Mentor the next generation of Indigenous commercial leaders
At some point in your career, someone used their influence to accelerate yours. They advocated for you, created exposure and shifted your trajectory.
We're building the next generation of Indigenous commercial leaders ready for senior decision-making roles, and what will accelerate their trajectory is mentorship and sponsorship.
Possibly by you.
Too often, highly capable Indigenous professionals are steered toward Indigenous Affairs, stakeholder or social-impact roles. These roles matter, but they rarely build P&L accountability, capital-allocation authority or operational experience.
Over time, that well-intentioned steering diverts exceptional talent away from the commercial experiences required for executive leadership and board authority.
Mawal is building the pathway to the first Indigenous ASX-100 CEO and that requires experienced commercial leaders to step forward who can mentor in modern capital and risk management, and bring that lived experience into real conversations.
Mentors – Provide development guidance to Mawal Scholars through structured conversations on leadership, judgement and commercial craft.
Career sponsors – Support advocacy and access to Mawal Scholars through credible introductions and access to opportunity.
Many senior leaders want to contribute meaningfully to leadership equity but hesitate because they're unsure how to engage without being tokenistic or symbolic. We've designed something structured, purposeful and commercially serious.
About Mawal Mentoring
In the third phase of the Mawal Leadership Program (scholarship pathway), Scholars build exposure across multiple experienced leaders through our mentoring model, because authority grows through networks, not single relationships or conversations. The full mentoring program offering is detailed here.
Why you?
We're seeking Indigenous and non-Indigenous leaders with meaningful commercial exposure. This may include C-suite executives, board directors, managing directors and general managers, founders and partners, or senior leaders with exposure to commercial decision-making.
Held P&L or balance-sheet accountability
Navigated capital-allocation decisions
Managed commercial risk
Sat at for-profit executive or board tables
Built, scaled or governed companies
How it works
You don't need to have all the answers. You simply need the experience to turn real decisions into teachable moments.
The time commitment is approximately 1–3 hours per month over six months, commencing mid-year.
Intentionally structured as a networked model so rather than a single exclusive pairing, Scholars build exposure across multiple experienced leaders. You contribute to a broader leadership ecosystem, not one isolated relationship.
What you’ll gain
Sharpen your judgement, expand your perspective and deepen your understanding of how cultural intelligence and capability intersect.
Mentors gain meaningful insight into high-potential emerging executive talent, and access to selected Mawal cultural modules and structured mentoring guidance so you feel confident and equipped in the role.
Ready to raise the ceiling?
Mawal Scholars are already building careers across corporate and entrepreneurial environments and are operating at an inflection point in their leadership journey.
They bring capability, ambition and strong cultural grounding. What they seek is deeper exposure to capital allocation, commercial risk and senior decision-making: the experiences that shape executive and board-level trajectories.
This is your opportunity to influence the long-term commercial fabric of Australia and shape a leadership legacy that endures beyond your own tenure.
The mentoring program offering is detailed here.
It only takes around five minutes to sign up. Or if prefer to talk first, reach out for a chat.
Please note there are limited placements each year to preserve quality, alignment and impact.
Join the growing cohort of experienced commercial leaders who have stepped forward to put the ladder down.