Designing a Mentoring Program Designing a Mentoring Program
What the research says about designing a mentoring program that works.
What this presentation covers
What this presentation covers
What this presentation covers
Why design matters
Design decides what mentoring delivers
Mentoring helps on average, but the effect is small and differs by program.
- Behaviour
- Attitudes
- Health
- Relationships
- Motivation
- Career
Start from one goal
Give the program one clear goal
Name who it serves and what should change for them.
- Faster onboarding new starters
- Keep talent early careers
- Grow leaders future managers
- Share knowledge experts to teams
Six standards of practice
Six steps every program covers
These standards follow a relationship from the first contact to its close.
- Recruitment
- Screening
- Training
- Matching
- Monitoring
- Closure
A say in matching
Let participants shape their match
Input into matching went with stronger mentoring, for mentors and mentees alike.
Training before the first meeting
Train both sides before they meet
Training rated high in quality went with better mentoring relationships.
- Roles and expectations
- How often to meet
- Setting goals together
- What stays confidential
- How it ends
How long it lasts
Plan for a year, not a month
In a study of 1,138 young people, matches lasting a year brought most gains.
- Ended very early some outcomes fell
- Ended earlier fewer gains
- A year or more most gains
Quality of the relationship
Quality beats simply having a mentor
Satisfaction with the relationship predicted work attitudes more than its type did.
Four phases
Relationships move through four phases
Kathy Kram named them initiation, cultivation, separation and redefinition.
- Initiation getting to know each other
- Cultivation the most support
- Separation the mentee stands alone
- Redefinition peers or friends
Check in, close well
Check in often and close on purpose
Monitoring and a planned closure are standards in their own right.
- First month check-in has the pair met?
- Mid-point survey is it working?
- Rematch when a pair stalls
- Closing conversation what changed, what next
Sources
The research behind this presentation
- Eby, L. T., Allen, T. D., Evans, S. C., Ng, T. & DuBois, D. L. (2008) Does mentoring matter? A multidisciplinary meta-analysis comparing mentored and non-mentored individuals Journal of Vocational Behavior, 72(2), 254-267
- Allen, T. D., Eby, L. T. & Lentz, E. (2006) Mentorship behaviors and mentorship quality associated with formal mentoring programs: Closing the gap between research and practice Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(3), 567-578
- Allen, T. D., Eby, L. T. & Lentz, E. (2006) The relationship between formal mentoring program characteristics and perceived program effectiveness Personnel Psychology, 59(1), 125-153
- Ragins, B. R., Cotton, J. L. & Miller, J. S. (2000) Marginal mentoring: The effects of type of mentor, quality of relationship, and program design on work and career attitudes Academy of Management Journal, 43(6), 1177-1194
- Grossman, J. B. & Rhodes, J. E. (2002) The test of time: Predictors and effects of duration in youth mentoring relationships American Journal of Community Psychology, 30(2), 199-219
- Kram, K. E. (1983) Phases of the mentor relationship Academy of Management Journal, 26(4), 608-625
- MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership (2015) Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring, Fourth Edition MENTOR, Boston
Start with one goal
Then build the six steps around it, one at a time.