This is a management sponsored and employee led mentorship program specifically designed for Planning and Development Services. It is now entering its third year and has been highly successful in engaging our employees.

1. 2013
Snohomish County
Planning and
Development Services
PROJECT CHARTER
Mentorship and Employee Development Program

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1. BACKGROUND
Opportunity Statement
Snohomish County Planning and Development Services (PDS) is actively engaged in strategic
workforce planning. Through that process we have gained an understanding about the importance
of:
 retaining our valued employees by investing in them and giving them the opportunity to be
happy and successful, and
 recruiting new employees who are talented, driven, and meet our organizational values
We now have the opportunity to establish and implement a mentoring program, which will
enhance our existing workforce planning. Most importantly, however, this program provides the
PDS employees the opportunity to give of themselves for the betterment of others. It provides
employees, both on the mentor and mentee side, the opportunity to learn, grow professionally,
increase communication within the department, and enhance the culture of PDS.
………………………………………………………………………………………
2. PROJECT DEFINITION
Project Goal
The Mentorship and Employee Development Program is a part of the PDS Workforce Plan (WFP)
and is designed to tie in with many of the other workforce planning activities which we are
actively engaged in.
Mentorship
program
On-Boarding
Succession
Planning
Workforce
Analytics
Career Pathing
Employee
Training
Recruiting
Employees
Retaining
Employees

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The goals for the Program are three-fold. First, the program team members will be provided
training to become mentors. The knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) necessary for being a
mentor were identified in the WFP as being critical to leadership needs within PDS. These
leadership KSAs include the following:
Leadership | Section IV
Future KSA Low
(1)
Low to Mod.
(2)
Moderate
(3)
Mod. to High
(4)
High
(5)
Average
Initiative  5.0
Integrity  5.0
Judgment  5.0
Managing Conflict  5.0
Consult/Advise   4.6
Developing Talent   4.6
By developing these leadership skills within PDS employees, we will have continued success
within the department. Further, by developing these KSAs between employees in various divisions
and jobs within PDS, we will create a team that is well-bonded and connected to the needs of the
department.
The second goal of the program will be to provide a mechanism to pair those who want to teach
with those who want to learn. Mentor/mentee relationships are mutually beneficial and can take
numerous forms. We intend to explore many of them through this program. For example, new
employees being paired with a mentor can help facilitate a great on-boarding experience. This
program can also be used as a tool to help facilitate succession planning. As the PDS workforce
plan indicates, over ten percent of the PDS workforce has left in the previous two years and
another twenty-two to thirty percent is expected to leave within the next five years, primarily due
to retirements. This program can help ensure knowledge transfer occurs.
As indicated above, having a mentorship program in place will support and enhance other
workforce planning efforts. Examples of the program tie-ins are provided in the table below:
Workforce Planning Program Mentoring Program Tie-In
On-Boarding  Instills the department’s vision and values in new employees’
thinking
 Giving new employees a go-to person they can talk to and trust
from day one
 Provides a way for new employees to bond quickly and get
accepted into the department
 Provides an intentional process to help make sure new
employees have a good on-boarding experience
Succession Planning  Provides a vehicle to pair those who want to teach with those
who want to learn
 Helps facilitate knowledge transfer
Workforce Analytics  Mentoring is an investment in our employees from both the
mentor and mentee side. It is a mutually beneficial program. We

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can measure the ROI of this program
Career Pathing  KSA building for those in leadership roles and for future leaders
 Gives mentees a person or people they can talk to outside of
their supervisor or manager about their future
 Helps accelerate career development
Employee training  Provides another opportunity to for skill building and learning
within PDS.
 Helps PDS develop its talent pipeline and enhance its bench
strength
Recruiting employees  Helps set PDS apart from other departments in a positive
fashion, enabling us to attract employees who are talented,
driven, and meet our organizational values
Retaining employees  This is a program that can be utilized, either on the mentor or
mentee side. It can help skill build, career path,or give
employees options for learning and growing.
Lastly, the Mentorship and Employee Development Program should have positive effects on PDS
beyond that of the program elements. The hope is that this program further instills that we are
Focused Forward not only on our department mission, but also in providing paths for current and
future employees in any position to be fully invested and engaged in proactively planning for our
future. The program is simply another avenue to promote employee giving, engagement,
innovation, and creativity.
How it will work
The Mentorship and Employee Development Program is designed to be a 15-month (3 months in
training, 12 for program), with six to eight committed members, who are dedicated to making the
program a success. Although the program only run through 2014, our hope is that the skills
obtained will continue to be utilized and enhanced far after the program ends.
The team should include members from different segments of the department with different ways
to give back as mentors. By having a diverse team, it will allow the Program to reach a wider
segment of PDS and gain a wider perspective from throughout the department. Depending upon
expertise, mentors can be either junior or senior staff members.
The program itself will be divided into three parts. They include:
 Mentorship team training:
Prior to becoming a PDS mentor, each member will be provided proper training in
coaching and mentoring skills by an outside consultant. The training will take place over an
eight to ten week timeframe and will consist of an initial four-hour training session and
four follow-up one-hour sessions scheduled within the same eight-ten week timeframe.
Training materials will be provided.
Mentorship team outreach:

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Once trained, the program will be utilized in a number of ways. We expect the program
will expand and/or adjust depending on how the team implements the program. Mentor
team members will at least be committed to the following:
 assignment to a new employees and being committed to meeting at least once per
month.
 assignment to an individual or team as part of meeting succession planning or
reverse mentoring goals
 assignment to an employee who wishes to be mentored in particular skill sets or
abilities.
 other programs developed and implemented by the team
 Mentorship team meetings:
Once the training program is complete, team members will meet at least once a month to
discuss the program. These meetings could take place during work or non-work hours and
discussions could range from discussing mentoring opportunities the previous month,
activities to enhance mentoring and coaching abilities within the team, brainstorming or
developing new programs and sharing experiences that worked well or not so well.
3. ROLES AND WORK PLAN
Project Name
This project shall be called the Mentorship and Employee Development Program
Project Sponsors
The sponsors for this project shall be Clay White, Planning and Development Services (PDS)
Director and Carol Taber, Accounting and Financial Services Manager. The sponsors agree this is a
high priority program and to provide clear policy guidance, communicate the purpose and department
need for mentorship, offer timely feedback on program issues and priorities, and contribute the
resources and time necessary to make the project successful.
Project Manager(s)
Ryan Countryman and Jacqueline Kirchberg are designated as co-managers of the Mentorship
and Employee Development Program. The project manager is responsible for overseeing the
mentoring project and is empowered to make operational decisions.
Creation of an Implementation Plan
The program implementation plan will define critical activities, milestones, and responsible parties
and will include the following components:
1. Establishment of Program Processes

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a. Time commitments for mentors and mentees, length of relationship, and hours per
month.
b. Target number of mentees per mentor.
c. Eligibility criteria for mentors and mentees.
d. Mentor application process and mentor/mentee matching process.
e. Mentorship agreement, outlining the roles, responsibilities, expectations, action plan,
termination of agreement rules, number and timing of meetings
f. Determine conduct and confidentiality expectations
g. Determine mentoring relationship evaluation and exit processes.
2. Marketing the Program
a. Determine best methods for reaching target audience for initial program launch and on-
going program activities (All-Staff meeting, Sharepoint, division and team meetings,
etc)
b. Develop mentor application and written materials, including an instruction guide for
mentors and mentees and mentorship agreement
c. Develop an instruction guide for supervisors
d. Schedule department/team informational meetings to recruit participants.
e. Develop orientation session outlining mentee responsibilities
3. Mentor Training (described above)
4. Program Evaluation Methods and Schedule
a. Develop program metrics
b. Provide annual report for mentorship program and participant results
5. Conduct an End-of-Program Recognition Ceremony
Project Timeframe
September 2013 –
 Introduce and discuss the Project Charter at the All Staff Meeting (Sept. 5th); post Project
Charter and Mentor/Mentee application materials on Sharepoint
 Accept and review Mentor applications; select trainees (Sept 19th)
 Conduct initial training session for Mentors (Sept 26th)
 First One-Hour Mentor Team Training (Oct 3rd)
 Accept and review Mentee applications (Oct 3rd)
 Perform Mentor/Mentee matching (Oct 10th)
 Second One-Hour Mentor Team Training (Oct 17th)
 Mentee Orientation and execution of mentorship agreement (Oct 24th)

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 Third One-Hour Mentor Team Training (Oct 31)
 Fourth One-Hour Mentor Team Training (Nov 14)
 Mentorship meetings and activities (Dec 5, 2013 – June 4, 2015)
 Recognition Ceremony (June 4, 2015)
 Mentor Meeting and program check-in/evaluations (June 25, 2013)