Staffing Training Modules

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Staffing Training Modules

• Practical Tools for Staffing Professionals
• James B. Avey PhD

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Purpose

• The following slides are to be used as a
  introduction to each topic. Given an organization
  will tweak HR programs to fit the firm culture,
  these slides are meant to be though-provoking
  basics to each concept to enable the HR
  Professionals growth and increase their
  tool-set.

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Mentoring Program

• James B. Avey PhD

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What is a mentoring program?

• It is a system that seeks to establish
  relationships between junior and senior (either
  age, experience or level) employees for the
  purpose of training and development.
• Mentoring assumes some jobs have intangibles
  that can only be learned on the job by the
  incumbent.
• Mentoring develops the mentor in terms of
  coaching skills and identifying strengths and
  areas for development of others.
• Mentoring develops mentees in terms of
  performance feedback and exposure to new
  organizational issues and concepts.

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Why Have a Mentoring Program?

• Mentoring.
• is a component of an AAP in terms of activities
  taken to advance women and minorities in the
  organization.
• is a component of diversity especially in the
  scenario where organizations have trouble
  attracting top talent in certain demographic
  strata.
• primarily targets retention of valued employees.
• is a primary tool of Employee Training and
  Development programs because it is relatively
  inexpensive and can be useful.
• is an enhancer of social networking (social
  capital)
• is critical now with a potential brain drain in
  organizations (e.g., least expensive form of
  knowledge transfer).

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Logistics of a Mentoring Program
Identify Mentors and Mentees
Create Context for Mentoring
Get Feedback, Monitor and Reevaluate
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Logistics of a Mentoring Program
Identify Mentors and Mentees

• The simplest way to start a mentoring program is
  the ask for volunteer mentors and mentees. They
  can sign up as well as some qualitative
  information such as personal interests and what
  they would like to attain from the program.
• Secondarily, managers and HR people can
  encourage certain managers or employees to sign
  up.

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Logistics of a Mentoring Program
Create Context for Mentoring

• Mentors and Mentees should be matched on personal
  or professional interests as well as goals of the
  program.
• Remember, the goal is some social exchange so the
  better matching the better the program.
• This also highlights the possibilty of having a
  rotating program where mentors and mentees
  exchange at certain time intervals (e.g., 6
  months).

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Logistics of a Mentoring Program
Create Context for Mentoring

• While the idea of mentoring sounds exciting to
  some, often people feel as though they are
  forcing a discussion. Thus, when designing the
  program provide participants with a framework or
  suggested tools to use if they would like. This
  may include
• Mentors inviting mentees to important meetings,
  ride-alongs on appointments with senior managers,
  etc.
• A list of questions that either the mentor (e.g.,
  what are your career goals and what is your plan)
  or the mentee (e.g., what do you think is
  strongest attribute and the fatal flaw of leaders
  in our company) can ask.

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Logistics of a Mentoring Program
Create Context for Mentoring

• There has always been discussion of cross gender
  issues in mentoring such as sexual harassment.
  While not ignoring the issue, this is not a fatal
  flaw. All managers are to act as mentors and with
  48 women in the workforce there will be cross
  gender mentoring relationships. The only time
  there should be a reservation here is if 1)
  employees are dating, married or partners, 2)
  either employee has a history of being a
  harasser.
• If an employee has previously made a sexual
  harassment charge against your or any other
  company and they are subsequently denied
  participation in a mentoring program, this is
  retaliation and carries punitive damages in a
  lawsuit.

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Logistics of a Mentoring Program
Get Feedback, Monitor and Reevaluate

• Semi-annually or annually administer surveys to
  participants to understand how the program is
  going, solicit change ideas, etc.
• Make changes to the program as recommended by
  participants in line with the objectives of the
  program.
• Once a year all mentors and mentees should get
  together at a lunch or similar hosted by the CEO
  thanking both for their time and participation in
  the program.

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Logistics of a Mentoring Program
Get Feedback, Monitor and Reevaluate

• Mentoring programs are a component of affirmative
  action plans in terms of the organizations
  commitment to the advancement of women and
  minorities in the organization. Thus, all
  participation should be measured for statistical
  evidence of adverse impact (e.g., 4/5ths rule).

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This concludes the discussion on establishing a
mentoring program

• Questions?
• james.avey_at_nwcor.com