The Practice of Mentoring

7/31/2019 The Practice of Mentoring

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Mentee Role

From passive receiver to active learner

Mentor Role

From authority to facilitator

Learning Process

From mentor directed to self directed; from

face to face to multiple and varied

opportunities

Focus

Knowledge transfer and acquisition to

critical reflection and application. Lois J. Zachary, President


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Mentoring Alignment

People

Values

Vision

Understanding

Strategy

Structure

Communication

Lois J. Zachary, President


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Accountability in Mentoring People

Setting Goals

Clarifying Expectations

Defining Roles and Responsibilities

Monitoring Progress and Measuring Results

Gathering Feedback

Formulating Action Goals

Integrating Process Improvements

Lois J. Zachary, President


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Instead of moving directly from observation to

active Coaching or Mentoring, you must pass

through an intermediate step:

discussion.


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Perhaps the single most important tip for being a great mentor

is getting off to a good start with each new protg. A good

start is defined here as an open-ended conversation in which

mentor and protg get to know each other, establish rapport,

understand each others expectations, and identify a set of

mutually agreed goals.


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The Initial MeetingMentors Job Protgs Job

Come prepared

Talk about the bigpicture

Discuss theprotg needs

Seek mutualagreement ongoals andexpectations

Seek agreementon responsibilities

Learn whatever you canabout the protg beforeyour initial meeting.

Recount your ownmentoring experiences toyour protg. Explain what

worked and what didnt.

Ask questions and listen.

Explain what you can andwhat you cannot do.

I will do .

Same.

Listen and ask question.

Explain where you are andwhere youll like to be and how mentoring mighthelp.

This is what I hope toachieve through thismentoring relationship.

And I agree to do .


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The Initial Meeting

Mentors Job Protgs Job

Set a timetable

Agree on meeting

times and who willset them

Insist onconfidentially

Agree to be candid

Lets work on this for three

months. Then will reviewprogress and determine if weshould continue.

Check my calendar for

suitable times.

Nothing we discuss will go

outside this room unless weboth agree otherwise.

If this relationship isnt

producing the results youexpect, or if you disagree withmy advice, say so. neither of ushas time to waste.

Same.

I will take responsibility

for finding dates andtimes that fit into yourschedule.

Same.

I will tell you if this

relationship isnt working

for me. I wont waste

your time.


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Once you are prepared, enter into dialogue with the

employee about what youve observed. As you do so,

stick to observations of actual behaviors instead of your

suppositions about personal motives.


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In a dialogue, one person offers proposition or asks a

question and others respond, shedding light on the

question, and often opening new avenues of inquiry.

The iterative, back-and-forth of dialogue brings people

closer to the truth.


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Open

Pause

Reflective

Fact -Finding

Summary


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Career development is a practical business. It has no other

purpose than to produce good results. Consequently, your advice

and feed back should point to things that are within the

capabilities of your protg. That which is theoretical or beyond

the other persons control is a waste of time.


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a) Recognize your emotions and responses

-Name your emotion and then act.

b) Reframe the feedback

-Reconstruct the feedback process to your

advantage. Reacting to the feedback positively.

Seeing the positive things in the feedback.


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c) Break up the feedback on the task.

- Divide up the large task of dealing

with feedback into manageable,

measurable and set realistic time

frames for each.


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Seek regular feedback from your boss rather than wait for

the annual performance review to come around.

The proactive feedback process consists of your

manageable steps:- Self Assessment, External Feedback,

Absorbing the Feedback, and Taking Action Toward Change.

Feedback conversations with colleagues can after serve as a

form of dress rehearsal of the real thing.

d) Getting the feedback you need


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e)Taking action

-The proactive feedback process involves coming to

conclusions about, and acting on, the information you

have received.

HBRApril03


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Fear of Feedback has many a cause, examples, ridicule;

criticisms on self; non-response to feedback, etc.

Fears and assumptions about Feedback often manifest

themselves in psychologically maladaptive behaviors suchas procrastination, denial, brooding, jealousy, and self-

sabotage.


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First Meeting:

Get acquainted and establish a relationship Find commonalities and share personal interests, hobbies Share professional background, education, and areas of expertise Learn about what is most important to each one of you

Set expectations What does the Mentor expect from the Protege? What does the Protg expect from the Mentor? What will the Mentor provide or not provide? How will we measure and evaluate outcomes?

Complete a Contract Agreement Refer to Contract Agreement in the Mentoring website, download

it and complete it Print the completed document refer to it so you stay focused

and aligned

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On-Going Meetings

Set a specific time, date, and location

Have an agenda prepared in advance

Have a summary of notes from the last session

Meet at the agreed time and be punctual

Follow up on action items from last meeting

Agree on what will be discussed in next meeting

Agree on action items to be accomplished against devpplan

Proteges and Mentors have one final meeting to share

learnings and celebrate their success

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A mentors job is to help other people help themselves.

Protg wont learn to help themselves if you come to the

rescue whenever they encounter problems.


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As in coaching, it is always best to separate bad or

inappropriate behavior from the protg persona. Doing so will

prevent that person from feeling personally attacked and will

make discussion easier and more objective.


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Never forget that the protg is responsible for his or her own

success.

As a mentor, you are merely there to lend support and advice, and to

open doors from time to time.

If your protg has the right stuff, he will already understand the

importance of planning.

Use you superior knowledge and experience to help him improve the

plan.


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Your protg needs and support from many people.

Part of your job as a wise and resourceful guide to establish a broad

foundation of support for the protg within the organization and

with key external stakeholders, primarily suppliers, customers, and

strategic partners.

Do that and your protg will have a solid base on which to build a

successful career.


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Consider the following Common Mistakes:

Talking too much.

Failing to listen.

Losing control of your emotions.

Directing the subordinate toward something he will

resist without emotional preparation.


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Doing someone elses job for them.

Knowing all of the answers all of the time.

Imposing ready-made solutions that worked somewhere else.

Being brilliant at doing the job, taking initiative, etc.

Importing and applying hi-tech and perhaps culturally inappropriate

solutions.


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The best mentor put themselves out of the mentoring business

by helping their charges to fend for themselves. There is

nothing more satisfying to a good teacher than saying of his

student, shes at the point where she can teach herself.


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Documents

The Practice of Mentoring