Frequently Asked Questions
How much time is involved?
In most cases, mentoring partnerships involved in a formal mentoring program aim to connect on a regular basis. You are involved in a mentoring program over a defined period of time, 6-12 months and four meetings by telephone with the first an introduction. You might also like to identify any in between contact (eg. email, SMS etc) that could be helpful. Pairs may choose to meet more regularly, particularly in the early stages as the mentoring relationship develops.
How is this different to other training activities?
Mentoring is one form of development of an individual. It's important to remember that other activities like training, coaching, managing, on the job learning, self-development etc are all forms of development/guidance for an individual with each one having slightly different drivers, requirements, protocols and boundaries. What's a bit 'different' about mentoring is that for the most part, it is mentee directed. This means that unlike activities that may be driven by your job description (eg. training, coaching etc), mentoring provides an opportunity for a mentee to identify their own learning and development needs and to work on these with the support and assistance of a mentor. Additionally the mentoring relationship does not include any formal performance appraisal or reporting.
What do you mean by mentee led?
Mentee led means it is the responsibility of the mentee to identify (often with the support of your mentor) the desired mentoring outcomes. This means that you get to be in the driver's seat in terms of identifying the agenda for your mentoring conversations and what you'd like to achieve with the support of your mentor. Often this will be under the 'umbrella' of the business intent of a mentoring program (eg. a leadership mentoring program is about developing leadership in mentees) but as a mentee, you get to identify the specifics about what you want to work on.
What if we don't 'hit if off' as a partnership?
Coming together with another person, often someone that you may not know well (or at all), in a formal mentoring program can be a new experience! It is important to allow time for your relationship and mentoring partnership to gain traction and for you to get to know each other on a more personal and professional level. As part of this relationship development, you may feel a little awkward at the start - particularly if you have different styles. However, we would encourage you to allow time for relationship to build and to discover both your similarities and differences and to see how these can be of benefit to you both. Sometimes we need to work with someone who has different styles and qualities to develop new areas of ourselves.
But - as for the most part mentoring is a voluntary activity, if you feel that you are not hitting it off after a few months, then firstly discuss this with your mentoring partner to see how they feel and then secondly, touch base with your Mentoring Program Coordinator for some guidance on possible changes or no fault exit to the mentoring program.
Is this a confidential relationship?
Yes AND No. In short - a mentoring relationship should be confidential. This means that both a mentee and mentor can feel confident that what they discuss in a mentoring relationship stays within the confines of the mentoring relationship. So for 99% of the time - a mentoring relationship is confidential.
However, should you find that the topic of the conversation or the behaviours in the mentoring partnership head in a direction that has the potential to breach a duty of care, breach a legality or breach an organisational policy or protocol and this makes you concerned, then you may need to do something about this. As both mentees and mentors have a requirement to undertake a mentoring relationship using appropriate behaviours and approaches, if you are concerned about a conversation - in the first instance raise this with your mentoring partner and/or seek the advice and guidance of your Mentoring Program Coordinator.
How will my mentor be different to my manager?
Good managers are also informal mentors. However, managers are also responsible for a team of people and ultimately for the performance of their team against the business objectives. Additionally, managers fulfill the roles of performance appraisal and workplace discipline - both roles that require some form of appraisal. Mentors are offline so the aim of the relationship is to be more career and professional development orientated, not just focused on job performance.
Can I be a mentor and mentee?
Most definitely. In fact, individuals are strongly encouraged to consider being a mentor and a mentee. Particularly in the case of very new employees to the industry, someone with less experience who can relate well to being new to the industry is just what they need. Even if you only have a few years' experience you still have valuable experience to offer.
Can mentors have more than one mentee?
Mentors can enter into the mentoring relationship with more than one mentee. This decision is entirely up to the mentor. As long as they feel they will have the time to give to all mentees and that the mentoring relationship is equal and of benefit to all involved, then there is no problem.
Can I join the mentoring program as either a mentor or mentee outside of the EOI process?
Most definitely. Although we are undertaking an initial EOI process to build our mentor bank, and will continue to call for mentors and mentees on an annual basis, mentors and mentees can join the program at any time.
What do you mean by boundaries in a mentoring partnership?
It is important to understand that mentoring is not a panacea for all of your personal development needs. Mentors are not there to provide counselling, financial advice, personal support in times of crisis, or support which should be provided by a trained professional. Boundaries can also refer to the logistics of your mentoring relationship, e.g. how often you meet, what telephone numbers you share, etc.
Can mentoring 'by distance' work?
In short - yes, mentoring by distance can work - and well! Sometimes people feel that mentoring by distance is a bit 'second rate' - but we'd like to encourage you to think positively about this opportunity. As a community we are very 'connected' to all sorts of people across the country and globe - so communicating and building relationships by distance has never been more prevalent. In the case of your mentoring relationship - here's some tips to help you make the most of the experience:
I'm finding the time commitment hard - what should I do?
Making time to engage in a mentoring conversation is an often cited reason for a partnership not progressing or flourishing. The reality is that we live and work in a very busy world, and sometimes it can feel like the mentoring conversation is a 'nice to have' rather than a 'have to have' activity in our busy schedule. Three questions that you might consider if you are finding time a difficulty include:
Other points in relation to time that you might consider are:
If time is an issue for you - please discuss this with your mentoring partner and seek additional support from your Mentoring Program Coordinator. Do avoid just 'falling out of contact' as this makes everyone feel less positive about the mentoring relationship.
What if I need help as a mentor or mentee to manage the mentoring relationship?
Speak with your Mentoring Program Coordinator by emailing [email protected].
In most cases, mentoring partnerships involved in a formal mentoring program aim to connect on a regular basis. You are involved in a mentoring program over a defined period of time, 6-12 months and four meetings by telephone with the first an introduction. You might also like to identify any in between contact (eg. email, SMS etc) that could be helpful. Pairs may choose to meet more regularly, particularly in the early stages as the mentoring relationship develops.
How is this different to other training activities?
Mentoring is one form of development of an individual. It's important to remember that other activities like training, coaching, managing, on the job learning, self-development etc are all forms of development/guidance for an individual with each one having slightly different drivers, requirements, protocols and boundaries. What's a bit 'different' about mentoring is that for the most part, it is mentee directed. This means that unlike activities that may be driven by your job description (eg. training, coaching etc), mentoring provides an opportunity for a mentee to identify their own learning and development needs and to work on these with the support and assistance of a mentor. Additionally the mentoring relationship does not include any formal performance appraisal or reporting.
What do you mean by mentee led?
Mentee led means it is the responsibility of the mentee to identify (often with the support of your mentor) the desired mentoring outcomes. This means that you get to be in the driver's seat in terms of identifying the agenda for your mentoring conversations and what you'd like to achieve with the support of your mentor. Often this will be under the 'umbrella' of the business intent of a mentoring program (eg. a leadership mentoring program is about developing leadership in mentees) but as a mentee, you get to identify the specifics about what you want to work on.
What if we don't 'hit if off' as a partnership?
Coming together with another person, often someone that you may not know well (or at all), in a formal mentoring program can be a new experience! It is important to allow time for your relationship and mentoring partnership to gain traction and for you to get to know each other on a more personal and professional level. As part of this relationship development, you may feel a little awkward at the start - particularly if you have different styles. However, we would encourage you to allow time for relationship to build and to discover both your similarities and differences and to see how these can be of benefit to you both. Sometimes we need to work with someone who has different styles and qualities to develop new areas of ourselves.
But - as for the most part mentoring is a voluntary activity, if you feel that you are not hitting it off after a few months, then firstly discuss this with your mentoring partner to see how they feel and then secondly, touch base with your Mentoring Program Coordinator for some guidance on possible changes or no fault exit to the mentoring program.
Is this a confidential relationship?
Yes AND No. In short - a mentoring relationship should be confidential. This means that both a mentee and mentor can feel confident that what they discuss in a mentoring relationship stays within the confines of the mentoring relationship. So for 99% of the time - a mentoring relationship is confidential.
However, should you find that the topic of the conversation or the behaviours in the mentoring partnership head in a direction that has the potential to breach a duty of care, breach a legality or breach an organisational policy or protocol and this makes you concerned, then you may need to do something about this. As both mentees and mentors have a requirement to undertake a mentoring relationship using appropriate behaviours and approaches, if you are concerned about a conversation - in the first instance raise this with your mentoring partner and/or seek the advice and guidance of your Mentoring Program Coordinator.
How will my mentor be different to my manager?
Good managers are also informal mentors. However, managers are also responsible for a team of people and ultimately for the performance of their team against the business objectives. Additionally, managers fulfill the roles of performance appraisal and workplace discipline - both roles that require some form of appraisal. Mentors are offline so the aim of the relationship is to be more career and professional development orientated, not just focused on job performance.
Can I be a mentor and mentee?
Most definitely. In fact, individuals are strongly encouraged to consider being a mentor and a mentee. Particularly in the case of very new employees to the industry, someone with less experience who can relate well to being new to the industry is just what they need. Even if you only have a few years' experience you still have valuable experience to offer.
Can mentors have more than one mentee?
Mentors can enter into the mentoring relationship with more than one mentee. This decision is entirely up to the mentor. As long as they feel they will have the time to give to all mentees and that the mentoring relationship is equal and of benefit to all involved, then there is no problem.
Can I join the mentoring program as either a mentor or mentee outside of the EOI process?
Most definitely. Although we are undertaking an initial EOI process to build our mentor bank, and will continue to call for mentors and mentees on an annual basis, mentors and mentees can join the program at any time.
What do you mean by boundaries in a mentoring partnership?
It is important to understand that mentoring is not a panacea for all of your personal development needs. Mentors are not there to provide counselling, financial advice, personal support in times of crisis, or support which should be provided by a trained professional. Boundaries can also refer to the logistics of your mentoring relationship, e.g. how often you meet, what telephone numbers you share, etc.
Can mentoring 'by distance' work?
In short - yes, mentoring by distance can work - and well! Sometimes people feel that mentoring by distance is a bit 'second rate' - but we'd like to encourage you to think positively about this opportunity. As a community we are very 'connected' to all sorts of people across the country and globe - so communicating and building relationships by distance has never been more prevalent. In the case of your mentoring relationship - here's some tips to help you make the most of the experience:
- If an opportunity arises at the commencement of your mentoring relationship to have a face to face via onsite or video conference/Skype/Face Time - do this. It's helpful just to ensure that your opening conversations can have an element of physicality to them - even if this is using technology.
- If seeing one another in some way is not available - then email each other a quick picture so that at least you know what each other looks like!
- If using telephone calls as your primary means - ensure that you still set a scheduled time to call and do this in a place where you can have privacy and reduced noise and distractions. Hint - we encourage you to turn off your mobile and your PC screen while you're on the phone - tapping on the keyboard in the background can be off putting!
- When using email - identify some broad response times for your conversation.
- Discuss your personal email communication styles - for example - some people communicate via email in a formal fashion (eg. Dear Sue ... Kind regards ..) while others are more short hand (eg. Sue ... Bob). Understanding how your mentoring partner communicates in email can help to ensure you don't inadvertently mis-communicate during your partnership.
- Consider any concurrent work or travel plans - are you heading in the direction of your mentoring partner? If so - can you schedule in some time together for a catch up?
- Pay attention to the privacy of your communication - for example - phone calls that people around you can hear, emails to a shared email, and video conferencing in a group space. The key is to aim to replicate the sort of privacy of conversation that you would have in a face to face environment.
- Consider setting up a private group or blog online where you can both post your questions/conversations - there are some ideas on tools under the Idea link on the Hub.
I'm finding the time commitment hard - what should I do?
Making time to engage in a mentoring conversation is an often cited reason for a partnership not progressing or flourishing. The reality is that we live and work in a very busy world, and sometimes it can feel like the mentoring conversation is a 'nice to have' rather than a 'have to have' activity in our busy schedule. Three questions that you might consider if you are finding time a difficulty include:
- Firstly - try and identify why you are finding the commitment hard. Can you pin-point the reason?
- Secondly - go back to the reason that you decided to take up the mentoring opportunity. Does this reason still ring true for you now?
- Finally - revisit the priority of the experience for you - is this still important for you?
Other points in relation to time that you might consider are:
- Have you set your mentoring partnership up to meet too frequently? If you are meeting a few times per quarter - perhaps this is too many times? Mentoring conversations don't have to take place on a daily basis - so consider revisiting how often you are meeting.
- Do you tend to cancel meetings when you are at your busiest? If so - you are not alone! However, perhaps consider that stepping back from a really busy work schedule on a regular basis may also prove to help you be more productive in the long run, as there is an opportunity to reflect on how you are doing what you are doing with the help of your mentor. This also rings true for mentors, who often cite feeling refreshed after a mentoring conversation as they are not operationally responsible for that person.
If time is an issue for you - please discuss this with your mentoring partner and seek additional support from your Mentoring Program Coordinator. Do avoid just 'falling out of contact' as this makes everyone feel less positive about the mentoring relationship.
What if I need help as a mentor or mentee to manage the mentoring relationship?
Speak with your Mentoring Program Coordinator by emailing [email protected].