Textiles Mentoring Presentation July 2014

Connecting people, creating opportunities

The Mentoring Programme

Corinne Crowley

Mentoring Advisor


Mentoring Team

Paul Tucker – Mentoring Manager

Lucy Wall – Co-ordinator

Mentoring Advisors:

Corinne Crowley

Gill Nolan

Karen Isherwood

Andy Hall

Rina Lakhman


Introductions

Who you are

&

What do you do

(60 Seconds)

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Aim of Mentoring

To support leaders, managers and entrepreneurs to develop their capability and potential to improve their

business performance and growth.

To offer SME businesses a suite of mentoring support that allows them to receive practical long-term support from experienced entrepreneurs and business leaders through effective transfer of

knowledge and valued experience.

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What we are going to cover today !

• An introduction to mentoring ?

• What a mentor is and what they are not.

• How to make the most of your mentoring relationship.

• How a mentor can help you to develop your business.

• How the programme works and what to expect.


Definition of Mentoring ?• The word ‘mentor’ comes from the Greek myth in which the

legendary king Odysseus went off to fight in the Trojan Wars, entrusting the care of his son to a friend called Mentor.

• The word actually means ‘enduring’ and is usually used to describe a sustained relationship between an experienced person and someone who is in the initial stages of their development.

• The word has become synonymous with the idea of a trusted adviser – a friend, teacher, or wise person.

• The Oxford English Dictionary defines a mentor as an ‘experienced and trusted advisor’.


Coaching versus Mentoring

Opening perspectives/ horizons

Mentor

Long - Term

Short - Term

Skills, knowledge, behaviours competencies

CoachOpeningPerspective/horizons

© Clutterbuck Associates 2004

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Mentor Helping Roles and Behaviours

Learning Support

Career Management

Self-Reliance

Career counselling

Sounding board

“Bridging”

Catalyst

Collaborating

Challenging

Critical friend Guiding

Role modelling

COUNSELLOR(Passive)

COACH (Active)

GUARDIAN(Active)

NETWORKING FACILITATOR (Passive)

Goal-setting Sponsoring

Making casual contacts Therapy

Listening

Goals

Mentor Behaviours

Non-Mentor Behaviours


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What mentoring is not !

• To act as a parent

• To act as a counsellor

• To give the mentee an excuse to moan

• To be a best friend

• To dispense discipline


What should a mentor do ?• Provide an outside perspective on the business owner and his /

her business• Listen, in confidence, to the things that are worrying the business

owner about their business• Help by sharing their own experience of failures and successes• Give friendly, unbiased support and guidance• Provide honest and constructive feedback• Be a sounding board for ideas• Facilitate decision-making by suggesting alternatives based on

personal experience• Provide on going support and encouragement


Being accountable !

The ultimate responsibility for making the business successful is down to the

business owner themselves.


Benefits to the Mentor

• Personal fulfilment from investing in others• Communication, management and coaching skills• Enjoyment of a rewarding challenge• To feel “valued” as a role model• To stimulate their own learning - a two way learning relationship• Improve own processes and performance• Insights into relationship with other people• Having an opportunity to be challenged• Opportunity to take time out and reflect• Renewed focus on own career and development

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Benefits to the individual being mentored

• Increased self-awareness and self-discipline• Support in transitions• Provided with sounding board and feedback• Accelerated training and development• Expanded personal network and other learning resources• Experience of different options/paths• Increased self-confidence and self-esteem• A safe space to try out ideas• Access to information • A source of stretch and challenge

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Phases of the Mentoring Relationship

Intensity of

learning and

value added

BR = Building RapportSD = Setting Direction

BR SD

Progression Maturation

Time


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Boundaries and the Mentoring Agreement

• Consider what are your own boundaries?

• What do you want to be involved?

• What is outside the boundaries of your mentoring relationship

• What would you like to see in your Mentoring Agreement?

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Mentoring Contract or Agreement

• What do we expect to learn from each other?• When will you check the relationship is working for

both of you? How will you measure progress?• What are the learner’s goals?• Do you agree that openness and trust are essential?• Will you both give honest and timely feedback?• What is the ideal schedule for us?• Note taking• Boundaries and confidentiality• To what extent are you prepared to share networks?• No-Fault divorce clause

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Checklist for First Meeting

• Length of session• What do you need to know?• Your futures• Learner’s goals• Priority of goals• Frequency of contact• Boundaries and confidentiality• Agenda for next meeting

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Break


Learning Styles Survey

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Kolb’s Learning Cycle with Learning Styles

ACTIVIST

Have an experience

FEEL

THEORIST

Generalise from the experience

THINK

REFLECTOR

Think about the experience

WATCH

PRAGMATIST

Apply the experience

DO

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The Four Learning Styles

Activists (Feel & Do)

Like to think on their feet

Like to have short sessions

Plenty of variety

The opportunity to initiate

To participate and have fun

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Reflectors (Feel & Watch)

Like to think before acting

Thorough preparation

Like to research and evaluate

Like to make decisions in their own time

Like to listen and observe

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Theorists (Think & Watch)

Concepts and model

Like to see the overall picture

Like to feel intellectually stretched

Structure and clear objectives

Logical presentation of ideas

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Pragmatists (Think & Do)

Like to see the relevance of their work

Like to gain practical advantage from learning

Credible role models

Proven techniques

Activities to be real

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ACTIVIST

Have an experience

FEEL

THEORIST

Generalise from the experience

THINK

REFLECTOR

Think about the experience

WATCH

PRAGMATIST

Apply the experience

DO

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The mentor can help the learner by asking the following questions:

“Tell me about your experience of…”

“What general lessons can be drawn from your understanding?”

“How can you apply this understanding?” “What do you think this

means?”

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Key Skills in Mentoring

• Effective Questions

• Active Listening

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Types of Questions to Consider

• Open questions

• Closed questions

• Probing questions

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Questions to be Avoided

• Multiple questions

• Leading questions

• Interrogating questions


Mentors ‘pull’ – they don’t push

Helping someone solve their own problems PULL

Listening to understand

Asking questions

Paraphrasing and summarising

Suggesting option

Giving feedback

Offering guidance

Giving advice

Instructing

Telling

PUSH solving someone’s problem for them


Active Listening – Key Skills

ReflectingParaphrasingSummarizing

Good questioningRemaining focusedAllowing silences

Creating the environment

Good eye contact

Congruent body language

Empathy


Objective Setting - SMART Goals

• Specific - What exactly is going to change?• Measurable - How will we know when it has been

done?• Achievable/Agreed - Do we agree that this can

actually be done?• Realistic - What will change? Can you do it?• Time-based - When will it be done? When does it

need to be done by?

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The 3 Stage Mentoring Process

• Exploration

• New Understanding

• Action Planning

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Phases of Reflective Space

Exploration

New Understanding

Action Planning

Weigh Up Options

Implication Analysis

Clarifying Aims & Objectives

Make Decisions / Solve problems


Reflection Log

When mentee’s become ‘reflectors’ they are able to apply their new knowledge and skills

to their future activities.

‘Knowledge Transfer’


Good questions to ask yourself after each meeting are :

• How did you feel at the time ?

• What went well ?

• What didn’t go so well ?

• Why do you think that happened ?

• What made you approach the situation in that particular way ?


Regularly reflecting on your process will:

• Clarify thinking

• Capture the richness of learning experiences

• Support the client in identifying how they feel about

the changes they are going through

• Can provide a written log for those who want to keep

one

• Give a systematic and intentional reflection

• Develop your practice!!

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The next steps………….

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Mentoring Pack

Mentor/ Mentee Profile Form

Mentoring Code of Conduct

Statement of Understanding

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Statement of Understanding

• Volunteer

• Personal Capacity

• No liability

• Confidentiality


Code of Conduct

• E.M.C.C.• Confidential Activity• Mentee’s Agenda

• Position of Third Parties• Respect & Privacy• Share Knowledge


Any Questions ?


Thank you for attending today

and

Good luck in your mentoring relationships

Corinne Crowley


Contact us to find out more!

@bizgrowthhub

Business Growth Hub

Phone: 0161 359 3050

Email: [email protected]