Mentoring Program Template: Free Proposal & Design Document
A mentoring program template is a fill-in planning document that describes a mentoring program from purpose to sign-off: who it is for, how pairs are matched and supported, who owns what, what it costs, how success is measured and when each stage happens. Use the free template below as your proposal for approval and as the program’s reference document once it runs.
It suits any structured program: employee, graduate, leadership, accelerator, alumni, student or community. If all you need is the short funding pitch, the mentoring program business case guide covers that one-page version.
How do you use this mentoring program proposal template?
- Copy or print the template below. Keep the section numbers so reviewers can refer to them.
- Fill in sections 1 to 4 first. Purpose, participants and model decide almost everything else. If you are unsure which model fits, look at the mentoring program examples before you choose.
- Draft the rest with the people who will do the work. The program manager, a sample of future mentors and whoever owns the budget should each review the sections that affect them.
- Write the success measures before the timeline. If you cannot say how you will judge the program, you cannot say when to review it.
- Add a one-page summary on top for approvers: goal, scale, cost, measures and the decision you need.
- Keep it alive. After sign-off, update the document when decisions change, so the next cohort starts from what actually happened.
Each section below has a short “what good looks like” note in italics. Delete the notes when you share your filled-in version.
The template
Mentoring program proposal
1. Program name and owner
What good looks like: one named owner with authority to make decisions, and an executive sponsor who will speak for the program.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Program name | ________ |
| Program owner (name, role) | ________ |
| Executive sponsor | ________ |
| Program manager / coordinator | ________ |
| Version and date of this document | ________ |
2. Purpose and link to organizational goals
What good looks like: one problem or opportunity stated in measurable terms, tied to a priority leadership already tracks. Avoid generic goals like “support growth”.
- The problem or opportunity this program addresses: ________
- The organizational goal, strategy or OKR it supports: ________
- Program goal 1: ________
- Program goal 2 (optional): ________
- What will be different for participants at the end: ________
- What this program is not for (out of scope): ________
3. Target participants and eligibility
What good looks like: a clearly defined group, a realistic first-cohort size, and selection criteria you can explain to someone who was not selected.
| Mentees | Mentors | |
|---|---|---|
| Who is eligible | ________ | ________ |
| Who is not eligible | ________ | ________ |
| Number in first cohort | ________ | ________ |
| Selection method (open, nominated, applied) | ________ | ________ |
| Time commitment expected | ________ hours per month | ________ hours per month |
4. Program model
What good looks like: one primary model chosen for a reason, with a fixed duration and cadence. Mixing models in a first cohort makes results hard to read.
- Model (tick one): [ ] 1:1 [ ] group [ ] peer [ ] reverse [ ] other: ________
- Reason for this model: ________
- Program duration: ________ months, from ________ to ________
- Meeting cadence: every ________ weeks, ________ minutes per meeting
- Format: [ ] in person [ ] video [ ] mixed
- Minimum number of meetings expected per pair or group: ________
5. Recruitment and application
What good looks like: mentor recruitment starts before mentee recruitment, and the application form collects only what matching and reporting need.
- How mentors will be recruited: ________
- How mentees will be recruited: ________
- Application form questions (link or list): ________
- Acceptance: [ ] automatic [ ] manual review by ________
- Application window: from ________ to ________
- What happens to applicants who are not accepted: ________
6. Matching approach
What good looks like: a written rule set that anyone can explain, a human review step, and a defined way to rematch.
- Matching method: [ ] admin-assigned [ ] algorithm with admin review [ ] mentee self-selection [ ] mixed
- Criteria that must match (mandatory filters): ________
- Criteria that should match (weighted): ________
- Rules that must never be broken (e.g. no mentor in the mentee’s reporting line): ________
- Who approves final matches: ________
- Rematch process and deadline: ________
7. Training and onboarding
What good looks like: short, role-specific sessions before the first meeting, with a written guide people can return to.
| Mentors | Mentees | |
|---|---|---|
| Training format and length | ________ | ________ |
| Topics covered | ________ | ________ |
| Delivered by | ________ | ________ |
| Date | ________ | ________ |
| Written materials provided | ________ | ________ |
- Agreement used between pairs: ________
8. Session structure and resources
What good looks like: a suggested topic for each stage of the program, with questions before and after meetings, and freedom for pairs to go off-script.
| # | Session or stage | Suggested topic | Window (weeks) | Resource or form |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kick-off | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| 2 | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| 3 | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| 4 | Mid-point review | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| 5 | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| 6 | Closing | ________ | ________ | ________ |
9. Communication plan
What good looks like: every message has an audience, a channel, an owner and a date. Plan the quiet weeks, not just the launch.
| Message | Audience | Channel | Owner | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Program announcement | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Application reminder | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Match announcement | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Monthly check-in | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Mid-point survey | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Closing and results | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
10. Roles and responsibilities
What good looks like: exactly one Accountable (A) per row. R = responsible, A = accountable, C = consulted, I = informed.
| Activity | Sponsor | Program owner | Program manager | Mentors | Mentees | HR / IT / Legal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approve goals and budget | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Recruit participants | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Run matching | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Deliver training | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Hold meetings | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Handle concerns and rematches | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Data protection and privacy | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Evaluate and report | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
11. Budget
What good looks like: cash and time shown separately, with the formula behind each line so reviewers can change an assumption without rewriting the budget.
| Category | Cash cost | Time cost (hours) | Basis or formula | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Program management | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Mentor and mentee time | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Software or platform | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Training and materials | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Events (kick-off, closing) | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Communications | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Evaluation | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Contingency | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Total | ________ | ________ |
12. Risks and mitigations
What good looks like: three to five specific risks with a named owner and an early warning sign.
| Risk | Likelihood (L/M/H) | Early warning sign | Mitigation | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not enough mentors | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Pairs stop meeting | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Poor matches | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Personal data handled incorrectly | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
13. Success measures and evaluation plan
What good looks like: leading indicators you can watch weekly, outcome measures tied to section 2, and a baseline taken before launch.
| Measure | Type | Baseline | Target | Data source | When measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Share of participants who log in or join | Leading | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Share of mentees matched | Leading | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Meetings held per pair | Leading | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Participant satisfaction | Reaction | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| ________ (tied to goal 1) | Outcome | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| ________ (tied to goal 2) | Outcome | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
- Go/no-go decision for the next cohort is made on ________ by ________, based on: ________
14. Timeline
What good looks like: one row per month, with mentor recruitment and training finished before matching starts.
| Month | Main activities | Milestone | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | Design, approval, application form | Proposal signed | ________ |
| Month 2 | Recruitment, applications | Applications closed | ________ |
| Month 3 | Matching, training | Matches announced | ________ |
| Month 4 | Kick-off, first meetings | All pairs met once | ________ |
| Month 5 | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Month 6 | Mid-point review | Survey results shared | ________ |
| Month ___ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Final month | Closing, evaluation | Results report delivered | ________ |
15. Approval and sign-off
What good looks like: everyone who controls money, people or data has signed, and the next review date is fixed.
| Role | Name | Decision (approve / approve with changes / decline) | Signature | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Executive sponsor | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Budget holder | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| HR / People lead | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Program owner | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
Conditions attached to approval: ________
Next review of this document: ________
How should you adapt the template?
Scale it to the decision. For a pilot of a dozen pairs, sections 9, 10 and 12 can be a few lines each. For a multi-site program with hundreds of participants, attach the full communication plan and risk register as appendices.
Change the vocabulary, not the structure. Accelerators say “founders” and “advisors”, universities say “students” and “alumni”, communities may prefer “peers”. Rename the roles throughout, but keep the sections: every program needs a purpose, matching, support and a way to measure.
Fit section 11 to your organization’s rules. Some organizations count participant time as a cost and others do not. Show it either way, label it clearly, and let the budget holder decide how to treat it.
Check privacy early. Application forms and matching use personal data. Name the person responsible in section 10 and confirm how your organization’s data protection rules (for example GDPR in the EU or KVKK in Türkiye) apply before applications open.
Reuse it. At the end of the cohort, update each section with what actually happened and keep that version as the starting point for the next one. The step-by-step guide on how to start a mentoring program walks through each stage in more depth, and platforms built for employee mentoring programs can carry the matching rules, sessions and forms over to the next round.
More planning guides and templates are in the guides library.