Dear APSS Community,

I wanted to write to you personally with a quick update on the APSS Mentorship Programme — and to say thank you first.

Thank you for the excitement, the sign-ups, the messages, and most of all, the belief that mentorship still matters in a fast, noisy world. This programme exists because of that shared belief.

Now, a little honesty.

We introduced an AI-enabled submission and matching platform to support this year’s mentorship. During beta testing, it worked well. 

When we opened it to the full community, a few gremlins appeared — unable to submit, duplicate submissions, unable to see entries, your video links are private & not accessible. If you were affected, I see you, and I appreciate your patience.

Innovation has a funny way of teaching humility. You plan carefully, you test thoroughly — and then real life walks in and says, “Let’s learn together.” But we will not shy away from AI. 

So here’s what we’re doing.

We’re extending the submission deadline to give everyone breathing space.

We’re also doing manual checks and intervention behind the scenes to make sure no one is left out or disadvantaged.

If you’ve submitted and aren’t sure whether it went through — please don’t stress. Talk to our sub-comm team. We’ve got this.

Updated timing

• New mentor submission deadline: [Now to 15th Jan 2026]
• New mentee submission & update deadline: [Now to 20th Jan 2026]
• Matching & confirmation: [21st to 30th Jan 2026]
• Programme start: [15th Feb to 15th Jul 2026]

What’s coming up next (and why I’m excited about it)

Given the shortened timeline, we’re also evolving the programme — in a way that I believe actually strengthens it.

The Mentor Masterclass will now be a virtual sharing — focused, intentional, and easier for busy leaders to join while still creating meaningful connection.

For mentees, please contribute to submit & update your video when ready. Whether you get your mentor depend on the quality of your video. You need to include a short video sharing where you’ll speak about:

• why you want mentorship,
• what you’re hoping to gain,
• and what you bring to the relationship.

Before that, we’ll be releasing short guidance videos from within our APSS community on how to show up clearly and confidently on camera. Not to perform. Not to impress. But to be seen — so the right mentor can see you too.

A final thought

Mentorship — like our speaking journey — is rarely perfect. But it is powerful when there’s trust, intention, and goodwill on all sides.

Thank you for staying with us as we build forward-looking programmes while honouring the human heart of this community. Innovation has its bumps, but I truly believe we are better for taking the step together.

More updates soon. I’m really looking forward to this journey with you.

👉 Apply here: https://apssmentoring.base44.app/

More information: https://my.asiaspeakers.org/Mentorship-Program

Love,

Exco Mentorship Programme:

Anne Phey (+65 89723149)

Mentorship Subcommittee:

Jass Malaney (+65 91994344)

KiaLi Poh (+65 97847845)