Meet the Mentor: Alexander Szukalski

At Impact Hub London, one of our strongest networks is with our mentors who are on hand to help support participants in our programmes to achieve what they set out to do. Our mentors come from various backgrounds, specialities, industries and skillsets – but they all bring a desire to help pass on their knowledge to contribute to positive change.  So we want to introduce you to some of the people who are out there helping brilliant social enterprises to succeed!  Let’s introduce you to Alexander Szukalski, Major Project Strategy Director at Wates Group. Alexander believes that creativity isn’t decoration, it’s a tool for positive change. He channels his beliefs into his work, working with teams to turn ideas into meaningful action, helping people to move beyond safe thinking and build experiences that connect them with others.  Alexander was a mentor on our ASSETS programme, which is delivered in partnership with Wates Group. We chatted with Alexander about his experience of being a mentor and what it meant to him…  

So Alexander, how would you describe your experience of being a mentor?

I remember seeing the Wates bulletin for the ASSETS programme and thought, you know what, I think I could add some value here. It’s an opportunity to meet and engage with different people, from different backgrounds, doing incredible things. I’d also seen videos and stories shared from the previous year and people looked like they were having a great time! I was delighted when the email came through to me saying that I was selected to be a mentor for the 2025 cohort, and then connected to James Hunt of CAFGAS. He and his team are doing incredible things for his community, as well as providing an excellent plumbing, heating and engineering service.  

How has being a mentor on the ASSETS programme helped you in your own role? 

There are two things that come to mind for this question. The first is that at times it felt like a personal test of skills and experience. Like any journey, there’s smooth and rougher patches, and working with a new group, in a new environment, all trying to add individual value and collective impact, can be a challenge. However, these experiences are good for us and personally it felt great to be tested to find positive routes forward together to benefit James. Secondly, it was an opportunity to jump out of the ‘role lane’ and use different skills and experiences to support James. Opportunities to do this are special.  

What have you learnt from your time being a mentor? 

Listen, and listen good. This isn’t about us; it’s about the person we are supporting. Only when we have truly listened and understood their challenges, the positives, the exciting things, can we then be able to provide the right kind of support. Ask lots of questions, be curious and importantly, build a natural and positive partnership. You do the best work when you’re enjoying who you’re working with, so this is incredibly important.  

Throughout the experience, were you able to learn from those you mentored, as well as sharing your own knowledge with the participants? 

James’s personal story, and the work CAFGAS does with the community is unique and inspiring. You can’t help but to be drawn to James, his passion and enthusiasm for the work he does. He puts people first, often before himself, and this selfless pursuit to contribute to minorities and people in need is so admirable. When you are aware of this, you can’t help but want CAFGAS to grow, to help it grow and it be even more successful, because you know it’ll enhance his ability to further help his communities with even bigger impact.  

During your time as a mentor, what takeaways did you gain and take back to your own role? 

A reminder of the importance of teamwork and contribution. Whilst this is something I experience daily, this felt different. I felt a sense of responsibility to provide as much as I could. I didn’t want to leave the programme feeling like I could have done more. There is a balance, as you are providing mentoring additionally to your day-to-day work, but when you have an opportunity like this, you must make the most of it.  

What would you tell someone considering becoming a mentor? 

Do it! Put your name in the hat and get involved. I had the opportunity to meet people from across the UK, in such a positive and proactive environment. We’re surrounded by innovators, entrepreneurs, ground breakers and ‘movers and shakers’. The energy is electric across the entire programme. If you can, I’d 100% recommended getting involved.  

What would you say to a company who may be considering offering mentorship initiatives?

I am very fortunate that Wates play a major role in the ASSETS programme, so it was a very easy process for me to get involved and then throughout the entire programme, I was fully supported by Mouli and Su. The entire experience was seamless and people across Wates are fully aware of how great and impactful the programme is.  For any businesses and groups out there thinking about allowing their staff to take part in mentoring schemes like this, it’ll only be positive outcome for all. For all of the reasons I’ve shared in this interview.  Enabling people to help other people, provides an opportunity for personal growth in such an honest and authentic way. These experiences stay with us, as do the relationships we build with people. In a world where individualism is often praised, it can at times be a lonely venture, and it’s programmes like this that bring people together to do good things for others, where we can find the most fulfilment. –   We want to thank Alexander for sharing his experience and thoughts on being a mentor – we’re grateful to all those who have supported and worked with us on various programmes to provide this support to social entrepreneurs.   

About ASSETS (Assisting Social Enterprises to Succeed):

The ASSETS programme was launched in early 2021 in partnership with Wates Group to help social enterprises within the construction sector to achieve national scale. Since the pilot launched, ASSETS has provided intensive support, mentorship and workshops to participants to help them improve their organisation and set it up for sustainable success. The programme has helped 25 participants, provided over 1300 hours of mentorship and 300 hours of business support.  You can learn more about ASSETS by clicking here.  

About Impact Hub London: 

Impact Hub London is where purpose-led change-makers, entrepreneurs and organisations come together to build solutions for a fairer, more sustainable future. We enable and connect entrepreneurs with this mission with a wider ecosystem that helps to support them on this journey.  What we do: We offer affordable workspace solutions (coworking memberships, fixed desk, private offices), sustainable spaces for meetings and events, and impactful programmes within the social and environmental space. You can learn more about what we do by clicking here.