Sharing Experience: How to Develop A Mentoring Programme for Women- Lessons Learned and

Best Practise from UK Experience

Inova Consultancy

Sheffield, UK

10th – 11th February 2012

Getting Started: First Steps to Develop a Mentoring Programme

UK Experiences 1: Lessons Learned from Past Mentoring Programmes for Women

UK Experiences 2: Sharing Best Practice in Running Mentoring Programmes for Women

Getting Started: First Steps to Develop a Mentoring Programme for Women

What is the process?

Mentors/ Mentees WorkshopsMentor/ Mentee Application FormMatching ProcessMentor/Mentee ‘contracting’Circles for mentorsEvaluation and monitoringForms: Mentoring Agreement

Learning log

Why a Mentoring Programme?

To enable a cultural change/shiftTo develop personal or career related

outcomesTo develop a learning and development

culture in the organisation New approaches /further development to

current mentoring programmes

What is Mentoring?

“The process of change and growth brought about by the interaction of two people”

“ A method of achieving personal goals faced by different people with unique concerns”

D. Clutterbuck and D. Megginson

Mentoring Business Case

Recent CIPD (Chartered Institute of Development) surveys have reported that the use of coaching and mentoring as development tools are on the increase within organisations. According to those who responded, 72% use formal mentoring schemes and 63% undertake coaching activities as part of their wider Human Resource Strategy.

Workplace Coaching and MentoringExploring the Key Differences To Maximise Personal Development© Jo Lamb-White

In CIPD’s 2006 survey of HR Directors and Managers, over 99% of respondents stated that coaching and mentoring delivers tangible benefits to both individuals and organisations.

(Peter Webb- Impact of Executive Coaching)

What do Mentors get from a mentoring relationship?

I am learning from this experience and getting as much from it as I hope my

mentee is.

The most worthwhile aspect of the meeting for me was the realization that although my

mentee is a high achiever and a very confident and capable

individual she could still benefit from a mentoring relationship.

I felt that we were well matched and the first session was relaxed and enjoyable.

I enjoyed meeting my mentee and passing on my knowledge and

experience of the university system. She appears to have

realistic career goals and expectations. I would like to see

her succeed.

What do Mentees get from a mentoring relationship?

I felt quite excited when I left (the mentoring meeting) and nursed a real sense of possibility for future

change; that maybe I could progress my career in a direction which felt both appropriate and

worthwhile. For me the single most productive outcome was the fact that in order to

progress from lecturer to senior lecturer it isn’t simply a matter of ticking enough boxes in terms of teaching/admin etc. It is about

quality and innovative teaching, and therefore how my CV is structured to ‘sell’ those points is really important.

This whole session was excellent.

No-one has ever demonstrated such an

interest or invested so much time in my career

progression – thank you!

The 2 hours taken out of my work load to meet with my

mentor has far ranging influences on the rest of my working experience. I value her advice and I feel that my

strategic vision has improved.

TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGE

Ways of seeingMovementProgress

Ways of seeing….

Ways of seeing….

Summary of Benefits

Respondents report that they have benefited from:

The chance to reflect on their own practice Seeing their own situation from another

perspective Greater insight and information about the

wider systems in which they work Being in a learning partnership – it works both

ways.

3 models of Mentoring

Skills approach

The Business Case (coaching)

Consciousness seeking (reflective Practice)

Megginson 2004

What skills do people need? How are they developed?

To improve organisational performance

To reflect on own practice and identify areas for development

UK Experiences 1: Lessons Learned from Past Mentoring Programmes for Women

4 Phases of Mentoring Process

Establishing rapportDirection SettingProgress makingMoving on

Make sure that all Mentors, Mentees and Mentoring Co-ordinators are aware of the Mentoring Process Phases

Establishing rapport

Suspend judgementBe open to different paradigms, hints and

concernsClarity about what must be open and what

can be left outEstablish formal contract and agree way of

workingSet up details of future meetingsAchieve rapport

Direction Setting

use and interpret diagnostic toolsencourage thinking through of implications

of diagnosisset up gaining information from third partieshelp selection of initial area for workgive feedback/set objectives/planbe clear about next step

Progress Making

monitoring progress relationship review and renegotiation recognizing achievements/objectives

attained timing and managing the evolution of the

relationshipEnabling self-reflection

Moving on

address feelings of lossdevelop next phase and/ororchestrate a good ending think through and generalize learning and

establish way forward

Mentoring Life Cycle

MENTORING CYCLE Gaining Commitment Getting Involved Getting Together Getting to know each other Working together Learning together Review & Evaluation Saying goodbye

RELATIONSHIP CYCLE Looking for a partner ‘going out’ ‘meeting’ ‘courting’ ‘engagement’ ‘marriage’ ‘memories’ ‘parting through death,

divorce, etc

FlexibilityPaperwork (not obligatory)Mentoring Circles originally only for mentors

but also for mentees nowConsider time needed to manage a

programme carefullyEach pair that meets has 2 forms to

complete, arranging Circles, matching etc.Highly resource intensive

Consider using outside facilitators for Mentoring CirclesMentors & Mentees have valued external

facilitation for confidentiality reasonsPerhaps utilising past Mentors/Mentees to

facilitate sessions?Consider longer mentoring relationships

Many mentees want longer mentoring relationships with mentors- consider resource implications of this

Be open to matches outside fieldSome Mentors were concerned that they

wouldn’t have specific knowledge, but matches outside area have turned out to be a good thing

Consider meeting venue carefullySometimes cafes are too distractingCan be intimidating for mentee to come into

mentor officeConfidentiality/anonymity issues

Consider having 4 meetings instead of 3First meeting is a ‘hello’ & get to know youSecond meeting starts true mentoring

processBe open to using paperwork to help with

structuring sessionsWhilst initially reticent about paperwork,

some pairs have found it useful for focus

Importance of attending Circles Individuals (particularly mentees) have

found these useful for group support & meeting other women

Mentors have found these useful to share ideas about mentoring process

Suggestions for Further Developing a Scheme

More visibility for the pilot programme would be appreciated by mentors and could help to recruit new mentors within the university e.g. internal newsletters, bulletin boards, events,

quotes from mentees/mentors etc.

Managers need to recognise mentors and include this aspect in appraisals

Tap into enthusiasm and commitment to scheme of past Mentees (becoming Mentors)

Consider using male Mentors

Suggestions for Further Developing a Scheme cont..

Consider using grassroots managemente.g. BT example

Presentation ceremony to give certificates in recognition of time/commitment for Mentors & Mentees

Funding/grants for development of the scheme?

Cascade mentoring possibilities?

UK Experiences 2: Sharing Best Practice in Running Mentoring Programmes for Women

Running a Mentoring Scheme: The Process (1st Stage)

Raising Awareness/Recruitment

Recruitment OpportunitiesReferrals/recommendationsMentees turning into future MentorsTapping into development events/training in

organisationMarketing flyers in staff rooms, intranet

Mentoring Roles

Be aware of the multiple roles a Mentor can have when recruiting potential Mentors: Coach Critical Friend Listener Counsellor Careers advisor Sounding board Networker

Mentoring Life Cycle

MENTORING CYCLE Gaining Commitment Getting Involved Getting Together Getting to know each other Working together Learning together Review & Evaluation Saying goodbye

RELATIONSHIP CYCLE Looking for a partner ‘going out’ ‘meeting’ ‘courting’ ‘engagement’ ‘marriage’ ‘memories’ ‘parting through death,

divorce, etc

The Programme Manager works with Mentors & Mentees throughout the different stages of the cycle:

Matching

Try and meet all mentors and mentees prior to matching to gain more in-depth information

Consider intra-faculty/department matching and related issues

Consider personal interests and hobbies to help individuals build rapport quickly

Running a Mentoring Scheme (2nd Stage)

Evaluating Outcomes

Email each pair on completion for overall evaluation comments

Organise Final Event to celebrate outcomes and recruit new mentors/mentees

Put outcomes on marketing materials to encourage new participants to join

Decide if measurement of quantitative indicators is possible e.g. Number of mentees applying for promotion, making board applications etc.

Mentoring Training Examples from Past Inova Mentoring Programmes

Testing out the Skills Approach

What are the skills needed for a successful mentoring relationship?

Self-diagnosis of skillsHow are these skills developed?

Some further skills(OU study)

Strong interpersonal skills incl..Listening, providing feedback,

interviewing skills, questioning, motivation and self-awareness

Organisational skills: time management, evaluating, maintaining boundaries plus working with learning contracts

Some example of skills:

Giving and receiving feedbackDrawing outSilenceSuspending judgementRecognising and expressing feelingsParaphrasing

Mentoring Expectations

Mentoring in Practice

1. Divide into groups of 3:

2. Agree roles – Mentor, Mentee Observer and take turns to play each role for 15 minutes

3. a) As mentee, discuss a situation from your past or present with your mentor

b) As mentor – respond appropriately to what you hear

c) As observer – Observe!

The aim of the exercise is to help the mentee:

To identify where they are now Where they want to go How they get there

OR choose a phase to work on

Contact details

Mentoring: Inova Consultancy

Marina Larios – Emma Parry

Tel 44 114 2799091

admin@inovaconsult.com

www.inovaconsult.com