“Mentoring is to support and encourage people to manage their own learning in order that they may maximize their potential, develop their skills, improve their performance, and become the person they want to be.”
Potential benefits for mentors:
• Satisfaction in serving altruistically and supporting the development of
others
• Satisfaction of being able to transfer skills and knowledge accumulated through extensive professional practice
• Increased enthusiasm and self esteem
• Opportunity to enhance mentoring, coaching and communication skills
• Opportunity to re-examine own practices, attitudes, and values
• An expanded network of colleagues
• Learning from the mentee’s experience and knowledge
• Professional recognition for skills and expertise while gaining fresh perspectives and opportunity for staying abreast with emerging issues.
Potential benefits for mentees:
• Increasing professional self-confidence and self-awareness
• Accessing mentor’s accumulated knowledge and expertise
• New insights into own behaviour and practices
• A sounding board for new ideas and/or working through challenges
• Obtaining a role model
• Increasing work and personal satisfaction
• Acquiring skills and knowledge
• Enhancing career development opportunities
• Encouragement, support, and constructive feedback
• Reducing feelings of isolation
Critical components are:
• Trust
• Open communication
• Setting standards and expectations.
• Commitment to own learning and development
• Self-awareness and behavioural awareness
• Willing to commit to and make time for the mentoring relationship
• A genuine interest in mentee’s growth and development
• Specific job-related skills and expertise
• Prepared to share knowledge and own experience (including lessons
learned and mistakes made where relevant)
• Discreet and observes strict confidentiality
• Good interpersonal skills
• Objective, supportive, and honest
• Treats the mentee as a colleague
• Recognizes the limits of their own expertise and experience and clearly communicates that, and refers the mentee to other professionals when appropriate
• Seeks to understand and is respectful of the beliefs, personal attitudes and values of others - even if different
• An awareness of different learning styles.
Being clear about their goals and how the mentor could support them
• Arranging meetings and setting the agenda
• Completing the necessary pre work
• Completing agreed follow-up activities.
• Committed to the mentoring relationship and focused on attaining their goals
• Discusses with the mentor what they want to get from the relationship and the type of guidance and support that would be helpful
• Realistic about what the mentoring relationship can deliver
• Prepared to be challenged, try new approaches and take risks
• Receptive to feedback and coaching
• Shows initiative
• Potential to perform at a higher level
• Aware of own strengths and weaknesses and willing to discuss failures and successes
• Willingness to apply learning back in the workplace
• Respects and maintains confidentiality throughout and following the mentoring relationship
• Respects the beliefs, personal attitudes, and values of others - even if different
• Respectful of the mentor’s time and resources
• Respectfully gives feedback to their mentor on what is working well or not so well in their mentoring relationship
• Is on time for meetings with the mentor and gives adequate notice if the meeting is to be postponed
• Follows through on agreed tasks.
1. Prior to the first meeting with a mentor, mentee should write down at least three things that they would like to achieve through mentoring. Rank the three items in order of importance.
2. Mentee should write down at least three things that they would like their mentor to provide as part of the relationship.
3. Prepare a CV to share with your mentor when you first meet. Be sure to also include your own vision, mission, or life goals.
Establishing the relationship, reiterating confidentiality, discussing objectives for the mentoring relationship, as well as current and career objectives, and then planning timing/regularity of ongoing meetings would be appropriate.
(A meeting 30 mins every 2 months and a longer meeting every 6 months)
should involve a recap of previous discussions, some discussion of progress towards goals and any new issues, along with a Mentee-led discussion of options and likely actions to progress further or address issues
- What is happening now?
- How would you like it to be different?
- Options?
- Action?
Overall, the focus should be on active listening, open questions that promote the Mentee’s self-reflection, and some sharing of the Mentor’s experience and expertise.
