MENTORING Supporting Mentees to be great Amanda O’Brien Group Professional Development Director 15 September 2016

The Roots of Mentoring Mentoring can be traced back to Greek mythology and Homer’s tale of Odysseus. When Odysseus left home to fight in the Trojan war he entrusted his friend and advisor Mentor, to protect, advise, guide and train his son, Telemachus.

Definition of Mentoring Mentoring is a term generally used to describe a relationship between a less experienced individual, called a mentee or protégé, and a more experienced individual known as a mentor Traditionally, mentoring is viewed as a dyadic, face-to-face, long-term relationship between a supervisory adult and a novice student that fosters the mentee’s professional, academic, or personal development. (Donaldson, Ensher, & Grant-Vallone, 2000)

Definition of Mentee Webster’s Dictionary Cambridge English Dictionary ‘someone who’s welfare, training or career is promoted by an influential person’ Cambridge English Dictionary ‘someone who is given support and advice about their job by a Mentor (= a more experienced person who helps them)

My experience of being a Mentee Best manager I have ever had was also my best Mentor: He took a genuine interest in me as a person He knew when to give advice, when to lustre listen and when to challenge He had high levels of Emotional Intelligence and self awareness He didn’t tell me what I should do but gave me lots of tools and techniques to help He helped me learn to reflect He had a profound and positive impact on me and the advancement of my both my career and my personal life

My experience of being a Mentee The worst Mentors were the ones that….. Never really committed the time – meetings were often cancelled at short notice Never remembered our previous conversations and I felt we were starting from scratch every time Didn’t challenge me to think but kept telling me the answers to how I should act and feel Made me feel I was not competent and I started to loose confidence

My experience of being a Mentor The fit and the relationship between the Mentor and Mentee was very important As a manager it was critical that I did not move into managing mode The responsibility should not be underestimated – you could very influential so beware!! I learnt alot from my Mentees – both from a technical aspect but it also improved my communication skills I learnt a lot about myself and my EI I hope on reflection it was a win/win for both of us Those relationships that lasted a long time were amongst the most rewarding work experiences that I have ever had

Mentor / Mentee Symbiotic Relationship Self Actualisation Esteem Love/belonging Safety Physiological Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs  Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs 1943 Abraham Maslow – The Theory of Human Motivation 1954 book Motivation and Personality Love/belonging - Physiological Need 3rd level of human needs is interpersonal and involves feelings of belongingness Belonging and acceptance among social groups Esteem – Physiological Need Humans have a need to feel respected – the need to have self-esteem and self-respect To be accepted and valued by others People often engage in a profession to gain recognition Self Actualisation – Self Fulfilment Need This higher level of need refers to a person’s full potential is and the realization of that potential. Maslow describes this level as the desire to accomplish everything that one can, to be the most that one can. 

Your role in the Motivation Cycle Increases Comprehension Skill level Increases Self-Esteem Learner Experiences Success

My Mentoring Checklist - my advice Do you want to share your knowledge and experience with others? Do you enjoy encouraging and motivating others? Are you comfortable asking challenging questions? Are you prepared to invest time on a regular basis? Are you self aware – what about EI? Can you move from telling to advising? Do you know why you want to be a mentor? Finally, I hope you enjoy the experience and that it enriches you as much as the Mentee?

And finally……. Trusted Advisor It can last for years or just a short period of time A long term relationship allows the building of a strong relationship and can be a rich experience for both parties However, equally it can be a short-term relationship to help someone through a specific challenge or problem. Peer Mentors This may typically be when someone is in a new job or at the start of their career. Typically within the same company CIPS is good at Peer mentoring and we manage many informal Mentoring sessions to support people coming into the Institute which is normally seen as far more complex than most people imagine Career Mentors This is the type that most people would associate with. Tend to be more senior than the Mentee and are there to guide and support as a career advisor both understanding their profession and learning to understand the bigger picture of an organisations goes and how they are going to add-value Life Mentors Usually someone from outside the mentees workplace They act as an objective sounding board