One of our recent employee engagement surveys revealed only 54 percent of our workforce perceived significant professional growth and career development opportunities. In response, the Organization Effectiveness team launched a targeted, high-touch mentoring program. Our goal? To provide additional focused career development to our talent, increase diversity, grow skills and foster cross-functional collaboration. In this article, we will share some of the highlights and outcomes of the initiative.
How we designed a mentoring program that works
We started by defining the success criteria for the mentoring program, which included:
- At least 25 active mentor/mentee pairings to be reciprocal and mutually beneficial.
- Achieve a 70 percent-plus favorability score.
Exceeding these criteria, the program had 27 mutually beneficial pairings and 100 percent favorability scores.
One of the key features of our mentoring program was the personalized matching process. We paired mentees with mentors based on the mentees’ development areas and the mentors’ strengths.
We interviewed each mentee’s manager to find out their key development areas and mentors filled out a mentor profile on their areas of expertise.
Then, our team will recommend two or three mentors for each mentee. Mentees then interviewed every mentor to determine who they clicked with best.
This method ensured the mentoring relationships were aligned with the interests and needs of both participants. We also considered diversity and compatibility factors such as gender, ethnicity and personality to create a more inclusive and supportive environment.
With the pairings set, we prepared them for their mentoring relationships by conducting an orientation session where we shared the expectations, roles, and responsibilities and how to make the relationship a two-way street. We also provided various resources, such as:
- Curated LinkedIn Learning courses: Topics such as how to be a good mentee/mentor, the power of mentoring in building a network and strategic mentoring to advance your career.
- Teams group: A safe space for mentees and mentors to exchange best practices.
- Relationship development plan: This helped them with building a trusting relationship, as most of the mentees and mentors may have known each other but hadn’t worked with each other yet.
- Goal-setting template: Set SMART mentoring goals so they could evaluate at the end of the relationship if they achieved the goals they had set out.
- Suggested agenda/topics for discussion: This offered ideas and tips on how to make the most of the mentoring sessions.
We also curated and provided additional resources, such as a mentoring toolkit, books, TED talks and YouTube videos to promote better mentors and mentees.
The mentoring program lasted for six, nine or 12 months based on the discretion of the mentoring pair, during which the mentees and mentors met regularly to discuss their goals, challenges, and progress. We recommended that they meet twice a month and at least once a month for an hour, either face-to-face or online, depending on their convenience and comfort.
How we made mentoring fun
We hosted quarterly mentee and mentor socials, which were a hit among the participants. They enjoyed the opportunity to mingle with other mentees and mentors, share their stories and insights, and have some fun.
One of the most popular events was the “Ask Me Anything” session on building executive presence, which featured some of the senior leaders of our company. The mentees said it was one of the most effective development sessions they have attended at Trinity. This helped create a community and an ecosystem for learning and growth.
How we celebrated
At the end of the program, we asked mentees and mentors to share stories on what they learned from each other. Here are a few excerpts from mentee testimonials:
“Throughout the process, my mentor was always there to help me talk through issues. Not only that, my mentor also has provided me with additional opportunities within the organization, and I can tell that she truly wants me to succeed. I am extremely appreciative for the time my mentor took out of her day to meet with me. For these reasons, we intend to stay in touch and continue the relationship even once the program has concluded.” — Mentee testimonial
“You empowered me to take up space when I made myself small! You taught me to dream BIG and then leave it to the universe to work its magic!! You taught me how to influence, how to navigate an org and associated politics and how to own a room (well, that one’s work in progress though) Every time I approached you with a challenge, you empowered me by asking, “What is bothering you the most about this situation and how can I help?” This simple question had a profound impact on me, empowering me to take a deeper look at my request and own the resolution. You’ve been an advocate, a guide, a coach and a friend!” — Mentee testimonial
“My mentee has helped me reflect on my career by asking me questions about decisions that I have made in the past. The interesting thing has been that I started asking myself those same questions again. Where I want to be in my next job, do I want to manage or be an individual contributor, what really motivates and matters to me? All questions that I have put in the back of my mind are still relevant and important. Even if you are more senior in your career those things that motivate you in the past may still be important in the future.” — Mentor testimonial
Being a mentor helps you realize the significant amount of valuable experience you’ve gained throughout your career as you look through your mental database to answer questions that once challenged you. The exercise also allows the mentor to revisit past challenges, the learning and helps to refresh insights for application in the present.
It’s also very rewarding for a mentor to be able to share past experiences or advice with someone who truly appreciates the guidance. As a manager, guidance is often given to team members to help them improve their performance, which isn’t always received with the same level of appreciation. Having the opportunity to give feedback that is well received is motivating to continue to give feedback in general (performance-related or otherwise).
There is nothing more humbling or rewarding as a mentor than to hear from the mentee that the advice you gave them was valuable and helped them successfully overcome a challenge they were facing.
As one mentor said in their testimonial,“The mentee’s success is the mentor’s success.”
We concluded the cohort with a networking wrap-up event. Mentors were presented trophies and mentees were presented with certificates.
Our amazing results
Ninety-two percent of the mentees said they’ll continue to stay in touch with their mentor even after the program ended. The success of our program inspired a similar program at our Mexico facilities, which expanded to include another 27 mentoring pairs bringing the total to 54 pairs, or 108 mentors and mentees.
After viewing our success, The Traffic Club of New York, a non-profit community for cyber security, has even adopted our mentoring methodology, toolkit and other resources.
Our mentoring program has been a tremendous success, providing our key talent with an additional opportunity to grow and develop their skills while fostering cross-functional collaboration and diversity. The personalized matching process, the resources and support provided and the fun and engaging events all contributed to the program’s success. We hope that our story inspires other organizations to embrace mentoring as a powerful tool for developing their future leaders. By investing in our people, we are investing in the future of our company and our industry.
