Mentor selection

Formal Organization selects/pairs mentees and mentor Mentor selects mentee with help from HR Mentee selects mentor (with help from HR) from a panel of well-trained mentors... 

Making participation in the program voluntary so as to ensure commitment and motivation on part of the mentors to ensure competency amongst mentors, this should be complemented by rigorous mentor selection as well as training. 

Possess the knowledge and experience that matches the mentee s needs - in fact, the importance of this particular criterion in mentor selection cannot be over-emphasized. 

Apart from these characteristics, additional criteria for mentor selection will be discussed in Chapter 8. 

Important mentor selection criteria are depicted in Table 8.3. To further ensure that you recruit the right kind of mentors, you can employ a variefy of additional sfrategies ... 

Examining the development needs and objectives of the mentee target group, will guide you when specifying the mentor selection criteria, at the very least in terms of the skills, knowledge and experience prospective mentors must possess. 

Another point to remember in mentor selection is that the mentors you want to recruit might be very different from each other, requiring distinct job descriptions and selection criteria. This is due to the fact that the mentor target groups (and their associated criteria) are determined by the organization s and the mentees needs and objectives, as well as by the mentoring schemes that were selected. 

In October 1916, Guido Pellizzari became director of the Pharmaceutical Laboratories at the Instimtion of Higher Practical Studies and Specialization of Florence Passerini joined him there several years later. Passerini graduated in 1916, and was enrolled in 1920 as a Doctor of Philosophy student. His scholarship expired in 1924 the Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Institute arranged for him to become Pellizzari s research assistant. In this role, Passerini helped him mentor selected Ph.D. students. 

Specific criteria are applied in selecting the mentors for the program. Mentors should ... 

So, what do the mentors of IMMS look like The mentors are either from the same or a more senior organizational rank, and are likely to be from within the organization but could on some occasions also be recruited from outside. This decision entirely depends on the size of the organization as well as on the availability of suitable mentors. Either way, an important selection criterion for mentors is that they possess a lot of experience with multinational enterprise. Although it should go without saying, it is also crucial to select individuals who are indeed capable... 

Potential mentors are selected from the ranks of female junior and middle management. The mentees were initially those in upper management, but the scheme has been extended to include male managers at middle and junior management level with equally positive results. In the first instance mentoring participation was voluntary, but it is now expected that all eligible male senior level and female junior level managers will take part. 

Because of the vast differences between schemes regarding the characteristics of the mentee group, it is impossible to generalize about mentee selection criteria. In contrast to that, there do appear to be certain criteria for recruiting mentors that apply to the majority of schemes. These are ... 

Semi- formal Organization develops and trains pool of mentors and encourages relationships to happen Mentor makes interest known to mentee Mentee informs HR of selection approaches mentor... 

Allowing mentees to select their mentors (on their own or with the help of HR from a panel of mentors) and enabling the gradual development of a relationship - for example, it might be a good idea to ask pairs to meet a few times prior to deciding whether or not they wish to continue the relationship. 

According to a study conducted by Allen et al. (2000), mentors (both male and female) are biased towards selecting mentees based on their perceptions of the mentee s potential/ability rather than perceptions of his or her need for help. This means that the extent of a mentee s need for help is not as important a determinant in mentee selection as is his or her perceived potential to grow and develop. 

Reluctance of male menfors (which, as we have seen before, sfill predominate in terms of numbers) fo fake on female mentees. This leads fo a reduction of fhe numbers of mentors available to women. Again, this might be due to a combination of facfors people are subconsciously affracfed fo fhose who fhey perceive as similar to themselves, and male mentors might select male mentees because they can more easily identify wifh fhem. Furfhermore, male mentors might be reluctant to enter into a cross-gender dyad for reasons discussed previously, such as fear of harmful rumours. 

That said, like mentors, no mentee is perfect either. In selecting mentees for your scheme, it is therefore pivotal to be on the lookout for negative mentee behaviours as well as the positive characteristics - be cautious about choosing mentees who display too many of these to too great an extent ... 

A preliminary indication of the mentee and mentor target groups, including an outline of the most important selection criteria. 

Logistical issues, such as the date the selection process commences, how to apply, dates for the start of the mentoring program etc. 

Having decided on the vacancies that need filling, determine the number of people needed for each role. This should be done in accordance with the number of mentees and mentors you are planning to recruit. Then you can draw up job descriptions and selection criteria for each of the vacancies. With regard to the selection criteria for trainers, relationship supervisors and (if still necessary) the program co-ordinator, please refer back to Founding the implementation team and Table 8.1. 

Once the implementation team is in place, recruitment should first focus on the selection of mentees before turning to the selection of mentors. The reason for this lies in the fact that mentoring is set up to benefit mentees (employees with certain learning requirements). In order for mentors to develop these employees, their needs must be ascertained first, and then mentors matched to them. Let us now consider mentor and mentee recruitment in more detail, starting with the mentee. 

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