Does your company encourage mentoring? Do you currently have a mentor? Or, even better, do you mentor someone? How do you start a mentoring program? An overview of mentoring both from a company perspective, and from the perspective of those personally involved. Mentoring as a tool for personal development, employee retention and knowledge transfer in the age of "The Apprentice".

1. Mentoring
is a two-way street
Inda Duminica, MBA, CRHA
HR Manager - BMC Software Canada

2. Thanks for ConFoo 2015!
A little bit about myself…

3. Basic assumptions
Not an exact science…
…personal observations, experiences and anecdotes
Not a recipe…
… meant to provoke you to think further about the topic

4. Why mentoring?…

5. Let me introduce to you some of my mentorees…
Maguatte, Senegal – IT Project Manager Hoda, Iran – IT Product Manager
Marina & Joao, Brazil – Human Resources

6. A little bit about yourself?…

7. Some famous (movie) mentors…

8. Frequently used terms
• Mentor
• Master
• Mentee
• Mentoree
• Apprentice
• Protégé
• Student
+

9. Mentoring
 1:1, person-to-person relationship
 Learning through alternative means
 Experience-based; not about things you can learn from
books
 Happens during challenges/trying times
 Mentoree finds focus and strengthens inner skills
 Major gifts:
 One’s time & attention
 Feedback (a.k.a. “tough love”)

10. Mentoring

11. Why GET a mentor?
To provide a more strategic view of your career
To guide you through new professional experiences
To give you advice in confusing situations
To make you aware of your blind spots
To focus a dedicated time on yourself etc.
… to accelerate your professional trajectory…

12. Why BE a mentor?
Personal satisfaction from helping others get ahead
Best way to learn new things is to teach them
Expand your own horizons; meet people outside your regular circles
Position yourself as a candidate for special projects/promotions etc.
… to accelerate your professional trajectory…

13. Why MENTORING?

14. Pre-requisites for being a MENTOR
 Having reached a certain level of mastery in a certain field
 Kind and open to others; humble and available
 Ability to tailor advice to individual circumstances and
abilities
 Ability to eventually let go
 Age is not a criteria

15. MENTORING - Conditions for success
 Personal chemistry
 Commitment on both sides
 Defined-term relationship
 Confidentiality
 Safe zone to experiment & go out of comfort zone
 Strategic choice (of both mentors and mentorees)
… fun and valuable experience…

16. MENTORING - Logistics
 Agenda before every meeting
 Assignments after every meeting
 Report progress/challenges back to your mentor
 Define your own optimal rhythm: frequency of meetings,
moment in the week/day, location etc.
… fun and valuable experience…

17. MENTORING at your company
 Get executive buy-in
 Internal vs. external mentors (politics and confidentiality)
 If internal – should not intersect reporting lines
 On company time?
 Pairing process
 When does a mentoring relationship end?

18. When looking for your pair…
… daretheunusualmatching

19. Thanks for having me
…and…
may you find your own Yoda!