense of purpose for the mentee:
"Being able to look back and reflect with a bit of gratitude and some constructive kindness is a really important part of it these days, because you can't really teach someone if all you're doing is bagging yourself and saying you did a poor job here or you could have done better.
“So, I think you've really got to start with a position of self-kindness and then look at what lessons can be learned from that."
This approach was established early on, where Richard recounts that one of Michael’s initial questions was "Why do you do this job?" which in turn prompted the mentee to objectively consider his purpose in insolvency. Richard adds that this challenging, introspective framework ultimately laid the groundwork for setting tangible goals towards becoming “the practitioner I want to become one day".
Michael adds that he also focuses on preparing his mentee for significant responsibilities ahead, particularly the "massive change in terms of personal obligation and personal exposure" that comes with being a registered liquidator or trustee. This long-range guidance ensures Richard not only develops technically but also stays grounded about his future responsibilities.
To translate these discussions into action, the pair set a series of goals that are practical in nature, while also pushing Richard outside his comfort zone. Specifically, he was encouraged into activities like networking events and building a professional online brand, with the modest, achievable targets ensuring the mentee stayed engaged in the process.
How external mentorship can mutually redefine communication and leadership
The mentoring program has also served as a learning experience for Michael, increasing his awareness of the evolving nature of communication in the profession, particularly when interacting with younger generations, something he considers "the biggest challenge for people in my generation.”
He says the "old system of just, ‘Get it done because I've asked you to,’ doesn't work [anymore],” and now believes that providing knowledge-hungry junior staff with the reasoning behind decision making builds trust and team cohesion, as “providing staff with the understanding of why you make decisions [means] they can see where it's coming from.”
Michael adds that this type of proactive communication can potentially lead to beneficial workflow outcomes, as once staff appreciate “how your decision process works and what your risk appetite is, they can pre-empt that," creating efficiency gains in the workplace.
Richard’s engagement with Michael reflects this thirst-for-knowledge mentality and the importance of effective communication with emerging practitioners, recounting how conversations with Michael have prompted a deeper appreciation for stakeholder relationships and insolvency in the wider community, with the profession needing to show “we're not the enemy … we're here to help.”
The shared journey of Richard Smee and Michael Brennan through the mentoring program underscores the profound benefits of external mentorship, and Michael strongly advocates for external mentoring as an "absolute key requirement for any staff" who aspire to leadership positions within the profession. It is a relationship where the mentee gains a broader perspective, clarity of purpose, and practical skills, while the mentor reflects on their own experiences, refines their leadership and communication approach, and contributes meaningfully to the future of the profession. This symbiotic relationship helps shape not just individual careers but the fabric of the insolvency profession.