From the boardroom to the front line
From the boardroom to the front line: Carole Ditty on opening doors to opportunity
As Chair of The Brokerage’s Board of Trustees, Carole Ditty helps guide the charity’s mission to make professional careers more accessible. But her commitment goes beyond the boardroom. By volunteering directly with young people, she is helping them build the confidence, skills and connections to take their next steps.
At The Brokerage, we know that meaningful social mobility takes more than good intentions. It takes people who are prepared to share their knowledge, open up their networks and help young people see what might be possible for them.
That’s why we want to start Carole Ditty’s story with a thank you.
As Chair of our Board of Trustees, Carole plays an important role in supporting The Brokerage’s direction and ambitions. Alongside this responsibility, she has made time to volunteer at our in-person events and online mentoring sessions, including mock assessment centres, interview preparation and careers sessions with legal professionals.
We know how valuable leadership, governance and strategic support are to a charity. But when those who help guide our mission also choose to give their time directly to the young people we support, it brings that commitment to life.
Carole’s involvement reflects a genuine belief in what The Brokerage does — and in the potential of the young people who come through our programmes.
A personal understanding of the barriers
Carole’s commitment to social mobility has been shaped by her own professional journey. Before moving into consultancy and non-executive roles, she was Head of Legal at a construction and property development business. Throughout her career, she has remained closely involved in social mobility initiatives.
When she stepped away from executive life, she wanted her non-executive work to focus on organisations and causes that reflected her values. Taking on the role of Trustee and Chair at The Brokerage gave her the opportunity to use her skills and experience to help others flourish professionally.
But Carole also remembers what it felt like to be starting out.
Despite having a strong CV, she had no personal connections to the City or legal profession. Ahead of her first interviews and placements, she felt intimidated and unprepared, with little access to the informal knowledge and guidance that can make entering a professional environment easier.
Looking back, she recognises how much an organisation like The Brokerage could have helped.
“I am so glad that I can now work with the Brokerage to support young people to achieve their ambitions and access the opportunities they deserve.”
Her experience reinforces a central principle of The Brokerage’s work: talent and ambition should determine how far a young person can go, not their background or the connections they happen to have.
The power of seeing potential first-hand
One encounter at a mock assessment centre has stayed with Carole.
She met a young man who was balancing a full-time job with his commitment to the programme. Although he had no direct experience of the City or professional services, he was able to recognise and explain how the skills he was developing at work could transfer into a professional career.
He spoke openly about the challenges he faced and the opportunities he hoped to pursue. Carole came away both humbled and inspired by his determination.
His story demonstrated something important: young people do not always need someone to tell them what they are capable of. Sometimes, they need the opportunity to recognise their own strengths, understand how those strengths translate into a career and show an employer what they can do.
For Carole, meeting young people like him brings the purpose of The Brokerage’s work into sharp focus. It is about looking beyond someone's starting point and recognising the potential that might otherwise be overlooked.
Small conversations, lasting impact
For Carole, one of the most rewarding aspects of volunteering is seeing how much a young person can gain from a conversation with someone who has already navigated the professional world.
After years in a career, explaining how to prepare for an interview, approach a professional conversation or present your experience can feel straightforward. For someone taking their first steps, that same advice can be transformative.
“I am always amazed that a few minutes of my time, to discuss things that are now second nature to me after many years of professional life, can have so much positive impact for a young person starting out in their career.”
That is one of the reasons Carole actively encourages others to volunteer.
The commitment need not be extensive, and volunteers do not need to spend hours preparing. Their existing knowledge, professional experience and willingness to answer questions can make a meaningful difference.
For young people without established professional networks, these conversations offer more than practical tips. They provide a safe, non-judgemental space to ask questions, explore unfamiliar territory and begin building the connections that can help them move forward.
Read Carole's Q AND A with The Brokerage here:
A two-way exchange
Carole is clear that volunteering is not simply about passing knowledge from one generation to another. The young people she meets bring their own perspectives, questions and experiences — and she learns from them, too.
“The young people I meet are inspiring and I feel that each interaction teaches me something as well as giving me the opportunity to pass on advice and tips based on my knowledge and experiences.”
This exchange is particularly important in a changing world of work. As artificial intelligence develops and professional roles evolve, technical knowledge alone may not be enough. Curiosity, communication, adaptability and the ability to engage authentically with others are increasingly valuable.
Carole believes The Brokerage’s focus on these skills helps young people prepare not only for their first opportunity, but for the workplaces they will go on to shape.
The charity’s employer partnerships are equally important. Placements and internships give young people the chance to experience professional life first-hand, understand what different roles involve and put their developing skills into practice.
Together, practical experience and personal guidance help turn the idea of a professional career into something young people can see, explore and work towards.
Why The Brokerage makes a difference
For Carole, what distinguishes The Brokerage is the personal nature of its approach.
Volunteers and young people meet in person or online, in settings where participants are encouraged to be curious, ask questions and discuss the challenges and opportunities ahead of them.
The aim is not simply to prepare candidates for a single interview or event. It is to help them build the understanding, confidence and connections they can draw on as their careers develop.
Carole also sees the commitment of the wider Brokerage community — its volunteers, corporate partners and funders — as a reason to be optimistic about what the charity can achieve.
She describes The Brokerage in three words:
Inspiring — seeing first-hand the determination, talent and ambition of the young people.
Encouraging — witnessing the commitment and support of volunteers, partners and funders.
Exciting — seeing the programmes in practice and the plans to deepen their impact.
These three words capture the collective effort behind social mobility: young people prepared to take their next steps, professionals willing to share their experience, and organisations committed to making opportunities more accessible.
A commitment that goes beyond the boardroom
As Chair of The Brokerage’s Board of Trustees, Carole helps support the charity’s mission and its ambitions for the future. By also volunteering directly with young people, she brings that commitment into the everyday conversations and experiences that can make a real difference.
Her story is a reminder that social mobility is not just something to support in principle. It is something people can help make happen — by sharing knowledge, giving time and helping others see possibilities they may not have considered.
For the young person preparing for their first assessment centre, the student wondering how to enter the legal profession or the candidate who has the skills but lacks the confidence to communicate them, a conversation with someone like Carole can help make the next step feel possible.
As we celebrate 30 Years. 30 Stories., we want to thank Carole for the time, insight and personal commitment she brings to The Brokerage, both as Chair and as a volunteer.
Because opening doors takes a community. And when people are willing to step beyond their formal roles to help others succeed, the impact can reach far beyond a single conversation.
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