The Mentoring Part of the CAQA group

Mentoring

Mentoring works when it is structured

Mentoring programmes designed with matching, expectations and review, rather than a good intention and two busy people.

IWhat we do

Three things, done properly.

i

Programme design

Matching, expectations, duration and review, decided before the first meeting.

ii

Mentor preparation

Mentoring is a skill. Being experienced is not the same as being able to develop someone.

iii

Evaluation

Whether the programme changed anything, asked seriously.

IIWhat goes wrong

The two failures we see most.

We publish these because most of the value in hiring anyone is knowing which mistakes are common, and that knowledge is not worth hiding.

Matching by availability

Pairs assembled from who was free produce relationships neither party wanted.

No end date

An open ended arrangement drifts and then lapses with nobody willing to say so. A defined period that can be renewed works better.

IIIHow we work

We tell you what we find.

Including when the answer is that you do not need what you came to ask for. Anyone who never says that is not giving you information, they are giving you an invoice.

Scope

Where something needs a legal opinion, a financial audit or a clinical judgement, we will say so and stop rather than improvise past the edge of what we do.

Start a conversation.

Tell us the situation rather than the service you think you need. We would rather start from your problem.