Training guide for mentee's participating in Tile's mentorship program. Covers how a mentee can make the most out of the mentoring relationship.

1. Mentee Training Guide
What is mentoring?
A mentor has many roles. They:
● Help the mentee develop their focus areas
● Develop trusting, confidential and beneficial relationships
● Listen and provide encouragement, feedback and new insights
● Assist the mentee with personal and professional growth and improving
contributions
What is the difference between mentoring, coaching, and
sponsoring?
While similar, a mentor, coach and sponsor fulfill different roles.
A sponsor:
● Represents the mentee’s point of view
● Serves as a mediator on behalf of the mentee
● Acts as a sponsor to open doors
● Focuses on the internal politics system
A coach:
● Brings a high level of targeted expertise
● Determines development areas using an assessment process
● Provides a third party perspective from outside the organization
What are the roles of the mentor vs the mentee?
Mentor:
● Focuses on transferring knowledge and assisting the mentee with developing new
capabilities
● Asks questions to assist and challenge mentee with developing their focus areas
● Assists mentee with reflecting on past successes and failures to identify strengths to
leverage and weaknesses to mitigate
● Attends learning circles with mentee
Mentee:
● Focuses on achieving sustainable results the right way
● Clarifies performance expectations and priorities
● Seeks on-going feedforward to improve personal contributions
● If necessary, adjusts goals and priorities due to dynamic business environment

2. ● Focuses performance on the “what” and “how”
What are some guidelines for having a successful mentoring
relationship?
Below are some guidelines to bring success to your relationship:
1. Focus on Confidentiality
a. What is said in your meetings must stay confidential (unless a comment or action
is of considerable concern - then it should be brought to HR).
b. Each person must enter with a willingness to share openly and honestly.
c. Conversation will flow more freely if everyone is able to trust each other
2. Make a Personal Commitment:
a. Commitment to the success of the connection includes attending all meetings,
preparing for the meetings, completing action items identified by the group, and
actively participating in conversations.
b. Personal commitment is needed to keep a connection sustained and beneficial
for all.
3. Have Good Communication:
a. The quality of conversation and communication will determine the success of
each meeting.
b. Conversations need to be open, in depth, and inclusive in order to be beneficial.
c. Building trust and commonality will help with communication barriers that may
exist.
d. Be open to receiving feedback and coaching
4. Set Clear Ground Rules:
a. During your first meeting, talk about items such as the frequency of
meetings, level of confidentiality, exit plan, etc.
b. When you talk about these things at the beginning of the mentorship, you
avoid future problems and issues.
5. Define Mentorship Goals and Objectives:
a. Determine the objective for the mentorship such as skills development,
career growth, networking or life balance. Once you've figured out the
purpose for the relationship, you can then identify 1-3 goals to work as
part of the mentorship.
b. Mentees should take ownership when setting these goals, while mentors
can encourage their mentees to break down their goals into manageable
steps and action items.
c. Track progress toward the pre-set goals and make changes as necessary.
6. Plan Useful Activities:
a. After you've figured out the main objective of the mentorship and defined
the main goals, work together to create activities that will help you achieve
them.

3. b. For example, if you're mentorship objective is to improve skill sets, you
could practice a specific career-related skill, such as sales or a mock
interview.
c. If the mentee would like to work on career growth, the mentor could
conduct a mini-360 review with the mentee's supervisor, peers and
subordinates to identify areas for development.
d. If the mentee wants to work on networking skills, the mentor could
introduce his/her mentee to appropriate senior leaders or both the mentor
and mentee could attend a local conference or meetup together.
What development areas should we focus on?
1. Skills Development - Mentorships that focus on skills development help
the mentee learn specific skill sets in order to develop him or herself, add
value to the organization and progress on his or her career path. For
example, if the mentee is in sales, a possible mentoring activity could be
practicing cold calling.
2. Goal Setting/Career Planning - Mentorships that focus on goal setting and
career planning help the mentee identify his or her professional and
personal goals, as well as think about his or her long-term career path. An
example of a good activity for this type of mentoring objective is
discussing the mentee's early career dreams and possible career moves.
3. Problem Solving - Mentorships that focus on problem solving help the
mentee develop cognitive skills in order to strengthen the mental process
of discovering, analyzing and solving problems to overcome obstacles. An
activity example for this mentoring objective would be to identify a real
problem with his or her mentor and then brainstorm solutions together, as
well as discuss pros and cons for each option.
4. Networking - Mentorships that focus on networking help the mentee
expand his or her professional connections and networks. An activity
example for this type of objective would be for the mentor and mentee to
attend a professional conference or event together.
What are my roles and responsibilities as a mentee?
● Commit to your development
● Assume responsibility for acquiring or improving skills and knowledge
● Discuss your Mentoring Agreement with your mentor
● Be open and honest on your goals, expectations, challenges and concerns
● Actively listen and question
● Build a supportive and trusting environment

4. ● Seek advise, opinion, feedback, and direction from your mentor
● Be open to constructive criticism/feedback and ask for it
● Come to your meetings prepared with a clear idea of what topics or issues you want to
address
● Respect your mentor’s time and resources
● Apply what you learn from your meetings back on the job
● Give feedback to your mentor on what is working or not working in the mentoring
relationship
What is the schedule for mentorship?
The mentorship program officially starts July 1st and runs through Oct 4th. You should strive to
meet at least 6 times during this period. (if you meet every two weeks you have just enough
time to meet 7 times, but I wanted to allow for vacations and things that come up)
What will we cover at the first meeting?
Before the meeting:
1. Develop your “getting to know you” questions
a. What else would I like to know about my mentor?
b. What else am I prepared to share about myself to build trust and rapport?
c. Am I curious about anything that I know about my mentor that deserves a follow-
up?
2. Start to think about what you want to be your development areas
a. What consistent feedback have I received in the last year (strengths &
weaknesses)?
b. What assignments/projects have I liked the most? Found to be the most
developmental?
c. What are the 2 to 3 things I want to accomplish this year? Longer-term?
d. Is there anything in my OKRs that I want to share or focus on in this relationship?
e. Consider the following list of questions:
i. What are the skills you want to develop?
ii. What strategies come to mind when looking at a situation?
iii. What do you see as possible solutions here?
iv. What outcomes are you after here? Are these outcomes reasonable
given the circumstances?
v. What resources are available to help you move forward?
vi. What key players do you need help from?
vii. What forces may help and/or hinder you?
viii. What other information do you need to arrive at a solution?
ix. What are the pros and cons of each solution?
x. What is the first step you need to take to achieve your preferred
outcome?
xi. What alternative strategies should you develop?

5. xii. How will you know you have mastered or successfully enhanced a
competency?
xiii. How will you apply your new skill?
During the meeting:
The mentor should help guide the conversation. The following areas will be covered:
1. Learning more about each other, and review goals and desires for mentorship
2. Set up ground rules and go over the Mentorship Agreement Form
3. Exploring your development areas you want to focus on
4. Starting to define goals and objectives for mentoring
5. Create action items for next meeting
After the meeting, self-reflect on how it went.
What is the Mentoring Agreement Form?
The mentorship agreement brings clarity to the mentor and mentee’s goals and expectations for
the relationship and defines their working relationship together. The sole purpose of completing
a mentorship agreement is to benefit your relationship with your mentor. Agreements will not be
collected or reviewed by anyone outside of your relationship.
The Mentorship Agreement form has the following sections:
1. Goals (what you hope to achieve as a result of this relationship; e.g., gain perspective
relative to skills necessary for success in your role, explore new career
opportunities/alternatives, obtain knowledge of organizational culture, networking, leadership
skill development, etc.)
2. Steps to achieving goals as stated above (e.g., meeting regularly,
manuscripts/grants, collaborating on research projects, steps to achieving independence, etc.):
3. Meeting frequency (frequency, duration, and location of meetings - at least twice a
month):
4. Confidentiality: Any sensitive issues that we discuss will be held in the strictest of
confidence. Issues that are off limits for discussion include:
5. Relationship termination clause: In the event that either party finds the mentoring
relationship unproductive and requests that it be terminated, we agree to honor that individual’s
decision without question or blame.
Guidelines for completing the agreement:
1. Review the mentorship template prior to your first meeting
2. By the end of your first meeting, you should have discussed initial thoughts on the
mentorship agreement and, minimally completed the meeting frequency and confidentiality
sections.
3. The mentorship goals and steps to achieve goals may require additional thinking
beyond the first meeting. Each of you should take these sections as action items and plan to
finalize the agreement during your second meeting.

6. 4. Refer back to and modify the agreement throughout the relationship, as necessary.
What will we cover every meeting?
● Discuss items of interest, current challenges, and recent successes.
● Review progress on any actions items determined at the end of the last meeting.
● Discuss action items (if any) to be completed before the next meeting and schedule next
meeting.
● Assess the effectiveness of the relationship and make changes if necessary.
Self-reflection after each meeting:
● Are you comfortable with the quality of your conversation with your mentor? If not, what
can you do to change this the next time you meet?
● What commitments have you made to your mentor? Yourself?
● What steps do you need to take to fulfill those? By when?
● What information should you share with your manager?
● What support do you need from your manager?
● What would you like to cover at your next meeting?
How can I be an effective active listener?
● Be an “active” listener. That means doing the following:
● Give the employee your undivided attention.
● Stay off your phone, off your computer, and avoid disruptions.
● Hear the person out. Avoid interrupting.
● Be aware of your non-verbal cues such as nodding, smiling, and maintaining eye
contact.
● To ensure that you heard the person correctly, Paraphrase “As I understand . . .” “So,
you’re saying that . . .” “Let me see if I got that . . .” Summarize “So, your three concerns
are . . .” “There seem to be a few issues . . .” “So, our main goals this time are . . “
How do I get better at receiving feedback?
Think of feedback as a learning opportunity. Exhibit positive or neutral body language.
Do use:
● Good Eye contact – no scary stares
● Interested/neutral facial expression
● Nodding of head to show understanding or agreement
● Calm tone of voice
● Even voice volume
● Sitting slightly forward
● Relaxed arm & hand placement

7. Do Not use:
● Reduced eye contact, scowling, or narrowing of eyes
● Tense or aggressive posture
● Rocking, pen bouncing, hand wringing, or your specific version of nervousness or
defensiveness
● Hands on hips or tightly clenched
● Arms tightly crossed across chest
● A blank expression
Other Tips:
● Don’t interrupt when the other person is explaining
● If you need more information ask for clarification or specific examples
● Paraphrase and repeat back to make sure you understood what was said. Keep doing
this until you are clear on the feedback.
● Say things like...
○ What I understood you just told me was…………………………………..
○ When I _________________ you think I…………………........................
○ What I hear you say is if I_________________ I will…………………….
● Provide relevant background information and explanations– not excuses. In your last
meeting with your mentor you may not have given enough background and there may
have been a misunderstanding – elaborate if necessary.
● Listen carefully and don’t become defensive. Do not “think ahead” preparing a rebuttal to
a comment, you may miss a very important piece of information.
● Compare this feedback with others you’ve received
● Discuss strategies and next steps.
● Provide possible solutions – you are the captain of your ship.
● Seek follow-up to your feedback session and share your progress with your mentor.