Frequently Asked Questions
- I've never been a 1:1 mentor before. What am I supposed to do? Mentors are expected to provide their mentee with one hour of support and interaction per month. Mentors' first goal is to help mentees frame their goal(s) for the mentoring relationship; what does your mentee want to accomplish? Mentors should work with their mentee to determine what kind of support will be most useful - specific ideas and feedback related to their goal. Be sure to check out the resources on the Mentoring Program CenterLink page on your role as a mentor.
- How long will the commitment be? The 1:1 Mentoring Program is a six-month commitment.
- How often should my mentee and I be meeting? Mentors and mentees should meet once a month for the six-month program and the mentee is responsible for scheduling. Each mentor-mentee pair gets to determine what day and time each monthly session should take place and if the meetings will be virtual, in-person, or via phone. The most important part of your mentoring connection is clarifying each person’s expectations and preferences up front, then honoring your scheduled meetings and communicating to each other if your availability changes.
- How am I matched with a mentee? Mentor-mentee matching is coordinated via the Chronus online mentoring platform. Just create your profile and we will find your best match.
- Do I have to receive my manager's permission to participate? Mentors who are hourly employees require manager approval to participate. Hourly employees should be clocked in during mentoring meetings. Talk with your manager if you have any questions about your schedule.
- What do I do if my mentoring relationship(s) aren't going well? While our mentoring program takes deliberate and thoughtful steps to build successful mentoring connections from the start, we know that sometimes things don't always go as planned. We encourage you to email MentoringProgram@cchmc.org. We will provide our full support to resolve the situation in a positive and satisfactory manner.
- Where do I go if I have additional questions? Please email your questions to MentoringProgram@cchmc.org.
Mentor DO's
- Honor your scheduled commitments and be on time.
- Be focused and ready to listen.
- Ask great questions.
- Share insights and different perspectives.
- Maintain confidentiality of all conversations.
- Establish open and honest communication and a forum for idea exchange.
- Foster creativity and independence. Help build self-confidence and offer encouragement.
- Provide honest and timely feedback and feedforward.
- Provide space for the mentee to talk about concerns and ask questions.
- Guide the mentee towards knowledge and goal progress.
Mentor DON'Ts
- Try to give advice on everything.
- Encourage mentee to be totally dependent upon you.
- Provide your personal history, successes, failures, etc. unless they are on-topic contributions.
- Criticize or scold.
- Multitask during a session.
- Tell the mentee what their goal should be.
- Discuss day-to-day work matters that are the responsibility of the mentee's manager.
