Mentoring

• Traditional Mentoring – A mentor works with a mentee one on one (formally) to enhance or advance the mentee’s career and networks.
• Speed Mentoring - A networking event at which mentees can ask a mentor those "everything-you've-always-wanted-to-know-but-didn't-know-whom-to-ask" questions. Mentees will have the opportunity to interact with up to three mentors during the course of the event.
• Flash Mentoring - A one-time meeting, and can range with broad discussion topics. The discussion could involve providing tips for resume improvements, strategies for achieving long-term career goals, advice in managing a poor performing employee, suggestions for dealing with stress and work-life balance, or referrals to other individuals who could provide guidance on personal growth and career development.
• Situational Mentoring - Can be the perfect enhancement to a formal mentoring relationship, especially if a mentee is matched with someone outside their career field. Situational mentors can be the right help at the right time, and are usually available to help solve a quick problem, uncover a hidden talent, or learn a new skill or behavior.
• Reverse Mentoring - Puts a seasoned employee together to be mentored by a junior employee. The traditional one-way street becomes a two-way thoroughfare where employees of all ages can learn from each other.
• Group Mentoring - Solves the dilemma of mentoring many people when there are not enough qualified mentors in an organization to make one-to-one mentoring matches. Group mentoring is a way to honor and share the knowledge and expertise of individuals and to provide other employees with exposure to their specific know how. Group mentoring also avoids the perception of favoritism that can result when there are limited numbers of mentors and many potential mentees.
• Peer Mentoring - Matches older youth with younger people in one-on-one relationships to provide guidance for the younger people. Serve as role models for younger people who need help.

The beginning of the mentoring relationship is when you and your partner should define what is to be accomplished in addition to what values will be honored. Values are the emotional rules that will guide your partnership’s actions and behaviors. A mentoring agreement will be used to state the shared values and reach an understanding and pledge of commitment, trust and confidentiality.

• Commitment – Commitment binds people together emotionally and intellectually to a course of action. Partnerships that simply go through the motions of mentoring have trouble sustaining the relationship because they lack the spirit necessary to thrive. Both partners need to make mentoring a priority and share a strong dedication to what they are doing.
• Trust and confidentiality – Trust and confidentiality are the glue that holds the mentoring relationship together.