S4 Enterprise Mentoring

Contracting and relationship

• S4.1

  Explain to the mentee what mentoring involves, how it differs from advice, coaching and consultancy, and what it asks of them

• S4.2

  Set up the relationship with the mentee: its purpose, ground rules, confidentiality, how often and where or how you will meet, how long it is likely to last, and what happens if a meeting cannot go ahead

• S4.3

  Create a safe environment and a relationship of mutual trust and respect, taking account of the mentee's culture, background and ways of thinking and working, including neurodiversity

• S4.4

  Agree which topics are within the scope of the relationship, and ask permission before exploring personal or sensitive areas

The mentoring conversation

• S4.5

  Listen with full attention to what the mentee says and what they leave unsaid, without judging, and check your understanding

• S4.6

  Ask well-timed, open and curious questions that help the mentee explore issues and reach their own insights

• S4.7

  Recognise the feelings, concerns and pressures behind what the mentee says, and respond with sensitivity

• S4.8

  Draw on your own business experience, including mistakes as well as successes, through examples and stories that help the mentee learn, without imposing your own solutions

• S4.9

  Offer information and ideas with patience and tact, at a pace and in a form the mentee can absorb and use

• S4.10

  Encourage the mentee to use new points of view when evaluating their situation and options

Developing the mentee

• S4.11

  Leave the mentee in charge of their own goals and decisions

• S4.12

  Build the mentee's confidence, knowledge and skills so they can reach their goals and, in time, manage without a mentor

• S4.13

  Notice when you have slipped from mentoring into giving advice, and decide what to do about it

• S4.14

  Recognise when the mentee needs support beyond the mentoring relationship and help them access it

Reviewing and concluding

• S4.15

  Keep appropriate records of the relationship, in line with data protection requirements

• S4.16

  Review progress against the mentee's goals, and the value of the relationship, with the mentee at agreed points

• S4.17

  Recognise when the relationship has served its purpose or is no longer adding value, and bring it to a planned close that reviews what has been achieved and agrees next steps

• S4.18

  Use supervision or peer support, and feedback from mentees, to reflect on and improve your mentoring practice

• S4.19

  Help the mentee look back at setbacks and plans that went wrong, and draw lessons from them

• S4.K1

  What enterprise mentoring is and its different forms (for example one-to-one, group, peer, reverse and online mentoring; voluntary and paid)

• S4.K2

  How mentoring compares with coaching, advising, consultancy and training, and when mentoring is the right form of support

• S4.K3

  The stages of a mentoring relationship, from contracting to closure, and how rapport develops as the relationship matures

• S4.K4

  Questioning techniques, including open, curious and challenging questions, and how to judge when to use them

• S4.K5

  The different levels of listening, from listening to reply to listening for meaning, feelings and what is left unsaid, and how attention and intention affect the quality of listening

• S4.K6

  How to recognise and respond to emotions in mentoring conversations, and how stress and pressure can affect business decisions

• S4.K7

  How people take in and process information differently, including neurodivergent people, and how to adapt the pace and form of what you share

• S4.K8

  How to use your own experience in mentoring: when to share it, how to use stories and examples (including mistakes), and the risk of imposing your own solutions

• S4.K9

  Feedback techniques, and the use of reflective practice and supervision in mentoring

• S4.K10

  The boundaries of the mentor's role, including how to avoid dependency and how to recognise when a relationship is no longer adding value

• S4.K11

  Ethical codes for mentoring, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, and what to do if confidentiality is breached

• S4.K12

  Matching mentors and mentees, and what makes a match work

• S4.K13

  The practical and personal safety considerations in arranging mentoring meetings, including online

• S4.K14

  How to measure the impact of mentoring

• S4.K15

  How mentoring programmes are designed, matched and quality assured