The Mentoring Process
1. Pre-mentoring preparation
- Get in touch with your Mentee prior to introduce yourself, and check in with them what they hope to discuss. Take the opportunity to confirm the meeting.
- Consider organizational objectives, and expectations you have of the mentoring relationship.
- Prepare an agenda
- As a mentor, you would need to have an agenda in mind of what needs to be discussed.
- Start an agenda discussing up expectations with regards to the relationship. Make this a two way discussion.
- Allocate an estimated amount of time for each agenda item.
- Send out an agenda in advance, at least 4-5 days prior to the meeting.
- Familiarise yourself with BOLDLY, and key mentoring functions (sharing of activities/ accessing the Circle between you and the Mentee)
- If for personal or work reasons a mentoring session needs to be changed, inform the other party as soon as possible, and take the initiative to suggest an alternative.
2. Mentoring sessions
- Consider your personal presentation and non-verbal behavior, especially so for the first meeting (both face to face sessions, or online sessions)
- Go through objectives/ focus for session. If it is a follow up session, spend some time reconnecting, and review actions and insights gained from previous sessions.
- During discussions, allow Mentees to lead the discussion on things they want to talk about, and a mentor guides the conversation through active listening, and asking of questions.
- Consider articles, tools, and BOLDLY activities that you think might assist your Mentee in gaining new perspectives.
3. Post session follow up
- Set follow up expectations during the wrap up of the meetings. Mentors should encourage Mentees should take ownership of following up with mentors on next steps. However, mentors can choose to prompt Mentees should you not hear from Mentees.
- Send through articles, readings, videos you come across between mentoring sessions you find useful for Mentees.
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