REFERENCE GUIDE FOR MENTORS · CAREER ADVISOR: be a role model, build strategic understanding, assist with career development planning NETW ORK ADVISOR: help your protégé use her

REFERENCE GUIDE FOR MENTORS

TWF MENTORING PROGRAMME FOR WOMEN LEADERS

REFERENCE GUIDE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

About TWF ..........................................................................................................................................3

Mentoring Overview ..........................................................................................................................3

........................................................................................................................4

TWF Benchmarks for a Good Mentoring Relationship ..............................................................5

Resources to Nurture Your Relationship .................................................................................... 7

Managing your Meetings ...................................................................................................................10

Mentoring Behaviour

Giving Effective Feedback

GROW Coaching Approach

Your First Meeting

Suggested Topics for Discussion

Suggested Questions to Consider

Future Meetings


MENTORING / OVERVIEW

A mentoring relationship is a special relationship that enriches both the mentor

and the protégé. TWF’s Mentoring Programme aims to help participants enhance

ofessional and

personal growth. Through one-to-one mentoring, mentoring circles, leadership

skills development workshops, mentor and protégé check-ins, we provide a highly

structured and nurturing experience that empowers participants to leverage the

skills and networks they develop on the Programme into enhanced professional

success.

ABOUT / THE WOMEN’S FOUNDATION (TWF)

Established in 2004, The Women’s Foundation (registered charity number

and girls in Hong Kong through research, community programmes, and education

To this end, our three key focus areas are challenging gender

stereotypes, increasing the number of women in leadership and decision-making roles, and empowering women in poverty to achieve a better quality of life for themselves and their families.

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BENEFITS OF MENTORINGBENEFITS FOR MENTORS

Mentors strengthen their leadership and coaching skills in particular through

guidance on how to effectively reframe challenges and provide constructive

feedback and advice. By looking at issues through the eyes of their protégés,

mentors are better able to understand critical issues facing more junior

employees at their stage of the pipeline and can apply this knowledge in their

own organisations.

Mentors often rediscover some of the strengths and professional experiences

that they may have forgotten, leading them to re-examine their own future career

pathways. As a former TWF mentor put it,

the Programme was that it led me to revisit many of my own issues relating to

which include:

» The reward of seeing one’s protégé succeed in terms of career progression

» The enhancement of the mentor’s personal reputation as a leader whodevelops others

» Strengthening one’s leadership skills associated with listening, coaching andcommunications

» Building a network of professional allies

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TWF BENCHMARKS / FOR A GOOD MENTORING RELATIONSHIPUNDERSTAND YOUR ROLE – MENTORS

As a mentor, you should be willing to provide support to a less experienced

individual early in her career and derive satisfaction by having helped another

individual achieve her aspirations. Mentoring someone else will allow you to

understand yourself better through the observations of another individual. You

should be able to present opportunities / challenges that your protégé may not

have seen and be able to tell her things she may not want to hear. You should also

encourage your protégé to find the confidence to rise above her inner doubts

and fears.

» Mentoring is different to managing or instructing. An instructor instructs anda manager directs, in each case telling the individual what to do. A mentoruses skilled questioning to explore, guide, focus, steer, facilitate and prompt, and encourages the protégé to solve her own problem rather thangiving direction

» Help your protégé identify their goals and reflect on the current situation» Seek to understand what your protégé’s desired outcome is. Focus on your

protégé’s development and resist the urge to produce a clone of yourself» Coach your protégé towards her career development and / or personal

fulfilment goals. Help guide your protégé to identify her own solutions basedon her development needs and situation, rather than impose solutions

» Value your protégé as a person; develop mutual trust and respect; maintainconfidentiality

» Listen both to what is being said and how it is being said» Provide objective and constructive feedback on your protégé’s strengths and

development needs» Be aware of both your limits and competency, and the limitations of your protégé» Offer a helpful perspective on any personal issues affecting the protégé’s

professional decisions» Exhibit humility, honesty and trustworthiness, and be authentic» Share relevant examples from your own life experiences» Act in the role that is most effective in the specific situation:

LISTENER: suspend judgment, actively listen, and check understandingof situationCRITICAL FRIEND: challenge, identify problems, clarify options, helpdevelop solutions, and confirm actionsCAREER ADVISOR: be a role model, build strategic understanding, assistwith career development planningNETWORK ADVISOR: help your protégé use her network effectively andintroduce yours to her, especially if there is someone in your network thathas a particular area of expertise that is relevant to your protégé or who canhelp her with a particular issue that has been identified during discussions

» Use the opportunity to self-reflect and remind yourself of all of the goodhabits and experiences that have supported your own success

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MENTORING RELATIONSHIP / BEST PRACTICE

» Work within the agreement of confidentiality

» Develop personal rapport, mutual trust and mutual respect. Try meeting

more frequently and ideally in person at the beginning, to help with this

» Agree on expectations and boundaries: what do we expect to discuss?

What do we expect of each other?

» Review protégé goals and set short- and long-term objectives

» Establish mutually agreed protocols for the relationship and set

parameters, e.g. communication style, mode of communication

(WhatsApp, Skype, email, phone), frequency of communication (including

hours of communication), time commitment

» Plan meeting dates and times in advance if possible for the entirety of

the Mentoring Programme. Even if rescheduling is necessary, doing this

emphasises the importance of the relationship

» Be prepared at meetings (agenda, list of topics for discussion, previously

agreed action points), and demonstrate commitment by making sure to

avoid rescheduling, arrive on time, and minimise interruptions during

meetings

» Use the time between meetings to complete action plans developed

during the last meeting

» Review progress (in relation to protégé goals) and follow up

» Celebrate success along the way!

» Define the future of the relationship

THE IMPORTANCE OF DEVELOPING A PROTÉGÉ’S STRATEGIC THINKINGIn the professional world, strategic thinking skills can be as important as

communication skills – if not more so. Develop your protégé’s ability to

think strategically by:

» Taking enough time to reflect

» Encouraging regular personal and career planning

» Suggesting different frameworks and timeframes to analyse issues

» Discussing alternative strategies and outcomes

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EFFECTIVE INEFFECTIVE

ADVISOR Sounding board, facilitator

RESCUER

PROTECTORSupports, is a safety net

BODYGUARDFights protégé’s battles, overprotective

COACHProvides structure, feedback and direction

SVENGALIDictates, controls learning

DIAMOND CUTTERSuggests, polishes rough edges

MECHANIC

BROKER BUCKPASSERAbdicates, doesn’t follow up

CHALLENGERPositively provokes, sets standards

ADVERSARYPushes too far too soon, devil’s advocate

CLARIFIERTeaches values, manages politics

MINESWEEPERRemoves obstacles so protégé doesn’t need to

AFFIRMERGives needed support, enhances self esteem

SMOTHERERGives too much feedback, discounts feelings

SPONSORProvides visibility and recognition

STINGERPromotes protégé at the expense of others

SOURCES:Robin Madell, Mentoring: 6 Ways to Help Your Mentee Think Strategically. [http://www.theglasshammer.com/news/2014/06/19/mentoring-6-ways-to-help-your-mentee-think-strategically]. December 2014.

Janice Wood, 5 Ingredients Essential to Good Mentoring Relationship. [http://psychcentral.com/news/2012/12/01/5-ingredients-essential-togood-mentoring-relationship/48459.html]. December 2014.

HBR Guide to Getting the Mentoring You Need. Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business Review Press, 2014.

Menttium website. [http://www.menttium.com]. December 2014.

MENTORING / BEHAVIOUR

RESOURCES TO NURTURE YOUR RELATIONSHIP

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GIVING EFFECTIVE / FEEDBACK

In any situation where feedback is given and received, there are some simple

things you can do that will make the process more successful.

GENERAL PRINCIPLES – ALL FEEDBACK SHOULD:» Be given as close to the situation as possible and not delayed» Focus on the behaviours, skills or knowledge your protégé can change» Focus on specifics not generalities» Describe events, not evaluate them

GENERAL FORMAT FOR GIVING CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK» Explain why the feedback may be helpful to your protégé» Describe what happened» Describe the impact of your protégé’s approach – results and / or feelings» Check that your protégé has understood (ensure your protégé has

understood the feedback as you intended)» Ask for your protégé’s response and suggestions» Discuss options for a win / win outcome» Agree on actions and offer support

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GROW / QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR PROTÉGÉ

GOALWhat would you like to focus on in this session?

What is this about?

What outcome would you like to achieve?

What would need to happen for you to walk away feeling this was time well spent?

On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is this to you?

REALITYWhat’s happening now?

What are your major concerns right now?

What is causing the targets to not be met?

How has that affected your goal being achieved?

What factors are relevant?

How have you verified this?

What are some of the barriers stopping you from moving forward with this project?

OPTIONSWhat could you do to change the situation?

What alternatives are there to this approach?

What would you do differently next time?

What would need to happen in order for you to be more confident in this project?

What resources are required?

WILLWhat will you do?

What are the next steps?

How can you keep track of progress?

GROW / COACHING APPROACH

The GROW model is one of the most common coaching tools used by managers and

executive coaches. The model provides a simple four-step structure for a coaching session

– both informal and formal.

GOALThe purpose of the discussion is

clarified and / or agreed between

mentor and protégé

WILLMentor and protégé commit

to action

REALITYMentor encourages self-assessment so

protégé becomes aware of reality and

offers examples

OPTIONSSuggestions and options looked into

and choices made

The GROW model is a well-known goal-setting and problem-solving method developed and used in corporate coaching in the UK in the 1980s-1990s. Coaches Sir John Whitmore, Alan Fine, and Graham Alexander contributed to its development.

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MANAGING / YOUR MEETINGSYOUR FIRST MEETINGBefore you undertake your first meeting, it can be helpful to take a few moments to

do some planning. You may already know your mentor / protégé or this may be the

first time you are meeting her. This section walks you through some practical steps

to plan your first meeting and help establish personal rapport.

» Where will your first meeting take place?» How long should you set aside for this meeting?» What do you need to do to ensure you are not interrupted?» Set aside some time on either side of the meeting to ensure you have time to

prepare, are not delayed in attending, and do not need to rush off

PRACTICAL ISSUES

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» Introductions» How long have you been in Hong Kong?» Where are you from originally?» Family? – Partner / Kids / Pets» What do you like to do for fun?» How would your friends describe you?» What did you do last weekend?» Discuss purpose / focus of mentoring relationship» Review mentoring protocols and discuss practical implementation» Agree on frequency of meetings» Identify initial discussion topics and priority» Agree on expectations, accessibility, confidentiality» Agree on timing and content of next meeting

SUGGESTED TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION

» Describe your current job or role. What are your key responsibilities?» What do you like most / least about your job?» How long in current / last role / job / company?» What would you like the next one or two steps in your career to be?» What do you need to take those steps?» What has helped you be successful in your career to date?» What are some of the key decision points you have had in your career and what

influenced your decisions?» Do you have any role model(s) and what is it about them you admire?» What risks have you taken in your career and what were the outcomes?» Have you had a mentor before (informal and formal) and what worked / did not

work in your other mentoring relationships?» How would your peers at work describe you?» What do you think your strengths are? How are you leveraging these at work?» Have you any identified development needs and what are you doing to

address them?» What are the main challenge(s) you faced and how did you handle them?

Is there anything you would do differently next time?

SUGGESTED QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

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MANAGING / YOUR MEETINGS

FUTURE MEETINGS

BEFORE THE MEETING » Review notes from last meeting. Are there any outstanding items?

» What actions did you agree to take before this meeting?

» The protégé should send a suggested agenda or topics for discussion to thementor before every meeting

DURING THE MEETING:

At the Start» Start each meeting by catching up professionally and personally

» Be clear about what you want to discuss

» Assess what needs to be continued from the last meeting and what is new

» Agree on what should be achieved by the end of the meeting

Review» Review what has happened since the last meeting

» What successes has the protégé had since the last meeting? Celebrate!

» What challenges have occurred? How have they been addressed?

Current issues» The protégé should set out issues / events

» What challenges are coming up? How might these be addressed?

» The mentor should listen and probe to check for understanding and togain deeper insight

» The mentor should share relevant experiences, help the protégé to analysethe issue using different perspectives and frameworks, and guide her toidentify possible solutions and outcomes

» Confirm action plans and outline commitment

At the End» End each meeting with a brief assessment of how the meeting went and

how it aligns with what the mentor and protégé expect from the mentoringrelationship

» Review what was agreed and learned

» Set a date for the next meeting

» Decide on actions between now and the next meeting

AFTER THE MEETING» The protégé should write up and circulate brief notes of agreed actions

© 2019 The Womens Foundation Limited

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REFERENCE GUIDE FOR MENTORS · CAREER ADVISOR: be a role model, build strategic understanding, assist with career development planning NETW ORK ADVISOR: help your protégé use her