Mentor Training Programs: Setting Mentors up for Success

Mentorship programs are often the unsung heroes of great workplace cultures. Employees that have role models they can go to for support and encouragement are more engaged, confident, and find their work more fulfilling.

But that’s only possible if their mentors are equipped with the right skills. And ineffective mentoring can be worse than none at all.

So, for those of us trying to plan a mentoring program, what can we do to make sure all our mentors are ready to take on the responsibility of helping someone else? A mentor training program, of course.

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What is a mentor training program?

Mentor training prepares leaders to better understand what is expected of them. During training, mentors learn how to communicate and understand their mentees. Mentors can meet with one another and share tips or helpful advice. 

Mentor training is also a good time to clarify the expectations of the program, such as deadlines, meeting times, and goals.

Mentorship program admins from The United Nations and The Forum unpack how to run world-class mentoring programs. Watch the full panel discussion.

To summarize, mentor training usually involves the following checklist:

1. Mentors learn how to listen to mentees;
2. Learning communication strategies;
3. How to help mentees identify and work towards their goals;
4. What’s expected of the mentor in your mentoring program;
5. What mentors and mentees should discuss during their session;
6. What good mentoring looks like; and,
7. Tips for building an effective mentoring relationship. 

Covering these 7 items during mentor training will ensure your leaders know their responsibilities. Going through this training will also get your mentors in the right mindset, understanding that being a mentor is different than a coach or manager. It’s a distinct, but critical role in an employee’s development. 

With that said, many leaders may question if training is necessary. “I’m already a great leader. Why do I need to attend training?” That’s a great question! Let’s unpack it.

Do mentors need training?

According to a study by the Department of Medicine at the University of California, mentor training has several distinct benefits:

1. Training greatly improves the mentor’s communication with their mentee.
2. Training aligns expectations.
3. Training helps mentors assess and understand their mentees.
4. Training equips mentors to address diversity issues present in the workplace that impact mentees from minority backgrounds.
5. Training gives mentors more confidence. 
6. Training promotes future program development.

Still, many leaders may feel they don’t need training. They’ve worked their way up into a leadership position and the experience they have should be enough, shouldn't it?

It’s a good question, but training is still an important part of building a great mentorship program. Why? Mentor training gets all mentors in the same place to be on the same page with rules and expectations. Although leaders may think they know it all already, training ensures that any gaps they have (without knowing it) get filled in.

Wendy Axelrod, author of 10 Steps to Successful Mentoring spoke with our CEO, Matthew Reeves about what separates successful mentoring programs from those that flop. She shared that cultivating strong mentors was a crucial step in taking a good mentoring program to a great one:

Additionally, the training communicates to mentors that they have administrative support. If they run into any difficult situations throughout the mentoring relationship, they’ll know who they can go to with questions. This leads to more confident leaders. 

It’s also a great opportunity for future mentors to meet other mentors. This is a great way for them to share advice on how to build a great mentoring relationship.

How long should mentor training be?

Unsurprisingly, more mentor training leads to more effective mentorships. According to a Mentoring.org study, more training allowed mentors to be more effective in their teaching and understand better how to approach a myriad of situations. 

A crucial point to remember is that it is important to offer pre-and post-match training. Training sessions should be at least two hour-long seminars, in which the mentors can also ask questions and get advice from other mentors and administrators.

The pre-match training session should go over the mentorship program goals and anything that is expected from the mentors. Additionally, they can learn how to properly understand the mentee’s questions and point-of-view.

Once the mentor has a basis of what is expected of them and they’ve been paired, you can have shorter training sessions for basic details on the mentorship they will be leading and any questions they have. Remember to include any time frames and deadlines that mentors need to follow, as well as what will be going on in the program itself.

Essential characteristics of effective mentorship training

As you design your training for mentors, there are a few characteristics that effective training programs tend to have in common. Let’s take a closer look at what they are and how to incorporate them into your own program. 

• Self-paced learning

While it can be helpful to offer some opportunities for mentors to learn together, it’s also important to give mentors the ability to engage with materials in a self-paced manner when it’s convenient for them. Since mentors tend to be in senior roles, it can be difficult for them to block off time on their calendars to attend classes or workshops, but it’s much easier for them to engage with learning materials during moments of downtime.

• Customized training

To ensure your training resonates with mentors, make sure that it’s tailored to the specific needs of both your organization and the employees who are being mentored. If your company has any specific cultural or communication preferences, you can incorporate these into mentor training as well. For example, some organizations strongly prefer asynchronous communication while others require employees to give frequent short presentations during standup meetings. Depending on the norms within your company, you can encourage mentors to help their mentees develop the appropriate skills. 

• Knowledge assessment

Want to make sure mentors are retaining what they’re learning? If this is important for your mentorship training program, consider incorporating quizzes and certifications. This not only boosts confidence but also motivates continuous learning, which is vital for effective mentorship.

• Inclusivity in mentoring

Mentorship programs give you the opportunity to foster diversity and inclusion within your organization. Training should prepare mentors to approach their roles with an inclusive mindset, ensuring that all mentees feel valued and supported, regardless of their background or identity.

• Real-life scenarios and case studies

When you incorporate real-life scenarios and case studies in your mentor training, you help prepare mentors for the challenges they’re likely to face. This helps bridge the gap between the theory and practice of mentorship. Plus, when you present case studies or real-life examples and ask mentors to discuss what they’d do in these situations, you can make training more interactive and give mentors the chance to hear their peers’ perspectives.

• Supplementary materials like handbooks and guides

While your goal is to deliver comprehensive training for mentors, you won’t be able to cover every single situation they might encounter with their mentees. This is where supplementary materials like handbooks and guides can come into play. You can share these materials with mentors and remind them that these resources are always available for them to reference as needed.

Integrating these elements into your mentor training will help ensure you have an effective and successful mentorship program.

What should you include in your mentor training curriculum?

Now that we’ve covered how to structure your mentorship training program and a few key elements to keep in mind as you design your program, you might be wondering what exactly your training should cover. 

This can vary depending on the specifics of your company’s mentorship program and its goals, but here are a few of the skills that will be beneficial to cultivate in any mentor.

• How to ask powerful questions

One of the defining skills of a good mentor is the ability to ask powerful questions. When mentors master this skill, they can steer conversations toward self-discovery and foster personal and professional growth in their mentees. For example, the right questions can prompt mentees to think deeply about their experiences, goals, and challenges. They also help mentees think beyond simple yes/no answers and develop critical thinking skills. 

However, unless they’ve received coaching or training in this area, mentors won’t necessarily know how to ask these types of questions. This is why it’s a good idea to teach mentors how to ask powerful questions and help them practice this skill.

• How to set SMART goals

Just as some questions prompt simple answers while others encourage deeper analysis, not all goals are equally effective. Consider these two statements:

• Statement 1: “I’m going to get better at sales.” 
• Statement 2: “I’m going to exceed my sales quota by 10% by the end of next quarter.”

The difference? The first goal is so vague that it will be hard to measure whether it’s been met. The second goal includes both a specific metric (10%) and timeline (by the end of next quarter), meaning it adheres to the SMART criteria. 

In case you need a quick refresher, SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. 

When it comes to mentorship training, you can make sure that mentors are familiar with the SMART framework and feel confident helping their mentees come up with goals that are aligned with this framework.

• How to provide constructive feedback 

Since mentors tend to be seasoned leaders, they will likely already be comfortable giving constructive feedback to their mentees, just as they would to direct reports on their team. But it’s a good idea to offer refreshers on this topic since it’s an area where many leaders could use a little extra support. 

It’s important for mentors to both recognize what mentees have done well and share ideas for where they can improve. And just as they should work on setting clear, actionable goals, mentors should strive to offer feedback that’s genuinely useful and impactful for their mentees.

Again, these are some ideas to help get you started, but make sure you consider your company’s specific goals and what you’re hoping to achieve through your mentorship program. This will help ensure your mentor training is aligned with the outcomes you’re striving to attain.

How to structure a mentor training program

If you find planning a mentor training session overwhelming, don’t worry. It’s a straightforward process. We’ll outline a checklist of items to cover in the sessions before and after mentors are paired. 

Training for mentors before they meet their mentee

Pre-match mentor training should include an in-person session of at least two hours. According to the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring, the following should be included in pre-match mentor training:

1. Cover program requirements, such as length, frequency of meetings, what to do if mentees miss meetings, and what to do with a mismatch;
2. Mentor’s goals and expectations for the mentee;
3. Mentor’s obligations and appropriate roles;
4. How to build the mentoring relationship;
5. Ethical and safety issues that may come up when creating a mentoring relationship;
6. How to conclude a mentoring relationship;
7. Where mentors can access support if they need it; and,
8. Opportunities and challenges that a mentor can face when mentoring.

Training for after the mentor match

Once the mentor and mentee have been matched, mentors should have one or two follow-up training sessions. When it comes to post-match training, the following should be covered:

1. Appropriate physical contact;
2. Who the mentoring program administrators are;
3. How to get feedback on mentoring;
4. Discussion topics and activities
5. Policies on money spent on mentee and mentor activities;
6. Remote vs in-person mentoring;
7. How to end a mentoring relationship.

More ideas on how to train mentors

Besides the typical training, mentors should be able to get in contact with their peers to discuss any questions they might have during the mentorship process—this is called peer learning. One study showed peer mentoring increased knowledge sharing. This is a great way to increase learning, motivation, and overall mentoring outcomes.

Peer-to-peer learning is a great way to get mentors to help each other learn and become better guides for their mentees.

For instance, mentors can get together and discuss with one another what works and does not in a mentorship. This can lead to better communication skills, a support system between mentors, and more motivation to get the mentee to succeed. Here’s a resource on peer mentoring activities that can encourage discussion and new learning.

In addition to peer learning, encourage mentoring pairs to meet with other mentoring pairs. This is called group mentoring. They can discuss their mentoring relationship and give tips to one another. This can open up new perspectives.

Launch your mentoring program with ease

Together takes care of admin parts of programs so you can focus on delivering great mentorship programs. 

With Together, mentors and mentees get matched with our intelligent algorithm. 

Additionally, our mentorship platform allows you to update how things are going and get insight at the end of every program. Together also offers templated meeting agendas that can be customized to your liking, and we integrate with many company communication tools. 

This easy-to-use platform allows employees to register for programs and communicate with mentors. 

Want to see how we can simplify and enhance your workplace mentorship program? Book a demo to learn more!